LIVEABETIC

Lots of Great Stuff!

2011-01-06T21:03:00.000-08:00

Wow! I haven't posted since September 25th!! Not a shock though since I started my new gig at Ceridian on September 27th (which is loads of fun by the way).

Eden's Effort
Another thing that has really motivated me to get back on track was reading about Eden (www.EdensEffort.com). She is 8 and has Type 1 diabetes. Knowing first hand what you have to do to deal with this chronic disease, I can't imagine having to do this at age 8. Moreover, I am so impressed that she has the gumption to put together a fund raising effort.

Hats off to you Eden! You are a great example of a Liveabetic in action!

Finding a cure for type 1 diabetes is so important. It isn't like type 2 where people can temper their symptoms by losing weight, exercise and diet. Every day I think all day about what my glucose level is. Too high and I get sick. Too low and I could end up in a coma. It takes a lot of time, discipline, and both physical and emotional energy.

I'd love it if we could help Eden reach her goal. And if you can't donate, it would be awesome if you would pass the word along to raise awareness for her cause.

Her Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Edens-Effort/115872551818630
If you are signed in to Facebook you can click "share" to post this on your wall.

Her website: www.edenseffort.com/

On the down side coming back up
I recovered from being 138 lbs last January, but kept on gaining up to 165 lbs. Note to self, Insulin IS THE ULTIMATE STORAGE HORMONE! Combine that with going in to offices since about August and I've been more sedentary, eating more often, and eating lesser quality food.

So I spoke to Coach Greg, who got me started on a "weight loss diet." In quotes here for a couple reasons:

>> First of all because the way I'm using it, the "diet" is really a carb-controlled meal plan, essential for diabetics, but for everyone else too. This isn't a low carb diet, it means that I'm not eating a bucket of greasy carb filled fries with my lettuce wrap hamburger and diet soda.

>> Secondly because I'm probably not using it correctly. I don't want to lose more than 2 pounds a week, which wasn't Greg's intention. That said, I did drop 2 pounds in the first week, which is (I think) my body adjusting to a better nutritional plan.

>> Finally, because I'm not following through with all the other stuff. I've been doing Wii exercise, and while I work out a sweat it isn't the same as one of Coach Greg's workouts. I need to get back on that horse and am building my motivation back up to do so.

So the good news is that I'm trying to turn it around here at 165 lbs, instead of waiting until I'm 200 lbs.

Ready To Get Motivated?
Talking about motivating things that motivate myself and others is motivating to me. Or, nothing motivates me more than motivating others?

Whatever, lets have some friendly (and motivating) competition! So in that spirit, and since I'm on a Facebook kick tonight, here is something that can get you engaged into a healthy lifestyle. I'm preaching to myself here too!

Go to the LeFever Wellness page when you finish your workouts and post "Done". You may see someone has already started a "done thread" and you can add to it as a comment. I need to get more engaged in my exercise as well, so you should see me pop up there as well.

LeFever Wellness Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/LeFever-Wellness/211287633268

LeFever Wellness Website: http://www.lefeverwellness.com/

Can't get to the gym? In the office all day? Worn out when you get home?
I love it. ME TOO! So I've got some great news for you. Get one of Greg's bands and do a 15 to 20 minute work out.

Where? AT HOME (you only need a little space - living room is perfect)

When? WHEN IT WORKS FOR YOU (statistically first thing in the morning is best, but do what you gotta do)

Cost? The band programs range between $17 and $27, which includes a how to guide and Greg will ship it to you. You can get more info on it here: http://www.lefeverwellness.com/products-store-1.php
I love the bands. Cheap, just as good if not better than expensive equipment, and oh yea you will feel it!

Reset Time (the search for motivation)

2010-09-25T08:26:00.000-07:00

Let me just say that my wife Missy has been kicking some butt. She is getting up and running in the mornings, going to her LeFever Wellness bi-weekly boot camps, and making an effort to eat better.

I ON THE OTHER HAND, have been commuting an inordinate distance to a consulting gig, have been eating poorly, drinking WAY too much caffeine, not exercising, and not sleeping as well as I should have.

As you might expect, I feel terrible. Physically spent. I’ve been gaining weight and have less energy.

Bad Habits:

Not having had a commute for many years it was a shock to my system. There are many bad habits we have developed, but I’m going to pick on this one.

COMMUTING IS AN IDIOT TEST

I hated it, but had to do it – at least for a little while. But I knew it wasn’t sustainable. I talked with people who have done it for years and I just can’t imagine. I don’t get paid for the time I’m in the car. I don’t get to spend that time with my family. Even if I call my wife with my California approved wireless headset while driving, it isn’t the same. I’m just sitting there getting stressed, being sedentary, and watching my health degrade mile by freeway impacted mile.

Do Something About It:

I think I got lucky. I start a new job that has a 15 to 20 minute commute. I could use surface streets if I really needed to and could get there in 30 minutes tops. Certainly this will be a MUCH better commute, almost short enough that the word “commute” doesn’t seem warranted.

Now, any job can work you long hours, so it is important to have a Life-Work balance, not a Work-Life balance. Flexible start / stop times, working from home / remote / telecommuting are all things that I seek out so I can avoid sitting on the freeway or being away from my family any more than I need to. You need to deliver 100%, or even over deliver, but my approach is that if I’m providing great value to my employer then having some lifestyle flexibility seems like a reasonable trade. If that isn’t how the employer sees it, I’m happy to look elsewhere.

Brass Tacks

So let’s get down to it…

Exercise:
When I started my last job I exercised almost every weekday for 3 or 4 weeks. I’d get up a little early, do a 35 minute workout – but was happy if I got in 20 minutes – and was still able to get my work done. With a shorter commute this should be even easier to achieve. Bottom line: I know exercise is possible.

Nutrition:
Despite talking with Coach Greg about GOOD nutrition habits, I’ve been persisting on a diet of peanut butter & jelly sandwiches and diet mountain dew. I think my insides are just full of fat and corrosion. I need to get some lean meat, green leafy vegetables, and a variety of other things into my “regular staples” category. Per Coach Greg’s recommendation, this will take some planning in advance of my week, but the payoff is worth it.

Medication / Calories – Limits:
You may not be diabetic, so calories are more relevant to you. But I like to look at the carb AND calorie count. If there are a lot of simple sugars in a product, it may not be the best choice. I’ve noticed that my insulin for each meal has gone from about 3 to about 5. That’s a bad trend. SO, I’d like to start restricting my carbs. This is actually a good thing for almost everyone. It isn’t a low carb diet, it means you cut out things like regular soda, desserts, candy, excessive bread, and so on. The “Plate Diet” is a good measure and something I’ll try to think more about, which is 1/2 of your plate should be vegetables, 1/4 protein, and 1/4 carb. And eliminate the sauces, unless you REALLY know what is in there, most sauces are full of sugar and quickly ruin a healthy meal.

