Along with checking my weight today, I also had a doctor's appointment, so I want to talk a bit about that as well. I also talked with my diabetes care team (nurse and dietitian) last week. But first, weight:
weight: 224.8 lbs
fat percentage: 53.3%
hydration: 32.1%
muscle: 23.0%
bone: 10.8%
cal: 2406
So not great. Weight crept back up, along with the fat percentage. The muscle percentage is about the same, so that's good.
First, doctor's appointment. We talked about my cholesterol a bit, which is still too high, but came down from my last bloodwork in the spring. I asked him what number it needs to be at, and he told me that the LDL needs to be under 2 (which, as I already know, is incredibly stringent). I am getting up towards the age that this will be a problem, but I'm not quite there yet. So I basically have 2 years to get the LDL under 2.
While this is going to be hard, I now have a deadline. I need to try to get my LDL cholesterol down in the next two years. I know it will not be easy (and there is a good chance I will not make it there, as talking to other people over the last few years about it has informed me that it is very, very hard to get your cholesterol down to the level they want people with diabetes to have). But at least if I try my best, I will know that I tried and didn't give up. So we will see how things go!
Thinking of cholesterol, I asked my dietitian last week how to get your HDL to raise. As I've been monitoring my lipid levels over the last few years, I noticed that whenever my overall cholesterol level raises, the HDL tends to bump up, too. But when the overall cholesterol level lowers, there is a bump down in HDL. My dietitian told me that exercise is the big way to get the HDL to raise. So I will need to work on increasing my exercise level!
Diet is helpful too, but it looks like diet is more helpful in lowering LDL.
The other thing my doctor wanted was for me to make some adjustments to my basal levels. I'm going to try making some of the changes gradually, rather than going as quickly and drastically as he wanted. I don't think I talked about it before, but back in 2019 I had some huge problems when a doctor asked me to make some adjustments that were not backed by what my pump downloads were saying. I spent a lot of time low over the following few weeks and wasn't able to do much activity because of fear. So now I try to be super careful with changes and make sure they are done gradually and safely, rather than quickly, so I don't have to live in fear like that again. It was terrible!
So that is where things are at right now. I will give the basal changes a few days, then check back!
