Had my doctor's visit last week:
Good: Weight 181, down 10.5 lbs. Resting Heart Rate 49 HDL 71
Bad: Blood Pressure this AM 10 minutes after awakening, 128/85 and it's been consistently higher 138/85 at Doctors office LDL 173 Creatnine 1.4
Ugly Total Cholesterol 244
I'm disappointed to say the least. I feel like I'm 23. Sure, there is stress in my life raising my teenage sons. And I do eat too much sodium, red meat and cheese. So I've earned the cholesterol and the blood pressure numbers. However my doctor was concerned enough to send me for an ultrasound on my kidneys, which was yesterday and mentioned chronic kidney disease. I had an ultrasound on them a few years ago, so I'm not that concerned about that piece. False alarm.
What's the plan now? Welp, I've started with the diet. First plan is to only have meat once a day. Cut out all cheese. No more protein shakes, (too much protein affecting kidneys?) More chicken, more egg whites, more fruit and vegetables, more carbs. I really don't want to lose anymore weight. 3 lbs. to 178 is the lowest I want to go. But with fats being cut out of the diet, I have to increase carbs. This is the first time ever I've had to worry about losing too much weight. The good news is, I get to eat a lot. Here's what today looked like:
3 cups of black coffee
After workout, 8 oz of water 2 Tbs. of Apple Cider Vinegar and Lemon Juice
Breakfast at 10 AM
Navel Orange
1 cup of old fashion whole oats with honey, raisins and cinnamon. Been my breakfast everyday
Snack at Noon of 22 almonds
1 pint of Coconut Water with pulp. High in potassium, good for blood pressure
Lunch at 2:45
3 egg 1 egg white (ran out of egg whites, usually 2 eggs, 2-3 egg whites) omelet with broccoli, black beans, spinach, red pepper and onion
Snack 4:45 Apple
Dinner at 7:00
2 pieces of grilled chicken breast, roasted potato, and roasted green beans and red peppers.
Drank about 1/2 gallon of water.
Trying to reduce the sodium and fat. The main goal is to get the cholesterol down through a good diet. I'll have red meat once or twice a week, just smaller portions. I can't eat fish, I'm allergic, and I'm not going to eat soy or tofu. The blood pressure, at this point, I'm guessing is genetic. I'll take it daily since I just bought a monitor for home. If I have to go on medication, so be it.
Another blood test in the middle of February and a doctor's visit right before my 49th birthday. Stay tuned.
I was cocksure not drinking would have knocked my blood pressure down to normal. Anyway, still dry since August. Don't miss it in the least. Was at a friend's house after dinner and he offered me some Johnnie Walker Blue. Only $160/bottle. I looked at it, read the back, about the hints of honey in the whisky, the golden color in the glass, and to tell you the truth, it had ZERO appeal to me. So it was easy to decline. It makes me wonder what the effect would have been if I was still drinking on the weekends.
I'm definitely a little quieter and become bored easier in social situations. However, I got together my childhood friends and the wives the Friday after Thanksgiving. You know the type of friends I'm talking about, the ones who have known you for 40+ years. The ones who know you like the back of their hands and make sure you don't get too big for your britches. The only critics whose input I care about. Well, one of them came up to me and said, "I didn't even notice you weren't drinking. You're not one of those guys who whines about it. You're just as fun." And his brother, who's my best friend, switched to water at 10:30 and we were all still going strong laughing singing and dancing until 2:30 AM. In the past, all of us are a 12 pack deep at 10:30. So I guess what I'm saying is the closer I am to you the louder I am.
Currently in week 5 of two 9 week More Kettlebell Muscle Programs by Geoff Neupert Clean 'Em Up 2.0 and You Don't Know Squat.
For Clean 'Em Up, using double 45s chain style. 6 times around the sequence. Heavy Day tomorrow, here's what it looks like:
Repeat Sequence 6 times
Double Clean x 1
Front Squat x1
Double Snatch x1
Press x 1
Double Swing x 1
Row x 1
That's a 36 rep set. Doing 4 rounds. Rest ratio is 1:1.5 Meaning if takes, 100 seconds to complete, rest 150 seconds.
For You Don't Know Squat, I was doing Easy and Medium Days with the 55's, and Heavy Day with the 45's. However, as the rest periods have gotten shorter, my press weakened. Heavy Day tomorrow look like this done as a complex. 4 rounds work:rest 1:1.5
Double Clean x 1
Front Squat x 3
Double Snatch x 3
Front Squat x 3
Double Press x 3
Front Squat x 3
Double Clean x 3
Front Squat x 3
Push Press x 3
I'll say it once and I'll say it again, holding the bells in the rack doing front squats, fries the back of the shoulders. Quite fatiguing. Why 2 programs? It only takes 15-25 minutes to finish both. Unless I'm doing a 10 minute snatch test, I don't like going below 15 minutes for a workout.
Still running once a week. Last week, dropped the car off for an oil change, ran 4.7 miles home breathing only through my nose for the first 3 miles. Hitting Planet Fitness to do chest and back once a week. Trying to take more days off. At least 2 a week.
So as of now the goal is to stick with the programs I'm working on, staying healthy, and not getting hurt. No fasting, no magnesium, no crazy shit. 3 squares, 2 snacks and walk more.
