Healthy Eating
What is the ideal heart healthy way to eat? Gain the knowledge and learn the skill of healthy eating!
Nutrition Basics
Here we are going to introduce to you how the HeartStrong.com Healthy Eating Plan works and how you should use this information as you progress through...
What is it that we are looking for in a well balanced diet? Well…in general there are two different types of nutrients that our body’s need to survive:...
A heart healthy diet is one that gets you all the macronutrients and micronutrients that you need while avoiding any harmful exposure to things in your...
Having an appropriate calorie balance is very important, however, if you eat predominately whole plant foods such as fruits and vegetables, it is much...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to talk about the very important topic of “calorie density.” Understanding this concept is crucial...
Lets take a moment to examine what you eat on a daily basis and figure out the average calorie density. This is actually simple to do, but having said...
Simply go through the HeartStrong.com program and learn as much as you can about a heart healthy diet and the basic concepts of healthy eating. Keep an...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we will discuss how to achieve healthy eating habits. Knowing the right healthy things to eat is one thing, but...
Take a moment to stop and think about what you eat every day. Think about your breakfast, lunch, dinner and the things that you snack on. How has your...
Carbohydrates
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to talk about the types of carbohydrates and the recommendations for how to integrate the right...
You may also hear the term “refined carbohydrates” or “processed carbohydrates”. These types of carbohydrates can still technically be complex...
Simple carbohydrates (sugars), such as glucose and fructose, are high in calorie content and low in nutritional value. These are called simple because...
Complex carbohydrates can be high in calorie content just like simple carbohydrates. However, these are also high in fiber and digest much slower than...
Dietary fiber is another type of carbohydrate. Fiber, while technically a carbohydrate, is not digested at all by the body and thus does not contribute...
You may have heart the term “glycemic index”, so let’s talk about it quickly. This is helpful for diabetics. Carbohydrates with a high glycemic index...
There is a major problem with the typical American diet in regards to carbohydrates. There are three components to this problem
Lets now examine how you can chose the right healthy carbohydrates for your body. Remember most whole plant foods will be high in healthy carbohydrates...
We have reviewed all the types of carbohydrates and discussed which are healthy and which are unhealthy. A heart healthy diet should be high in healthy...
Protein
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to discuss protein including how much protein you should eat daily and which proteins are the most...
Protein is not divided into different types like fats and carbohydrates, however, there is a difference in regards to the amino acids in the protein...
The USDA recommended daily allowance (RDA) for protein is 46 g/day for women and 56 g/day for men. Athletes such as marathon runners and bodybuilders...
While protein is a very important dietary component, too much protein can be harmful. Also, protein from the wrong source can have major negative...
Fat
In this HeartStrong.com video, we are going to talk about fat. The different types of fat and the recommendations about how to incorporate fat into...
Saturated fats are mostly derived from animals, but some plant based foods have saturated fats in them such as coconuts. The term “saturated” means...
Unsaturated fats include monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These fats are liquid at room temperature. These types of fats are considered good...
Hydrogenated fats are artificially produced. These are usually derived from unsaturated vegetable oils when hydrogen atoms are forced chemically into...
Trans fatty acids, a.k.a. “trans fat”, are mostly artificially produced through the chemical process of hydrogenation of unsaturated oils. There are...
Fat has more calories per gram than protein or carbohydrates. This is true no matter what type of fat we are talking about. For each gram of fat that...
We discussed previously which foods have which type of fat in them, but which foods are just high in fat in general? Here is a quick list of the foods...
In general, a good heart healthy diet is low in fat, however, the calories that you do get from fat should be the healthy unsaturated fat from natural...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article we will examine some important micronutrients. The word “micro” means small and thus “micronutrients” refer to...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to discuss how to read a label to be sure that the food item you are looking is healthy for you.
In this HeartStrong.com video/article we are going to examine some specific foods so we can look at the label an discuss why it is that they are good...
Micronutrients and Food Labels
In this video/article we are going to discuss the components of a whole food plant-based diet (WFPB diet). We will talk about how this is ideal for...
The health benefits of a whole food plant based diet are well established. Prevent and/or reverse heart disease, stroke, diabetes, many cancers and...
Explore this comprehensive list of resources to help you be successful in your plant based journey. Each category includes multiple resources with the...
Oil is fat. There is 120 calories in every tablespoon of oil. If you are trying to lose weight and are adding oil or eating foods with oil in them, it...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, lets talk about sugar. Why is avoiding added sugar important. Previously in the HeartStrong.com program we...
Many people ask, “If I can’t eat meat, dairy or add sugar/oil/salt to my food, what is left?” People have the misconception that they will end up...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we will explore meeting nutritional needs on a whole food plant based diet. Many people may be worried about...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, lets examine why it is that the USDA does not promote a whole food plant based diet. Consider this…the USDA has...
Explore this comprehensive list of resources to help you be successful in your plant based journey. From information handouts, online cooking courses,...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article we will summarize a whole food plant based diet (WFPB diet). The evidence is clearly showing that a whole foods...
Whole Food Plant-Based Diet
Mediterranean Diet
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to talk about the Mediterranean diet and how it impacts our overall heart health. The Mediterranean...
The Mediterranean Diet has a large portion of its calories from whole grains and starchy vegetables, about 4-6 servings per day. Examples include:
The Mediterranean Diet allows 4-8 servings of non-starchy vegetables per day. Remember that non-starchy vegetables include any vegetable except for...
The Mediterranean Diet calls for 2-4 servings of fruit per day. One serving is a medium sized fruit about the size of a baseball or ¼ cup of dried fruit.
The Mediterranean Diet includes 1-3 servings per day of legumes and nuts which can include:
The Mediterranean Diet allows only 2-3 servings of fish or shellfish per week. Many people think that the Mediterranean Diet has a lot of fish in it...
The Mediterranean Diet has 1-3 servings of poultry per week and also in 3 oz serving sizes just like fish. Similarly, avoid fried poultry and be sure...
The Mediterranean Diet gets its fat mostly from olive oil which is a somewhat good source of unsaturated fat. The amount is somewhat high, about 4-6...
The Mediterranean Diet includes red wine daily, one drink for women daily and two for men. Each serving is 4 ounces of wine. Other types of alcohol can...
Notice that red meat is NOT included anywhere in this diet. The Mediterranean Diet can include 2-3 servings of red meat PER MONTH as a substitute for...
USDA Dietary Guidelines
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to talk through the USDA Food Plan as it relates to heart health. These recommendations, updated in...
The USDA Food Plan wants half of your grain consumption to be whole grains and thus avoiding refined and processed carbohydrates. The serving size...
The USDA Food Plan recommends 2.5 cups of vegetables daily, which is 5 servings when following a 2000 calorie diet. Eating 2.5 cups of vegetables per...
The USDA Food Plan recommends 2 cups of fruits per day on a 2000 calorie diet, which is 4 servings. One serving is 1 medium sized fruit (about the size...
The USDA Food Plan recommends 3 servings of dairy daily on a 2000 calorie diet. They do stress the importance of using low fat dairy products.
The USDA Food Plan recommends 5 ½ ounces of protein daily on a 2000 calorie diet which is slightly less than the DASH diet and the AHA diet, which...
Other Heart-Healthy Diets
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to discuss the DASH diet and how it can help your heart health. As you will see, the content of the...
In this HeartStrong.com video/article, we are going to talk about reversing…yes reversing heart disease with diet. Atherosclerosis, the cholesterol...