Archive for the ‘diabetes’ Category

Pizza pizza!

Posted: February 24, 2013 in Bariatric surgery, diabetes, Exercise, Foot issues, Physical activity, The Rec, Walking, Weight loss
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OK, I admit it.

I wasn’t the poster child for a good healthy dinner last night.

For a few weeks, I’ve been craving pizza. Not one of my healthy flatbread veggie pizzas, either. Rather one with real crust. That being said, it wasn’t nearly as devastating to my diet as it could have been. You see, me of eight months ago would’ve swung by Caruso’s and picked up a medium with extra cheese and, well, devoured it. See, pizza is deadly. The medium would’ve been a huge improvement, though, because I used to eat an entire large pie by myself, especially if I was feeling sorry for myself.

Rather than risk that level of temptation, I picked up a DiGiorno pizza for one at the grocery store and got it out of my system. In the interest of evening things out, I did have a salad to go along with it, so it wasn’t a total nutritional loss. Hopefully my craving does not cause too many issues with the weigh in.

I also managed to do 60+ minutes on the treadmill. It wasn’t a lot of fun. My feet and ankles were barking like crazy, but I somehow managed to get it done. I brought workout clothes for today, but I’m not sure I will be able to accomplish much. I just keep telling myself how much better my feet will feel when there’s 160 pounds less weight being carried around.

It’s not all for naught, however. I honestly think that my general cardiovascular health is as good as it’s been in 18 years. I’m climbing steps at home without gasping for breath; I can even get up from my chair at work without having to push myself up. I’ve gained belt notches and done some closet shopping. I just hope that the scale confirms things.

Regardless of what happens on Tuesday, I’m still going to keep this up. I know it takes a time commitment, but the morning workout routine has become a habit. Much healthier than my usual habits, that’s for sure. I’m also going to continue to be smarter in my food choices. Will I still make some dietary mistakes? Yes, probably, but my hope is that the mistakes are the exception, rather than the rule.

Good things are happening.

Hope it lasts.

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Swing low, sweet blood sugar

Posted: February 21, 2013 in diabetes, Exercise, Physical activity, Stubby the Wonder Toe, The Beetus, Wayne, Weight loss
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It was a low point this morning.

No, I didn’t have a food relapse or anything like that.

I stuck a 40 on the glucometer after my cardio. For anyone keeping score at home, that’s about 57% of my suggested low end. The scary thing is that I didn’t really notice it until I got off the treadmill. It was a good workout up until that point. I did about 30 minutes with an average speed of 3.1 mph. I was also wearing my new trainers. They felt pretty good and no evidence of Stubby or Wayne acting up. I’ll give them a good once-over when I get home for the night.

I decided to let off some steam last night and went to see a movie after work. One co-worker was really driving me nuts and I needed the break. I opted for A Good Day to Die Hard. I wasn’t expecting anything socially redeeming and I was not disappointed. It wasn’t the greatest entry of the Die Hard franchise but it was big, noisy and violent with lots of car chases, gunplay, and weapons-grade uranium. If I had to summarize, Blah, blah, blah, kill the bad guys and blow shit up, blah blah blah. If I had to rank all five entries in the series, it would be the first one (Alan Rickman FTW), followed by all of the others.

Another halfway decent food day yesterday. I opted for a turkey wrap for lunch… it was pretty good and not totally swamped in mayonnaise. There was even some bacon (YAY!), which I never complain about. I’m not quite sure why I like bacon as much as I do… good thing I don’t eat it as much as I would like to.

So far today, I’ve had two bananas, a protein shake, and some sugar tablets. I also had some candy to get the sugar levels up. I also had a nice chef salad for lunch that was really fresh. Plenty of veggies and also some good protein. Gotta love that it fills you up and doesn’t kill you calorically. Not sure what dinner will be, but I’m sure I’ll think of something. I was going to do some chili, but I neglected to soak the beans. Duh. All part of my senior moments.

