Category Archives: The Body
February Is American Heart Month
Sponsored by the American Heart Association each February, American Heart Month is a time to educate Americans about what they can do to battle the nation’s leading cause of death: cardiovascular disease.
Coronary heart disease is the most common form of cardiovascular disease in the United States and it often first appears as heart attack. In 2010, an estimated 785,000 Americans had a first heart attack and about 470,000 had a recurrent attack. Every 25 seconds, an American will have a heart attack. Every minute, an American will die from one.
You are at higher risk of heart disease if you are:
• A woman age 55 or older.
• A man age 45 or older.
• Or a person with a family history of early heart disease.
Although heart disease is still often perceived as a “man’s disease,” it is the leading cause of death in both men and women. In 2007, heart disease killed 309,821 men 306,246 women.
Another common misperception is that heart disease is an “older woman’s disease.” While heart disease is the leading cause of death in women ages 65 and older, it’s also the second-leading cause of death in women ages 45-64 and the third-leading cause of death in women ages 25-44.
Despite these grim statistics, many women still underestimate their own risk of getting heart disease. A 2009 survey revealed that 69 percent of women are aware that heart disease is their number one killer but that 33 percent of women don’t personally take this threat seriously.
Although American Heart Month is aimed at both men and women, one of its major initiatives each year is The Heart Truth Campaign. In 2002, the campaign introduced the Red Dress as the national symbol for women and heart disease awareness.
This year’s National Wear Red Day is Feb. 3, which provides an opportunity for women to promote awareness by wearing a favorite red dress or Red Dress Pin. In recent years, an increasing number of men at workplaces and elsewhere have expressed their solidarity by wearing a red shirt or tie.
Know the Signs and Symptoms
The American Heart Association, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, American Red Cross, and the National Council on Aging recently launched a new “Act in Time” campaign to increase awareness of heart attack the importance of calling 911 immediately after the onset of symptoms.
A heart attack may be sudden and intense. But it also can develop slowly with only mild pain or discomfort. Signs that suggest a heart attack is happening include:
• Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain.
• Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
• Shortness of breath. May occur with or without chest discomfort.
• Other signs. These may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea, or lightheadedness.
Prevention Strategies
The best way to fight heart disease is to adopt a healthy diet, increase your level of physical activity, and get regular screenings to identify early signs of trouble.
The American Heart Association recommends reading nutrition labels as you make your daily food choices and basing your eating pattern on these recommendations:
• Choose lean meats and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat.
• Select fat-free, 1 percent fat, and low-fat dairy products.
• Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet.
• Cut back on foods high in dietary cholesterol. Aim to eat less than 300 mg of cholesterol each day.
• Cut back on beverages and foods with added sugars.
• Select and purchase foods lower in salt/sodium.
• If you drink alcohol, drink in moderation. That means no more than one drink per day if you’re a woman and two drinks per day if you’re a man.
• Keep an eye on your portion sizes.
New Research Confirms Value of Healthy Lifestyle
In 2011, several new large-scale studies were published in medical journals showing that a healthy diet and regular exercise can significantly reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Among them was a Swedish study of 31,035 heart-disease free women and 5,680 women with a history of heart disease. All the women were ages 49-83.
Researchers used a survey to assess the subjects’ total antioxidant capacity (TAC) based on their intake of antioxidant foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, tea, and chocolate. Antioxidants neutralize the production of cell-damaging free radicals, which cause inflammation, and blood vessel damage and stiffening.
In women with no history of heart disease, the researchers found that those with the highest TAC had a 17 percent reduced risk of stroke compared to those with the lowest TAC.
In women with a history of heart disease, the results were even more dramatic: a 46-57 percent reduced risk of stroke in those with the highest TAC.
“Women with a high antioxidant intake may be more health conscious and have the sort of healthy behaviors that may have influenced our results,” lead researcher Susanne Rautiainen said in a statement. “However, the observed inverse association between dietary TAC and stroke persisted after adjustments for potential confounders related to healthy behavior such as smoking, physical activity and education.”
Another new study by Danish researchers examined the relationship between the intake of omega-3 fatty acids from fish and the development of cardiovascular disease in 49,000 women ages 15-49.