Motivation

I’m not so motivated, but I’m getting there. I’m mentally working myself up to make this happen. I know my first week at my new job will be packed full of meetings and project ramp-up. But once I’m over the hurdle, I need to get myself moving.

Ultimately the best motivator is thinking about my family. I want to be around and living healthy with them as much as I can. Being diabetic is a big contributor as well. For me, these two things make the attempt at healthy living a “have to.” I realize this isn’t the case for most of America, where we are getting fatter, more unhealthy, and more morbidly obese. It is astonishing to me that 2/3 of America is overweight, and nearly half of those are morbidly obese. Bottom line for me is that I CAN’T let that happen to me, my family is too important, and being a role model for my daughter is too important.

Beyond the “have to” are the people around me. We all need more motivation, and I’m lucky to have a wife and friends who have health and wellness as a priority. Surrounding yourself in a culture of people who take this stuff seriously is important. It really is true that “your friends make you fat” or at least help you along the way. The good news is that the opposite is true as well. So surrounding yourself with people who understand that diet and exercise are the key to healthy living is essential.

What Am I Going To Do?

I already made a significant reduction to my commute. Now I need to start planning my exercise schedule and nutrition for the week. It will take time, effort, and may not always be what I want to do.

My goal is to have a plan in the next week, and after I get through my first week at the new job, be implementing it. So that I’m accountable, I’ll post back and let you know my progress.

Jeff's August Recovery

2010-08-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.
- Ferris Bueller

Lately I’ve been dealing with some life issues, things that are beyond my control. During this time I’ve been diligently recording in my daily Game Plan tracking worksheets. I won’t lie to you, it hasn’t been pretty.

Game Plan Tracking: June & July
Here are some general averages:
Stress: Averaging around 4 and 5, up from about 2
Sleep: Less of it, and not as good quality rest
Energy: Down, and been drinking lots of diet mountain dew to compensate
Mood: Averaging around 4 with a couple 2s, down from 7 and 8s
Food: Eating too much fast food, bad food, high carb food, simple sugars, not enough green vegetables and nutrient dense protein shakes.
Exercise: Whatersize? What is that again? Ohh, you mean that stuff when you actually work out? Nonexistant.
Medication: Because of ALL of the above, I’ve been “pushing” my health into line with more insulin, but I can even see that starting to get frayed at the edges

Medical Tests
I had a full battery of blood work done about the end of May / beginning of June. I also went in for a yearly eye exam. All of this is standard care for diabetics, but gives me a window into things that EVERYONE should know about themselves. Things like artery health, cholesterol, kidney function, blood platelets, and more. If you haven’t had a solid blood panel run, I HIGHLY recommend talking to your doctor and having one done so you can get a better picture of your own health. Step 1 is having the information so you can make better decisions.

So what were the results? I just met with my Endocrinologist (diabetic doc) on Monday and he was raving about all my results. My bad cholesterol is low, my good cholesterol is elevated – he called it a favorable situation. My kidney function is perfect! My eyes checked out exemplary at 20/20, 20/25 (35 and still don’t need glasses) – by the way, I like having my eyes checked by a doctor’s office that ISN’T also trying to sell me glasses. Really the ONLY thing wrong with me is that I’m diabetic.

August Recovery
Sooooo…. It hasn’t been good. About three weeks ago things straightened out enough that I’m getting back on track. One step at a time, bit by bit, I’m rebuilding.

I’m back to kicking butt. I’m sleeping 8 hours of better sleep. My mood is up, and my stress is down. This last week I’ve been getting up and exercising for 35 minutes with Coach Greg’s band program (I’m using the brown band which is like a super-duper gold band – GO me!), and my treadmill for some cardio. I’ve been drinking the pro-grade shakes, and have been drinking a multi-vitamin energy drink daily (healthiER than the diet dew). As you might suspect, my blood glucose has come into check as well, with better fasting levels (first test of the day) and more control of my levels throughout the day.

I’m feeling the Livabetic power coming back into my body and it feels phenomenal! It is the great feeling that I want to share with everyone.

What’s more, I’ve started working a job where I have a 40 to 50 minute commute each way. As you would expect, I’m working on developing tips and tricks to surviving the commuting lifestyle.

All of this IS relevant not just for me, but for you as well. Taking care of our whole health is critical. In 20 years I don’t want to be forced into taking drugs that may cause my liver to implode, my eyeballs to bleed, or extemporaneous explosive diarrhea (in 5% of clinical cases).

It’s all about priorities. When life hits you hard you have to deal with it. It causes setbacks to be sure. But once you’ve worked through the issues its time to get back on track with a vengeance!!

Official Game Plan roll out as part of the Fit Body Bundle!

2010-07-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited about this. For those of you following Liveabetic, the progress I've made with my health, and the impact the Game Plan has had with others, you know all about the Game Plan and the benefits of tracking.

If you DON'T know about it, check out the promotional site for the Fit Body Bundle.

The Fit Body Bundle includes: Fit Body Band Workout (eBook), Fit Body Band, Game Plan (eBook), Game Plan worksheets.

It is a great way to kick start your commitment to health! Better yet, during the roll out we are offering it at a great discount price. I've got details on the left for each bundle with links to buy. You can also get all the info on the promotional site for the Fit Body Bundle.

Komen Orange County Race for the Cure®

2010-07-29T13:20:00.000-07:00

On September 26, 2010 I'll be running in the Komen Orange County Race for the Cure® to support Susan G. Komen for the Cure. This is a collective effort to raise funds to help those in need get life saving mammogram. Each mammogram costs $125, so they try to get everyone who participates to raise $125 to cover the cos...t of 1 mammogram. But YOU only need to chip in a couple bucks. Instead of super-sizing your fast food meal, donate a dollar or two or five to the cause. Here is the link to my site where you can sponsor me specifically in supporting this effort. Now don't all of you click the link at once!

Support Jeff

Better yet, get involved yourself! Here is a link to Team LeFever.

Join Team LeFever

We would be happy to have you join us in supporting this noble cause. I think most of us are running in the 9:45 race, but you can run at the earlier race if you would like.

Some of us are thinking about getting Team Liveabetic shirts made for this event. If you are interested in that let me know by emailing me at liveabetic@gmail.com.

