Physical deceptions
I had a physical today, just before the move. At going on 63, that's no small deal.
A year ago, Dr. K., my family doc, barked at me. Me! Reviewing my lab work, she said my blood sugar was edging up, that I must curb carbs. No blueberry pancakes, no Lindt Fleur de Sel chocolate bars.
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| Not recommended by Dr. K. |
She asked me how much alcohol I drink; I said, "I'll have a glass of wine, maybe two if we have company." That's a white (wine) lie: I'll count a cat as company.
She made a veiled reference to my weight: "If you keep gaining at this rate, you will be obese."
In other words, my dear nerdy doc was a total drag.
Fast forward 12 months. I show up again. "Excellent blood pressure!" she crooned, squeezing away. Reading the lab results, she purred. Weight down five lbs., to me an unremarkable variance, but it earned a tender pat on the arm.
But the fact is, nothing has changed significantly except that I'm a year older and Dr. K. is in a good mood. Just a guess: new romantic interest?
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| The patient-doctor relationship |
Men dispense with this charade by not seeing a doctor till they are in extremis.
Dr K. keeps me on the straight, but not entirely narrow, path. Thus absolved, I went home and enjoyed a martini at cocktail time. (Just one, so more accurately, a Martinus, after the classic Wayne and Schuster bit.)
In fact, I have altered longstanding habits over the past year, forsaking croissants for multi-grain, eating more fish, avoiding prepared foods, doing that plate-in-quarters-thing. What changes have you made? And which are you reluctant to make?
I am not, not, not giving up homemade blueberry pancakes with maple syrup!
I am not, not, not giving up homemade blueberry pancakes with maple syrup!
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Even so, I think about every bite that goes into my mouth--even if I know that it is one that should not be going in. In other words, I feel deprived almost all the time.
Changes made? I no longer making wonderful spaghetti dinners and yummy casseroles. I feel guilty when I eat.
Since then I've tried to minimize white stuff (and carbs in general). I refuse to give up my Saturday morning donut, though.
I have a bias toward eating whole foods you can prepare at home rather than packaged food.
For some, other approaches work, but I've seen several young-mother friends trying on their own and not being able to hang in. Even if you are not a "group-type person", the meetings really made a difference to my attitude and motivation. I'd say good luck but it's not luck, it's a mission.
That said, I have gotten quite overweight in the past ten years. (I blame having children late-ish in life, immediately followed by menopause.) SO tired of squeezing into a 16, and of being sad when I go shopping; even if anything fits, it still looks bad. Plus, I live in a hot climate, where one can't wear long sleeves and long pants for at least half the year.
Halfhearted attempts to lose some weight didn't work, so I finally broke down and rejoined Weight Watchers last week. I lost 35 lbs on it about 13 years ago, after my baby turned 3, and it was apparent the baby weight wasn't coming off by itself. Of course, you have to stick with it, otherwise you gain it all back, plus more!
WW is an excellent program, and is structured so you don't have to cut out anything entirely; you just learn to make tradeoffs, and you are guided toward more nutritious foods while still being able to have goodies now & then. It is also relatively inexpensive compared to many weight loss programs.
My first week went great, lost 5 pounds! Obviously that pace won't continue, but if (IF!) I stick with it, I will get back to size 8-10 and it will be fun to buy clothes again. Oh, and that pesky health stuff that ladies of our age need to be concerned about, like blood pressure (mine is a bit high, but I'm resisting meds...let's see if losing 50 lb will fix the problem!)
Good luck to all of us!
And even though I'm heavier than the "official" guidelines, I'm also genetially pre-disposed to longevity (paternal gran: died at 97.5; maternal gran: 98 and going strong). My blood work is always clean as a whistle, and the only time my blood pressure was a cause for concern was when I had a horrible, stressful job. My doctor said, "You know, I can put you on a diet, but what would work better would be if you quit that job." I did. And now my BP averages 90/70.
IMO that's an excuse for not being willing to accept accountability. Knowing I had a weekly weigh in was a form of support. Some weeks I was unchanged or gained (it happens even if you follow to a T); they were not blaming.
A good leader makes a difference, some I had were good, some were fantastic.
I also find the daily points-counting pretty tedious, but it also is critical to success, especially at first. My daily happy-hour of two (or three) glasses of wine, plus an ounce of mixed nuts, didn't seem like a lot; but it turned out to be nearly half of my whole days' point allowance! Aaack! Unwilling to give up happy hour entirely, I've switched to two smallish glasses of wine and a reduced-fat string cheese. Not as good, but not a huge sacrifice either.
it seems every thing i've said i'd 'never' do, i've ended up doing. so i try to avoid the term ;) congrats on feeling better & cultivating worthwhile habits! steph
Steph: You have a remarkable doc. Admitting mistakes is hard for most of us, and when we wear the 'expert' coat for a living, doubly so.
Anonymous: I thought the same thing! But really she was warning me how easy it is to let 5 lbs slide up to 20, and eventually there is a problem like diabetes; this happened to my brother.
As for food and wine - life would be so much less fun without them. I love both, just perhaps with a little more moderation these days.
I now have a doctor who deals with my more pressing health issues. He's never asked me how much coffee I drink. Oh yeah - and now that I exercise on my lunch hour, I don't need my afternoon coffee!
emma: So strange that coffee would be an issue rather than the fact that you weren't exercising much! Great testimony to activity that you need less caffeine.
diverchic: She is a tiny, kindly, woman so it's hard to think of her that way- but she can be strict, too.