Take the Challenge

Take a heart-healthy challenge

February is Heart Month and it offers a unique opportunity for you to jump start your own heart health while also supporting the world-class cardiac care available at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute each day.

How do you take the challenge? It’s easy! Complete one or more of the challenge options below and then encourage your loved ones to do the same by bragging about it on your social media (using #GiveWithHeart #FebruaryIsHeartMonth #HeartHealthy Challenge) at work, at social gatherings, in line at the grocery store, and wherever you can.

A Heart Healthy Challenge is truly a winning scenario! You win by pledging to take care of your heart during the month of February and beyond.
Your friends and family win because you give them the same opportunity to be heart-healthy.

The funds you raise by participating in Heart Month (buying a Paper heart, attending or organizing an event, or by registering to be Heart Month Participant or Team) go a long way towards helping the Heart Institute purchase highly specialized equipment and support care, research, and education that will help to save lives in our community.

Choose your Heart-Healthy Challenges

Eat

Eating 5 or more servings of vegetables and fruit each day will promote good health and help you feel your best. Take a step towards better health and the small changes will become new habits that affect your overall heart health. Pledging to increase your intake of fruits and vegetables can reduce your blood pressure and help raise much needed funds for life-saving care in the heart of your community.

Move

Get up and move every 30 minutes to get blood circulation through the muscles, live with greater vitality throughout your day, and get all the health benefits.

Focus

Be mindful to live in the moment and focus to reduce stress and anxiety and increase long-term well-being and happiness. Consider trying these tips 3 times per week:

Do what you're doing
Pay attention to what you're doing
Return to what you are doing if your thoughts carry you away
Repeat nine billion times

Give

Participate in Heart Month and Give with Heart in one or more of these easy ways:

Attend, support, or host an event (find out more by contacting the Heart Month Team).
Volunteer your time as a member of our Paper Heart Brigade (get details by contacting the Heart Month Team)
Buy a Paper Heart from a local participating business and display it with pride. (If you are a local business and would like to sell and display Paper Hearts, please contact us for more information).
Register as an individual, team, or group and start fundraising to support the Heart Institute (Click here)
Make a donation by phone, in person, or online (Click here) and your donation could be DOUBLED by a Corporate Community Match partner!