Health News

I went to the doctor today for a physical, and I am officially healthier than I was last year. My cholesterol has gone from 207 (borderline) to 184 (normal) with a corresponding downward shift in my "bad" cholesterol. My "good" cholesterol (HDL I guess) is still the same, and is 44 when they want it at 50 or above. Not sure how to raise good cholesterol, but I'm sure some of you good people will be able to tell me.

My cholesterol has been borderline (in the 200 range) for a long time now, and it's incredibly gratifying to see it down at 184. I've lost 7 pounds over that same period, but most of that was in the last two weeks. Anyway, that's a 25-point lowering of my cholesterol, and that is a number really worth focusing on. WOO!

Week Two, Star One

I got a little star on my bookmark this week, because I lost one more pound, bringing me to 5.2 pounds lost. I lost weight in spite of having another busy social week--plus, that 4.2 pound loss from last week was clearly not a fluke. So, good! Just gotta stick with it this week.

I actually got up and walked out of the meeting (not "in protest" or anything, but subtly) because the leader was talking about Thanksgiving strategies and how to deal with it and blah blah, and then she passed out Thanksgiving-decorated placemats with the phrase "nothing tastes as good as thin feels." I avoided rolling my eyes into the back of my head, but I did get up and leave. If I never read that sentence again, it'll be too soon.

Obviously I have nothing super exciting to say today, but I figured I'd come report my one-pound loss anyway. If I can keep losing one pound per week, I'll hit my goal (24 pounds) by my birthday (March). Go go go!

Extra Ticker Tape!

I posted my last post to the book blog instead of this blog. Oops! I've done that before, though; the book blog has "pie" in the title so I guess I assume it's about food! Anyway, see below for the post that I made this week all about how this week sucked. I kept writing things down, but there were a lot of challenges this week. Did I mention the work meeting where they provided lunch, and all they had was pizza? Not even pizza and salad. Just pizza.

By some miracle, I managed to lose 4.2 pounds this week. Was it hormones? A fluke? Was I wearing super heavy pants least week? I can't figure it out. I did keep writing things down. I did walk a lot. I was mindful of my choices, even though they weren't always the best. I only ate one piece of Halloween candy all week. It was the first week, so maybe I "lost water weight" (whatever that means). I'm flummoxed. But I'm down to 244.0 so woo hoo!

My goal is to lose the first 10% (you know, where they give you a keychain) by my birthday, which is in March. That would mean a loss of 24 pounds, putting me down at 224.2. I hope that my reflux problems will clear up by then. (My knee hasn't been bothering me at all, actually; maybe exercise has helped it.)

Today after the meeting I went to TJ's and stocked up on those parfaits (I never got a chance to get them last week, since I went out, like, every night). I just had one for breakfast; mmm. I also bought a Weight Watchers cookbook (they were on sale) and hopefully we can find one or two new recipes in there. And by "we" I mean "Ian." I will cheer him on and wash the dishes after he cooks the things.

There was a woman at the meeting today who has been on Weight Watchers for two years and has lost 185 pounds. She passed around her "before" pictures and talked about how her purpose in life is to motivate people. The message was "don't quit." I have to say I was impressed by her. Who says Weight Watchers doesn't work? I guess if you see it as a "lifestyle change" and stay on it forever, it does! (That's kind of a scary thought, but it's true. Diets don't work; changing your habits does. I guess that's the takeaway there.)

Keep your fingers crossed that next week I maintain this magical 4.2 pound loss! Only 19.8 pounds to go.