In the good news, I’m still soda and caffeine free. Not sure how I’m managing to do it, but suffice it to say, I’d like to continue. I still feel pretty good, though, and that’s a plus. The blood sugar thing, other than the lows, is also a positive development. I like it being on the low side.

I’m just going to keep moving forward. It’s the only way to fly.

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Day four, or I want pizza, dammit!

Posted: February 15, 2013 in Bariatric surgery, diabetes, Physical activity, Supportive Partner Woman, The Beetus, Walking, Weight loss
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Day four of no caffeine.

I won’t lie… it’s been very hard. I actually dropped a coin in the vending machine yesterday, but got it back. The headaches have pretty much subsided. The worst day was Wednesday. It felt like there was a little man jackhammering away inside my skull. I’ve found that the best way to get through is to drink so much water that you wind up irrigating yourself like a personalized Tennessee Valley Authority.

I did take precautions against water intoxication. I’ve discovered the joys of PowerAde Zero. This stuff is like liquid crack. It really helps quench the thirst after a workout, and it doesn’t have any sugar or carbs. Highly recommend the orange flavor. Just a warning… it doesn’t mix well with protein powder.

Today started out on a down note. I managed to sleep through my alarm, so I didn’t make it to the gym. I brought my workout clothes, so I can go after work. I’m breaking in my new trainers that arrived the other day. So far, pretty comfy, but not suitable for gym use until broken in. I’ve made the mistake of being too eager with new sneakers… the blister on Wayne was not too much fun, nor was the time I had to spend wearing the Boot of Shame.

I’m pretty proud of myself, though… I managed to start working my way through the DVR backlog and didn’t eat any snacks whilst parked in front of the tube. I went to bed, my sugar was 83, so I had a little snack (a carb balance wheat tortilla, some shaved ham and a piece of cheese), I also succumbed and took some cough syrup, as I’ve been suffering from a nagging cold these last few days. Well, I woke up with a sugar reading of 204, all from a dose of really nasty tasting cough medicine. Sigh.

Today is a Friday, which means no meat. I have to wonder, though… why are eggs allowed, but chicken is not? What are eggs, other than unfertilized chickens? Regardless, I have some of my yummy clam chowder. I’m really pleased with how well it turned out. Supportive Partner Woman (also trying to quit caffeine!) liked it as well. Always glad when a recipe is a crowd pleaser.

Not sure what I will do for dinner. I guess we’ll see how I feel after my workout. I’m really craving pizza for whatever reason, but that would not be a smart move. It would be fine with one slice, but I’m sure there would be a whole pie in my future and that is not cool. I’d like to think I could control myself, but probably not.

Anyway, that about does it for the day. Hopefully I have a good workout tonight, and can get a couple in over the weekend.

Hope you have a great weekend, everyone!

The next six pounds

Posted: February 12, 2013 in Bariatric surgery, Cooking, diabetes, Exercise, Physical activity, The Rec, Walking, Weight loss
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Good evening!

So, today dawned with me still appreciating the afterglow of yesterday’s good news at the doctor’s office. I got myself up and went to the gym, which is how I’ve really started to like my mornings. It’s SOOOO much better than getting up and heading down to the Nerd Lair to watch TV and perhaps (read: probably) graze on stuff that’s bad for me.

222764_10200643298751451_1212397042_nI tested my blood sugar and it was a kind of high 150. Mornings are always freaky for me. I took my recommended 10 units of insulin, ate a banana and drank a protein shake (breakfast of champions, baby!), then headed to the rec. It was a little later than normal, so I had to cut things a little shorter than usual. I still managed 1.74 miles on the treadmill at an average speed of 2.78 mph. That’s faster than it’s been, for those keeping score at home. I did, however, notice something.

What’s the deal with the roid junkies who show up at the gym clad in shorts, weightlifting gloves, muscle shirts and a wool stocking cap? I mean, if you’re trying to stay warm, maybe I might suggest sweatpants? If you’re trying to be a badass, you might try a different sort of headgear. Just some friendly advice.