Over the eight-year study period, there were 577 cardiovascular events (heart attacks and strokes), including five deaths in women without any prior diagnosis of cardiovascular disease.
Among the study’s key findings:
• Women who seldom or never eat fish may be increasing their risk of cardiovascular disease by 50 percent or more, according to the first population-based study among younger women.
• Those who ate fish most often, especially fish rich in omega 3 fatty acids, had 90 percent lower risk than those who ate little or no fish.
• The link with cardiovascular disease was evident, even among women in their 30s.
Previous studies of the relationship between the intake of omega-3 fatty acids from fish and the development of cardiovascular disease have focused mainly on men.
“To our knowledge this is the first study of this size to focus exclusively on women of childbearing age,” lead researcher Marin Strøm said in a statement. “The biggest challenge in getting health messages like this across to younger populations is that usually the benefits may not be evident for 30 or 40 years, but our study shows this is not the case. We saw a strong association with cardiovascular disease in the women who were still in their late 30’s.”
Another new study by University of South Carolina researchers suggests that you can reduce your risk of death from heart disease or any other cause by maintaining or improving your physical fitness level even if you don’t lose weight.
The researchers studied 14,345 adult men for 11 years. They found that:
• Maintaining or improving fitness was associated with a lower death risk even after controlling for Body Mass Index (BMI) change.
• Every unit of increased fitness (measured as MET, metabolic equivalent of task) over six years was associated with a 19 percent lower risk of heart disease and stroke-related deaths and a 15 percent lower risk of death from any cause.
• Becoming less fit was linked to higher death risk, regardless of BMI changes.
• BMI change was not associated with death risks.
“This is good news for people who are physically active but can’t seem to lose weight,” lead researcher Duck-chul Lee said in a statement. “You can worry less about your weight as long as you continue to maintain or increase your fitness levels.”
For more information about American Heart Month:
Zucchini-Sausage Casserole; Perfect Winter Weekend Meal
Another cold weekend this winter, oh yay!!! How about a yummy warm casserole to fill ya up and make you warm! This one is pure comfort food!
ingredients
• 1 pound bulk pork sausage
• 4 medium zucchini
• 1 10 3/4 ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 8 ounce carton sour cream
• 4 cups chicken-flavor stuffing mix
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 3-quart baking dish; set aside. In a 12-inch skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until brown. Drain off fat. Return sausage to skillet.
2. Meanwhile, halve zucchini lengthwise; cut crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces. Add zucchini to sausage in skillet. In a small bowl, combine soup and sour cream; stir into sausage mixture. In a large bowl, combine stuffing mix and melted butter.
3. Spoon half of the stuffing mixture into the prepared baking dish. Spread sausage mixture over stuffing in dish. Spoon the remaining stuffing mixture evenly over sausage mixture. Bake, covered, about 30 minutes or until heated through. Makes 8 to 10 servings.
nutrition facts
Servings Per Recipe 8, Calories 487, Protein (gm) 14, Carbohydrate (gm) 28, Fat, total (gm) 34, Cholesterol (mg) 70, Saturated fat (gm) 16, Monosaturated fat (gm) 14, Polyunsaturated fat (gm) 4, Dietary Fiber, total (gm) 2, Sugar, total (gm) 5, Vitamin A (IU) 972, Vitamin C (mg) 8, Thiamin (mg) 0, Riboflavin (mg) 0, Niacin (mg) 3, Pyridoxine (Vit. B6) (mg) 0, Folate (µg) 40, Cobalamin (Vit. B12) (µg) 1, Sodium (mg) 1128, Potassium (mg) 497, Calcium (DV %) 91, Iron (DV %) 2, Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet
Gloria
It’s official! David Uhl’s newest Woman of Harley, “Gloria” is now available for sale worldwide. The unveiling in Arizona this past Saturday was the highlight of a day-long event at the Hideaway in Cave Creek and they now have the original painting on display at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale (see photo).
“I would be extremely lucky to ever have the chance to encounter another subject like Gloria. I consider her a national treasure. I may be jaded by an enhanced passion for history but to actually get the chance to spend time with someone who remembers many of the people in my vintage paintings is a HUGE deal for me. For example she was friends with Gene Baron (the Baron’s Apprentice) and Babe Tancrede (Babe) and several others. I think the world of this classy lady, and hope everyone in the industry gets the opportunity to meet her. Plans right now are for Gloria to join us in Daytona for a special event in March.”