Liveabetic Profile – Shelly Ray

2010-07-24T22:41:00.000-07:00

Shelly and her husband reach a
great vista along their hike!

My name is Shelly, and I am married to the most amazing man I've ever known. We have 5 wonderful children between the two of us from ages 15 years to 10 months old; the most recent three have been born in the last 5 years. I am blessed to be a SAHM and a full time student pursuing a degree in criminal justice.

I was born and raised in Central California and feel like I've suffered with weight issues most of my life. I was raised in a family who expected the plate to be clean at every meal because "children were starving in Africa". Then I was told I was fat and lazy in high school by my father... not words a teenage girl needs to hear. Looking back, I wasn't really overweight as much as I was very solid, muscular, and short. I have a very sporty physique and love to play softball, volleyball, swim, and run.

Shelly and her favorite country music singer
Josh Turner

I moved to Southern California to marry my sweetheart in 2005. Our first baby together was born in December 2005, and I've pretty much been pregnant every year since. I suffered two miscarriages between the beautiful births of our babies and my weight has piled on drastically through all I've put my body through (emotionally and physically). It is now time to do something healthy for myself.

"I started training for my first half marathon."

Two years ago I got a wild hair to try running for the first time in my life, at the age of 30. After my first 5k, the running spark died out when I got pregnant again, but 15 weeks ago I started training for my first half marathon. It was a huge effort to get off that couch and try to jog as far as I could go the first day on March 29th. I think the furthest I could jog was 1/4 mile without walking. I did 1.25 miles in 19 minutes that day. I remember feeling like I'd never be able to run a full mile without stopping. At that point, my goal was to jog 3 miles without stopping. It took me 6 weeks! There were days I wondered why the heck I was doing this, some days were much more difficult than others, and some days were really easy. It was a constant mind game with myself. Then I hit the runner's high and running went from a chore and dreadful to so enjoyable! I can't explain the feeling, but if you are a runner, you know what I'm talking about. I found that by posting my results and efforts on Facebook that I was motivating a few people around me, most of whom I hadn't seen in person since high school. It was motivating me even more to hear of their success stories. I am still seeing results from two of these friends, and on days I just don't want to run, their stories help me put on my running shoes and I'm always so thankful for their words of inspiration.

At this point, I am able to run up to 7 miles (with very few walking breaks) and have noticed major changes in my legs, arms, and back (inches lost and muscle gained), my energy, and my overall mindset. My first half marathon is on August 29, 2010. I also decided to try P90X with my hubby, but it's more of part time effort right now until my half marathon is over, then the following 90 days will be dedicated solely to the program. It is a really great workout!

I will be honest, I really thought that the weight would start melting off when I started running. After hitting my all time highest weight of 230 in September 2009, I had a long way to go to reach my goal weight of 135. I have lost 43 pounds in 10 months, but have gained muscle and physical and mental strength in the process. Although I'm no longer considered "obese", I am still about 55 pounds above my goal weight. I have never been tiny so I really feel like my goals are realistic and attainable. I am a go-getter, motivated, and have been successful in the past with my goals, so I know I will accomplish them all at some point. I have realized I'm capable of attaining anything I put my mind to, and each day is a new adventure and a new goal. I don't look so much at the end goal, but the little goals I set each day and each week. And so far, I'm reaching them and it feels terrific!

“Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” Lou Holtz

==

Thanks for all the inspiration Shelly! You are working so hard to trend in the right direction. I think so many people can do so much to improve their health. It probably doesn’t mean running half marathons - at least for *MOST* of us - but your aggressive approach is definitely a fantastic example for the rest of us! I know it will pay off for you and your family in the long run. Keep up the great work!!

Team Liveabetic - MLB Fun Run at Angel Stadium, Anaheim CA!

2010-07-11T23:46:00.000-07:00

This was such a cool event, and I'm glad we did it as a family - even if it meant trading off the carrying of someone the WHOLE way! It would have been nice to actually run, but all things considered, it was great to see people out participating in an event that was raising money for so many great causes!

It was cool to see Jillian Michaels out there supporting the event, although I was a bit surprised that she didn't stop and say hi to us. After all, we ARE "Team Liveabetic!" LOL. Good times.

Liveabetic Profile – Linnea Welander

2010-07-06T12:01:00.001-07:00

As a healthcare provider, I have always been aware of my health and have pushed to achieve the highest level of health possible through things like eating a healthy diet and working out every day. After recently being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, I felt helpless. I now have a chronic health condition, despite maintaining a healthy lifestyle. As an ICU nurse, I know the potential co-morbidities that accompany diabetes very well. I care for patients struggling with these things daily. This could have been a very dismal picture, and in some ways, it was. But I know that I have a choice: I can choose to be angry about my condition, taking away my ability to enjoy life, or I can take control of my health and enjoy a long, full life.

I chose the latter. I set a goal for myself: to live the healthiest life possible with diabetes (though this is a great goal for those without diabetes as well). This requires education about the disease process as well as discipline in working towards a healthier lifestyle. I want to continue running ½ marathons, to complete a triathlon, and to have a healthy family. It is towards these things that I strive.

Liveabetic came at the perfect time for me! I am inspired reading about others striving for the same thing as me – a healthy lifestyle (with or without diabetes)! When I start to lose motivation, there is a sense of accountability set in place by reading Jeff and Missy’s stories and knowing that they too are pushing through the hard times to achieve a healthier lifestyle. Why? To enjoy life to its fullest!

Coach Greg’s [Game Plan] daily tracking sheets have aided me in striving for these goals. Achieving and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is the product of many elements falling into place… not just diet, not just exercise, not just sleep patterns or stress level… everything must work together to create a healthy picture. If one piece of the puzzle is missing, the picture will not be complete. That is where these tracking sheets come in. These sheets allow me to track my health trends in each of these areas on a daily and weekly basis. I can then analyze these and see my trends which prove to be quite motivating. For example, if I miss my run on Monday, my mood is down on Tuesday. If my stress level rises, so do my blood sugars. If my blood sugars rise, I don’t feel good and therefore I don’t feel like running. When I don’t run, I’m not motivated to eat healthy… and the cycle continues. Additionally, these sheets are my accountability. I know that I have to write down on paper what I do or do not do. Some days, I run simply because I need to get credit for it on my sheet. But that is fine because I still got my run in, taking a further step toward being healthier.

As a whole, this program has helped me obtain a more balanced life! I have been able to see the areas that are unbalanced and I strive to make them more balanced. Does it happen over night? Not at all! As Jeff says, it is all about trending healthiER! Making each day, each week, each month, a little bit healthier.

