Renewed Health Today

I remember November 2006 very well. I was just plain scared! I had never been sick a day in my adult life and now I had lost 42 pounds in 30 days or so. I was not really walking, but shuffling. I remember now I wasn’t standing up straight. I am a proud man who is only 6′ 1″ tall, but could seem taller to everyone since I stood up straight with my shoulders back naturally. I could not get more than a few hours of fitful sleep.

I had begun to change my diet. I had not yet tried any exercise. because I was lucky to walk around the office building. When I did try walking for exercise I remember I had to swing my whole leg to get what seemed a reasonable stride. I had acquired a tread mill for the family at Christmas. I had to hang on for dear life at 2 miles an hour. Actually, as I learned later my stride did not get longer at all, I just worked harder. I remember meeting a jogger who may have ran a half mile beyond me and would catch me on his way back way before I finished my half mile walking. Today that same jogger cannot catch me at all in the 1.5 mile I walk to catch the bus to work.

So what changed? Well my friend concerned about how I looked then asked me if I was well. I told him than I had just been diagnosed as a Type 1 diabetic (HbA1c 12.1 and daily finger pick results 600+). I was on insulin to gain control of my glucose levels. Now I did not know anything about diabetes except that my father struggled with it and not very well. He suggested a diet supplement that he took. I trusted him a lot and knew that his  health had been much worse than mine most of his life. So I accepted his offer. I’ll explain about the dietary supplement another time. Many small facets about my overall health improve quickly. There was a dramatic positive change in my diabetes.

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I have shared my belief in exercise to reduce Blood Glucose Levels quickly in social network forums. I know of no quicker way to lower blood glucose levels in a healthy way. These last three weeks verify for me that daily exercise is a very important component to my renewed health. Recently my last HbA1C was 5.5 and my daily finger prick tests were 105 in the morning and 85 in the early evening. Pretty good I thought. It been that way for a year.

Yep, I got lazy! Three weeks ago I went on a business followed by a week’s personal trip to New Mexico.

Well my discipline has been so good I thought I could slide a little. So I indulged a little on my business trip. More importantly even though I brought a pair of walking shoes I sat on my duff the whole week. I usually walk 4 miles a day to work rain, snow or hot sunshine. Well my daily finger prick numbers crept up 20 points.  Not to worry I thought.

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My doctor’s first recommendation for a life style change was to exercise. My cholesterol was a little high. My muscle tone was gone. My blood pressure was slightly elevated. My cholesterol and higher blood pressure are related to being diabetic. As a recently diagnosed diabetic I was a mess.

As a side effect of high glucose levels in my blood I has lost 42 pounds in less than 30 days. Unfortunately, most of that loss was muscle. Naturally, I did not have any energy. I was shuffling rather walking. Except for the last few years I had been a life time jogger and bicycle rider. My life style had been very active and aerobic in nature.

I was scared and understood I had to build my body up. I had to renew my health. But, I could not find any time in the day for an exercise program. Then I consider taking the bus and train to work. But, I was so weak I had to swing my feet to move the heavy walking shoes I bought to provide support for the mile and half walk from my house to the bus. From the train to my office was a half mile walk. So in a day I would walk 4.0 miles. So somehow I converted the fear of being diabetic and all it complications into a driving discipline.

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