In this series, “Gloria” joins the ranks of “Ruby”, “Betty”, “Pearl”, “Rose”, “Ruth”, “Evelyn” and “Stella”. This classic, historic image celebrates the colorful past of Gloria Tramontin Struck, an amazing woman, 86 years young, who started riding at the age of 16 and joined the Motor Maids in 1946. She has logged over 500,000 miles through all 48 continental states in the U.S. and was inducted into the Sturgis Hall of Fame in 2011. The two gentlemen in the background (Ben Campanelli and Ed Kretz, Jr) both raced in Daytona and were acquaintances of Gloria. The following links provide additional information on Gloria:
Contact Greg for sales info. 303-913-4840 at Uhl Studios
Four Legendary Custom Bike Builders to Build Tribute Bikes for Rolling Thunder’s 25th Anniversary
With the 25th anniversary of Rolling thunder coming up in 2012, this is a great way to kick it off!
Rolling Thunder in Washington, D.C., an annual motorcycle Demonstration Run that attracts over 450,000 motorcycles and one million attendees. To commemorate this honorary event, four custom motorcycles will be built by four legendary bike builders.
“The commemorative bike build is such a great idea and it’s one of the better things we’ve ever done. It’s the builders giving back to veterans and troops and all branches of the service with this project. We’re very grateful to the sponsors and everyone involved for their generous support and recognition of Rolling Thunder’s efforts,” said Ted Shpak, President of Rolling Thunder.
Jay Allen, creator of the legendary Broken Spoke Saloon, is facilitating the tribute build project.
Rolling Thunder is reaching out to some of the world’s top bike builders to complete the military recognition to include all branches of the service.
“This history-making tribute bike build is coming together so beautifully. S&S Cycle and Baker Drivetrain are the definition of American made pride and they’ve stepped up to the plate bringing their high quality products to this entire project,” said Allen.
The bikes will be unveiled at the 25th Anniversary event on May 26th and the entire build process will be featured in leading motorcycle publications. U. S. Marine Corps: Brigitte Bourget of Bourget’s Bike Works feature with Iron Works magazine; U.S. Navy: Dar Holdsworth of Darwin Motorcycles feature with Cycle Source; U.S. Coast Guard: Kiwi Mike of Kiwi Indian Motorcycle Company feature with American Iron; U.S. Air Force: Billy Lane of Chopper’s Inc. feature with The Horse Backstreet Choppers. The build project is destined to be epic as these road-worthy bikes will then be toured around the country with the traveling “Wall that Heals,” at various military installations and events, Veteran Affairs locations, major motorcycle rallies, and potentially taken overseas to the
troops. An impressive publicity campaign and production surrounding the Rolling Thunder 25thAnniversary observance is currently underway. Further production details to be announced.
“We’re so excited and honored to be a part of this monumental, historic event and to be selected because our bikes are no-compromise, American made motorcycles,” said Dar Holdsworth, who hails from a military family having served in Desert Storm, his father in
Vietnam and his grandfather in WWII. “We truly understand that we could not do what we do without the sacrifice of the men and women of our Armed Forces. Each and every soldier has my deepest gratitude and respect.”
Rolling Thunder’s Demonstration Run has evolved to be not only a demonstration for the
Prisoner of War, Missing in Action (POW/MIA) issue but also a demonstration of patriotism and respect for Service Members and Veterans from all wars. visit rollingthunderrun.com
Tex-Mex Chicken and Rice Casserole
This time of year casseroles are the way to go, warm, easy and you get to use the oven which might help to warm the home up a bit! This one is a very yummy favorite of ours!
Makes: 6 servings
Serving size: 1 cup
Prep: 20 mins
Bake: 425°F 25 mins
Stand: 5 mins
ingredients
1/2 cup chopped onion (1 medium)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 6.9 ounce package chicken-flavored rice and vermicelli mix
1 14 ounce can chicken broth
2 cups water
2 cups chopped cooked chicken or turkey
1 cup chopped seeded tomatoes (2 medium)
3 tablespoons canned diced green chile peppers, drained
1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (2 ounces)
directions
1. In a medium saucepan cook onion in hot oil over medium heat until tender. Stir in rice and vermicelli mix (including seasoning package); cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in broth and water. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes (liquid will not be fully absorbed).
