Well, I have a ways to go but let me tell you how the loss I've had has helped me. Since losing 25 pounds I have more energy, no more headaches, my PMS is much better and my asthma has even improved due to exercise. I also sleep better! My cholesterol is now normal for the first time in years. Thankfully my blood pressure has always been OK. How has weight loss helped your health?
I do have more energy plus I am able to do a lot more. I can exercise a lot easier these days when when I was at my heaviest. I also eat a lot healthier now than when I was at my heaviest. That is basically it (Cholesterol/BP was never a problem)
Oh boy. First off, my MENTAL health has improved beyond belief. I think I defintely had some depression type thing going on while I was obese. I also think I had some anxiety issues. I am so much happier now, it's simply incredible.
Although my knees will never, ever be perfect due to arthritis brought on by my weight, they are GREATLY improved. I can walk now for miles at a time. And hours at a time. Instead of barely making it 5 blocks.
My stamina and energy levels have increased beyond belief. As has my productivity levels.
I no longer take blood pressure medication, though oddly enough I didn't begin taking meds til the middle of my journey. But that is over and done with. My BP is perfectly normal.
My cholesterol is below 200.
My blood tests showed that I had gout levels of uric acid while I was so heavy. It was just a matter of time before gout hit me. Now they are below normal.
I haven't had a headache since I changed my lifestyle. Or heartburn. I was living on Mylanta back in the day.
I can't help but think that by shedding the pounds and eating healthy foods, that I have stopped some dreaded diseases right in their tracks. Such as diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers and more.
Robin that's amazing! I completely forgot about the heart burn part. I used to have terrible heart burn and it's now gone too. The preventive aspect of it is also great. You are an inspiration!
Before I had my last child, I was obese and my blood pressure was bad, like 168/90, all the time. I had a doctor who never even suggested medication to me, just said to "watch it" so I was going around with high bp for years. Now my bp is usually 118/80 or so.
I had such bad heartburn every night I had to sleep propped up with pillows AND take 3 or 4 extra strength Tums, thoughout the night. Now I can lay FLAT to sleep if I want. Wow.
I also had trouble sleeping due to feeling like I was suffocating from the "fat collar" hanging around my neck when I laid down. No more of that now either.
When I was 278, I was unable to walk out across the street to the mailbox without being in excruciating, debilitating pain and limping the whole way. I could barely make it up and down the 6 stairs into my living room. I had to take it very, very slowly. Now I can walk a couple blocks or more. I can do about 2 flights of stairs like a normal person. I still have bad knee problems but I am a lot more able to do things and less pain.
I had a lot of heart palpitations when I was 278 pounds. Now I hardly ever have anything like that. I got a lot of migraines and I hardly ever get those anymore. I had acne all the time, and that is mostly gone except right before TOM and it isnt that bad, either. I had plantar fasciitis so bad I could hardly hobble to the bathroom in the morning because my feet hurt. That is completely gone.
I just feel so much better overall. I think my cholesterol has improved as well.
That's a change I have also seen! Heartburn, and middle of the night acid reflux
These things went away immediately when I started eating sensibly again. It was progress I didn't have to wait for!
Those are some wonderful things to live without.
Edited to add: Lyn just reminded me of another thing that I don't have now! Every night, I used to have this strange feeling in my chest, I'm guessing that it was heart palpitations!?! It felt like my heart did a weird fluttering thing, and it made me cough...is that heart palpitations??? Gosh...that's terrifying! My Dad died of a heart attack at 44!!! I'd think of him whenever it happened....be afraid for my life...and then SHOVEL some more chips in!! Ugghhhh, how sad I was
Linda
Last edited by famograham; 03-08-2008 at 12:40 PM.
I wish I had a baseline doctor visit before I started, just to compare. Whenever I get a health screening, the doctor is always blown away by my stats - blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, triglycerides, etc. The last time, the doctor spent several minutes just raving about how healthy I was, that's nice to hear! I have to think my healthy, whole foods diet is mostly the cause.
You know, I hadn't really thought about the heartburn before, I did get it occasionally before (usually after very very spicy foods) and the instances have gone way down! So yay!
