Good morning!

“One day you will be welcome, Henry. Grocery stores of the future will bind together uniting in the agreement to let poodles roam their aisles as do we. Until that, handsome young, Henry. You will remain at home with your sister, Phoebe, protecting this house!”

Henry tilted his head for the entirety of the pep talk and seemed to gather faith that all would, one day, be right in the world. He then grabbed his stuffed ballerina bear, Elizabeth, and went to sit on our couch, guarding the front gates.

We don’t have gates.

“David??! I thought you were coming! I’ve been in the car waiting.”

“A car is not good enough for my baby. Today. Today, sweetheart, we’re walking!”

“I love to walk, too, but we need dog food (30 lb bag), almonds, tomatoes, avocados… no, we’re driving.”

“The grocery is 1.1 miles down the path, so that’s vitamin D from the sunshine; 2,200 steps which is movement that supports stronger bones, less risk for Alzheimer’s disease, and less risk for heart disease; more self-esteem, more mojo… no, honey, I want to walk.”

Both dog heads have remained tilted as the word W-A-L-K has been said 3 times. It’s cute. Each time they hear the word w-a-l-k, they tilt in the opposite direction. I love that.

Hands-on hips, delivering what she must believe to be checkmate, “How, Dr. Walk Lover, are you going to get that 30 lb bag of dog food home?”

“Grocery cart”

“For over a mile! Your watch pedometer won’t be able to track your steps. It’ll be sitting on the cart handle.”

Dang, that’s a low blow.

“I’LL STICK IT IN MY POCKET!”

UGH! Checkmate – canceled, young lady! (I did not say that to her, just wrote it)

“How are you going to get the cart back?!?!”

“I’m going to W-A-L-K it back.” 

Dogs still watching.

“That’s going to be over 4…”

She must’ve bit her tongue because I knew that she knew that I knew she walked 5 miles with her friends yesterday morning from our local coffee shop.

She knows walking is my true love (It’s my bag, BABY!), and similar to previous discussions, my sweetheart gives in. I’m certain, in her mind, to fight another day.

She comes in to hug it out.

I did win the marriage lottery.

“When you go, make sure you don’t forget the avocados.

“I was reading…”

{she’s so smart, she reads a lot. She’s pretty, too. and nice… and so sweet}

…that 79% of an avocado’s weight is water or fiber. They’re a nutrient-dense food that fills me up.

“Plus, being married to a cardiologist, I should probably always be eating heart-healthy fruits, right?”

Sweet, she just admitted to the marriage.

“Come to think of it, are the other items on this list good for heart health?”

“You got it babe. Tomatoes have nutrients like potassium that may help reduce blood pressure. Almonds may support heart health because they contain unsaturated fats that can help lower bad cholesterol. I could really go on and on here.”

“Plus”, she smiles and says in a really strange, deep voice, “avocados have the good fats, don’t raise LDL (she air quotes) bad cholesterol all of which reduces the risk of chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes.* She’s staring at me. Smiling, tilting her head, and raising her eyebrows.

“Wait a second. Do you think that’s my voice? That’s not my voice!”

She turns away and starts scrubbing a pan, laughing.

I’ve never heard her make fun of my voice before and I do know that she’s ticklish.

I quickly scoot around the kitchen island, moving in for the ‘tickle’.

She drops the pan, “STOP! STOP! DAVID!!! I WAS JUST TRYING TO SHOW YOU THAT I READ YOUR NEWSLETTERS!!!”

P.S. Don’t forget to grab some other heart smart foods while you are at the store. Check out some of my grocery list staples below:

Fruits and veggies

• Avocados
• Bananas
• Tomatoes
• Leafy greens like spinach or kale

Nuts & seeds

• Almonds
• Walnuts

Whole grains

• Oatmeal
• Whole wheat bread

Lean sources of protein

• Chicken
• Salmon
• Tofu
• Beans

-Dr. David Sabgir

*following 110,487 people (primarily white health professionals and nurses) found that people who self-reported eating at least one avocado a week was associated with reduced cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease, but not risk for stroke, than participants who never or rarely ate avocados. It doesn’t show a direct cause and effect of course, but the researchers took into account other diet and lifestyle behaviors of the study participants, and the findings provide more support for avocados as a heart-healthy fruit