2. Transfer the rice mixture to a large bowl. Stir in chicken, tomatoes, chile peppers, basil, chili powder, cumin, and black pepper. Transfer to a 2-quart casserole.
3. Bake, covered, in a 425 degrees F oven for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings.
nutrition facts
Servings Per Recipe 6, Calories 280, Protein (gm) 20, Carbohydrate (gm) 28, Fat, total (gm) 10, Cholesterol (mg) 52, Saturated fat (gm) 4, Monosaturated fat (gm) 4, Polyunsaturated fat (gm) 1, Dietary Fiber, total (gm) 2, Sugar, total (gm) 3, Vitamin A (IU) 632, Vitamin C (mg) 6, Thiamin (mg) 0, Riboflavin (mg) 0, Niacin (mg) 7, Pyridoxine (Vit. B6) (mg) 0, Folate (µg) 48, Cobalamin (Vit. B12) (µg) 0, Sodium (mg) 931, Potassium (mg) 236, Calcium (DV %) 101, Iron (DV %) 2, Starch () 2, Lean Meat () 2, Fat () 1, Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet
Red Fang!
As dedicated readers to Garage-Girls you should all know about Rally TV, The production company that brings you all the killer vids from the major motorcycle rallies. I swear there is a reason why I’m selflessly promoting Rally TV in a full throttle rock article….. Yeah, so we are all in Vegas for Las Vegas Bike Fest covering the event for Rally TV and it was literally non-stop work, out early shooting and up late editing. The editing room for some reason always ends up being where people come and hang out and ‘bs about fun, stupid stuff. So in line with Fun stupid stuff, in walks in Paul from Bare knuckle Choppers, he sits down and pulls up a video for this band Red Fang. At first I was like what’s the name of them “Red Tang??” He was like “No, just check these guys out!” so we watched the video for the song Wires. Not sure if it was a combination of working so late out in Sin City and the tiredness had set in, but we all busted a gut rolling on the floor laughing at these guys. The video was hilarious, the band of dudes hanging out drinking, they land a check in the mail for $5,000 to make a music video. Watching dudes spend 5 grand to make a video can be rather entertaining if your the guys in Red Fang. It’s a stellar vid complete with a beater car smashing stuff on an active airport runway. Yeah we were hooked, Oh I’m sure the fact that these guys ROCK had us hooked as well. After listening to a few tracks, it was on. I had to track these guys down for Full Throttle Rock. After a few emails I was in touch with Bryan Giles guitar and lead vox. He spent some time on the phone with me filling me in on the Portland Oregon based band made up of Bryan, Aaron Beam on bass, David Sullivan on guitar and John Sherman laying down the drums. Bryan informed me these guys are all transplants to the Portland area and it’s all music that got them playing together. Having all played in previous bands and some hailing from the same bands, it was just a good fit to wind up all jamming together. The writing process is a communal effort with everyone pitching in with riffs, hooks or lyrics. Ego’s get left at the door and everyone keeps an open mind to what one of the guys will bring to the table. Working this way gives them a better brand practice and something that was initially introduced which may not have been so great, can easily turn into something killer once they all have a chance to contribute. Bryan told me.
From band practice to playing live shows Red Fang manages to have fun always. “We are older dudes, so it’s not that insane, like you won’t find pools of jello or anything too wild, but we manage to have our fun”. Playing live is a big part of this band and they are getting ready to embark on 5 weeks of touring in the US. I asked Bryan if he could share any crazy stories from the road, “oh yeah, well we just got done a show, packed up the van and were about 40 miles out of town when a deer ran out into the road, the van swerved and flipped twice. None of us had seat belts on and we were all just rolling around in the van with equipment everywhere. We all walked away and John our drummer had to get 1 stitch, just 1. It was pretty crazy, we didn’t hit the deer and we didn’t get messed up after flipping twice. Our girlfriends picked us up and the next day, we loaded the equipment back up and played that night.” Yes, these dudes are hardcore!
