My doctor got my blood work back and I went to see him today. My Cholesterol is 265 and my triglycerides are 350. I am apparently a walking heart attack. One interesting note is that he went back through my history and noted that my cholesterol first started going up in 1999, one and a half years after Mark started cooking for me. So for the next three months, and for eternity if it works, I am supposed to be on the 'South Beach' diet, low fat, low carbs. Is there anything left to eat if you take that stuff out of my food?
This means no more of Marks prime rib, no crab legs drenched in butter, no meats smothered with those rich cream sauces. No more of my favorite, mashed potatoes, made with sour cream and butter. In fact no more butter in or on anything. No more French bread to sop up Mark's home made gravy. Whole grain bread is it from now on, and there will be no sopping up of anything. No fettuccini alfredo. No candy, no Krispy Kreme donuts, no sugar at all. No whole milk anymore, just that thin crap that looks and tastes like water with white food coloring in it.
Thinking of the things I can't have to eat is depressing, but I knew when I was eating all of those things, there would be consequences. The hard part will be re-training Mark. I showed him the list of approved and disapproved foods that the doctor gave me, and Mark shook his head and said "Okay, we'll start eating right". He then proceeded to cook me a dinner of fried chicken breasts, coated with eggs and bread crumbs with a side of potatoes (not mashed, but still on the 'no no' list), and what I guess he considered the healthy part, sautéed green beans. He still doesn't get it.
It's not just the diet that will be a challenge, I am also supposed to exercise more. Exercise takes a lot of motivation, and when I used to go to the gym three times a week, my motivation was that I would allow myself an ice cream cone afterwards. Ice cream of course is on the 'no no' list. I don't know if I can do this, because Mark doesn't know how to cook any other way than with all the fats and butter and cream. I may have to buy a second refrigerator just for me, and put a lock on the one with all the bad stuff in it that skinny Mark eats. The part that really pisses me off is listening to Mark complain because he can never find pants that fit because they're too loose, while he stuffs whatever the hell he wants into his face.
I've been telling you for years that Mark was trying to fatten you up and it worked. The worse part of a diet is the first couple of weeks. Once the sugar is out of your system you'll feel much better. Trust me, my whole life has been one diet or another. The sad thing is that every diet I try works and works well. My problem has always been when I stop...it comes right back. Good luck with Paula Knowels Dean. Every meal will be a challenge watching what he puts in the dish. Don't turn your head, he'll be slipping you some fat.
ReplyDeleteI guess I won't be mocked at anymore dinner parties for being a vegetarian...... hehe
ReplyDeleteOn my most recent trip to the doctor a month ago my doctor praised my vegan / vegetarian lifestyle. I found out my doctor is a vegan too (someone who doesn't eat any animals or animal products nor supports animal exploitative industries from shoe makers to circuses)
He told me that new studies are suggesting that dairy products may be worse for humans than meat is.
He told me to find recepies on the internet which are vegan, eat cashews, walnuts and red grapes (all which significantly lower cholestrol), and eat fruits, vegetables, brown rice, legumes (beans).
Many healthy recepies can be found at:
http://www.compassionatecooks.com/
http://www.vegcooking.com/
http://www.vegcooking.com/makingthetransition.asp
Oder a free vegetarian starter kit at:
http://www.goveg.com/order.asp
Alan: I would seriously start learning to cook for yourself. That way, you are sure what goes in your food.
What was your blood pressure?
ReplyDeleteBlood pressure? Normal.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe your B/P was normal after you found out what you CAN'T eat!!! This is what our gene-pool has blessed us with. You should also talk with Carol Collins Putz as she is a good low- cholesterol cook....she even tried to teach Mom!!!
ReplyDeleteDid you find out what your HDL was? Mine was 32, which was very charted as being very desirable.
ReplyDeleteNow that you are aware of the damage certain foods can do to your body and health,you can start a new life of healthy living.
God knows we want to keep you around as long as possible so you can continue this blog. Maybe you should be riding a stationary bike while writing it.
How about walking to Poverello and volunteering a few days aweek. That'll be good excercise.
Anyway, I'll send you some of my favorite recepies.
Thanks for giving Garet a reason to share with us the value of being a vegetarian. I know he is enjoying this.
ReplyDeleteIt won't be easy to adjust, but it will be worth it. Perhaps you'll find yourself looking for a new wardrobe soon.
Immensely. ....and I'm not going to tell you all, "I told you so either."
ReplyDeleteMy doctor said eating the right foods can prevent many age related diseases and many of the leading causes of death in the U.S. He believes in prescribing healthy food instead of medicine to combat health problems.
If we ate like many asian cultures,where rice is the main staple instead of Meat as a main dish, we all would be much healthier. I've read that Asians have the lowest death rate from heart disease because of their diet.
Think about it. The U.S. had the largest beef recall in history just recently. You all probably saw how the injured and "downed" cattle were treated. This is tantamount to animal abuse. If you eat beef you may be unwittingly be supporting this abuse.
The U.S, Humane Society picked this stock yard at random to gather undercover video...so you can just imagine how often this must happen throughout our country and the countless abuse that goes on.
Think about it. When you give your kids a "Happy Meal" you are feeding them "Flesh". Our teeth and digestive systems are made for eating plant foods not meat. We don't have fangs like carnivores do and used for tearing and ripping apart flesh. The meat, when eaten, remaining in our very long intestines putrifying. Flesh eating animals have very short intestines to expell the flesh as soon as possible.
Thus, man is a natural vegetarian with the learned behavior and technological means of eating meat. It's a learned behavior we should learn to do without.
How many of you would actually go out and kill a cow and eat it? Modern industry has done this for us and in the mean time is shortening our lives by clogging our arteries with animal based cholestrol.
Why do you think the 4 food groups was changed to the food pyramid with meat and dairy being the least foods we should eat.
Did you know that before the 4 basic food groups, there use to be 12 food groups. After World War 2 the meat and dairy industry lobbied their way into getting that changed to the 4 food groups to help their industry grow. As our health declined and heart disease became prevalent because of our addiction to meat, we now see the switch to vegetarianism as a natural course of healthy eating.
It's not too late to join the bandwagon. The alternative is aging rapidly and dying sooner.
These are my expressed opinions and from related research. God Bless you all. Garet
Garet, did you ask your "Doctor" what all those seeds can do to your intestine, besides starting a small forest. What do vegrants feed their cats and dogs.Please don't say carrots. hehe. Eating too many legumes has given our older citizens their slang name. Alan , why don't you exercise more.I eat like you did and all my readings are o.k..However, I'm overweight.I gained the 30 lbs. after I broken my arm, and couldn't work out.So there are 30 lbs. I can loose once I get up to full speed again. Ride a stationary bike and drink green tea.
ReplyDeleteDave: the pet industry is a whole nother story. Happily there are also vegetarian foods for cats and dogs. They just aren't main stream yet.
ReplyDeleteMy feline companion animals were all abandoned, injured, or homeless when I found them. I would prefer not to have them but I do love them. I've taken on the responsiblity of being their guardian for their short little lives. It's all about being responsible for those less fortunate. After this no more. Now bunnies are another story.....
Alan, Your story about Mark fattening you up reminds me of an old German fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel.
ReplyDeletehehe
ReplyDelete