My Forced Weight Loss Journey - How It Started

by Libby Pelham | More from this Blogger

19 Aug 2009 09:31 AM

I used the word "forced" in the title when I guess no one can be truly "forced" to lose weight. But, let me tell you a bit about my history and why I felt this was forced.

When I was younger, I was very active, but like many of us, I became more and more sedentary as the years went on. I married for the first (and only!) time at 36 and right before I turned 40, I realized if we were going to have any children, we had better get started!

I was very lucky in that we got pregnant after only 10 months of trying with no special measures used. However, when I went to take the glucose test, I failed miserably. I was a bit overweight (weighing 180 at 5' 8" when I became pregnant) and have a history of diabetes in my family (my father and both grandmothers), so I wasn't surprised. I was a bit surprised when I was immediately put on insulin, but everything went well and after nine months, I gave birth to a perfect little boy who is starting kindergarten this year.

I don't know if it is just me or this happens with all older parents, but I worry about staying healthy so I can enjoy seeing my son grow up. After his birth, the doctor told me take care of myself and I could starve off full blown Type II diabetes for at least a while longer. My family history and the gestational diabetes made me a great candidate for diabetes, but I wanted to do all I could to put it off as long as possible.

But, I got so engrossed in my baby and not taking care of myself, I let myself go. I lost 20 pounds a few years ago when the doctor said my cholesterol was high, but then another deployment of my husband led me back to a diet of almost constant fast food and sweet tea with no exercise.

This April, I went to give blood for my yearly checkup. The doctor left a message before I could even get home from the base hospital and I was certain I was dying. As it turns out, it was that bad, but things weren't good either. I was back up to 188, my cholesterol was 230 and my a1c was 6.5. To let you know how bad that is, 7.0 is considered diabetic, and so I was teetering on the borderline.

My doctor wanted to start me on cholesterol medicine, but I said no. I know me - if I took medicine, I would think living the type of nutritional lifestyle I was leading would be okay. No, it was time to get serious. After all, I am 46 and I am sure my metabolism is going to screech to a halt any minute.

So, this was my last ditch effort to lose weight AND keep it off. I was sent to a diabetic and wellness specialist. They were very helpful, but I already had the tools I needed to get healthy - I just had to apply them.

Since April, I have lost 20 pounds, lowered my cholesterol to 194 and my a1c is back down to 6.0. Every Wednesday, I will tell you how I was able to do that and how with just a few simple changes, you can too!

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Learn more about Libby Pelham

Libby Pelham is a work-at-home mom located in Jacksonville, NC. She has a beautiful little boy, Will, born in July of 2004.

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Samual (11722) 20 Aug 2009 04:32 AM

You must measure cholesterol differently over there, here it shouldn't be above 5.5. At the moment I am around 170lbs, I'm 6' 2", I used to always weigh from 200-210 lbs as I used to play a lot of rugby so I had quite a of muscle, though from the numbers it makes it look like I was fat.

I've had a lot of knee operations and physio in the last 11 years, so no more sport and I'm not allowed to go over 180 lbs. Which with limited exercise I find quite hard, either hungry or putting on weight. I used to cycle until my last op, since then I can't bend my knee enough to peddle. So now I swim, only in the summer though or the sea is way too cold.

Libby Pelham (12871) 20 Aug 2009 06:39 AM

It was my a1c (my average blood sugar) that was above 5.5 Samual, not my cholesterol. My cholesterol was at 230, which is not an uncommon number as far as I know for overweight people who eat unhealthy foods.

Samual (11722) 20 Aug 2009 01:45 PM

I did not mention your a1c in the comment I left. You must be confused.

Libby Pelham (12871) 20 Aug 2009 02:18 PM

I just misunderstood you since the 5.5 you mentioned was so close to my 6.5 a1c. Our cholesterol is measured where below 200 is considered good.