An interesting doctor visit :) Great pointers!!

[illy]

I had my yearly check-up two weeks ago and I wanted to share a little of what my doctor told me.

First, as soon as he came into the room, he said, "let's talk about your fantastic bloodwork! What are you doing?" I guess I looked puzzled and he clarified, "Your labs came back great." He showed me the chart and explained all the numbers to me. My cholesterol and triglycerides were in the low range of ideal and my good cholesterol was right in the middle of ideal. He said that all he would change is that he'd maybe bring my good cholesterol up one or two points.

I had never really discussed my diet with him before, at least not in detail. So then I just came out with it. I told him that I am a huge fan of Atkins, but that I always give up after two weeks because everything seems to stop and I get depressed and decide I'll try it again later. And he smiled. He told me that he eats low carb too. He's not overweight, but he is trying to lose some. Then he gave me some excellent advice that I really wanted to share with everyone.

First, about keto-sticks. He told me that in his opinion, those are one of the best tools anyone who eats low carb can use. He explained how if that little stick is purple, your body is absolutely, without question, doing what you want it to do. It's a chemical reaction and there's no way around it. He said that the typical bathroom scale is only partially accurate at best. He said that if the stick is purple and your scale reads that you are up two pounds, there should be no question in your mind that those two pounds have nothing in the world to do with fat. If you're feeling down and the scale isn't budging, and even if your waistline isn't going down, never fear. Fat is still going away and it's only a small amount of committed, determined time before you see it and feel it.

Second, he is a huge fan of charting your progress. We are similar in that both of us love to use Excel, but I hadn't used it like he suggested. You can turn anything in Excel into a chart or graph. He told me that this his experience: He started charting his progress on Excel just to keep track and to have it handy. He would have the same feelings when the scale wasn't budging, but he kept right on because his sticks were always purple and he knew the science behind that. So he kept right on filling in those numbers on his chart. In time, he began to see a definite pattern. He would lose, lose, lose, lose and then stop. Then he would go up maybe one or two pounds. Then he would lose, lose, lose, lose and then stop and then maybe go up one or two pounds. He learned that this is how his body works. That is his natural rhythm of losing and when you look at it long term, it is consistent. That's the key - it's consistent.

Then we talked about my resting metabolic rate. There is a fitness center at the medical complex where I go and he wants me to go get tested. Apparently they have a way over there to very accurately gauge your resting metabolic rate. What's important about that is knowing what you need to eat because every person is different. Although Atkins gives us the tools to eat well, the fact still remains that every person is different. We have to be in control of ourselves and know our own bodies. I've heard stories of people who have "done Atkins" with huge success eating things that I know or a fact will stall me, give me leg cramps, cause severe intestinal pain, not to mention draining my energy. All of us are different and each of us has the responsibility to ourselves and and our families to take charge of our eating and get to know our own bodies. What works for me might not work for you and the other way around. But low carb does work and it is healthy! There are new studies all the time that prove it. We just have to learn what on those lists of acceptable foods work for us as unique individuals and we have to get out there and get that blood pumping!!

So here I am again, down a total of 5 pounds after losing and regaining again, and I am putting his good words to use. I hope some of this will be as inspirational for others as it was for me.

[misplaced southerner]

congrats on your doctor's report! it is great that you have a doctor who is willing to talk to you and teach you good things. keep up the good work. (BTW, my doc is a huge atkins advocate, as is the cardiologist i went to for my stress test....but some dont like to admit it!)

[illy]

I was really nervous about bringing it up to him because you never know. I was so happy with his response! It's given me a "new lease on Atkins"! I'm really fortunate in that I believe I have the world's best doctor. It doesn't matter how much I have to say or how long it takes, he listens.

[tmn]

Thanks for sharing, great information, especially about the natural rhythm of the body loss. Did he say how often he's weighing himself and charting the numbers for comparison later?

Gotta love those doctors who agree with Atkins. Funny thing is, I've found this to be true in only male doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, etc. Haven't found a female medical professional who does. Any I've mentioned Atkins to all still have the phobia about fat.

[eclectikat]

maybe its cause I am pms-ing... I am emotional just reading this. It is so good to hear support from a source we immediatly thing will be against us... isn't it. I am happy for you and glad for you to share this information with us. Love the tracking suggestions. I track things on paper. And it really has helped.

Keep up your good work.

Kathy

[momtomany1]

Glad you shared this. I went to a health fair last time I did Atkins and got all this done, and it all came back great too.

Eat olives, avocados, and the like, and exercise to bring up those 'good' cholesterol points!

[illy]

Yeah, exercise is the bane of my existence right now. Our heating & air unit doesn't work and we don't know how long it'll be before we get another one. With nothing but fans in the house and the typical east Tennessee 95 - 100 degree average August day, it's sweltering in here.

[illy]

Originally Posted by eclectikat

maybe its cause I am pms-ing... I am emotional just reading this. It is so good to hear support from a source we immediatly thing will be against us... isn't it. I am happy for you and glad for you to share this information with us. Love the tracking suggestions. I track things on paper. And it really has helped.

Keep up your good work.

Kathy

You know, my hubby didn't understand it, but that is exactly how I felt after my doctor visit. I was SO emotional! I couldn't quit talking about it. It really feels good to have that kind of support.

I wonder if you are right in that mostly male health professionals support low-carb. And I wonder if it's because of male conditioning. I know that my husband eats a low carb diet not as a diet, but he goes for a lot of protein and I know that a lot of bodybuilders are the same. I also know that sooooo may women have tried every diet under the sun and women like my mom and sister who were dieting a lot in the 70s and 80s really were pulled into the no-fat craze. The first time mom tried Atkins, I swear to you that she tried to do it fat-free. She was buying turkey bacon and taking any fat with paper towels, buying fat free cheese and everything. I couldn't make her believe that the reason she wasn't having success is because she wasn't following the rules. She still doesn't believe it.

[Aussieinaz]

Thank you for posting this I so needed to read this today. My husband has been home for 2 weeks from Iraq and goes back this Wednesday and I fell off big time while away at Disneyland last week. Im back on track as of yesterday but I feel like such a loser I was doing so well before that.

I also lose like your Dr, I go up before I drop and then stall and then drop and then go up, then stall... its so true there is a patten to it all.

Anyway thanks again for this post it gives me hope. I also use the sticks all the time and love to use them as a gage.

[M1che11e]

Hi! Congrats on your visit and good post, I am a huge fan of the sticks.

An easier way to chart your weight ( and your food as well) try fitday.com its free, and you can track everything..... make weightloss goals, track your fitness etc. I have been using it for years, even tho I am new here