Kelly Perkins – Fit for me

22 Dec Kelly Perkins – Fit for me

Profile: Kelly Perkins

Background: Heart Recipient 1995, advocate for health, hearts, exercise, and blood, tissue and organ participation!

Sports:  Climbing, hiking, yoga

Personal: Founder, along with my husband, Craig Perkins, of Moving Hearts Foundation, author of The Climb of My Life, Scaling Mountains with a Borrowed Heart, 2007, Rowman & Littlefield, and co-founder of HydraCoach.

Moving Along…

What do you do for Physical Activity?

I practice Ashtanga Yoga 5-6 days a week, climb in a gym 2+- days a week, hike 4 times a week.

What is your inspiration for staying healthy and fit?

To maintain my health and strength.  Because I had lost my health, it is my most cherished asset.  I fear being sick, a state where my body is energetically mismatched to my mind (passions and goals). I may not be the strongest or fastest, but I can do most everything.  What keeps me going is not wanting to go backwards as I fully intend to be stronger with each and every passing year.

What is your diet like?

I believe there is no perfect diet and only you can choose what works for your body.  Michael Pollan has a great mantra: Eat food. Not too much.  Mostly plants. Personally I have no tension between health and taste when it comes to my food choices. I eat lean proteins including egg whites, white meat turkey and chicken, and a variety of  fish, mostly salmon.   I pay close attention to how my food is prepared always opting for the simplist fashion -steamed, grilled, dressing on the side.

About vegetarism, I think it’s a good idea if it works for your body.  Nutrition is very personal.  While I don’t want a Mortons style  “loin” of beef,  sustainable sources of beef, poultry, and fish are some of my best fuel.  I eat red meat about 4 times a year and on those occassions,  it’s organic and grass fed.  In many other countries, this is the way it’s normally prepared.  I think the high mountain areas of sustainable farming set a great example of how we have eaten for years and sets a standard for the direction we need to get back to.  We are on our way with a collective consciousness that will gain more and more momentum.  In the meantime, I eat animal products, but responsibly!

Lastly, I do go to Starbucks every day like many, and I see what people order.  It’s astounding the number of calories some consume before 7:00 am.  I choose non-fat dairy products (foam) and go without the sugary syrups.  Liquid calories matter….alot!

What is your biggest challenge with eating?

If healthy food is not available, I often go without.  Yes, don’t eat!   That is not good as my body weight tends to be on the light side.  What I have come to  do is to bring some kind of packable food with me.  This is especially important with travel.  I will say, having a external support from family members or friends makes a difference…so thank you out there who help to keep me “keeping on!”

Does your lifestyle effect the consistency or way you take care of your health?  I don’t take a vacation from my health as I don’t want my health to take a vacation from me.

What is your goal in the next 2 years?

My goal is to keep climbing as much as possible and to do so, I need to look after myself.  I intend to work with my physicians to pull this off!

Why are fitness goals important?

As they say, the odds of hitting your target go up dramatically when you see it!