Americans are always on the go. The proliferation of fast food in our society has produced an obesity epidemic and with this comes high triglycerides, high bad cholesterol, and low good cholesterol.
A couple years ago I reached that age where my doctor wanted blood work to check my numbers. I wasn't that surprised by the poor results. She gave me 6 months to fix it or she was going to put me on a statin. Here is how I avoided medication by making some simple incremental changes to my lifestyle.
Avoid These Foods: Remove fast food from your diet. This is easier said than done when you are first considering it. It doesn't have to be tough though. You just need to make smarter choices. If you are really in a rush, choose a sandwich shop instead of a burger joint. Get a turkey sandwich and avoid the mayonnaise.
Add Nuts, Fruits, Vegetables and Whole Grains: When you do your weekly grocery chopping, stock up on lots of fruits and vegetables. Start every day with oatmeal and fruit. Take some vegetable sticks, fruit and nuts to the office. Eat a healthy snack between your meals, but be careful and don't overdo the nuts. A single serving of almonds is around 16-18 pieces.
Add Healthy Low Impact Exercise: This is what gave me the final push to keep off the statins. Start walking around your neighborhood every day. Build your endurance until you can do at least 30 minutes a day. When your fitness has improved enough to feel comfortable taking the next step, move on to swimming laps or cycling. Both of cycling and swimming have been the key for reducing my cholesterol. Long easy rides is where you will see the most impact.
My doctor was amazed that I was able to reduce my cholesterol to normal levels naturally. She said that people usually don't take the consistent action necessary to make the difference.
Jay Lanigan got a wake up call about high cholesterol and found a love of cycling and mountain biking in the process. If you enjoyed this article, visit his website about mountainbikehelmets.org Mountain Bike Helmets and read his review of mountainbikehelmets.org/giro-atmos-helmets Giro Atmos Helmets.
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