Help me learn to eat better....

I'm another one that's been trying to eat better. One suggestion that DH had is to, when you're shopping, stick to the perimeter of the store - the produce, lean meats, dairy, etc. Try to avoid eating anything that comes out of a box and is "overly" processed. I also am someone who LOVES and lives for bread, pasta, cheese, etc. What I try to do is remind myself (harking back to my Weight Watchers days) that it's OK to eat just about anything. But you have to do it in moderation. Don't deny yourself things, because that will only make it harder. Don't look at it as a "diet;" think of it as changing what you do and how you do it.

For exercise, it's just a matter of doing it. I'm the least physical and athletic person you'll ever meet. I hate exercising, loathe sweating, and get exertion headaches regularly when I do exercise. But in the last few months, I've been doing it. I exercise at least 5 days a week, usually 6. I usually switch between walking (I have a 1.8 mile loop around my neighborhood that I can do in just over 28 minutes) and cycling, which I've just started doing. Start small. Set small goals. Doesn't have to be big. You just have to do it. Reward yourself when you do with something - obviously not half a chocolate cake, but a small treat, an extra show on Netflix, something to make yourself feel good.

I've had a Fitbit for almost 2 years now. I love seeing how close I can get to my 10K steps a day. Some days (especially when I do my walks) I come pretty close. Occasionally I go over. Sometimes I barely hit 2K. But it's strangely motivating.

I guess I sound like I know what I'm talking about. But after making these small changes for a few weeks, I really feel better. I haven't lost any weight, but I just FEEL better. You can do it. Baby steps, and smart decisions. You can do it!!!!

I'm switching to a mainly plant based diet. Not all, but for the most part I want to get my food from natural sources. I figure that's a good start.

I'm so with ya! I've got a lot to lose in order to have my knees replaced. They are toast. I'm on doctor's orders to not do any weight bearing exercise at all, not even walking. I swim 3 to 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes and it helps not only with meeting some type of physical activity goal, but I also feel more limber and move better when I swim regularly.

As for eating, I eat like crap. Just this week I started with one meal. Lunch. For lunch I make healthy choices. Either a salad with minimal dressing and some lean meat or some grilled chicken and veggies. It's only one meal a day and I find that now, on Wednesday, I'm enjoying my lunches whereas on Monday and Tuesday, I wanted to run out and grab a cheeseburger after I ate what I brought.

Next week, I'll add in breakfast. I'm not a breakfast eater, as a rule. And when I do want breakfast, I tend to drive through and make it fast food. So, I've been looking for high protein, low carb, low fat ideas that I can make ahead and bring with me to eat.

Then the third week I'll work on lightening up dinner. I'm home alone most nights so just fix whatever is easiest or, again, drive through somewhere to grab something quick. I'm going to do some of my old time favorites, with healthier fixins and use the crock pot as much as I can, because I can set it, go to work, go home and have dinner all ready. I figure with left overs, I can have dinner for at least 3 nights from one recipe.

And water. I don't drink nearly enough water, but I've stocked up on bottles to make it convenient. That'll help me drink more.

Good luck everyone!

Are those fasting numbers??? Honestly, those are really high numbers...I would see my PCP and see what he/she says.  Sometimes it's not just cutting down on certain things...what was your good to bad cholesterol ratio??

No processed foods, eliminate sugar (use agave/honey instead) and reduce white flour/gluten - this really works and before you know it, you'll not only stop craving those things, you plain won't want them. When the kids/dh are having meatballs & pasta, I'll have meatballs served over kale/broccoli/chard. Ooooh, also, at dinnertime have at least 2/3 of your plate covered in veggies, it's surprising how filling they can be (think it's because of all the chewing).

You can do it!

Okay, given that potential problems related to those numbers are heart attacks and strokes, I'm going to STRONGLY suggest starting medication to get those numbers under control immediately while working on changing your eating habits so that you will be able to come off the medication after a year or two.

Especially if you have kids, cholesterol that high is a loaded gun. You want to be around for them, don't you? You want to grow old with your dh, right?

You will have to change how you eat and add exercise, but realistically, that is a lengthy process. It will take some time and you want to bring your cholesterol down NOW!

I was diagnosed with high blood pressure the month I turned 30. My cholesterol is great, I've never been overweight, and I exercise. But, my mom has the same unexplained high BP and I inherited it from her. Yeah, it is a minor inconvenience to take a daily pill for it, but I've been doing it for 21 years now and really it is no issue. I've also had to add a daily dose of synthetic thyroid since they irradiated mine out of existence. Taking two pills a day is a very small price to pay for my health - I owe it to myself and I owe it to my family.

Please reconsider medication until you get your numbers under control.

I've gotten a lot healthier by just eating clean - cutting out processed foods, added sugar and the white stuff. I eat meat (including red meat), lots of veggies, fruit, legumes, whole grains in moderation and healthy oils. I use a lot of spices and the food I eat is not blah. I ate low carb for a few years (and I still eat relatively low carb with the vast majority of my carbs coming from fruits and veggies), and I can tell you that my cholesterol numbers and my triglycerides have never been better than they were when I was low carbing, even though I was eating a lot of fat then. Even with plenty of bacon and red meat in my diet, my total cholesterol was around 130 with very low trigs and good ratios, so I'm not convinced that high cholesterol results from eating fat or saturated fat.

Have you tried grilling or roasting veggies? I love grilled or roasted asparagus, brussels sprouts and especially squash/zucchini, even though I'm not nearly as fond of those same vegetables steamed. If you like tomatoes, how about making a ratatouille-type dish with other vegetables cooked with diced tomatoes? Or have spaghetti squash or spiralized zucchini with a tomato sauce. If you like cauliflower, you can rice it as a rice substitute or mash it as a potato substitute. I like vegetables (such as broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, onions, squash) in a crustless quiche - they don't taste the same that way as they do plain. I didn't start out liking most vegetables, but over time I acquired a taste for a lot of them and experimented with preparation methods that made them more palatable to me.

In the movie they addressed this and I guess studies have shown that you need to taste a new food about a dozen times before you can determine that you don't like it. Try some paleo recipes and you might find that you can "stomach" some new fruits and veggies. I'm guess I'm fortunate in that I like most fruits and veggies.

Also try slow roasted tomatoes. Delicious! I eat them with stir-fried(olive oil) zucchini, or over whole wheat pasta.

roasted cauliflower with parmesan, garlic and olive oil...serve it instead of french fries...great.