GREAT Job Linnea! Keep up the great work with your health and in managing your diabetes! - Jeff

Team Liveabetic Conquers Woodbridge 5K

2010-07-04T16:04:00.000-07:00

Great job everyone! Props to Trisha, Jen and Jen, Dale, and my wonderful wife Missy – and daughter Lily who let me push her the whole way in a running stroller! Lots of fun and awesome Liveabetic shirts!

Liveabetic Profile – Dale Erickson

2010-06-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

"After a long break of having babies and eating too many grilled cheese sandwiches, I decided in February of this year to change some habits for the better. I needed MORE energy and LESS fat in my life. Diet and exercise time! I dropped or minimized sugar and dairy from my diet, and added healthy fruit, fiber and vegetables. I took Juice Plus every day which gave me even more fruits and veggies nutrition. And I started the P90X at-home workout- a perfect solution for intense, daily exercise. It is challenging for any fitness level, but easy to modify for a beginner. I loved it and committed to at least 90 days of exercise. Four months later I have lost 15 lbs and a ton of bodyfat! I am in the middle of round #2 of P90X, Turbo kickboxing and even better eating. And I have so much more energy to devote to my awesome husband and two precious little ones. This journey is only the beginning, I am hooked on the vibrancy, stamina and happiness that results from great nutrition and workouts!!" - Dale Erickson

Dale is tough as nails, and her discipline with nutrition and exercise is inspirational to me and many around her! She is ALSO a Beach Body Coach, so if you are looking for tips and tricks I encourage you to contact her.
Here is her website: http://www.nextleveloc.com/

Thanks for keeping us all motivated Dale! Keep up the phenomenal work!

Team Liveabetic

2010-06-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Trisha & Jen, Missy and I have begun participating in 5K runs. The idea for "Team Liveabetic" came up, and we are working on getting T-Shirts made with the image you see here on the back.

If you are interested in getting a shirt, comment to this post, or send me an email and let me know. I haven't locked down the exact price yet, and shipping may be a consideration, but it will be somewhere between $6 and $12 + shipping.

Currently all sales are only covering costs, but we are thinking about starting some sort of fund raising that will help people get healthier. Let me know if you are interested in that as well.

Liveabetic Profile – Missy Metcalf

2010-05-23T17:22:00.000-07:00

Missy's AMAZING Results:

I’ve talked to several of my Liveabetic followers about doing a Liveabetic Profile, but I’d like to kick it off with someone who is exceptionally inspirational to me in my life, and has been doing amazingly well with her overall health.

Missy’s Accomplishments
Most of you know Missy, my lovely wife, and you know she is a kind, friendly person. But did you know she has lost over 70 pounds? AND she is down over 16 pounds from her pre-pregnancy weight!?!

These are not insignificant accomplishments. It is hard to do, and takes a long term effort. Missy has the right approach though. She sets goals for herself that are reasonable, tries to eat healthiER, and works out regularly.

Missy’s Nutrition
Missy isn’t following a fad diet, but she does have a general sense of what she is eating. When she has been eating too much junk food, she reins it in and tries to do better. For a while she was using the “Lose It” app on her iPhone, which tracks her calorie intake for the day. That app also allows you to set goals, track progress, and it will show you how much of your calorie intake for the day you’ve already used – assuming you want to lose weight. Pretty slick!

Missy Before:

Missy’s Exercise
It is true that you can lose weight through diet, but that doesn’t get you in shape. To make that happen you need to exercise, and Missy has been a real trooper. A few years ago we invested in a treadmill, which we still use today (it hasn’t become a clothes hanger or relegated to our garage). Missy has been walking and jogging on the treadmill for a while. Because it is right there in our house, she doesn’t have to get to the gym, and if Lily is running around it is easy to keep an eye on her while working out.

Seven months ago Missy also started working out with a mom’s group that trains with Coach Greg a couple days a week. Running through band, ball, and cardio exercises has made a great impact. Missy talks about how she is feeling stronger, and I can see her getting more toned.

Missy Kicks Some Butt!
Without any additional training, Missy just ran a 5K on Saturday. Yea, I’m impressed! That is 3.2 miles for those of you keeping track. And she did it in 37 minutes – not a bad time at all.

Why Missy Inspires Me
It is so great to see someone you care about working hard and getting results. I can see her increased commitment to herself, which translates to an increased commitment to Lily and me. I know that she will live healthier, live longer, and have more quality time with us as a family, which is what it’s all about.

Are You Feeling Inspired?
Great! Here are a few things you can do to get active in your own health:
- Leave a comment and let Missy know how her hard work has inspired YOU
- Start eating healthiER, fewer trips through the drive through, eat your veggies
- Download the Lose It app here!
- Start exercising, even if it is small, do something to get active
- Need help customizing your diet and exercise? Contact Coach Greg here. Regardless of where you live, Coach Greg can give you a coaching call, and give you tips to help achieve your goals.

Great Going Missy! I’m so proud of you! Keep up the great work!

Spaghetti With Meatballs

2010-05-08T15:58:00.000-07:00

“On top of spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball,
When somebody sneezed…”

Anybody? Anybody? I’m all alone here with this one?

Alright, well whether you enjoyed that song as a kid or not, who doesn’t like Spaghetti? I’m a fan of angel hair with meat & marinara sauce, toasted French bread covered with butter, Caesar salad, and a glass of Pinot Noir. I was whipping this up the other night for dinner and started calculating out my numbers that looked something like this:

Food: calories / carbs / protein / fat / fiber
Noodles 1 cup: 221 / 43 / 8 / 1 / 3
Sauce 1/2 cup: 90 / 11 / 3 / 3.5 / 2 << Classico Four Cheese Spaghetti Sauce
Ground Beef 3 oz: 182 / 0 / 23 / 9 / 0 << 90% lean
About a 1” slice: 93 / 18 / 4 / 1 / 1
Butter 1 TBSP: 100 / 0 / 0 / 11 / 0
Caesar Salad 1 Cup: 80 / 4 / 1.5 / 7 / .5

Total SO FAR:
Calories: 766
Carbs: 76
Protein: 39.5
Fat: 32.5
Fiber: 6.5

That is already a BIG meal. 766 calories is a LOT of food for your body to consume all at once. Unless you are a professional athlete or have a VERY physical job, you are just asking to pack on the pounds.