Literary enemy #1

Literary enemy #1

After that, the day goes downhill. I had to go to work. It’s amazing how all the good feeling you’ve built up with a decent workout can be burst in a few minutes. Today, it was the incessant chatter. And not conversation. It’s more the “I’m doing this, now I’m doing that.” It’s like listening to a James Joyce book on CD, only without the option of ejecting the disc, breaking said disc in many pieces and setting the pieces on fire. (No, I’m NOT a James Joyce fan)

Please don’t take it that I hate my job. I don’t. I know that what I do isn’t the most scintillating work on the planet, but it’s all the attendant bullshit that goes along with it. I often want to just go home and not think about it until the next day when I have to go in to work.

Anyway, before getting sidetracked, I was talking about success. I had a taste of it on the scale and I really liked the feeling. So, today I wanted to be more of the same. My packed lunch included two Mission Carb Balance wheat burrito shells filled with leftover Chipotle, a container of Greek yogurt, some pistachio nuts, a protein shake and the ever-present water bottle. I also decided to go cold turkey on caffeine, which might be where my irritability came from today. That plus a cold, and well, I’m a tad cranky. Don’t judge.

Dinner was the final remnants of the seemingly endless burrito bowl along with some grilled chicken and broccoli. All in all, not too shabby.

So, tomorrow is another day. It’s also Ash Wednesday, so I gotta think of something to give up for Lent. Could I make 40 days sans caffeine? Especially since I go to third shift in a month? Any bets?

Didn’t think so.

Been a bit

Posted: January 31, 2013 in cold weather, diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Lego, Stubby the Wonder Toe, Supportive Partner Woman
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Here we are… end of January and the weather’s been freaky. There’s a surprise. It was ice storm fun on Monday, then it was 60 degrees, then it was biblical rainstorms last night. Go figure.

So, had to order what will hopefully be my last batch of test strips and insulin. Ordered from Caremark (I’m too young to get them from Liberty Medical) and jumped through the hoops, including them arbitrarily canceling the order. So, they send me a tracking number yesterday and, of course, it’s signature required. That would be at the time when Supportive Partner Woman and I aren’t home. So, I arranged to have the package held at the local UPS office. All good. I get a phone message from them after I get home letting me know that my order will be shipped on the next business day. Guess the left and right hands never met.

Other fun in the medical department was my podiatrist appointment on Tuesday. As he’s working on my toes, the dialogue went something like this:

Dr. Miller: “You know, Brian, I don’t think that you’ll ever win any awards for good looking feet.”

Me: <blink>

Stubby the Wonder Toe: “Oh no you di’ent! Imma bust a cap in yo ass!”

I can’t say that I’ve ever been told that before. Sigh. The consequences of diabetic feet.

I’ve continued to be more active, even though the workload has picked up at the office. Looks like I even get to do a little bit of a woodworking project for the boss, building read boards. This should be fun… I haven’t built anything in some time and I’ve kind of missed it.

At any rate, SPW is on her way home so that we’ll actually get to spend some time together while both of us are conscious. Yay!

Hope you all have a great rest of the week.

 

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Chicken Man

Pretzel Guy

Pretzel Guy

P.S. I did managed to come up with some cool new Lego minifigs over the last couple of weeks. The coolest one is the guy in the chicken suit. He’s this set’s equivalent of the pretzel guy from Series 8.

 

14!

Posted: January 15, 2013 in Bariatric surgery, Cooking, diabetes, Exercise, Physical activity, Walking, Weight loss
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OK… Day 14 is in the books. I arrived at 7 for the session with the boys and had surprisingly decent sugar. I had good sugar this morning when I woke up, so I opted for a banana and a protein shake for breakfast. I’m developing a taste for the vanilla cream shakes, which is good, since I’m going to be subsisting on these things for a few weeks. Anyway, my pre-workout sugar reading was 92, which was a little lower than I’m used to. I like to think it’s that the exercise is doing me some good. Post workout, I stuck a 70, which is at the low end of normal for me, but I wasn’t having shakes or sweats, so it’s all good.

