The Wait for the Weight...loss

It was really when I quit smoking that I noticed how much weight I'd gained. I decided I'd better join Weight Watchers, so I wouldn't add any more bulk to my body. That was in 2001 and I weighed in at 238 pounds. I was over TWO HUNDRED POUNDS!

I love to cook and cook, I did. I could follow the Weight Watchers plan. I love cook books. Weight Watchers has lots and lots of cook books. I bought lots and lots of Weight Watchers cook books. I followed the recipes. I followed the program. When I wrote down what I was eating, I'd actually lose weight. When I didn't, I either stayed the same or gained weight. While I was very good at eating only what I should eat, I had an issue with portion control. Those tiny servings didn't fill me up and I'd want more and more and more. I stayed with Weight Watchers for almost 10 years. I lost nothing. But, I gained nothing, either, so I, at least, managed to quit smoking without gaining weight. That was a good thing, right?

My weight had taken its toll on my knees. My knees are killing me. They hurt all the time. It doesn't matter whether I'm standing up, walking, sitting, or laying down. My knees hurt. So, one day, I mentioned it to my primary care physician and, at her suggestion, I decided to see an orthopedic surgeon about my knees. Why? I have no idea. I've no intention of having surgery on my knees. I've no intention of allowing anything to be injected into my knees. So, why go? No idea. I told the surgeon my issues with my knees and my reluctance to have anything done about them. I asked if there was something... some exercise or other alternative to surgery or injections. He prescribed 12 weeks of physical therapy. Okay, I could deal with that. So, I went through 12 weeks of physical therapy and went through my insurance coverage for same. My knees still hurt. All the time. Okay, so even if I were to consider surgery, I can't see doing that at my present weight. It just seems like a waste of time, effort and money. So, SOMEhow, I have to lose weight.

The Y has a Water Walking program that I thought I would enjoy, so I signed up. And I did enjoy it. I went for a year and my knees still hurt. All the time. How about just plain old walking? I hate walking on my streets. There are no sidewalks and people whiz by in their cars, sometimes coming within inches of hitting me. They don't slow down. It's like they're angry at ME for taking up their space. But I endured for about six months, walking 3-4 times a week, for about a mile. My knees still hurt. All the time. And I didn't lose any weight.

So, I went back to my primary care physician for my annual physical. My blood pressure was elevated. My cholesterol was elevated. My sugar was elevated. It was happening. My worst nightmare. While they all were slightly elevated, nothing was at the level of being a serious problem... except for the fact that my brother dropped dead of a massive heart attack at 45 and my mother survived a heart attack at 62. Both had high cholesterol levels and I was 55. So, here we go. Because of my family history and my elevated sugar levels, the course of treatment is aggressive to avoid heart problems. But, I simply refused to put all these synthetic drugs into my body. Wasn't going to happen. I would agree to taking lisinopril for the high blood pressure and that's IT! I would watch my diet, take fish oil capsules and try to exercise more to get my cholesterol and sugar levels down.

I called a young, overweight acquaintance and asked if he'd like to start walking with me around the "block" -- in the center of town, where he lived. He thought that would be a great idea and we started right after he got back from vacation. We started out walking three times a week. And I was actually looking forward to our walks. I also decided to go back to Y and get back into Water Walking, thinking that between water walking twice a week and regular walking three times a week, maybe that would have an effect on my cholesterol and blood sugar levels. But, then the cold weather came and my friend broke a few toes and couldn't walk. I stopped walking, but started coughing. I coughed all the time. Maybe it's allergies. Am I getting a cold? I kept hoping it was something other than the lisinopril, but it appeared that the lisinopril was making me cough. And THIS is why I don't want to poison my body with this junk.

I had already decided that I was not going back to that drug pushing primary care physician and found a new PCP nearby. This one seemed to understand me. She seemed to understand why I'd rather try to lose weight or exercise than poison my body with drugs.