13.6%
I've had a few wake up calls when it comes to my health over my life....
A big one was a few years ago when the doctor told me I was type 2 diabetic. What a shock! It wasn't that the news was unexpected, in fact I knew for about a year something was wrong. But hearing it from the doctor made me sit back and get serious about my health.
I changed my lifestyle completely. Hiked almost every day for miles, cut down on the garbage diet and had my blood sugar levels way down in only a few short months. I was super excited about changing things up, and seeing the results almost overnight kept me fired up...
For a few years lol
And over the past year and a half, I've let things go once again. My diabetes is under control, mostly because of the pills I'm on. But also I don't eat 'total' garbage lol But the hiking has basically stopped. And no excuse, things need to improve.
The first step for me was getting a family doctor and going for a routine check up this week. He showed me some numbers about the risks I'm taking on, and then he stated this...
13.6% chance of a heart attack or stroke in the next 10 years if I keep living how I'm living.
There's some formula that the smart people on the planet put together that takes numbers from all your health reports, and spits out the 'chance' that you can have a heart attack. Now obviously, this is just an example and should never be taken as gospel. And the doctor stated to me the obvious....Nothing is guaranteed. You could have a life changing health scare in 5 minutes from now.
But best case scenario is what he presented to me next...
He said, we can lower it to about 5% chance, and that's the lowest it'll ever get simply because of my age. He said I'm in moderate risk right not, but with 2 simple lifestyle changes, I can take the 13.6 and lower it to 5%
I like the sounds of that :)
So the changes are, you guessed it....Things everyone has control over.
First was diet. He recommended a mediterranean diet, with a heavy emphasis on the veggies. Which works for me, because diet is something I know I can control. Plus my faith is big on the health message, which means, I', trusting in science as well as my Creator to know what's best for my body.
The second was physical activity. Which again is pretty obvious. The best I ever felt in my adult life was when I started hiking every day. So for me, its simple...Get my big behind out on the trails again.
This was a wake up call. And I needed it. I got lazy and complacent when it came to my health, and at my age I cannot take it for granted. Pro active is always a better game pland that's what will happen in Jongo's life once again.
Here's to a leaner, healthy Jongo!
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I start out with my days with a hike, even bought some new hiking shoes. Nature hikes are even better for stress reduction and promoting health.
yeah man, it's my game plan going forward!
I hope you are able to make those changes and that the heart attack/stroke never happens.
You and me both :)
I think that physical activity such as walking, hiking, running are essential for our well-being.
Yup yup!
Health really is the most important thing and we should always be aware and take it seriously.
The older you get, the more important it becomes
🍷 To a leaner and healthier Jongo.
The two choices to lower the risk are great and you got this
Yup, and they are completely doable. I can control my destiny here
Think about what matters most to you when you're feeling lazy about going for a walk. It works for me.
Very good advice. My family usually fires me up!
It takes a lot of courage to face those kinds of wake-up calls head-on and actually make changes. Wishing you continued strength and progress on your health journey.
Thanks very much!
It is important to stay active and have a balance diet
as someone who recently tried and succeeded for the most part to turn his health around, I know where you are coming from. It's funny to me how just like everyone that has ever come before, I presumed I was invincible and health concerns were for other folks, not me. Then I got a surprise high blood pressure diagnosis that kind of scared me. I took that crap seriously, like you did, and the last time I had my blood pressure taken they said it was extremely good. I like to hear that but I know how easy it is to let it slip. The thing for me was to start to be proud of what I was doing as far as running and lifting weights was concerned and then surround myself with like-minded people. Easier said than done I know, but those people are out there. Not in as great of numbers as the pissheads at the pub of course, but they do exist!
How'd you lower the BP?
That's the next hurdle I need to tackle lol
by what you were already doing. Diet and exercise. I started eating a whole foods diet and using a nutrition app. Exercise wasn't actually a big part of it... mostly just diet... and I think a lot of it boiled down to me cutting down big time on the amount of alcohol I was consuming
For sure! Thanks for the tips. Yeah it's just me actually following through with this stuff.
that's the hardest part of any program though, isn't it? When I decided that I was going to lose weight and bring down my BP the biggest part was making a plan and then sticking with it. Most of it consisted of getting my shopping done and stocking up the fridge with things that both taste good and aren't terrible for you. I'm sure this just sounds obvious but that was a big part of it for me.