Good: Weight 181, down 10.5 lbs. Resting Heart Rate 49 HDL 71
Bad: Blood Pressure this AM 10 minutes after awakening, 128/85 and it's been consistently higher 138/85 at Doctors office LDL 173 Creatnine 1.4
Ugly Total Cholesterol 244
I'm disappointed to say the least. I feel like I'm 23. Sure, there is stress in my life raising my teenage sons. And I do eat too much sodium, red meat and cheese. So I've earned the cholesterol and the blood pressure numbers. However my doctor was concerned enough to send me for an ultrasound on my kidneys, which was yesterday and mentioned chronic kidney disease. I had an ultrasound on them a few years ago, so I'm not that concerned about that piece. False alarm.
What's the plan now? Welp, I've started with the diet. First plan is to only have meat once a day. Cut out all cheese. No more protein shakes, (too much protein affecting kidneys?) More chicken, more egg whites, more fruit and vegetables, more carbs. I really don't want to lose anymore weight. 3 lbs. to 178 is the lowest I want to go. But with fats being cut out of the diet, I have to increase carbs. This is the first time ever I've had to worry about losing too much weight. The good news is, I get to eat a lot. Here's what today looked like:
3 cups of black coffee
After workout, 8 oz of water 2 Tbs. of Apple Cider Vinegar and Lemon Juice
Breakfast at 10 AM
Navel Orange
1 cup of old fashion whole oats with honey, raisins and cinnamon. Been my breakfast everyday
Snack at Noon of 22 almonds
1 pint of Coconut Water with pulp. High in potassium, good for blood pressure
Lunch at 2:45
3 egg 1 egg white (ran out of egg whites, usually 2 eggs, 2-3 egg whites) omelet with broccoli, black beans, spinach, red pepper and onion
Snack 4:45 Apple
Dinner at 7:00
2 pieces of grilled chicken breast, roasted potato, and roasted green beans and red peppers.
Drank about 1/2 gallon of water.
Trying to reduce the sodium and fat. The main goal is to get the cholesterol down through a good diet. I'll have red meat once or twice a week, just smaller portions. I can't eat fish, I'm allergic, and I'm not going to eat soy or tofu. The blood pressure, at this point, I'm guessing is genetic. I'll take it daily since I just bought a monitor for home. If I have to go on medication, so be it.
Another blood test in the middle of February and a doctor's visit right before my 49th birthday. Stay tuned.
I was cocksure not drinking would have knocked my blood pressure down to normal. Anyway, still dry since August. Don't miss it in the least. Was at a friend's house after dinner and he offered me some Johnnie Walker Blue. Only $160/bottle. I looked at it, read the back, about the hints of honey in the whisky, the golden color in the glass, and to tell you the truth, it had ZERO appeal to me. So it was easy to decline. It makes me wonder what the effect would have been if I was still drinking on the weekends.
I'm definitely a little quieter and become bored easier in social situations. However, I got together my childhood friends and the wives the Friday after Thanksgiving. You know the type of friends I'm talking about, the ones who have known you for 40+ years. The ones who know you like the back of their hands and make sure you don't get too big for your britches. The only critics whose input I care about. Well, one of them came up to me and said, "I didn't even notice you weren't drinking. You're not one of those guys who whines about it. You're just as fun." And his brother, who's my best friend, switched to water at 10:30 and we were all still going strong laughing singing and dancing until 2:30 AM. In the past, all of us are a 12 pack deep at 10:30. So I guess what I'm saying is the closer I am to you the louder I am.
Currently in week 5 of two 9 week More Kettlebell Muscle Programs by Geoff Neupert Clean 'Em Up 2.0 and You Don't Know Squat.
For Clean 'Em Up, using double 45s chain style. 6 times around the sequence. Heavy Day tomorrow, here's what it looks like:
Repeat Sequence 6 times
Double Clean x 1
Front Squat x1
Double Snatch x1
Press x 1
Double Swing x 1
Row x 1
That's a 36 rep set. Doing 4 rounds. Rest ratio is 1:1.5 Meaning if takes, 100 seconds to complete, rest 150 seconds.
For You Don't Know Squat, I was doing Easy and Medium Days with the 55's, and Heavy Day with the 45's. However, as the rest periods have gotten shorter, my press weakened. Heavy Day tomorrow look like this done as a complex. 4 rounds work:rest 1:1.5
Double Clean x 1
Front Squat x 3
Double Snatch x 3
Front Squat x 3
Double Press x 3
Front Squat x 3
Double Clean x 3
Front Squat x 3
Push Press x 3
I'll say it once and I'll say it again, holding the bells in the rack doing front squats, fries the back of the shoulders. Quite fatiguing. Why 2 programs? It only takes 15-25 minutes to finish both. Unless I'm doing a 10 minute snatch test, I don't like going below 15 minutes for a workout.
Still running once a week. Last week, dropped the car off for an oil change, ran 4.7 miles home breathing only through my nose for the first 3 miles. Hitting Planet Fitness to do chest and back once a week. Trying to take more days off. At least 2 a week.
So as of now the goal is to stick with the programs I'm working on, staying healthy, and not getting hurt. No fasting, no magnesium, no crazy shit. 3 squares, 2 snacks and walk more.
