January 28, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011 at 12:49 PM filed under Diet & Nutrition postings
(The photo is my and my grandson - who is autistic and type 1 diabetic. We swim together a couple of times a week, and he loves the hot tub! I'm trying to set a good example for him re: diet and fitness)
First of all, I wanted to say how much I like the FitClick website, the calorie and diet tracking capabilies are awesome!
I just got the results of my cholesterol test this morning, and I wanted to share it as well as document how I got here.
I started this health journey in June of 2010, when I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. My TSH (thyroid Stimulating Hormone) was 97.
That's right, 97.
I had so much fluid built up in my muscles I could no longer put my hands behind my head to wash my hair - it felt like I was being strangled. That's how swollen my thyroid was. I felt like crap all the time, hair falling out, no energy, very depressed...the list goes on.
I felt like I was dying!
I went to my doctor. Here's an overview of my conversation:
He looked at me (I was obviously overweight) and said, "well, you just need to exercise more"
I pulled out my food journal, and talked to him about my exercise routine.
I mentioned that all the women in my family have thyroid problems, wouldn't it be prudent to just - just to make sure?
He grudginly ordered a thyroid test, as well as cholesterol.
He said "You're overweight, your cholesterol is probably sky high".
O.K. off the the lab.
My thyroid was 97!
Not even 24 hours later, my doctor called me:
"Your thyroid is the highest I have ever seen! You need medication right away - and you'll need it for the rest of your life. Your thyroid has stopped working. It was probably damaged when you were
strangled." (I'll talk about that another time)
My cholesterol was not as high as he anticipated, mostly die to my diet, which was good, and the exercise I was able to do.
Here are my beginning numbers:
Weight: 232
Cholesterol: 231
HDL: 38
LDL: 165
Triglyceride: 142
Tyroid: 97
I started the meds, did my best to continue to work out and manage my food intake, started supplements.
Pretty much, the next 6 months, my numbers hovered around the above, no matter what I did. October's results were very similar, with TSH the exception, because the medication is working well.
The next step, if I could not reduce overall cholesterol with diet and exercise, was medication for that. I felt I was just going downhill.
It was time for something RADICAL!
Three months later - yesterday, I got more results:
Cholesterol: 183
HLD: 40
LDL: 122
Triglyceride: 104
Thyroid: 4
Fabulous!
How did I do it?
No red meat, GLUTEN-FREE diet, enzymes and 2 a day workouts.
Here's my program: (as much as possible)
Mornings: Swim a mile. (72 laps of a 25 yard pool)
Please note: it's not the distance, it's the time spent
working my muscles.
Evenings: 1 hour of cardio (I like the eliptical and the bike)
1/2 hour of weight training.
I have not stepped on a scale yet. But my clothes are starting to bag; I have to pull my pants and underwear up regularly. I'll buy some new clothes her in a while, but I'm long term unemployed, so money is tight.
I'm really encouraged, though.
I'll write more, continue to post my progress.
