State of the Mandelbear

[mdlbear]

(Cross-posted to healthy_fen and mdlbear.)

There have been several major changes in my approach to health this year, mainly brought on by a belated awareness of impending mortality and a couple of alarming sets of symptoms.

Walking: I've been getting in roughly three-mile walks most of this week. It's very frustrating: in order to avoid leg cramps I have to either walk slowly (i.e., my old pace that didn't give me much actual exercise) or shorten my stride to what to me is an unnatural degree. These days I usually pick the fast pace and short stride, but it's annoying to have to make the trade-off. I end up walking at about the same speed (3mph) regardless. I've gone back to power walking to compensate. Hopefully when I'm back at work I can cut off the usually-fascinating lunchtime conversations and the temptation to dive back into LJ in time to walk for an hour during the week, too.

Facehugger: I finally built a little shelf on the dresser beside the bed, and just last weekend bent up a piece of coathanger wire to hold up the hose. The combination really helps; it's a lot less likely to leak now. I can also sleep on my back without waking up -- that's a big win. I can't say there's been a huge difference in how sleepy I get or how much sleep I need, but I think there's been some. The silliest thing about it is having to shave about 1cm off the top of my mustache in order for the mask to seat properly -- first time I've had to shave in about 40 years. Well, it was a good excuse for a new backpack, anyway.

Nose-watering: Watering my nose seems to be roughly as effective as taking a standard dose of sudafed, and lasts for roughly as long: 6-8 hours. I've fallen into a routine: morning, before dinner, and about an hour before bed. Morning is, of course, combined with making coffee, and takes about 15-20 minutes. The evening wash is combined with brushing my teeth; I've gotten a bit better about that, too.

Diet: This is the newest bit of attempted behavior modification. It's my understanding that a reduced-carbohydrate, low-sugar diet is good for reducing both cholesterol and weight, so I'm going to try it. It's hard -- potatoes and pasta are both popular in this family. At least the rice we use is basmati, which is unique in having a low glycemic index, and I prefer whole-grain bread anyway. I've stopped eating fried-eggs-on-toast for breakfast and switched to omelettes. At least dark chocolate, and one alcoholic drink/day are still on the diet. By doctor's orders. So there.

With a little luck and more determination than I've shown to date, I might even survive another decade. We'll see.

Comments

Glycemic load >> glycemic index

[sdorn.livejournal.com]

Good luck!

My understanding is that the glycemic index is less important than the daily glycemic load on your system. Some months ago I calculated the glycemic load per calorie and came to both obvious conclusions (legumes, dairy, and fats have low glycemic loads) and some more useful ones, to wit, that strawberries, cherries, and pears are your friends, dried apricots and dried apples are okay, but everything else fruitwise is risky; and that contrary to my GP's thoughts, white potatoes (while mildly evil) have a lower glycemic load/calorie ratio than sweetpotatoes. Go figure.

And after some suggestions by one brother, I've confirmed that there exists research documenting a glycemic-load reduction if you consume highly acidic vinegar when eating carbs. So when I'm in a situation where I know there will be little other than starches, I take cider-vinegar tablets with me. Yeah, somewhat silly, but useful.

[harmonyheifer.livejournal.com]

Going on the South Beach Diet about two and a half years ago has made an amazing difference for Patrick and I. If you can get your hands on a list with a glycemic index for a large variety of foods it makes it very easy to make better choices without giving up your favorite foods altogether. The switch, as you mentioned, from regular rice to Basmati alone has made a huge difference for us. It also give me a good excuse to eat more Indian food.

The first phase is essential because it clears your body of so many toxic substances and wipes out carbohydrate cravings. That puts you in the driver's seat instead of your blood sugar, which is bouncing up and down and all over the place. That step alone is just a miracle in my opinion because when your body stops craving carbohydrates, you stop wanting to eat the bad ones. It really is that simple. Then as you add items back into your diet slowly, you get to choose which ones your body can tolerate, and those it can't. Since everyone is different, this is an important step, and the one that makes South Beach not just a thoughtfully constructed, highly nutritious and clinically targeted diet for diabetic and cardiac patients, but an excellent jumping-off point for anyone with weight or dietary problems. The other key thing about the South Beach program is that unlike nearly every other diet out there, it encourages you to feed yourself when you are hungry. It is hard to believe you can lose weight by eating more, but I've lost 57 lbs since I stepped onto "The Beach," and I have been eating six times a day for two and a half years instead of the two meals I was eating before. More volume, more nutrition, plenty of water, and almost no highly processed foods. I can see myself maintaining this lifestyle for the rest of my life. Because when I step off "The Beach," which I do, I can always step back. It isn't an all or nothing proposition. It is just an incredibly healthy lifestyle. Oh, and just for the record, our current diet is a slightly modified South Beach, but our meals would look pretty much like phase-two meals with a few minor alterations.

[mdlbear]

Thanks. From the Wikipedia article it looks like what I'm doing is somewhere in the neighborhood of the stage 2 diet, and it does appear to be working. I should probably read up on it.