Important thing is that I made it 14 straight days. That’s two weeks that I’ve stuck to something. I’m pretty damn pleased with myself, but I’m not giving up. Next stop? 21 days!

So, I also took time last night and made a batch of my special jambalaya (see the recipe section). I added extra protein in the form of shrimp and chicken. Also, the chicken chipotle sausage had a vein of jack cheese in it, which added to the depth of the finished product. It really reheated well, which made for a tasty lunch.

After cooking, I attacked the Christmas tree (yes, it was still up). I got the ornaments off, the lights off, and realized I still had enough time to take down the tree, put it away, and then I vacuumed the rug. It’s odd… we have an artificial tree that drops as many needles as a real tree. Go figure. Now, many of you are probably wondering why we still had a Christmas tree up. Don’t judge us.

I have an appointment with the dietician tomorrow afternoon. Hope we get some good news, and maybe we can get a surgery date. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t apprehensive. In a surprise move, I’m all over the map emotionally regarding the operation. I’m still going to do it, but I’m sure I’ll question my decision up until the time they shoot me up with Versed.

Hope you all have a great week!

Quality time with the family

Posted: December 16, 2012 in Bariatric surgery, Baseball, diabetes, family, music, Supportive Partner Woman, Weight loss
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So, since Supportive Partner Woman (Editor extraordinaire!) had to work tonight, I headed off to the hinterlands of South Jersey to join in a family Christmas tradition at my cousin Kurt’s home.

I’m not sure if I mentioned this, but Kurt is a bit of an expert on ballparks. He’s written a series of e-books called Ballpark E-Guides, in which he tells you the best way to get to the park, best way to score low-price tickets, even the best concession deals. He puts a lot of time into the books and they are meticulously researched. I know because I went to a Brewers – Nationals game with him at Nationals Park and barely saw him… he was so busy checking sight lines and chatting up ballpark employees.

Anyway, Kurt and his lovely wife and daughter opened their home to a large contingent of the family. I drove down, survived the traffic at King of Prussia and the cattle chutes on the Walt Whitman Bridge, and spent an enjoyable afternoon with my favorite branch of the family.

Far_Side ©Gary Larson

Well, it’s a family tree.

Sadly, we don’t see each other enough. Usually of late, it’s been at a funeral, and that’s gotta stop. We have so much fun… my cousins are intelligent and able to hold a conversation on multiple topics at the same time. For example, when I arrived, there was a big discussion going on regarding the best double albums ever recorded and whether or not they would be OK as a single album.

This is the kind of stuff we talk about at family gatherings. For the record, we figured that there’s no way Tommy or Quadrophenia could e trimmed, however, my cousin Doug feels that The Wall could be trimmed. There was not much agreement on that one.

They can be loud and boisterous, but better people are hard to find. A few weeks ago, when I was feeling pretty down in the dumps, my cousin sent me a lovely e-mail that brought tears to my ears, reassuring me that the family had my back. Not only that, he called my mom to make sure I was doing OK.

That’s what I love about this particular branch of the family tree. Not only do they care, they can laugh at the antics of some other branches of said tree. During our Giant Catholic Wedding Circus©, one of my cousins from Pittsburgh got exceedingly trashed and pretty much surgically attached herself to SPW’s arm, slurring all the way. This is always good for some chuckles at family gatherings.

Speaking of family, I finally told my mother that I intend to have the gastric bypass surgery. She took it a lot better than I expected. She said that she respects the fact I didn’t rush right into it and I took the time to talk to people who have had the operation with varying degrees of success. That was one of the major hurdles, because I fully expected a load of objections about the risks and all that. I told her that in my mind, the rewards outweigh the risks. Yes, it’s major abdominal surgery. Yes, it’s general anesthesia. Yes, there are risks. The chance to live a life free of the syringe makes all the risk worthwhile. It’s not going to be an easy journey, but after a year, I want to be patient of the month at support group, telling how I managed to make my decision and get off the fence and how it helped me lead a normal, non-diabetic life.

