ExRx.net

Hi all,

I'm going to essentially step everything up soon - go strict on my diet (carb cycling, ala t-nation, minus the mental amount of supplements ) and move to a periodization-esque routine (Texas method maybe with a couple of tricep accessories) once I've finished reading riptoe/kilgore's book - probably start of November when it kicks off properly.

Anyway - since I'm going to be nerding up a bit more and doing some routine monitoring (monthly body fat, calorie counting not guessing etc) I wondered what you guys suggest in terms of asking the doctor for?

My obvious first thoughts are blood pressure and cholesterol - but what other tests should I ask for?

I'm going to do some reading on here today regarding type of fat/balance in fat levels (3/6/9/sat etc) and see if I can steer myself toward better levels there too - I guess thats my main point, are there tests relating to these levels.

Cheers

Basically HDL cholesterol, triglycerides and glucose are what you want to look at.

LDL and total cholesterol don't tell you much. For 1 LDL is calculated and for 2 there are two kinds, one is neutral and the other is very bad. The only way to tell which you have is by the numbers on HDL and triglycerides. High triglycerides and low HDL is bad. That means you are on your way to a heart attack and your liver is being abused too. It means you have the bad kind of LDL. If you have low triglycerides and high HDL, you have the good kind of LDL. You want your glucose under 100 too. Your blood pressure will likely follow your lipid profile.

basically you want to take plenty of fish oil and eliminate transfats, and vegetable oil like canola. You also want to stay away from sugar and HFC. You should eat meat and get plenty of fiber.

HFC being corn syrup?

I remember when I was about 20 (26 nearly 27 now) I was told my blood pressure was high, I seriously hope that doesn't follow me as I've changed a lot generally to remedy it...

Same with my High Tri/HDL - I'm paranoid they will tell me that's high too - I was 17 stone/240lbs at 17 and 99% fat (thank you coca cola ;) [yeye I know... more like thank me])

*sigh* ahh well at least im on course for better health generally, only cure for a bad health youth is a time machine, makes me wonder if I'll be an @$$h0l3 with kids if/when I have em, give them steamed veg while their friends eat mcdonalds or give them a box of tuna and egg to take to pizza parties :)

Anyway cheers for the above Iron - I'll get them next week hopefully and post them here with a massive grimmace and crossed fingers - my health is generally good in terms of sickness/digestion blah blah so I think its more about symptom free levels such as blood pressure and your above comments regarding fat balance.

Let me get this straight--at age 20 you were told you have high BP, and have now gone 7 years without doing anything about it? Even monitor to know if it's still high? Whatever intervention you try (weight loss, exercise, medicine, snake oil, voodoo) you need to be following the pressure to find out if it is changing. If it's high at age 20, that's bad. You have many years ahead of you for the pressure to do damage, so get it under control somehow, and don't ignore it. Ever.

Well not high like medically/alarmingly high but on the high side - but no I didn't continue to monitor it - I just stopped smoking (bar MJ) and lost a decent amount of weight/fat, exercised etc.

Im sure if either of the two people who mentioned it thought it was high enough for action they would have mentioned it - but they just said watch diet some and get some exercise.

i'll be keeping a closer eye on it now I guess... I would have thought it was reversable.

Does being tall effect it at all or is it relative?

They might not have recommended action because they weren't thinking about the difference between a 50 year old and a 20 year old. What I would say "keep an eye on it" for a 50 year old, I'd be very likely to be much more aggressive about in a 20 year old.

Yeah, the weight loss and exercise are probably helping. You'll know after you see the doc. Hopefully.

No, tall doesn't affect it.

!?!?!??!?!??!?!?!??!?!

I agree with the doc, I didn't realize you are not even quite 27 yet and you have had high blood pressure for almost 7 years. You may be sodium sensitive and might possibly have to reduce your intake. We'll see what your blood pressure looks like. Young people should have pretty low blood pressure you know.

I'll be doing my research - less or more depending what it comes back as now - but my question for now is - lets assume I have had 7 years of "bad"/high blood pressure now, like pretty bad/enough for meds, how fast does that get resolved - or is it a permanent issue/life medicated thing?

My general conception of it is that it is repairable but not something that can be quick fixed.

Worried me now - i think ill go ask at our on site gym for a blood pressure test

Ok had it done at gym - first measurement was 140/74 he said I should try calm down so just stared at the TV for 2-3 minutes, he took it again and it was 128/73. took it again and it was 130/74

Hows that?

I'm happy to make significant changes to diet because although Im happy to break my leg in two, get a cold, get a "weird" feeling, I'm a pussy for this sort of stuff, the kind of stuff that suggests im pre-disposed to long term issues.

Im going to do some reading, but would cardio help this level?

Salt tends to matter. If you are sodium sensitive, it's a big deal. If you aren't, it doesn't matter at all.

Do you eat a lot of processed foods?

Almost anything in a can has salt added. My blood pressure is 98/60, but my husbands is like yours. His parents is higher. So, I monitor sodium when cooking. I make beans I start with dry beans-- not cans. Use low salt tomatoes, pick reduced sodium broth. Never use canned chiles; use fresh.

Even with these habits, if I monitor my sodium intake, it's sometimes higher than recommended. (Dairy is naturally pretty high in sodium.)

Look at labels and tally up you sodium consumption for a few days. If it's high, you might want to cut change your habits.

You should be careful that you get enough sodium. Especially with a low blood pressure. Sodium deficiencies are rare but they can be more dangerous than too much. I assume you eat the same food your serve your husband.

http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictio ... deficiency

No im better and better with real food over last 6 months especially - eggs/oats for breakfast salad for dinner (I mean lunch - Northern UK thing oops...)

Going over what I eat in my head... its probably only stupid crap like a takeout pizza once per 3 weeks or a store bought lasagne when I'm on a late shift - I do eat tinned beans but its not a common thing in my diet, i'd say three times a week

I doubt it's a diet thing - but as I said, when I was 17-20 I was a total waste - 3 litre bottle of coke, pizza pizza pizza, cheese toast every morning blah blah blah - not good, pasty 17 stone (240lbs) of fat!

I guess thats where it has come from - 25-now I've been decent with it - 22-24 I was quite reasonable.

But yea I guess I'll just watch sodium - I'm starting a carb cycle middle of the month and it's going to be a very clean/accurate diet (i.e. stepping my effort up) so I'll incorporate anything into that which assists in getting it lower.

I mostly eat the same food as my husband. We eat different things for lunch, and choose different breakfast cereals. I'm more of a snacker than he is. I consume more dairy (as yogurt.)

I don't use salt substitutes, and do add salt to taste.

I think part of the reason my blood pressure is so low is that I drink a lot of water and have my whole life. I'm always thirsty, but test say I have no problems with glucose control. I suspect the amount of water I drink flushes out more sodium than most people do. (Or maybe I'm wrong on this. But it's a thought.)

My husband seems to never get thirsty and drink water. When he mows the lawn or does yard work on very hot days, I sometimes carry water out and suggest he drink some!

I have had periods of dark urine (nothing major just made me think not drinking enough) so maybe that's something I should do too? I realise you aren't saying it's a definitive reason though.

but for 6-7 weeks now I've finished half a gomad and drank around that too.

Those are good pressures. I'm guessing that it's been pretty good all along, that it was just up transiently when you had it taken before, or that the things that you have done brought it down. Continue to have it checked once in a while (like once or twice a year), cause things can change.