Thread: My PT Story

So it was late May of this year, I went to the doctor because my blood pressure medicine perscrpiton had run out of refills. I stupidly thought I could just quit blood pressure medicine and be OK. After a couple weeks without my medicine I knew I was in trouble because my head absolutely throbbed non-stop, in fact my headaches had grown so severe that I could think of little else. I finally surrendered and decided to go get the prescription squared away. My blood pressure was of course through the roof and the results of my physical were predictably unimpressive.

The doc told me my BP and cholesterol were both very high (duh, I'm supposed to be on medicine for both and hadn't had any for nearly two weeks.) He then asked if there was any history of diabetes in my family. I flippantly answered, "No Doc, my folks have always been stroke, heart attack or emphasyma people, no diabetes here." He told me my blood sugar wasn't diabetic yet but was borderline and it wouldn't take much for me to become diabetic.

Behind the bravado though, if I was totally honest with myself I was very scared. Physically I felt like a man 30 years older than I am. I tired quickly and rarely had much left after a "strenuous" day at a desk job. Indeed alot had changed since I retired 5 years ago. Back then I could do five mile runs in less than 45 minutes in a gas mask with a half can of Copenhagen in my mouth. Now, it didn't take much at all for me to be out of breath and or ready for a nap.

When Blugill passed away, the voice in my head said, "That's you if you don't do something real fast." Mark was far too young to die of natural causes as am I but the truth of the matter is that my lifestyle choices seemed to be leading me in that direction real quick. I figured that I spent at least half an hour every day removing hair from my face, why not spend some time making sure that I'd be around to enjoy my shaves (wife, kids, grandkids, etc.) for the forseeable future. Since then I have run at least 20 minutes 4-5 times a week. From a portly 246 in late May my weight has come down to a svelt 213. The intensity of my training steadily increases as the weight comes off and I get in better shape. I've nearly weened myself off blood pressure medicine. I check it daily and can normally go 4-5 days between doses (I take my BP meds only when the BP reads 130+/90+. The weight continues to come off at a rate of 2-3 lbs a week. and I'm planning to start training after the first of the year for a half marathon. Many years ago, I told myself it would be really cool to run a full marathon the year I turned 50. The half marathon I'm training for is in March and there's a full marathon in December (2 months after my 50th). I'm wearing clothes I've not been able to fit into for years and it's amazing how much better I feel in general. I'm not on a strict diet but I am a bit more mindful of what I'm eating and how much. I continue to enjoy my pipes and cigars. Other than a whole bunch of exercise, the only thing I'm really doing different is I've cut down significantly on my drinking and I tend to drink a LOT more water than I used to.