Another big thing for me - I can wear a skirt without having to worry about thigh chafing. Thigh chafing used to be a huge issue! I can vividly remember one warm afternoon in Vancouver, walking around trying to find an ATM since the restaurant we were going to didn't take Debit cards and being in AGONY. I could barely walk from the pain. I kept having to tuck my skirt between my legs when I walked for some relief - you know THAT was attractive. Skirts my thighs and summer - we get along now.
A big thing is energy. I am like a different person, night and day. I was a sad, depressed, heavy, slow, tired person. I used to fall asleep in my office everyday after lunch, I could barely keep my eyes open during meetings - it was so embarassing!
And confidence - wow, I smile more. I dress in cute clothes, I stand up straight. I stare at my body naked (I used to NEVER look at myself before). At the risk of being PG-13, I don't mind if my SO stares at my body naked either (hello, welcome to the fun world of sex with the lights on!!)
With just a 30 pound loss, reducing processed foods and refined sugar from my diet and walking, I reversed my insulin resistance. Also, my overall cholesterol levels are now under 200 and I raised my HDL's to a very healthy 58! My mood swings are gone, my sleep depriving acid reflux is gone and I have more energy.
Lyn I also battled plantar faciitis (in both heels) for 3 years. I am fine now thank goodness. I wore night splints, had cortisone injections (those were so awful) and I still wear my orthotics. I hope it never comes back. I wouldn't wish that on anyone!
Thanks for the replies! I think about how worse my health was and I'm not even 30 yet. Very scary. The major ailments I can hopefully prevent (stroke, heart attack, diabetes) scare me to no end too.
I would also agree with definitely losing weight has been majorly preventative for me. I would've hated to be eating poorly, weighing over 300 lbs until my 40s and beyond.
My back doesn't hurt at all anymore, when I was over 300lbs it hurt all the time, from the time I woke up to going to bed.
My heel pain is gone, I was never actually diagnosed with plantar fasciitis but I suspect that's what it was. It was so painful I couldn't walk long at all and in the mornings I couldn't even get out of bed it hurt so bad. Now, no pain at all.
My blood pressure and cholesterol have all normalized. My last cholesterol test was at 175.
I used to wake up several times in the middle of the night out of breath/heart racing. Haven't had that feeling in a several months. It's nice to sleep the whole night through.
My blood sugar was what got me to change my lifestyle. My fasting blood sugar was just below the pre diabetic stage and my doctor was concerned if I kept continuing the way I was it would go into full blown diabetes. I'm happy to say that my last test was well within the normal range for fasting blood sugar due to the change in eating and added exercise. This is a huge motivation for me to keep doing what I'm doing and maintain a healthier lifestyle.
It's nice to bend over and not feel like I'm cutting my air supply off too. I'm not sure if anyone else experienced this, but anytime I was trying to tie shoes, or put on socks or anything that required bending over, I couldn't breathe.
The list could go on and on... but bottom line is I'm feeling super now and it only gets better from here.
Wow... the list is SO long. Many are similar to others, and I haven't read all of the responses yet, but here are some of mine that spring to mind. Not all of them relate to losing weight, but also to simply a healthier lifestyle in general.
- definitely more energy
- more capable to actually DO things
- knees are no longer sore all the time
- mentally more relaxed, as I don't have the fears related to being morbidly obese
- rarely have a headache (have a feeling these were food related)
- rarely have problems with allergies (must have been food related)
- I have fewer heart palpitations and ectopic beats
- last blood work showed almost everything was perfect. A couple of things were borderline, but doctor was not concerned about those in the least. In my doctor's words "You would be pushing to find a cholestrol reading better than that!" My reading was 2.7 (not sure how that relates to readings in the US). My blood pressure was 90/60, which the doctor said was "perfect", even though I thought it was a little on the low side. My blood sugar was also on the low end of normal, which the doctor was thrilled about. Having a family history (on both sides) of adult-onset diabetes, that is probably the best news I could get.
Generally, I would never look back after seeing the improvements in this area of my life. I actually lost weight to be healthier, and I have achieved my aim with flying colours.
Thanks Glory. I'm still trying to work out what 'look' I want to go with my (kinda) new body. It's been two years since I lost the weight, and I'm STILL not sure. But it's fun experimenting!