Hello blog o’sphere! I started this Blog as a way to catalog the second half of my life. I’m 52, I’ll be 53 on February 20th. I’m a good 50 pounds overweight and I’m starting the Dukan Diet in two days. I’ve wanted to start a blog for a long time now and my desire to record my successful weight loss (I’m an optimist at heart) has finally driven me into the world of the Blog. However; I don’t want this blog to be solely about my dieting. Life is so much more than a number on a scale. I will detail who I am in my profile (or another post since I really have no idea how this all works) at a later date. Suffice it to say, I’m a 52 year old female still searching for meaning and hoping for happiness along the way.
So, the Dukan Diet. If you’ve never heard about this diet, it was created by Dr. Pierre Dukan and is based on a high protein, low fat, nearly zero carb plan. I’ll talk more about the particulars in the coming days. I’d like to give you a little background on my dieting issues first and what led me to the Dukan Diet.
I was always a chunky child. My parentage is good strong Western European peasant stock. I finally slimmed down during my late teens, just before heading off to college. I maintained a decent weight of 135 on a 5’6” frame throughout my first marriage, two pregnancies, divorce, second long-term relationship, finally graduating from college at a late age (37) and into my early forties and eventually second marriage. Maintaining that weight wasn’t easy. I had a couple of stints with Weight Watchers and I was always physically active. I’ve always had a gym membership and took aerobics classes as often as possible since I’ve never been particularly fond of weight lifting of any kind. I thoroughly enjoyed bike riding, hiking, and more than anything, rollerblading.
It was during my late thirties to early forties that things took a turn. I started having heart palpitations, not just a flutter; I mean heavy, hard pounding. It was a bit scary since my father had a couple of strokes and passed away from a heart attack. I wasn’t terribly concerned though because I’ve always had a good cholesterol panel and low blood pressure. I was 42 when I started having episodes of extreme weakness. It was as if a wave hit my body and this weak feeling would wash over me. It took me several visits to convince my family physician to refer me to a cardiologist.
I had a full workup and they found that I had Mitral Valve Prolapse. This is not an uncommon problem. The vast majority of people with MVP never have any further issues. The doctor decided he would see me every six months for two years then once a year just to keep an eye on things. He told me my condition was very common and was not limiting in any way. I should just ignore the palpitations and go on with my life. The problem was, the palpitations and the weakness scared me to the point of panic attacks. It became a Catch 22 for me. I fought hard just to keep myself from becoming agoraphobic. After six months of attacks and keeping it to myself I finally broke down and sobbed all about it to my family doctor. He prescribed anti-anxiety medication and I was finally able to begin to get a handle on things. In the meantime, the weakness, palpitations and panic attacks kept me from the gym and all forms of physical exertion. I was terrified of putting any strain on my heart. Slowly the pounds started packing on. In a year and a half I had my third visit with the cardiologist. He was reviewing the echocardiogram and told me to get dressed and meet him in his office. He never said that before, but I didn’t think anything of it. I hadn’t been feeling any better or any worse than I had on my first visit with him. To my great shock, he told me it was time to call in a surgeon, my valve had deteriorated quickly and I needed surgery as soon as possible. I was terrified! Within a month I was in the hospital recovering from valve repair. Apparently I also had a small hole in my heart as well. They closed it during the operation. They said my valve issue was either a birth defect or occurred from an untreated viral infection. Either way, they suggested repair instead of replacement due to my age. With a replacement I would have to take anti-rejection medication for the remainder of my life. They were hoping to postpone that. Long story short, I see my cardiologist yearly, it’s been 9 years since the surgery and so far, so good. The only side effect has been the development of an arrhythmia, most likely due to the closeness of the valve repair to the nerve that makes my heart pump. Sorry for the lack of technical terms.
Now, you would think someone with heart issues would lose weight. Well, I guess it’s because my heart issues have been related to the correct beating of my heart and not to the thickness of my arteries. Physical exertion still scares me. For the first five years after the surgery my cardiologist told me to keep my pulse under 130. Well, I’m also asthmatic. I hit 130 very easily with a brisk walk! (walking is boring to me) I was used to strenuous exercise before all this started. Again, long story short, I’ve been babying myself and the weight has piled on, no creeping any longer, it’s jumped on board! Add to this my current age and the fact that I am now peri-menopausal, I’m a GOOD 50 pounds overweight. I’m sure the extra weight is hurting my heart as much or more than any strenuous exercise might. So in the past two years I’ve tried Weight Watchers again. I watched the video “Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead” which lead me to invest in an expensive juicer. I followed that program and lost 8 pounds in 2 months and kept most of it off, but couldn’t lose anything more. When my doctor found out what I was doing she gave me a lecture and told me to try “PrescriptFit”, a protein smoothie powder diet that contains all the essential amino acids. I did this for several months; maybe it’s been a year by now. The stuff tastes really good and I would add ground flaxseed to it as well. I would drink a shake for breakfast and one for lunch and eat whatever healthy dinner my retired husband had cooked up. I still never lost anything. I should also say, I’m a sugar addict. I never binge eat, but I’ll have a snack or a milkshake or an ice cream cone now and then. I also love carbs, namely bread with Smart Balance on it, or rice, brown of course, with Smart Balance on it. My coworkers love to eat lunch out and who am I to decline? Mexican, Barbeque, fried seafood….of course I’m there. We do this once or twice a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. Anyway, here I am still overweight and depressed and avoiding any and all mirrors and cameras. I have a new grandson and only one or two photos of me with him because of my weight.
I heard about the Dukan Diet from my husband. He is retired, but teaches biology as an adjunct professor at our local community college. Two of the women in his class lost a good bit of weight during the semester. He asked them how they did it and they told him about the Dukan Diet. They gave him a brief outline of the plan and he passed it on to me. I downloaded The Dukan Diet from Amazon to my Android phone and I just purchased the associated cookbook. Since the Holidays were upon us, I decided to wait it out and begin the Diet on January 2, 2013. We typically eat a New Years Day meal of pork loin, black-eyed peas and cabbage (for luck). On the diet I’d only be able to eat the pork so I decided to wait one more day. My son Steven has decided to do it with me and my husband plans to as well, although he only needs to lose 5 pounds or so.
We went shopping yesterday and stocked the fridge and freezer with lean meats and fat free dairy and diet sodas and sugar-free chewing gum as well as sugar free condiments, such as pickle relish (sugar free) and mustard as well as many spice blends to flavor the meet. The first phase is called the Attack Phase and it lasts from 4 to 7 days, up to 10 days. This diet is my last ditch effort. If it doesn’t get my metabolism kick-started, I don’t think anything will. Wish me luck and/or journey on with me.
