Peggy Tatyana said:I talked to my doctor yesterday, who informed me that my LDL cholesterol level tested at 112, an
unacceptable number in her opinion.
Quoted message said:So she wants me to start taking some sort of cholesterol-lowering medication. I would prefer not
to. I've had Type 1 diabetes for some 40 years now, and otherwise I'm in moderately good shape --
though I live an intensively sedentary life
Having more muscle would help you survive a heart attack better, not to mention major trauma.
Quoted message said:and could stand to lose some pounds before I started to look anorexic.
Ask any paramedic if excess weight in a health crisis doesn't reduce your chance of survival.
Quoted message said:Question is: has anyone here managed to lower cholesterol levels by systematic weight loss and/or
exercise?
Yes.
Dropped from 288 to 263 by diet alone. Now, I've stalled with diet, and must exercise. Ugh. Do
it anyway.
Exercise did raise my HDL-C by 10 mg/dL which got me from a 5% chance of dying from heart attack and
a 10% chance of having one (in the next decade) to 3% and 5%, respectively. I like increasing my
chance of living longer.
Quoted message said:I have a strong averstion to exercise for its own sake (I'd like to find something to do that
accomplishes something)
Commute by bicycle?
If you have hills to deal with, consider an e-bike to help you over them.
If you have urban traffic to deal with, an e-bike helps you get up to speed quickly and allow you to
go fast enough, quick enough, so you can "hold the lane" without other drivers being angry at you
for slowing their commute by .02 seconds.
If you already use mass-transit, walk to the next stop this week, and two stops down the next,
and so forth.
Add NPR Morning Edition or All Things Considered, Books on Tape, or Audible for books on an MP3
player, to give your mind something to do. I have a very busy mind, and found the thought of
idleness abhorrent, which held me back from exercise. Adding those to a player with sound-cancelling
earphones or a sound-cancelling headphone set makes exercise more enjoyable, and helped me into the
mindset where I would exercise.
Quoted message said:but I might put up with it if I could avoid taking pills. (Insulin I don't mind, since that's
replacing what's missing in my body with nearly the same thing!)
Yes, but not in the same way. The peaks and troughs (which result from administering insulin
externally) in blood glucose result in more damage to your cardiovascular system than the natural
method. To compensate and live longer, dial up the exercise accordingly.
Quoted message said:Any horror stories about bad side effects of cholesterol medications?
Just read the supplements for the drugs.
--
Nobody but a fool goes into a federal counterrorism operation without duct tape - Richard Preston, THE COBRA EVENT.
