Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Not As Bad As I Thought...

I'm in a medical weight loss program. Which sounds like a lot more than it really is. My husband started seeing an endocrinologist at the Bariatric Center at our local hospital. He wanted to find out options that weren't surgical, and try those. He was quite heavy. And his mother died from complications due to bariatric bypass surgery. So we want to exhaust all non-surgical methods first, as one could guess.

Anyway, to show solidarity, I started going too. They have us trying an insulin-controlling medication, and we're having pretty good results. We're both happy with it.

The one thing about these centers, though, is that it's a whole being approach. In other words, you don't only go see the endocrinologist. You also have to see a nutritionist, an exercise expert, and a few others I have yet to need to see. I saw the nutritionist at my first visit, and duh - it was all information I knew. I KNOW it. I just don't always DO it. Like, for example, at 11pm in the kitchen when I have a mad case of munchies and only peanuts or something equally salty and fatty will do. THAT is the moment I need the nutritionist to step in. But obviously, they do not pay house calls.

So today was my appointment with the exercise expert. It was a fairly comical meeting, to say the least. I actually looked forward to her reaction to me. You see, I'm tall - 6 feet, to be exact. I'm also built in the "sturdy" or "bigger" method of people....you know, big bones, decent musculature even when I don't lift weights - that sort of thing....

I weigh - uh, let's just say, a lot. But I'm also fairly fit. I told her first about my knees and neck, though. And then she asked me what I do each week for fitness. This is where it got comical. Because, honestly, I do a lot for someone who is my weight. I told her about the 2 hours of spin I normally do a week, and the 3 hours of karate I do at MINIMUM. Add to that the half hour of rehab weight lifting each Wednesday with my doc, and she kinda just stared at me. The look on her face was priceless - a somewhat amazed, bemused look, that said, "Why the heck are you overweight then??"

Ahhh, priceless....

So we discussed some things I can do to modify weight lifting in order to increase my muscle mass - it's the one place I've been floundering because of my knees and neck.

AND then .....

cue dramatic music....

It was time to test my body fat percentage. OY. VEY.

I was terrified, I will not lie. First off, the electronic body fat testers often run wacky on someone with higher muscle mass. The scales that test body fat will tell me I'm something like 65% body fat (uh, sure, yeah - I'll go lose 130 pounds, k? Not....accurate, eh?? I mean, I have bones, no? And organs?? Those have to weigh more than 100 pounds...) Secondly, I just did NOT feel like being depressed today...

This tester was awesome. It measures at the bicep. I carry my fat in my midsection, and have skinny arms and legs (for a chubby gal). WOOHOO! It also asks 7 questions which it takes into account for results. Things like, what frame are you? How often do you work out? For how long? Double woohoo!

I am in love with this machine....it told me I'm ok! woot! I am 28.7% body fat. Which is UNDER the obese category - happy day! I was expecting like 40% with it being the electronic ones...but WOW, it was fairly accurate! She said I should be about 22%, so I've got 6% to work on. This is far less daunting than the ones that told me I had to lose about 45%....

So I guess it was a good visit. I think she was impressed with my fitness knowledge (former instructor, I should hope I know how to do stuff! LOL! ) And my attitude....so I see her in October again - she said she'd test my body fat again....can't wait, actually!!!

16 comments:

Melisa Wells said...

Yippee! You gotta love when you are LOOKING FORWARD to a body fat test. ;)

Dea said...

Sad, isn't it???

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