its 214 to be exact... doc said it should be at or under 200. how bad is that really?
There was a big announcement in the past year about the American Medical Assoc. or some similar orgazization lowering the the upper range of the normal total cholesterol from 200 down to 160. All kinds of conspiracy theories abounded, but as far as I know the recommendation still stands at 160.
i don't know what to think... i weightlift four/five times a week and i dont eat any junk food. the only snacks i ever touch are beef jerky. i usually just eat sandwiches for breakfast and lunch and a hearty dinner w/ rice.
Your breakfast, lunch, and dinner are all full of carbs. Have you ever tried a ketogenic diet or a diet that only contains low or moderate glycemic index carbs?
My story with the Atkins Diet (ketogenic diet) is nothing short of amazing. During my freshman year of college, I began having frequent stomach discomfort and one night was taken to the emergency room because the pain became intolerable. They drew blood from me and it was burgundy (not red) and barely spread on a slide. They ran a lipid profile on it and found my total cholesterol in the 130's (very good), but my HDL was a tad low and my triglycerides were over 1000 (should be about 190). For the next 9 years, I had my lipid profile run twice a year or more (sometimes monthly) and the best my triglycerides ever got to was about 450 (usually 500 to 600). I tried various combinations of diet, exercise, and medications. The lowpoint came in 1995 when I was on medication, followed the doctor's low fat diet, and worked out 4 to 6 days a week, but my triglyceride levels never budged. I basically gave up, and decided I was going to just take medicine and eat what I wanted and only exercise if I felt like it (didn't help that I lived in a podunk town with the nearest gym 25 miles away). My triglyceride levels stayed the same, but unfortunately by late '97 I was up to 235 lbs and my total cholesterol for the first time creeped up to 226.
My weight stayed between 215 and 235 (same triglyceride, total cholesterol, and HDL levels) until November 2001 when my doctor got on my case about extended periods of time with triglyceride levels over 500 could lead to pancreas failure. My Mom had just lost about 20 lbs. on the Atkins Diet and said the book talked a lot about improving triglyceride and HDL levels. I read the book and started in December 2001, and in 10 weeks my triglyceride levels went from 450 to 197 and I had lost 20 lbs! My doctor cut my medication levels in half, and told me that I could go off the medication completely if I could maintain this or improve it in the next 6 months. I felt great and had more energy so I started doing cardiovascular exercise 3 days a week, and by May 2002 I was down a total of 33 lbs. In October 2002, I had my lipid profile run and my triglycerides were 165, my total cholesterol was in the 130's, and my HDL levels were normal.
I'm no longer on medications and I'm doing a slightly modified version of the diet (much closer to targeted ketogenic diet). I feel great and have even upped the physical activity to weightlifting 3 days a week and cardio 2 days a week. Between October 2002 and July 2003, I put on 15 lbs. of muscle and knocked off 10 lbs. of fat. That reminds me, I'm due for another lipid panel and bfp test.
~Todd
