By Michelle Kruse

Is it possible to stick to your diet and exercise routine when you’re on vacation? Last weekend, we took our first family camping trip. I ate too many s’mores and other processed junk, didn’t drink enough water and got very little sleep. I forgot to take my fish oil and CardioDaily. I woke up yesterday with zits like a teenager, a bladder infection and a cold. I’m suffering the inflammatory aftermath of a weekend “off the wagon.”

So, what’s a girl to do? I’m determined to flush the junk out of my system by this weekend. (We’ve got a fun weekend planned – at a lake house with friends.) Clearly, one weekend can wreak havoc, but a slip-up doesn’t derail everything. I’m back to my routine this week. I’m eating lots of colors, no white flours and sugars, and drinking only water and tea. I’m also back to my exercise routine. I’ve got a sprint triathlon in less than two weeks and although it is a shorter distance than I’ve been doing so far this year, I still want to perform well. That means saying no to the junk at the lake this weekend.

Sticking to my regular routine while on vacation as someone’s guest will be tricky, but I’ve got a plan. I have already started planning when I’ll be able to squeeze in work outs and the healthy foods I’ll bring along – whey protein, apples, bananas, pre-cut veggies and other “convenience” foods. I’m sure everyone will be happy to have a designated driver, so that means no temptation to drink high-calorie margaritas and other drinks. It also means I’ll be up before everyone else and probably back from my run before anyone realizes I’m gone. I’ll let you know how it goes.

By Michelle Kruse

My dad spent the day in the cath lab today. A failed stress test sent him there. Fortunately, his angiogram showed that his blockage was in a very small vein and that it could be treated with medication only. He had triple bypass surgery twelve years ago and angioplasty several years before that. I was just 14 years old when we got the middle of the night telephone call that he was headed home from a business trip via medical helicopter suffering from a heart attack.

I’m certainly no medical expert, but thanks to my job, I do know a bit about heart health/procedures/treatment, etc. I fielded a lot of questions from my family and friends about what my dad was having done today. What a help this video was.

It’s comforting to know exactly what’s going on behind the closed doors to the cardiac catheterization lab. I wish I would have had something like this to watch 20 years ago.

Sometimes people ask me why I care so much about diet and how I can love exercise so much. My dad is part of my motivation. He was just 42 when he had his first heart attack. I want to do all that I can to make sure that doesn’t happen to me.