A week ago I went to the doctor for a checkup, not necessarily because I wanted to, but because my insurance company was going to pay for it and I was going to get $200 out of the deal.
Well, the results are in, and they aren’t good.
From my blood test, it was determined that three things are very bad about my circulatory system:
- High Blood Pressure – I consistently top out at 156/80 (on average) and that is a resting blood pressure.
- High Cholesterol – My total cholesterol count was 238, with my LDL-C being 180.
- Insulin Resistance – It appears that there “is evidence of significant insulin resistance.” All this means is that my pancreas is working overtime and that my blood is showing the very early stages of possible diabetes.
Time for this ‘merican diet to end. I love Dr. Pepper. I love fried food. I have been gluten free since August 2012, but now I am going to take drastic measures to ensure that I (A) don’t have a stroke or (B) don’t have a heart attack or (C) get diabetes.
As of today I have made the choice to go Whole30 or begin a Paleo-Diet. If you do a quick Google search of Whole30 or Whole9, you will find out that we are, indeed, what we eat. A lifetime of sugary, starchy foods have done their number on me. I will be posting on this blog in 30 days to give a report of what has happened.
Today I had three boiled eggs and apple slices in cinnamon for breakfast, a beef and tomato sautee with green beans and garlic for lunch and for dinner I ate a tilapia fillet with olive oil, garlic and thyme with a plate full of green veggies. I have not snacked, I have not had sugar or any sweetener, and I have not had dairy.
The great thing about the Whole30 lifestyle is that instead of telling you what you can’t eat, they give you a giant list of delicious items that you can eat.
Am I jonesing for all that ‘merican food? You bet. However, I hope to be better off in 30 days, and as the experts declare, only 9. I have many more books to write, and I see this experience as yet another life experience to use in a novel someday.
I know I’ll be better and healthier for it.
Related articles
- Insulin Intolerance Explained (therebel.org)
- Lab Tests and Your Health (goloblog.com)
- Importance of Protecting Vision by Managing Blood Sugar Discussed in… (prweb.com)
- Chorella: Studies show it increases insulin sensitivity (unspokencures.com)
- Cheap and Easy Ways to Improve Cholesterol Levels and Prevent Heart Disease (savings.com)
- The Risks of High Cholesterol (arcpointelkgrovevillage.wordpress.com)
Writing Is Hard Work 
Scary stuff (but sounds like you’ve figured out a great way to manage the situation). I recently had a wake up call to (blood pressure was sky high, mainly due to day job stress). Forced me to get the bike back out, do daily exercise and cut out snacks. Slowly starting to see some differences – easier to get up in the morning, less circulation problems, not out of breath climbing stairs! I know I need to cut back on my last achilles heel as well – wine! – but I’m holding on to that one. Thanks for sharing, hope it all works out.
Junk food kills. To add to it in India we have a sedentary life habit. That doesn’t help of course. Hope you will check your cholesterol. Myself, I had 250 cholesterol count till couple of months back, but I am now 202. Leaving out junk, fried, sugary, starchy and dairy helped. And remember garlic is great to control cholesterol. Happy dieting, rather happy correct food habit!!!
Thank you! I’m already five days in to my diet and can now sleep all night. We’ll see what else improves.
I’m afraid to think what I’ve done to my body and my health.
Maybe I should take a page from your book and get a full check up.
It’ll be interesting to see your results after 30 days. Good luck:)
I suspect I’d get the same result if I did blood work (minus the high blood pressure). I should take inspiration from you and cut out the junk. We will both probably have more energy and mental focus for it as well.