Last year my cholesterol level decided to go in the wrong direction. After being asked if anyone in my family had died from a heart attack or stroke at the age of 50, the doctor said we would take 6 months of a healthy diet and exercise.
Thrilled that I didn’t walk out of the office with a prescription, I was determined to do turn it around. I got on line, read all I could about a high fiber diet, made a list of all the foods that would give me 25–30 grams of daily fiber and I headed to my grocery store. The foods on my list were foods I have always had difficulty digesting, but indigestion and bloating seemed better than heart attack and stroke.
Seven months later I was sitting in the doctor’s office, confident that I had nailed this. The doctor started comparing all of cholesterol numbers…all had increased except for the one, which was already at a very safe level. I explained the diet I had been following. She then pointed out that in seven month of this strict diet I hadn’t lost a pound.
She gave me new plan. Get off the high fiber and focus only on weight loss with a healthy diet. She gave me 2 months to lose 10 pounds before doing another blood test. Thrilled for the excuse to give up the high fiber food, I once again left determined to make it happen; I’ll do anything to avoid taking medication. I pulled out my “6 Week Body Make Over” box and began re-familiarizing myself with it, (yes, I had followed this before). I then dusted off my file on Candida (again, I had done this before), put the two together and headed off to the grocery store to restock. In the first week I dropped 6 pounds. I’m guessing it was 6 pounds of fiber, beans, and grains that had set up camp in my belly. By week 3 I had hit the 10 pound mark.
Being on a diet where weight loss is a benefit instead of the goal is odd. The goal here is lower cholesterol. It actually took a bit to get used to. We cut ourselves a lot of slack when we are dieting. We hit certain goals and reward ourselves with foods that got us fat in the first place. It sounds a bit crazy to think of rewarding myself with foods that increase the risk of heart problems.
What’s crazier?… the fact that I already had the tools needed. I had used them in the past and with proven results. So when did I decide I didn’t need to follow the rules anymore? Oh, I remember…it was back when I was skinning, had perfect blood pressure and low cholesterol.