Plus, not looking like a whale in a chair is a great incentive.

Have a great rest of the weekend, folks!

Song of the Day: I Believe in Father Christmas – Greg Lake
Currently reading: A Blaze of Glory – Jeff Shaara

What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family. – Mother Teresa

What a racket!

Posted: November 13, 2012 in diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Novo Nordisk, The Beetus, Travel
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In the big news, I decided to try a new method of insulin delivery. I had read of the flex pens and the ease of injections and the like. I also saw there was a $50 coupon. I had no idea how much they would cost, but I assumed it would be in the neighborhood of what I currently pay. For the record, the price on a vial of insulin, which lasts about a month, is about $37, once the insurance deductible is satisfied.

Anyway, I contacted my healthcare provider’s office and requested a scrip for the flex pens. The insulin brands I use are from Novo Nordisk, a Danish company that concentrates its business in diabetes care, and they offer the pens in both flavors of insulin that I use. My primary insulin is called Novolog. I take three shots a day with meals. My other insulin is a longer-acting variety called Levemir that I take at bedtime. Basically, I go through 4 syringes a day as well as multiple sticks to test my glucose. I really am a human pincushion.

Getting back to the pens, I read how this is an easier method of injection, and was thinking ahead to travel. Touring Disney parks while toting insulin vials and syringes is a pain in the ass, not to mention the hassle of getting a slightly unfrozen ice pack through airport security. I realize that the vials, once opened, do not need refrigeration per se, they just need to be kept under 86 degrees. That can be a challenge in the Florida heat, as you can imagine. I knew the pens had the same refrigeration standards, but offered durability and less prep work to use, so why not?

The office called in the prescription to the local CVS and I got the call that the pens were ready for pickup. I dutifully took my $50 coupon to the pharmacy, handed it over, and was greeted with the news that my total (which I figured would be around $100-$120 was in fact $255.26. AFTER the coupon!

Yikes.

It just makes you wonder how the price would be that much higher for the same drug in the same proportion. I was too flabbergasted to contact the insurance about it last night, but I think I’m going to look into this. That’s unconscionable, in my opinion. I’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, after trying it, I think the vial and syringe method is actually less painful. Go figure. Pay more and it winds up hurting in more ways than one. Sigh.

New morning…

Posted: October 12, 2012 in Bariatric surgery, Chick-Fil-A, diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Stress, The Beetus
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After the abject negativity of yesterday’s post, I slept on it. Not for too long, but long enough to get the gist of what happened yesterday. Basically, it was me being petty and spiteful and ignoring the blatantly obvious.

I’m still eating too much.

It’s nowhere near what it used to be. In my heyday, I would think nothing of swinging by Chick-Fil-A, snagging three sandwiches and a box of nuggets and scarfing them all down in one sitting. I could eat an entire pound of ham, and a pound of cheese, and go looking for more. I usually would feel disgustingly full after I did that, swear to never do it again, and promptly do it again the next weekend.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

I never got a good handle on why I did stupid, mindless shit like that. All I knew is that food made me happy. The texture of some thick, dense bread on the tongue would make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. It’s an addiction, like alcohol or drugs or gambling or sex. Just so happens, my drug of choice is food and you need food to live. Talk about a kick in the teeth. To live, I need the very thing that will prematurely kill me if I can’t succeed.

However, next Friday marks the six-month point since I started the bariatric program. Theoretically, I’m ready for the operation, but I don’t know if I want to have the surgery done. I know there are benefits, but there are also some pretty big risks as a counterpoint. Also, if I do have the surgery, what procedure do I have? Do I go for the band, which is the least invasive? Do I go for the bypass, which is the most invasive, but also offers the best success at “curing” the Beetus? Do I opt to try to go solely with diet and exercise? Also, do I have the operation this year while the insurance still pays more or do I wait until after the holidays?

