Changes I've Made Since CABG

208 days since my surgery (Almost 7 months)

I have one month left of my virtual Cardiac Rehab, and I want to celebrate some of the positive changes I've made with the help of my doctors, my husband, my physical therapists, and my nutritionist. 

I'm eating more fish.

This is a very positive change for me, and Jim and I are now eating tilapia and grouper at least once a week, and some tuna as well. I'm actually shocked at how fast and easy it is to cook fish, and this past week my nutritionist changed my life when she told me I can actually just cook it from frozen. So in 15 minutes we can have dinner on the table. She said fish has omega-3s that are great for your heart health and we should eat 2 servings a week. She said fatty fish like salmon and tuna are especially good for you.

Salmon has never been a favorite of mine, so she recommended we try swordfish.  I'll let you know how that goes.

I'm doing my cardiac rehab.

This involves exercise, yes, but also meeting with my nutritionist and also watching a lot of content about behavior, how to think differently, stress management, etc. I am nor perfect, and I give myself maybe a C+ on this, but I am also a very hard grader.  

I really like the VHPGO virtual cardiac rehab that RUSH booked me up with, and the live physical therapist and nutritionist appointments I do via the computer. I talked about this before, it is a great platform. I also found Cardiac Rehab videos online and subscribed to their content. I like getting their videos and content in my inbox because they have great content and it reminds me to stay on track. I will probably keep connecting with their content when my virtual rehab ends in a month.

I am drinking more water.

Yes, we know we need to do this. But I am actually doing it. I have planned my day to ensure that I have a water bottle where I need it, when I need it. Talking with my nutritonist, I admitted that I am a pro at using work as an excuse for why I don't do what I need to do. So she gave me some accountability tricks and now I am a hydrating pro.

I am doing Pilates, yoga and cardio.

I was already doing some cardio with my Meta Quest 2 (Oculus) and the Supernatural and Beat Saber apps. And in November I upgraded to an Amazfit Balance smart watch to better monitor my heart rate, HRV, etc. (Yes, I love tech and VR and all of that stuff.) But thanks to my cardiac rehab I have a plan with heart rate goals, I understand why and when I want to increase my heart rate, where to aim on the BORG scale and so much more. So now the tech I love is a lot more useful to me. 

I also understand the importance of strength training and mobility training. The VHPGO has a range of online classes on demand, and I have done some pilates and yoga classes on the mat, and I can absolutely feel the difference in my body. 

I'm being more purposeful.

It is so easy to give in to the urgent and immediate needs of work, friends and family every day. But it is far more important to ensure that I am doing what I need to do to recover and become a stronger, healthier human. That means making purposeful changes, and purposeful decisions every day. I am nowhere near perfect, but I am planning small things into every day that purposefully get me closer to my goals, From planning trips to the kitchen for a water refill (which at my work involves a several minute walk to get my bones moving) to forcing tilapia onto my dinner menu rotation. It also means saying "no" to things if I already have a workout planned that afternoon, or know I need to spend time doing something else that moves me closer to my goals. 

This week will mark 7 months since my surgery, and about 8 months since I found out I even needed surgery. I am better now than I was then. But I want to keep getting better. For me, better means stronger.