Bryan told me doing shows in Europe are pretty crazy. “The crowds are intense, 40,000 people, all enthusiastic to you. they sure do make you feel welcome over there. The Hospitality is the best, make sure you have enough to eat and a place to crash, we love it over there”
We talked about how the guys in the band are all pretty much self taught musicians that credit their experience to playing in bands and learning from other band mates.
Red Fang debuted in 2009 with the self titled album “Red Fang” and Followed that with “Murder the Mountains” in 2011. Both albums are filled with heavy bassy, driven riffs with killer guitars and heavy drums. These guys play it heavy and hard and deliver a sound any picky heavy metal enthusiast will dig. Self described as “Beer Soaked, Ass kicking Heavy Rock.”, yeah I’d say that about sums ’em up.
In General Red Fang is made up of dudes living normal lives, they work, they have fun and they like music. You got to check them out and catch the video for Wires.
Kick off the New Year with Healthier Recipes!
New Year always means eating better, lighter. lets face it everyone indulges over the Holidays and wants to get “back on track” eating wise in the New Year. Here is a great lighter recipe that might help you stick to your plan!
Asian-Style Chicken and Pasta
ingredients
•2 cups dried Chinese egg noodles or fine egg noodles (4 ounces)
•1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
•1/3 cup bottled stir-fry sauce
•1 cup snow pea pods or fresh sugar snap peas, tips and stems removed, and cut up
•1 medium red sweet pepper, cut into bite-size strips
•2 teaspoons peanut oil or cooking oil
•5 ounces cooked chicken breast, cut into strips (about 1 cup)
•2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cashews or peanuts or toasted sliced almonds
directions
1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain; set aside. Stir ginger into the bottled stir-fry sauce; set aside.
2. In a large skillet cook and stir peas and sweet pepper in hot oil over medium-high heat for 3 to 5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add cooked noodles, chicken, stir-fry sauce, and cashews; heat through.
nutrition facts
Servings Per Recipe 4, Calories 235, Protein (gm) 18, Carbohydrate (gm) 24, Fat, total (gm) 7, Cholesterol (mg) 49, Saturated fat (gm) 1, Dietary Fiber, total (gm) 3, Sodium (mg) 540, Vegetables () 1, Starch () 1, Other Carb () 1, Very Lean Meat () 2, Fat () 1, Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet
Holiday Wishes to you All from all of us here at Garage-Girls!
Christmas Brunch Ideas
Looking for a recipe to serve on Christmas morning? This is a favorite!
Spicy Brunch Lasagna
Makes: 16 servings
Prep: 40 mins
Chill: 8 hrs to 24 hrs
Bake: 350°F 1 hr
Stand: 30 mins
Cool: 5 mins
ingredients
•1 1/2 pounds bulk Italian sausage
•1 24 ounce carton cottage cheese
•1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
•1/4 cup snipped fresh chives
•1/4 cup finely shredded carrot
•18 eggs
•1/3 cup milk
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/2 teaspoon pepper
•2 tablespoons butter
•1 14 ounce jar purchased alfredo sauce
•1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning, crushed
•8 oven-ready lasagna noodles
•4 cups frozen shredded hash browns, thawed
•2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
directions
1. In a large skillet, cook sausage until browned. Drain off fat; set aside. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine cottage cheese, chives, green onions and carrots; set aside.
2. In a very large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat; pour in egg mixture. Cook over medium heat, without stirring, until mixture begins to set on the bottom and around the edges. With a spatula or a large spoon, lift and fold the partially cooked egg mixture so that the uncooked portion flows underneath. Continue cooking over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes or until egg mixture is cooked through, but is still glossy and moist. Immediately remove from heat.
3. In a small bowl, combine the alfredo sauce and Italian seasoning. Spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce mixture over the bottom of a 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Layer half of the lasagna noodles in the dish, overlapping as necessary. Top with half of the remaining sauce, half of the cottage cheese mixture, half the hash browns, half of the scrambled egg mixture and half of the sausage mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the cheese. Repeat layers.
4. Cover dish tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
5. Remove from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking. Remove plastic wrap and cover dish with foil. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes more or until heated through. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting into portions. Makes 16 servings.