BUT IT GETS WORSE!
Most people will eat about 2 servings worth of noodles, sauce, beef (all combined as the entrée), and 2 or 3 pieces of bread with butter (let’s assume 2). Even if you stick with 1 cup of salad, your numbers look like this for ONE MEAL:

Calories: 1,452
Carbs: 148
Protein: 77.5
Fat: 58
Fiber: 12.5

That is about 3/4 or more of your entire daily calories (assuming a 1,900 calorie diet). The amount of carbohydrates and fat are also through the roof!

I try to eat between 30 and 45 grams of carbs per meal (generally speaking). I am diabetic, but even for non-diabetics this isn’t a bad general rule. Your body needs carbs for energy, but overload combined with a sedentary lifestyle will equal obesity. Moreover, if you are using “regular” noodles instead of multi-grain noodles you are getting more simple carbohydrates that convert to glucose faster and are perfect for gaining weight.

I LIKE SPAGHETTI

I’ll still make it for dinner once in a while. But you can’t eat like this every night. If calorie, carb, and fat heavy foods are your typical dinner – things like pasta, burritos, enchiladas, fried anything, etc. – your body will suffer.

SO WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT IT?

I’m a crazed maniac when it comes to tracking my health. I get it. I can’t get through my day without my Game Plan daily tracking sheet.

Of course I would recommend that you use it, so you too can fine tune your health. BUT if you aren’t going to do that, at least add up your numbers for a meal here and there. Get an idea of what you are eating.

IGNORANCE IS PUNISHMENT

When you ignore your numbers, and don’t track, you will punish your body with food. The food industry is not on your side. They adjust sizes regularly so they can maximize financial profit, not improve your health. Even worse, they will use ingredients that are not the best for you, because that costs more money to produce, and therefore reduces their financial margins. But they are in business, it is what they are supposed to do. I don’t blame them. It is YOUR JOB to pay attention to what you are putting in your body.

BUT HEALTH FOOD TASTES TERRIBLE

I like some things and not others, but you have to find things that you enjoy. And remember, your body will likely be coming off of a diet of simple carbs, so you will need to adjust. Give it some time and let your palette adjust and I think you will find that many things actually taste pretty good. I’m all about the “ER”. I’ve known people who are super nutrition warriors, and I know I’ll never live up to that. But they are my inspiration to do better. So instead of a Snickers bar I’ll have a ProGrade Craver bar, instead of a McDonnald’s Big Mac I’ll have a Carl’s Jr Low Carb Burger. My choices aren’t always perfect, that Low Carb burger still has 43g of fat! But I try to be about the “ER” and live healthiER.

SO NEXT TIME TRY THIS…

Make spaghetti for dinner with multi-grain noodles. Measure your portion so you can get an idea of what 1 serving really is. Add up your numbers and get a feel for how many calories, carbs, protein, fat and fiber units you are consuming.

The more you do this, the better you will become at estimating your meals. Nothing can compare to the precision of nutrition labels, but at least you won’t be delusional as you pile your plate up into a mound of body punishing goop.

Letter to a Diabetic

2010-04-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

I was recently contacted by a young woman who has diabetes, looking for information about how to live healthier and happier, in other words, as a Liveabetic. But note, a Liveabetic can be ANYONE, not just diabetics! So whether you are diabetic or not, read on because there are some good nuggets here. That said, hopefully the "Know This" points will give diabetics jump forward in their day-to-day care.

----

First a bit of quick history about my diabetes:
I was originally diagnosed as “pre-diabetic.” This progressed to a diagnosis of “Type 2”. Then eventually to a non-diagnosis of “you have an interesting presentation of diabetes” in January.

From late summer 2009 to January of 2010 my diabetes went from being manageable with diet, exercise, and oral medication (Metformin 500mg 3x daily at meals) to increasingly elevated glucose levels (eventually over 200) that remained high regardless of how carb controlled I ate, how disciplined I was at taking my medication, or how much I exercised. I was trying to do P90X at the time (an extreme home exercise program) and the workouts which originally lowered my glucose level resulted in extremely high levels near 300 and over. I became frustrated, and nearly apathetic about my care – especially since I had seen my primary physician about the issue and was told to “eat more carbs in the morning and less in the afternoon and evening.” I asked him if there was a diabetic specialist, nutritionist, or any classes locally where I could get more help, but he didn’t know of any.

Missy researched and found a Joslin Diabetes Center located at UC Irvine, about 15 minutes from where I live. Associated with Harvard Medical, they are one of the premier spots for diabetes management (as in day-to-day care, not “doc I have a boo boo), and are the only one located in California. How lucky is that? My mom (also diabetic in case you didn’t know) is jealous and always curious about what I learn from them to help her care.

Why is all this relevant?
The first thing you MUST know about your diabetes is that it will change over time. As you age, as your metabolism changes, as your pancreas or insulin resistance changes, as your lifestyle changes, so too will your diabetes change. I belabor this point, because nobody told me that, and I JUST figured it out (although I am overly dense in many instances – this being one).

KNOW THIS #1 YOUR DIABETES WILL CHANGE

So why all the weird diagnosis?
At my heaviest I got up to 203 pounds. Pictures of me at the time show a chubby desk surfer who worked too many hours with poor nutrition and no exercise. I’m not proud of that. Anyway, I think my doctor speculated that my diabetes was Type 2 because A) I was more than 10 pounds over my BMI which has a 50% increase for things like diabetes, and B) my mom is diabetic so it may run in the family.

Now that I’ve got some history, I can look back and see what was really going on. In some people the pancreas “putters out.” This happens gradually, and over time. In other words, I was never Type 2, which is better described as insulin resistant (I hate the terms Type 1 & Type 2). Late last summer my pancreas took a turn for the worse. It is still working, and through good diet, regular exercise, and diligent insulin treatment, my levels are phenomenal. But to my earlier point, my diabetes WILL change. I don’t know when or how, but I MUST look out for it.

KNOW THIS #2 YOU MUST LOOK OUT FOR YOUR DIABETES TO CHANGE

Be All About the ER
Before I knew I was diabetic I started changing things little by little. I’m all about the “ER”. Live healthER, eat bettER, or you’ll end up in the “ER”. (Catchy? I’ll make T-Shirts :-P) I won’t cite all the research that shows that incremental lifestyle change is sustainable more so than rapid dramatic change, but I’ve assumed this to be true. However, to be successful you need to A) have health goals you are trying to achieve, and B) track your progress.

