The Road to 40 Day 286/365: Locked In

Over the past three years of annual medical checkups, I’ve always been told of the same problem, but I think it’s only now that I am actually doing something about it.

In my last medical checkup, I was told that I could consider medication and that some neck veins are getting narrow because of fats. While I was told that there wasn’t much I could do with the latter, I told the doctor that I’d rather watch my diet and exercise instead of taking medication.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to sustain both. I have plenty of excuses that don’t really matter now. Recently, I felt light-headed and my blood pressure was high. I went to the doctor to be told the same things that I was told before, only this time, I couldn’t deny the medication anymore.

The goal has always been to live long enough to see Vino grow old and spend my senior years with Che. If I didn’t do anything about what I’m feeling now, I might not live long enough to reach that goal.

So I started the day running. Walking has always been my choice of physical activity, but I think running would help me reach goals quicker. For my first run, I did about four kilometers in 34 minutes. It was a mix of running and walking, but hey, gotta start somewhere.

I’m not sure if I can do it everyday, but I can ramp up the activity gradually. No matter how motivated I am now, I can’t go zero to 100 in a snap of a finger.

For my diet, I’ve mostly had fish, fruits, and vegetables since seeing the doctor. I believe I’m not a picky eater, but the food that I pick aren’t always healthy. Now that I have to choose, I think it hasn’t really been that difficult.

The food have actually been filling. I could discover new recipes that could make the food that I need still enjoyable for my taste buds. Of course, I can still do the recipes I’ve done before, especially for Vino and Che, it’s just that I can’t have as much of them as I used to.

For now, the goal is zero red meat until I significantly lower my cholesterol. I know I can’t avoid it, so I’ll be working really hard to deserve at least a few bites of it in the future.

I’m actually proud at how locked in I am right now. I haven’t craved meat, or at least, I have been able to resist eating it even if it’s in the same table. For softdrinks, I don’t really drink much except for when I order value meals in fast foods. I can still probably cut down on juices, except for ones that we make at home.

It’s going to be a long journey, but it’s also been long overdue. I want this to work, and at least a week into this new habits, I think it’s sustainable.