Healthy Living Continued

Last summer, it was a pretty big deal for me when I got under 200 pounds for the first time in years. Well, I just reached another milestone. This week I weighed in at 189, giving me a BMI of 24.9, which is the very top of the "normal" weight range for my height. I realize that BMI is just a small piece of the health puzzle, but it certainly is nice to have one less number designating me as overweight. And to think I used to be considered obese.

A major factor motivating me to get healthier was getting my cholesterol checked last year. My HDL (good cholesterol) was low, so my doctor prescribed medication to help bring it up to an acceptable level. Since then, my goal has been to improve my HDL via diet and exercise so I can stop taking the meds. Given my family medical history, I figure I'll have to take cholesterol medication at some point, but I'm not ready to resign myself to it just yet. My next check-up isn't for another few months, but hopefully I'm headed in the right direction.

These days, my last reserve of flab is my belly. In researching ways to target my persistent paunch, I found the Flat Belly Diet. Kristen and I checked out some of the cookbooks from the library, and have worked many of the recipes into our rotation over the last few months. In addition to making us more keenly aware of our portions and caloric intake, the Flat Belly Diet has helped us target more of the right kinds of food—fresh, unprocessed, low in sugar and sodium, and rich in monounsaturated fats. We've also made other subtle dietary changes like switching from white to wheat bread, and 1% to skim milk. We still enjoy the occasional burger or slice of pizza, but in moderation of course.

I've been going to the gym regularly for a while now, and Kristen has started to catch the bug as well. Lately she has been going to Jazzercise and Yoga every week, and is working on kicking her soda habit (five days without caffeine, and she's got the headache to prove it). We are both ready to take the next step—training for a sprint triathlon in June.