This blog post features a few key takeaways from Dr. Megan’s Wellness Your Way podcast with Heather Watkins about hearth health for women, and why feeling fit and healthy doesn’t always tell the whole story. Find the full episode here and be sure to subscribe to Wellness Your Way so you don’t miss future episodes!

Meet Our Guest: Heather Watkins

Heather Watkins is the founder of Best Health Wellness, a coaching practice dedicated to helping women improve their metabolism, hormones, strength, and overall health. With more than 30 years of experience in fitness, nutrition, and wellness, she has built her career around helping women create sustainable, healthy lifestyles. After experiencing a heart attack at age 48, she became even more passionate about helping women understand their cardiovascular risk, advocate for their health, and look beyond the basics of wellness when it comes to heart health for women. Heather is also the author of The Wake Up Call and the e-book 5 Things Every Woman Needs to Know About Her Heart.

Top Insights from Heather Watkins’ Interview:

1. A Healthy Lifestyle Doesn’t Eliminate Every Risk
   Heather spent decades exercising, eating well, and prioritizing her health, yet she experienced a heart attack at 48. Her story highlights why looking beyond how we feel and how we look can sometimes be important.
2. Pay Attention to Unusual Changes in Your Body
   In the days leading up to her heart attack, Heather experienced chest tightness and burning that came and went, as well as unusual heaviness and difficulty during exercise. She initially attributed the symptoms to other causes and continued with her normal routine.
3. Family History Can Be More Complicated Than It Looks
   Heather didn’t have an immediate family history of heart attacks, but she later recognized that heart disease in her grandparents was an important piece of her family history that she had not given enough weight.
4. Feeling Fit Isn’t the Same as Knowing What’s Happening Internally
   Heather could run five miles and had spent most of her life being physically active, but she still had underlying cardiovascular issues. The conversation emphasizes the importance of considering objective health information alongside fitness and how you feel day to day.
5. Sometimes Prevention Requires More Than Lifestyle Alone
   Heather initially tried to address her cardiovascular risk through diet and lifestyle, but ultimately needed medication as another layer of her prevention strategy. She and Megan discuss the importance of recognizing that medication and healthy lifestyle habits don’t necessarily have to be an either-or choice.
6. Cardio Doesn’t Have to Mean Exhausting Workouts
   Heather is a strong advocate for Zone 2 cardio, especially for women in their 40s and 50s. She encourages making cardiovascular exercise a regular part of a balanced routine without assuming that every workout needs to be intense.
7. Strength Training Becomes Increasingly Important With Age
   Heather encourages women to prioritize strength training to help preserve or build muscle and support bone density. Her approach combines strength work with regular cardiovascular exercise rather than relying on one type of training.
8. Eating Enough Matters
   Heather pushes back against restrictive dieting and the idea that women need to survive on minimal food to change their bodies. She encourages consistent meals built around protein, fruits and vegetables, fiber, carbohydrates, and other nourishing whole foods.
9. Stress and Boundaries Deserve Attention Too
   Heather recognized that years of business ownership, parenting, overachievement, and people-pleasing had created a persistent level of stress. Since her heart attack, she has worked on saying no, setting boundaries, delegating, and reducing the amount she takes on.
10. Sleep Is a Non-Negotiable Part of Health
    Heather now prioritizes sleep and starts winding down early in the evening, recognizing its importance for hormones, metabolism, appetite regulation, and overall recovery. For her, protecting rest has become an essential part of her health routine.

Want to hear the full episode, including warning signs, genetic impacts on heart health, cardiovascular testing, and so much more?

Check out the podcast episode here!