A walk is so good for your heart and even better when you’re with friends at the 2012 Tampa Bay Heart Walk. This Saturday, join us at Raymond James Stadium for a morning filled with inspiration, motivation and fun. We never forget that part! But what a great thing to know that for every one hour of vigorous exercise like a brisk walk, we can live two hours longer. I’ll take each and every hour I can, especially with our lovely weather.

   In Kelly’s Kitchen, it’s all about healthy eating to maintain our hearts, and Kate Sawa from the American Heart Association told us what makes up a healthy diet.  For instance, if you’re eating around 2,000 calories a day, make sure you’re getting lots of fresh fruits and veggies, oily fish, fiber-rich whole grains and lighten up on the salt and sugar, And it’s always a good idea to cut back on the processed meats and saturated fats.

   But behind the Walk are people, survivors like Sarah. When she was just two months old, a routine checkup discovered a “routine heart murmur” that led to a heart procedure when she was just ten months old. Sarah’s doctors found that she had a congenital heart defect called Atrial Septal Defect (ASD), or a hole in her heart, along with Pulmonary Valve Stenosis. Sarah’s surgery was a success and now the twelve year old has her sights set on becoming a vet.

   We love success stories from survivors, but you know we have so much work to do, and the Heart Walk will help with that. There’s no charge to register, and when you cross the finish line there will be a free Subway sandwich waiting for you! Please get a team together and help us raise funds to fight heart disease and fund research at tampabayheartwalk.org. See you Saturday morning at Raymond James Stadium, and hear the full interview with Kate here!

WORDS OF WISDOM FROM KELLY’S KITCHEN

Great hearts steadily send forth the secret forces that incessantly draw great events - Ralph Waldo Emerson