The Heart of it All

Thanks to everyone for hanging in here! It seems like my blog world has recently been overrun with people dealing with family stresses and losses- my thoughts are with all of you going through that.

I just wanted to pop in quickly to shed a little light on what's been going on in our world. During what should have been a routine appointment last week, K.'s dad was informed that he would be needing a triple bypass- and while it wasn't exactly an emergency situation they did recommend that he do it as soon as possible, which ended up being the very next day. Although they aren't biologically my family, I am certainly close to them and I wanted to be present as much as I could throughout the whole ordeal. It was a very hectic and stressful 24 hours- the hardest part for me was watching K. try to deal with it all. He was out on a stress-reducing bike ride when his mom texted to say that his dad had come out of surgery and everything had gone smoothly. When I told K. that things were looking good it was as if every emotion he had been ignoring just washed over him, it was so good to see relief finally settle in. We learned shortly after the procedure that they ended up doing a QUADRUPLE bypass and that his dad's heart had essentially been a ticking time bomb.

Everyone is feeling quite thankful- he could have had a heart attack while he was out riding his bike, working in the yard or even just during a stressful drive to work. That would have damaged the heart muscle so that it wouldn't be recovering so fast (or even worse, which I don't think I need to say). His dad is home now, coming around quite quickly, but still has a long road ahead. 

What this experience shows me is that diet and exercise aren't just about vanity or stress relief, it's first and foremost about our health. And while I still strongly believe that we can enjoy all things in moderation, it does make me look closely at the occasional questionable food choices we make (lazy nights of ordering in pizza, post-bar stops at Taco Bell, etc.) and really want to limit them even further going forward.

As I dive back into regular blogging there will be a heavy focus on meal planning as we are going to be preparing lots of food for his parents. Just like everything else in life there are always ways to improve. Although I know that generally speaking I sit on the healthier end of the spectrum I have a few changes to my diet that I want to make as well. I also want to be sure that exercise for health is something that I achieve daily- just because I miss a planned workout doesn't mean I can't take a 30 minute stroll to enjoy the sunset. I'm feeling a renewed sense of gratitude for my body and what it allows me to do and I want to repay it for all I put it through.

I plan to return with regularity (and pictures and recipes and workouts, oh my!) on Monday. 

Enjoy the weekend!