Even the name is right…

See, so many choices and me with so few answers. And I really am not good at making decisions.

I think I’m going to see how this week goes, see what my regular doc has to say, and go from there. I’ll just keep moving forward.

More foods, please!

Posted: October 9, 2012 in diabetes, Disney, Food porn, Foot issues, Southwest, Supportive Partner Woman, Travel
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Continuing with the Disney eating marathon, I had some food porn I was hoping to share and talk about some other high points of our trip.

Our flight to Orlando was scheduled for a 6:15 departure from Baltimore, or, as we call it, the asscrack of dawn. We left the house around 3:15 AM and headed south. Many of you might remember the issues that I had with Southwest Airlines trying to book the flight in the first place. This was that trip. We all queued up in the cattle chute and prepared to board. Supportive Partner Woman and I had coveted “A” boarding slots and we managed to snag two seats about three rows back. SPW (bestest wife ever!) took the middle seat and I had the aisle. It was cramped, but in the good news department, I did not require a seat belt extender. Yay me.

The flight took off on time and I had loaded Killer Elite on the iPad for in-flight entertainment. I spent about an hour watching that and noticed a lot of activity, namely a flight attendant racing down the aisle with the AED, followed by a general call for trained medical personnel. Soon after, the captain came on board to say we were diverting to Charleston for a medical emergency. He must’ve had the 737 firewalled to get us in to Charleston as quickly as he did. The passenger was conscious when he was removed from the plane, and after refueling, we continued to Orlando, arriving around 45 minutes late. Whatever issues I might have had with Southwest, the flight crew really exhibited professionalism and handled the medical crisis like it happened every day.

We split up at that point… SPW went to claim the luggage, I went to pick up the car. I had booked a midsize and in Alamo’s midsize row were 14 minivans. And a Dodge Avenger. Sigh. I got in and headed back to the terminal to pick up SPW only to find that she had claimed the bags and thought she could catch up with me. Turns out she went below baggage claim and I had no way to get to her as that’s only open for buses. I sent her back to the baggage claim and I circled the airport again. Turns out the escalator she went up on took her to the ticketing level, which necessitated another trip around the terminal. Quite the comedy of errors.

Earl of Sandwich tomato soup with Earl’s Club and the Original 1762.

Anyway, we headed off to Disney’s BoardWalk Villas for the night. For those who are not familiar with the BoardWalk, it’s a really nice hotel, quite centrally located and within walking distance of Epcot. That alone makes it a favorite. This time, though, we were determined to spend a day outside of a park, so we got ourselves checked in and over to our room where was chilled for a while, then headed to Downtown Disney to grab some lunch. The weather was quite muggy, which made things a little sweaty, but we made our way to the Earl of Sandwich for lunch. This is one of our favorite spots… the food is tasty and reasonably priced and they offer AAA discounts which are actually better than the Disney Cast Member discount. Our normal MO is to buy two different sandwiches and split them… this time, we opted for the original, which consists of finely shaved hot roast beef with cheddar and horseradish and the Earl’s Club, which consists of roast turkey, applewood smoked bacon and swiss cheese, with lettuce and Roma tomato. We each added a drink and a cup of tomato soup and the total bill wound up being under $20. Best value on property. We shopped a bit, then took a pontoon boat out on the lake.

If you are opting to rent a boat, the best bet is to rent it from one of the Magic Kingdom resorts. That way you have over 400 acres of water to explore. It was a beautiful day to be out with a nice breeze and very little lake traffic.

Following that, we went back to the room to change before meeting some friends for dinner at Raglan Road. We haven’t seen these folks in many months, but it was great to catch up and enjoy a lovely meal. I opted for Raglan risotto with grilled chicken. The portion size was very nice and the food was flavorful, but not outstanding.

That concludes the food post today. More tomorrow when we talk about LeCellier!

 

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