That evil word...DIET...

*For any of you reading this that know me well, you know how much of a junk-food-junkie I am. Never a day goes by without eating some of the most fattening foods known to man (pizza, donuts, candy, pizza, cookies, chips, pizza, ice cream, oh, and did I mention pizza?!?). So it has been very peculiar to me that with this high-fat-only "diet" that I have been on for a few years, I not only mangaged to shed every last pregnancy pound, but I lost 9 additional pounds, putting me at my lowest weight since 1999/2000. Well, everyone around me seemed to be getting worried, so to oblige, I set up an appointment to have my thyroid tested back in April. The result came back completely normal, yet a month later, I had shed 2 more pounds. So people continued to persist that I go back for more blood work. I made a visit to the doctor this past week and ended up giving up more of my blood so that a Complete Blood Count test could be taken, as well as a Comprehensive Metabolic test. The lab tech told me, "No news is good news." So I was a little apprehensive when the very next day, I saw the clinic's number on my caller id. Boy was I shocked to find out what the test found "wrong" with me...

Now what the test revealed has nothing to do with my weight loss (that I know of). So that still remains a mystery...a mystery that I don't think many American women would go to great lengths to try and solve. ;) I know I am certainly not complaining about my current weight. Anyway, the lady on the other end of the telephone explained to me that the test results indicated that I have...high cholesterol! Imagine the face I made when I heard those words (thank goodness she couldn't see the face I made). My Dad was recently diagnosed with high cholesterol, and others in my extended family have it as well. I was just utterly shocked...wasn't this something that people in their 50's and above dealt with?? I am only 29!

So the lady asked me if I was familiar with a low cholesterol diet. At the word diet I tried very hard to conceal a snort. Diet?? As in, watch-what-you-eat, avoid-high-fat-and-high-calorie-foods-diet??? I wanted to tell her, Ma'am, the only diet I am familiar with is the one in which you eat-whatever-you-want-whenever-you-want diet that I have been accustomed to for the past few years. Instead, I contained myself and uttered a polite, No, I am not familiar with a low cholesterol diet. She so graciously offered to stick a packet of information in the mail for my benefit, to which I thanked her!

Well, imagine my shock becoming more shocking today when I received the packet in the mail and began to look through it...foods to avoid (chocolate, ice cream, cookies, chips, candy, donuts, cinnamon rolls, whipped cream, cheese, eggs, too many meats to name, and the list goes on). And I won't even begin to tell you my thoughts on their recommended foods...HA!

So I write this post as a plea to ask you to say a prayer for me. It is going to take an enormous amount of self-discipline to even try and begin a low cholesterol diet, let alone stick to it. I am one of the biggest junk food junkies out there...and I haven't looked at labels in 10 years! And while my weight is on the very low end of where it should be for my height, I am still in the healthy range by 1-2 pounds. However, I can't help but wonder if I begin to cut out the junk food and replace it with fresh fruits and veggies, will I lose even more weight??

Oh, and did I fail to mention that the kind lady from the clinic also suggested I begin exercising? The last time I exercised was...2005! Doesn't chasing a 15-almost-16-month-old around the house constitute as working out?? No?? So again, I plead for your prayers...this is not going to be easy!