Again, almost a year without posting! I've been treading water, same old same old. But have just embarked on a major health push... lose weight, lower my blood pressure... again!
I've started the DASH diet, very mainstream but highly touted for lowering blood pressure, losing weight, and lowering the risk for most non-communicable diseases, including the biggies in aging: diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.
I just began yesterday, and as of this morning my weight was down 1-1/2 pounds, and my blood pressure down 10 points (a total of systolic+diastolic change). A really encouraging start!
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| This Morning's Breakfast |
I felt quite satisfied with the food, both quantity and quality. In fact, I was (unbelievably) unable to finish all the selections by bedtime!
DASH reminds me of old-time Weight Watchers selection plan, but with more food! As far as I can tell, it is designed to (1) lower salt intake, (2) increase intake of vegetables and fruit, (3) control intake of fats, especially saturated fats, (4) control calorie intake to allow weight loss, (5) control macronutrient (carbohydrate, protein, fat) proportions, and (6) ensure adequate intake of many micronutrients (vitamins and minerals, in particular).
Yesterday, I had quThiite a lot of food. Breakfast was a classic: an egg fried in butter, with whole wheat toast and a sliced orange. Washed down with two mugs of coffee with almond milk.
A quick lunch after returning from a mall expedition: a tin of sardines in water, alongside a plate of cut-up raw veggies topped with a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and whole wheat bread chunks to sop up the oil and vinegar. And an apple.
An afternoon snack; toast with peanut butter and a banana.
Finally dinner: A big skillet of broccoli, carrot, mushroom, red bell pepper and onion, with an ounce of chicken breast and a cup of cooked barley added in, plus a teaspoon of virgin olive oil. Then for dessert, a cup of low-fat yogurt sweetened just a little with stevia and red and green seedless grapes, a few chopped raw nuts for crunch. I sprinkled just a little light salt (sodium and potassium chloride blend) over this as it seemed a little bland.
This morning, my breakfast (pictured above) was again an egg, but this time fried in olive oil with chopped onion and green and red bell pepper, topping a warmed corn tortilla, and everything sprinkled with chopped cilantro. I added a sliced orange, and again had a couple cups of coffee/decaf with nonfat milk. Very tasty and filling.
Like I said, a lot of food, but all pretty healthy by mainstream standards. I prepared a little tracking sheet so I can check off the "boxes" for the food selections as I go, as well as write down a diary of my food and exercise for the day.
I am reading The DASH Diet Action Plan, by Marla Heller, MS RD. The basics for the DASH (Dietary Approches to Stop Hypertension) are widely available on the internet, including a lot of recipes, but I like having a little book to look at. Heller's seem to be reliable and usable, with all the needed info, sample meal plans, and a lot of advice and tips.
I mentioned "mainstream standards" above for good reason. Before buying this book I read all the reviews for it on Amazon. Many people reported losing substantial weight and lowering their blood pressure. But there were a few who took Heller to task as "outdated" and/or "unscientific" for not following two of the dominant alternative diet paradigms of the day: paleo/low carb, or alternatively WFPB (whole food plant based), a high carb and very low fat diet. I have considerable experience with both of these, and for me, they don't work well.
I have always felt better on a lower carbohydrate eating plan, but going too low always resulted in low energy and only a little initial weight loss, even after the initial weeks.
I really, really wanted WFPB to work for me, and I've done it for months at a time in the past, but the older I get the worse I feel on it. It does lower blood pressure and result in weight loss. When I saw my doctor in October and discovered my blood pressure was quite high again, which I confirmed at home with my own meter, the first thing I tried was WFPB. I lost a few pounds and my BP readings started to come down. But... I didn't feel well. I started experiencing the mild depression and anxiety I"m prone to, along with mild intermittent nausea. I developed symptoms of what was probably fungus or yeast infection. My arthritis flared up, especially in my feet, knees and hands, so I felt achy most of the time, more so after a good walk. Cutting out the excessive carbs and using more protein and fat partially resolved most of those symptoms, but the BP readings climbed - not to initial levels, but higher - as did my weight. I tried upping my magnesium intake with easily-absorbed forms of magnesium, but did not see much change.
So I've gone back to a more "balanced" diet plan, the DASH, which controls carbs and sugars, keeps meat/fish/poultry and fat relatively low, and makes sure you get a lot of micronutrients from abundant intake of fruits and vegetables, rather than relying on pills and supplements. It is the plan most endorsed by the medical mainstream, and seems to get good results with a lot of people.
So I'll give this a trial for at least a month... three would be better. It seems to be a kind of eating pattern you could adopt and make into a habit, just as I got used to the old Weight Watchers selection plan years ago (and lost a lot of weight, too, although the calorie level was too low, resulting in hunger at night.) The DASH is similar enough to that old program, including portion sizes, that I'm finding it pretty easy to slip into so far. And it's more in line with my calorie needs - I set it for 1600 calories, a lot more than the 1200 allowed by old WW.
And I'm feeling well this morning. In spite of probably well over two hours of walking yesterday, the arthritis pain didn't show up. I slept fairly well and my mood is pretty good - no anxiety, depression, or nausea. And both my weight and blood pressure are down a bit. A good start!