Before my original diagnosis I had changed what I was eating, going from regular soda to diet. Not that diet soda is the BEST choice, but it IS healthER than the empty calories of regular. I started exercising in little bits. I wasn’t going to do a triathlon in my shape, but I was moving which was bettER than my 100% sedentary lifestyle. I created a program called “the credible threat”, where you take an embarrassing photo of yourself (I was dressed like George from Seinfeld in the infamous underwear couch pose – google it), tell 5 friends your goal by a date of your choice, select a sponsor who can validate your success or failure, and if you don’t make it all your friends get to see the picture. I gave myself 3 months to loose 10 pounds, Missy was my sponsor, and 5 of my work buddies were aware and eagerly waiting. I made it down to 180 pounds ahead of schedule, so my picture was never released.

About 6 weeks later I learned I was diabetic. I was frustrated because I felt like I had worked so hard, won the battles, lost the war. Now I know that weight was likely not the culprit, because my diabetes is due to my pancreas “puttering out” and not being 500 pounds of insulin resistant out-of-shapeness. But ultimately its about being your own advocate. YOU are responsible for trending toward being healthy or sick. So the question isn’t are you healthy, the question is “how are you trending?”

KNOW THIS #3 YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR HOW YOU ARE TRENDING

So What Do You Do About It?
On a side note, I know there is a lot of stress, but few professions compare with the number of overweight, smoking, overworked, under-rested, and generally unhealthy lifestyles as the medical profession – especially nurses! Of course, this is anecdotal based solely on my own experience, so it may be unfounded. Even so, don’t let this happen to you, it isn’t worth it.

There are lots of people who go to their doctor, get a referral to an endocrinologist, take their meds and hope for the best. My insulin actually says “take between 5 and 10 units at meal time.” Good to know, except for the fact that this would kill me or leave me in a permanent diabetic coma. Here are some things I recommend:

Find a GREAT Endocrinologist
[note: if you are NOT diabetic, substitute "great doctor" or "great specialist specific to your condition" here]
You definitely SHOULD find a great endocrinologist. Do what it takes to find one, because you probably need meds now, and if you don’t, you WILL at some point. Remember, your diabetes WILL change, and you need a great diabetes specialist there when it happens.

KNOW THIS #4 YOU MUST FIND A GREAT ENDOCRINOLOGIST

Find a Diabetic Nutritionist
[note: if you are NOT diabetic, I would still recommend an appointment with a nutritionist. Understanding GOOD nutrition is not the same as good eating]
You definitely SHOULD find a nutritionist who specializes in diabetes. You need to learn about calories, carbs, offsets like proteins and fats, and how to manage portion size. But the BIG TAKEAWAY here is that generally speaking, you just need to eat a healthy nutritious diet, like any other person, non-diabetics included. Even though you are a nurse, you will learn things from a nutritionist.

KNOW THIS #5 YOU WILL BENEFIT FROM A DIABETIC NUTRITIONIST

Track What Your Body Is Doing
[note: this is relevant to non-diabetics as well. You may not need to track your blood glucose, but you might need to track your blood pressure, or something else. Understanding what your body is doing is HIGHLY RELEVANT for EVERYONE!]
Carbs are not the enemy. You know you need them for energy. Lack of carb control however is another thing. Pay attention to how many carbs you can handle. My meals are generally between 15g and 45g, or 1 to 3 carb units. I know my meal time adjustment of 1 unit insulin to 1 carb unit. However, unique to me, I can handle 1 carb unit if my glucose is between 100 and 150. Also, I subtract a unit if my blood glucose is under 100. At first there was a lot of information to figure out, and I had to learn how my body works. I did this by tracking all my daily information, and now I can tell you my average fasting bloods (between 100 and 110), my average meal time insulin (2 to 3 units), average daily long acting insulin (7 units), average exercise (currently zero minutes, but was 50 minutes daily as of a couple weeks ago), average sleep (7 hours), stress level (was about 2/10, but is up to 4/10 lately), and energy level (was 8/10, but now about 6/10).

Ouch, lots of number crunching there. I hope you don’t have an aversion to numbers, because you will be dealing with them more and more. On a positive note, my simple math computation skills are making black jack much easier, and I’m ready for my next vacation to Vegas!

My point here is that you need to track what is going on with your diet, exercise, medication, blood glucose, sleep, stress, and energy. There may be other things specific to you worth tracking as well. For example, cholesterol and high blood pressure, combined with high blood glucose form the trifecta for diabetics. I’m lucky to not have issues with cholesterol and blood pressure, but you never know, and since I know things will change, I track it as a method of monitoring. If you don’t track it, at least for a little while you WILL NOT KNOW what is going on with YOUR BODY. To point #3 above, YOU are responsible for how you are trending, but if you don’t know what your body is doing, you don’t know what to do to stay in the right direction.

KNOW THIS #6 IF YOU DON’T TRACK YOU DON’T KNOW HOW TO TREAT

Be Personally Accountable About Your Total Health
Unless you go in to an appointment and tell your doctor “doc, I’m tired all the time”, they will never ask you if you are getting enough sleep. Moreover, the ads for meds on TV that say “if proper diet and exercise are not enough, talk to your doctor about X” are somewhat misleading, because my guess is that MOST people do not exemplify a failure of proper diet and exercise (as a nurse you probably see a lot of this).

What does this mean for you as a diabetic? You need to be more vigilant than ever about your health. And I’m sure it will agree with your training that good nutrition, sleep, and stress reduction are all positive things for your health. Your doctor will treat illness, which is important and something I want when I’m dealing with whatever it is. Your endocrinologist will help you treat your diabetes. But YOU need to pick it up on these other fronts. I wish someone had told me this, but again, some of the most self-evident things are what we tend to miss. In other words, it is impossible to live poorly and expect medication and medical science to be the only things pulling you into balance, because that is a fix to a problem, not a sustainable day-to-day lifestyle.

This brings me to my tracking sheets again, and why I track all of that information. It is like I have a daily journal of how my body is operating. I print out my sheets, 3-hole punch them, put them in my binder, and record daily. I’m a little crazy, anal retentive, excessively organized, or whatever. That said, I HAVE NEVER HAD BETTER SUCCESS at managing my TOTAL HEALTH, than when I am tracking ALL of this information. At the end of the day I have a wonderful wife, beautiful daughter, and I have a responsibility to be healthy and live a long happy life with them. These are important things for you as well, being married and looking to start a family. Your health can’t be taken for granted, or handled lightly. You are a diabetic, which requires a serious commitment.

I have to say, I don’t know enough about your organization or discipline. I don’t know if keeping up on something like a daily tracking system is sustainable for you. I know that is asking a lot of my mom as well (but I can’t live without it). Even so, I’ve got her tracking, and will check in with her from time to time to do a week or two of tracking sheets. This exercise as an occasional reset can be fairly productive, and allow you to make course corrections. It also reinforces the self-accountability you will need.

