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Choosing your goal
There are four goals to choose from in the Healthy Heart Challenge, each about improving your health and reducing your heart disease risk factors. Below is an overview of each goal to help you choose the best one for you. It’s important to choose the goal that is most relevant to you so you can get the most out of the Challenge. |
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1. Lower high cholesterol levels
Almost 30% of Australian women aged 30-65 have high cholesterol yet most don’t know that it is a heart disease risk factor. You might not know if you have high cholesterol because there are often no signs or symptoms. Get checked out by your GP and if you do have high cholesterol, this goal is vital for you because you need to manage it in order to reduce your risk of heart disease. This goal will get you on the right track by helping you understand cholesterol and the small changes you can make to your diet and physical activity to make a big difference. Find out more about this goal. Find out more about this goal > |
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2. Lower high blood pressure
Nearly 30% of Australian women aged 30-65 have high blood pressure yet most don’t know that it is a heart disease risk factor. There are often no symptoms so it’s important to get your blood pressure checked regularly by your GP. If you do have high blood pressure, it is vital that you manage it to reduce your risk of heart disease. This goal will teach you how to do this by making small lifestyle changes that you can maintain, such as reducing the amount of salt in your diet and scheduling regular check-ups to properly monitor your blood pressure. Find out more about this goal > |
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3. Be active every day
Regular physical activity is not only important for your weight, it’s also vitally important for your heart, helping to keep it healthy and manage other heart disease risk factors such as high blood pressure. This goal doesn’t mean hours in the gym each day. Instead, aim for 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking, on all or most days. The Challenge will give you lots of tips and tools for fitting this into your daily routine, and you can make it more fun by signing up to be regularly active with a friend, family member or work colleague. Find out more about this goal > |
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4. Improve everyday nutrition
As you know, a healthier diet leads to a healthier body. It also leads to a healthier heart. If you choose this goal, you don’t need to confine yourself to carrot sticks and water. Instead, the aim is to make small yet realistic lifestyle changes to improve your everyday nutrition and therefore, improve your heart health. We’ll help you out with lots of delicious recipes and ideas for healthier choices to help you plan your weekly meals and snacks. |
Once you have chosen your goal and registered for the Healthy Heart Challenge, you’ll have access to a Goal Planner to help you work out what you want to achieve. You can set an overall goal for the Challenge (perhaps an event you’re training for or developing a new healthier habit) then break it down into steps over the six weeks. You can even identify rewards to keep you motivated!
Remember, the Challenge is about improving your heart health so you can be as specific as you like about your goals. Check out these ideas from last year’s Challenge:
Remember, the Challenge is about improving your heart health so you can be as specific as you like about your goals. Check out these ideas from last year’s Challenge:
| Challenge goal | Personal goal |
| Lower high cholesterol levels | Swap full cream milk in my daily cappuccino for low fat milk |
| Lower high blood pressure |
Remove the salt shaker from the family table and reduce the salt added to my cooking |
| Be active every day | Walk to and from the bus stop three times a week instead of driving |
| Improve everyday nutrition | Use a Heart Foundation recipe for dinner twice a week |
If you need help choosing your Healthy Heart Challenge goal, feel free to contact the Heart Foundation’s Health Information Service on 1300 36 27 87 (local charges apply) or via email on health@heartfoundation.org.au
