Women's Health March 11, 2026 0 Comments

How One Simple Fitness Hack Transformed My Recovery After a Heart Attack—Stronger Than Ever Before

Ever set a New Year’s resolution thinking it’s gonna be just another routine check on the fitness list, only to have life slam a plot twist you didn’t see coming? That was me in 2022. At 53, I laced up my hiking boots aiming for a healthier me—focusing on consistent workouts and cleaner eating. Nothing fancy, just a steady climb to better health. But then, one seemingly innocent hike below the Hollywood sign flipped my script completely. That evening pain in my chest? Yeah, it wasn’t just an overworked muscle—it was a wake-up call I never expected: a heart attack. With zero family history and no prior health scares, who’d have thought my ticker had other plans? But here’s the real kicker—this wasn’t the end; it was the start of a radical transformation in how I live and breathe health. Let me take you through a journey of resilience, unexpected lessons, and the kind of commitment that reshapes everything—not just your body, but your whole damn life. LEARN MORE

7 min read

In 2022, I set a New Year’s Resolution to get healthier—I wanted to build a consistent workout habit and pay more attention to what I was eating. Then, one month into the year, at age 53, I went for a hike in the hills below the Hollywood sign, not knowing the steep trail would change my life.

As soon as I laid down that evening, I felt a deep pain in my chest, followed by an intense pinch in my left armpit. I put my clothes back on and drove myself to the hospital. I knew something was definitely wrong, but with no family history of heart disease or preexisting conditions, I never imagined it to be my heart.

The heart specialists at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank diagnosed me with a myocardial infarction caused by a temporary blockage of a coronary artery—more commonly known as a heart attack. Luckily, the blockage only reduced blood flow rather than completely stopping it, so I had no permanent damage and just needed one stent. I was discharged the day after. I left the hospital with several new prescriptions, including baby aspirin, a statin, a beta-blocker, and a blood thinner medication.

As I lay in the hospital bed, I reflected on how precious life really is. My son was getting married, and there was still so much I wanted to do. I always heard people say, “You can either make time for your wellness or take time for your illness.” And I didn’t have time for illness.

After my heart attack, I committed to my health in a new way.

As soon as I got out of the hospital, I started taking steps to improve my health. I started going to the gym to walk on the treadmill, starting with only 10 minutes a day, and gradually increasing the time until I was walking for one hour each day. As I became more comfortable, I started pushing myself by going on the bike after I walked.

I also met with a nutritionist at Cedars-Sinai who suggested I try to follow the basics of a Mediterranean diet (eating whole, colorful fruits and vegetables and healthy fats), with some tweaks to meet my taste and health goals. In addition to the Mediterranean diet, I tried to increase my protein intake and maintain a calorie deficit. These days, breakfast is my biggest meal of the day, followed by lunch, and then a lighter dinner.

My favorite breakfast is protein pancakes made with cottage cheese, egg whites, oats, cinnamon, and vanilla, with fruit on top. For lunch, I alternate between tuna mixed with a small amount of avocado mayonnaise or avocado toast with a green salad. I’ll have a sweet snack in the afternoon, like a couple of clementines, a Greek yogurt bowl with blueberries and honey, or apple slices and dark chocolate. For dinner, I often have air-fried wild salmon with veggies—my current obsession is air-fried sweet potato fries. I also drink about 40 ounces of water with electrolytes every day.

I’ve noticed I have more energy throughout the day on this nutrition plan. I don’t get “hangry” anymore, and I recover much faster from illnesses. My cardiologist was amazed at how quickly I recovered. Within a few months, I no longer needed the statin and beta-blockers. I did two sets of cardio stress tests a year after my heart attack, after which my doctor took me off my blood-thinner medication and cleared me to resume regular activity.

Once I was cleared, I tried a few group workout classes at Crunch Fitness and immediately loved the energy. Even when I was embarrassed by how much I struggled to get through a 45-minute class, the instructors were so supportive and pushed me to keep going and stick with it.

“After about six months, healthy living became part of me. I couldn’t imagine how I lived without it.”

Finding Crunch has been instrumental in my journey; I work out there six to seven days a week. I strength train with weights on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, do TRX circuit training on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and do a cardio dance class on Sundays. I also walk for about an hour each night.

All my workouts are full-body and incorporate both strength training and cardio. My favorite weightlifting moves are walking lunges with weights and any upper-body exercises, like an overhead press, to develop my arm strength. I also like to throw in fun but challenging classes like anti-gravity yoga to make sure I’m keeping my exercise routine full of fun.