KNOW THIS #7 PERSONAL ACCOUNTABILITY IS ESSENTIAL

You Are Absolved Of Your Sins
It always bugs me when I hear things like:

“Diabetes results from obesity.”
This is true, but not always true. I think it leads non-diabetics to think that getting diabetes is a result of living a crappy lifestyle. I thought this too, and believed I did it to myself. I carried some guilt about it for a long time. Bottom line is, whatever the cause of your diabetes, if you start trending healthier and make regular steps in that direction, forget the past and work forward. It’s the “every day is the first day of the rest of your life” attitude, so put a fist in the air and go kill it today!

“Diabetes can be managed with good diet, exercise, and medication.”
Also true. However, what is implied here is that if you are having issues with YOUR diabetes it is because YOU are sucking at YOUR treatment. I think it leads non-diabetics to believe that it isn’t a serious issue like cancer or Aids or you name it. Look you can loose toes, go blind, end up in a coma, oh yea and DIE. It’s a serious thing. And remember, your diabetes WILL change. So yea, take care of yourself with extreme vigilance. But know that when things go haywire it isn’t necessarily your fault. Its all about the response, and if you work to correct and trend healthier, then you aren’t just living with diabetes, you are a full on diabetic warrior!

“Diabetes can be cured by dropping the weight.”
I like The Biggest Loser. It motivates me. What can I say? But I always cringe when I hear these enormous people saying “I’m off of my diabetic medication, whoo hoo, I’m not diabetic anymore, I’m awesome and all you diabetics suck eggs because you haven’t lost 400 pounds like me and cured YOUR diabetes.” Ok, some of that may be implied, I’m just paraphrasing here. I guarantee you that they WILL be diabetic again. They might not be insulin resistant at this point, but their body has changed as a result of gaining so much weight. In time it will likely catch up with them, and they will once again be diabetic.

Good News About Pregnancy & Diabetes
This last point is particularly important since you are trying to start a family. Many women get prenatal diabetes. Often this goes away following birth, and the loss of pregnancy weight. But in most cases diabetes will return. It may be years, but it catches up. You already have diabetes and will need to deal with that through a pregnancy. But there is GOOD news here.

I like to think of diabetes as the bad guy in a horror movie. He always walks with slow lumbering steps, but no matter how fast the victims run they can’t escape. I’ve always been suspicious of their failure to get away, but I digress. Diabetes follows you around, slowly, creeping, persistent. It won’t go away. If you find out about it when you get pregnant you are dealing with everything from morning sickness, hormones, mood swings, hot flashes, and on and on depending on how easy or difficult your pregnancy is. Then on top of that you have to deal with learning and managing diabetes? UGH!

So the silver lining is that you already have diabetes, and can learn how to manage it BEFORE you get pregnant. I guarantee you, if your diabetes is managed well, your pregnancy WILL be better. Even if it is a difficult pregnancy, it will be easier than if your glucose levels are though the roof or crashing to lows!

Ah, but remember that your diabetes WILL change. So once again, I’m back to the tracking sheets and all the information you need to know in order to manage your diabetes. I would suspect that in preparation for becoming pregnant, this will be especially helpful, and once you are pregnant it will be essential.

What About Tracking With an App?
Yea, I’ve looked into that.

Missy found one called Track 3 (http://www.coheso.com/track-d.html) but it was for iPhone only – app store download here (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/track3-diabetes-planner-carb/id318622618?mt=8).
I’ve got a blackberry, which isn’t supported by this app. Otherwise I would have tried it.
Also, while this app tracks meds, glucose, and carbs, it doesn’t account for my exercise, other nutritional requirements, sleep, stress, and so on. In other words, I like a more complete picture of my total health that isn’t supported in any app I’ve found.

If you look you will find apps for dieters that track calories and exercise. But I have similar issues with them. I’ve thought about building an app based on my worksheets, and know engineers that could help with the development. Even so, it will take investment to build so it is a nice dream for now. I’m a techie and the old pen and paper approach is workable for me for now. Such is life.

Hopefully All That Helps
Having diabetes sucks. It takes me longer to prepare food and eating out or without nutritional labels is difficult. When my blood is high I’m irritable. I have to carry a tester and insulin and food with me everywhere. [Insert more complaints here]

But what are you going to do? Life isn’t fair, and so you deal with it. Hopefully my data dump here gives you a jumpstart on things that took me years to learn. If I think of anything else I’ll send it over.

For my ongoing thoughts about health and diabetes I would also encourage you to read and follow my blog www.liveabetic.com. Liveabetics can be ANYONE committed to trending healthier, not just diabetics, but it is certainly a critical topic for us.

Ultimately your good health is the most important thing in your life. Without it you lose everything else, especially the time and quality of time you have with those you love – and quite frankly what else really matters?

Feel free to ask questions via email, but I would also encourage you to give me a call. I regularly talk through diabetes issues with my mom, and it helps inspire both of us to live healthiER.

Tracking Is The Key To Success!

2010-04-23T20:56:00.000-07:00

& On That Note, Game Plan Is ALMOST HERE!!

I'm Sooooooo excited!! I've been using my Game Plan system for a few months now, and it is about to be available through LeFever Wellness!!

I've really learned so much about my health in the last couple months because I've been tracking things from so many points of view. Anyway, more on that in the next couple days.

Just for Fun

Left: me at 203 lbs.
Right: me today at 150 lbs

My recent low was 138 lbs, but I was unhealthy due to my diabetes. Under-insulation was causing me to lose weight because I couldn't absorb the nutrients. Now I'm back on track, getting to a healthy weight, and gaining lean muscle weight.

At 203 lbs I was out WAY out of balance. No wonder I look so unhappy!

I'm A Little Off Balance - But What Else Is New?

Sleep
I haven't been sleeping enough. I've had a lot on my plate the last couple days so I've been burning the midnight oil. Good time for a weekend. I think I'll sleep in tomorrow.

Stress
My stress is up due to a few things going on in my life. On my 1 to 10 scale of stress I usually float around 1 or 2. Maybe that is just the healthy stress of having things to get done. I've been up around the 4 to 5 range lately. I'm curious to see what impact that will have.

Mood
I have been more positive about things lately. Since I've been actively making myself think about my mood I've noticed that my mood has actually improved. That said, I can tell that the slight skew in other areas of my health have caused some symptoms related to my mood. In particular I've noticed that my patience is a little short. To remedy that I've been trying to bubble up a little bit, realize that the small things are small, and focus on the more important things. My beautiful 2 year old daughter is always happy to help, and spending time with her and my wonderful wife is a great way to remember what is truly important! Of course, these are my wonderful girls, you will have to go get some of your own. I highly recommend it!

