Hi everyone. Here’s my official introduction. I’m a 53 year old premenopausal woman, 5’7" and my weight has hovered in the 195 to 198 pound range for at least 6 years. I last went to the doctor back in January of 2018 for an annual and for the first time, got the “you need to lose weight and get your cholesterol down” speech, which in retrospect was long overdue. No guidelines as to how to approach it, just that directive. And come back in six months for a recheck on your lab work. I came home and dutifully started my same-old-same-old CICO/exercise more routine. As usual, two weeks in I had lost maybe 5 pounds and was grouchy and hungry all the time. So I went back to life, meanwhile dealing with health issues with both my mom and my mother in law, and forgot about it.
In July, I flipped my page in my calendar and there was my note to schedule the lab retest. I knew what was going to happen - nothing had changed and the doctor was going to put me on some kind of prescription. Because that’s had been my experience with Mom/MIL: when in doubt, whip out the pad and prescribe another pill. No discussion about lifestyle or diet or stress or sleep. Just take a pill. So I ignored the appointment reminder. Just for fun, here were some test highlights from January:
Cholesterol: 237 mg/dl
Triglycerides: 164 mg/dl
HDL: 49 mg/dl
LDL: 155 mg/dl
Glucose random: 94 mg/dl
In August, my husband was frequently traveling, so I decided to print my January lab results and really read and try to understand them, something I had never done before. My weight had always been fine up until my late 30’s, and then had started to creep. Five pounds lost, seven gained back. Ten pounds lost in the wilderness, thirteen pounds back on my rear. I looked up every test acronym and what it was measuring as best I could. In my google searching, I came across the phrase “metabolic syndrome” - I thought it had something to do with thyroid function, but lo and behold, no - and I definitely had three and possibly four of the measures, or at least was inching in that direction. It suddenly dawned on me that although I was not “sick” in medical terms, I certainly wasn’t healthy anymore. I was in that gray zone that affords you maybe 10 minutes of face-to-face doctor time, 2 minutes of lab review by somebody at the doctor’s office, a quick note in my files, “out the door you go, do better, bye”
I just could not face the thought of another round of weight watchers or gym memberships (hate!) or CICO, so I started searching for eating plans. I had done Atkins way back when and had done well on the induction phase, then had an ugly encounter with a 5 foot diameter pan of paella at a company picnic. Fell off and never got back on. I stumbled upon the ketogenic WOE at some point and kept reading and watching you tube and researching. That was one month ago tomorrow.
For me, making it past a two week point was critical. I think what has made the difference this time is my mindset of curing myself rather that shooting for a number on the scale. I decided to weight every two weeks, and I started my own personal list of NSVs to review before weighing. I had a six-day girl’s trip in the middle of this first month, and I was able to pretty much stay on the WOE (except for the waiter who, for whatever reason, decided to bring me a complimentary bowl of ice cream after I declined dessert. I took a tiny “no thank you” bite and passed it around the table. 90% of it was sitting there melting as we left), something that has never happened during travel. After years of eating too fast (a bad habit acquired during too-short lunch periods in high school), I’m learning to slow down and actually getting the satiety signals that were nonexistent before. So now for you patient folks who’ve read this far, my first KCKO moment:
Today was weigh day and I lost…….not a pound, or even an ounce. Exactly the same weight as two weeks ago.
And that’s totally okay with me. My motivation has not wavered. I’m taking the no weight loss as a hopeful sign that I’ve shed the water weight and maybe inching towards fat adaptation. I feel better. I sleep better. My pants have a little wiggle room. I took a bad fall last weekend on a tile floor with virtually no soreness or swelling. And I’m finally listening to my body. I knew when I went to bed last night that my weight had probably not budged much or if all because of what I had for dinner. I made the keto broccoli cheese soup, but I broke my new personal rule of waiting a bit before having a second helping. I think because it was drinkable, I ate too fast. As I was finishing the second helping, I got a very strong mayday signal of being too full - I had gone past satiety and it was not a good feeling, just like I used to feel after every meal. Lesson learned, make a note and move on.
I’m thankful every day for this forum and the folks who patiently answer questions and point us newbies in the right direction. It’s how I start my day and my first go-to for answers that pop up.
Thanks for “listening”! KCKO