TRY THE WH+ 30-DAY FULL BODY FITNESS CHALLENGE

My TRX class in particular is a testament to how far I’ve come. When I first started, I could barely make it through the TRX circuits and I called it a “nightmare class.” There is one station where we use the straps to pull ourselves up from a sitting position and I couldn’t even get myself an inch off the ground at first. But now, I can clear the ground by a lot because I have developed my arm strength so much and lost weight. It’s one of the classes I always look forward to each week.

I generally take Tuesdays off as my rest day, but I will still walk on my rest days. Even though I have a packed workout schedule, I give myself a lot of grace when I want to take a week off for vacation or switch things up if I am having an off day.

I’ve been surprised at how much health and fitness affected everything else in my world.

Working out has helped me develop resiliency to stress and taught me how to do hard things while maintaining my composure. I am more consistent, more patient, and more disciplined. I work better with people in my day job, and my relationships with my family and friends also blossomed. I sleep better and think more clearly now. My emotions are more regulated.

I’ve realized that being healthy in body and mind is the most loving gift you can give yourself, your spouse or partner, and your family. You are giving them more years of life and good health instead of sickness. Having my family to support me through this journey has been instrumental.

Like most people, I thought if I lost weight and looked better on the outside, I would feel better inside. But the opposite is true. When I feel better on the inside, I look better on the outside. When you’re healthy, you smile more, and other people notice your glow.

Oura Ring 4

This health tracker is essential for me to monitor my heart rate during workouts and throughout the day. I also appreciate that it tells me when I’m under too much stress and should take it easy.

On Cloud X 4

I’m obsessed with On Cloud shoes. I have three different styles for hiking, running, and cross-training. Not only are they lightweight and long-lasting, but they also support my narrow feet and high arches.

Higher Dose Full Body Red Light Mat

I spend 20 minutes every other day doing red light therapy at Media City Sun in Burbank, where they have professional red light therapy beds. It’s my anti-aging secret, and it also helps with sleep and muscle recovery. (This at-home rec is WH editor approved.)

I’ve learned these three lessons throughout my 4-year health journey.

1. Start small to create habits you can commit to.

Committing to my health journey, especially after my heart attack, was easy. But staying consistent week after week was hard, especially in the beginning when I wasn’t seeing substantial results quite yet.

After my heart attack, I had to start slow. I set a goal to walk just ten minutes a day, and increased the number by ten every week as I got stronger and more comfortable. Having achievable goals made it so much easier for me to stick with my workout plan, and after about three weeks, working out became a habit. When I kept it going for two months, it turned into a healthy lifestyle.

The more I stuck to the habit, the more I could extend the time and intensity of my workout, and the more accomplished I felt. It happens faster than you expect.

I also noticed how much better I felt mentally, which kept me going back every day. After about six months, healthy living became part of me. I couldn’t imagine how I lived without it.

2. Keep things simple in the beginning.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all of the health advice flooding social media. I avoid getting too complicated. Set realistic short-term and long-term goals and expectations that fit your body and then create a workout routine to achieve those goals.

I started with very simple exercises in the beginning; I walked on the treadmill and did basic bodyweight exercises and stretching on a mat. Only once I felt strong enough and was cleared by my doctor did I start taking classes and expanding my workout routine.

3. Mix up your routine to stay motivated.

Now I work out so consistently that it’s easy for me to get bored, so I try to incorporate new activities in my routine to keep things exciting. For example, I’ll try to get outside by joining walk groups, exploring hikes in the area, and playing pickleball a couple times a month.

Crunch also always has new things to explore, whether it’s new class offerings or equipment I haven’t tried yet. At first, I felt awkward trying new things for the first time with other people watching, but I quickly realized everyone at the gym just wants to see you succeed, no matter what that looks like.

Before I started my health journey, I had everything backwards. I was tired all the time, and I thought the best years of my life had passed. Once I overcame my medical issues, my life bloomed in unexpected ways. I’m even rethinking the bell curve lifecycle theory. It doesn’t have to head downward at all. It can keep climbing if you want it to.

adult performing a yoga pose in front of a child

Chase M. Keller

On my granddaughter’s first birthday last year, I was walking around with her in my arms for a few hours in the hot sun. My daughter-in-law stopped me and asked, “Are you okay holding her? Is she too heavy?”

“Not at all!” I told her.

Just to be there and be able to easily hold my grandbaby and walk around without getting tired was a blessing to me. To see my son smile and be a part of his new family celebration was worth every workout class I struggled through.