Exercise
I didn't technically get my workout in, but I DID spend an hour or so cleaning up the house, and we walked about a mile and a half or more with friends down to get yogurt. So I guess that counts as having some activity in my day. My body definitely has that "I've been walking" feeling, so that is a good sign.

Nutrition
My calorie intake is WAY down. I think it is so interesting that, just by eating when I am hungry, my caloric needs can fluctuate almost 1,000 calories! When I'm regularly doing my P90X workouts (I need to start that again so keep me accountable Dale E.!) I eat about 2,500 calories. But I'm between 1,500 and 1,700 calories now. That might actually be a little off now that I think about it. I haven't completely had an appetite recovery since being sick, so it might come up to about 2,000 calories when I'm off P90X, for a fluctuation of about 500 calories.

Medication
On a positive note, my insulin needs haven't gone up that much. Although, that is likely because I'm just not eating as many carbs. When I'm doing P90X I need more carbs for the extra energy, which in turn requires more insulin. I'm probably also benefiting from the lasting effects of the exercise I've done, my work out yesterday, and the activity I had today. It all counts, and I can see the effects in the level of insulin dependent.

I don't think of myself as Type 1 diabetic, I think of myself as an insulin dependent diabetic. If you are insulin dependent (or dependent on any medication) the question is, "how dependent are you?" I mean, I have to have it, but it is nice to see that I am doing OTHER THINGS than just relying on the medicine to solve my problem. And actually, by doing those other things I get a combined approach to solving my issue, which is always better.

What Will I Do About It?

Well, I need to bubble up a bit and look at the big picture. The last week and a half there have been a number of big things come up. I've had to prioritize those things over my health. Life happens, and that is part of life. But the key is to contain it. If your lifestyle becomes the problem, then you are really in trouble.

So, I need to start by assessing my big life priorities. My health is one of these, because without it I can't live longer, happier, and spend more and better quality time with the people I love.

With that called out, I need to begin a small recovery phase to bring things back in line. I pushed things a bit to get through a couple little bumps. Fine. Now lets get back to it. I'm going to sleep in tomorrow (if my daughter will let me), get in a good workout, and eat some healthy food. I'm going to relax a bit, because I need some down time.

Then I'm going to focus on getting back into a routine that incorporates the healthy things in my life. You know and love them, and we talk about them all the time; sleep more, stress down, mood up, nutrient dense, exercise well, and consistent medication.

How Are You Trending?

NOTE what is going on up there. As I track, I notice and observe differences base on what is going on with my body. Are YOU this in tune with your body? If not, you should be. Take diabetes out of the equation - we can all be Liveabetics. Everyone should have some general idea about how many calories they eat, sleep they get, exercise they do, stress they are under, general mood, and medication requirements. These things will change over time, and you must be aware of the changes.

KNOWING HOW YOU ARE TRENDING IS CRITICAL TO YOUR SUCCESS

Think of it like this. Do you know how much you earn, or how much is in your bank account, how long it takes you to drive to work, what time your lunch break is, etc.? To live practically I guess these are important, but in the grand scheme of things they are fairly small. You won't be laying on your death bed thinking, "if only I had spent more time commuting to work." But you may be thinking, "geez, I wish I had taken better care of myself, got more exercise, eaten better, and spent more time with the ones I love."

It doesn't matter if you just "blew it" eating a whole pile of those delicious onion rings, a massive dinner, and the over sized piece of chocolate cake (mmm cake!) at the restaurant with friends. Tomorrow is a new day, so lets start it off right. ARE YOU WITH ME?

If I can get 1 person this week to start taking an active role in living better, my Liveabetic movement will have been successful. Are YOU that person? If so, leave me a comment and tell me and all the other Liveabetics out there that you are going to start kicking butt and getting healthy!

This weekend I'm going to sleep in, smile more, get some exercise, and eat healthy. If you are motivated to do better, comment and let me know! It will motivate me to do better with my help, and will hopefully inspire others to do the same!

Back to the Exercise

2010-04-23T00:38:00.000-07:00

Being off of my exercise for a week and a half, I wasn't feeling up to a full blown P90X workout. So to get started I did a basic circuit of treadmill and arms. Even if you don't have a treadmill you could do something similar just going for a walk.

I did four, seven minute intervals on the treadmill varying speed and incline. I started out with more running, but as my knee began to hurt I shifted more to the incline. See my treadmill tips below for more ways to maximize your workouts.

Before my first treadmill interval, I did 30 wide fly push ups, 16 iso curls, and 10 wide front pull ups. My focus was on getting wide because that is my weak point. When you find exercises that are your worst, or least favorite, I recommend working on them more often toward the beginning of your workout before fatigue sets in. Also, try to do more of them so that you improve where it counts the most.

So my workout ended up looking like this:

Push ups, curls, pull ups (P/C/P)
7 min treatmill
P/C/P
7 min treatmill
P/C/P
7 min treatmill
P/C/P
7 min treatmill
P/C/P
Cool down

Without trying, I ended up with 50 minutes of exercise. And I don't just stand around between sets waiting to recover. I'm all about keeping my heart rate up. Granted, I do need to motivate myself toward the end, so that does add a little time, but I'm not relaxing - my heart rate never drops.

Treadmill Tips

Hate working out on a treadmill because it is long and boring? Then you are doing it wrong (in my opinion). Break things down into intervals.

For example, take a 5 minute period, walk for 2 minutes, speed up to a jog for 2 minutes, then slow it back down for a walk for 1 minute. Then get off the treadmill and do some jumping jacks, squats, push ups, or whatever you can do without any equipment right next to your treadmill. I like to incorporate curls, pull ups, and other exercises that require hand dumbbells, exercise bands, or a pull up bar, but that isn't necessary to do this sort of a workout.

Now get back on the treadmill. Do another 2 minutes of walking. This keeps your heart rate up, but allows you to recover from the anaerobic exercises you just did. Now increase the incline up to a reasonable level that makes you work - if its too easy you need to kick it in to gear, its only 2 minutes! Then slow it back down to a walk for the last minute. You guessed it, off the treadmill for more exercises.

Exercise Movement Tips

When designing my workouts I like to come up with 9 different exercise movements that work the same part of the body. For example, on an arms day I'll do push ups, curls, and pull ups. On a legs day I'll do squats, lunges, and a Yoga chair position.

Really Jeff, 9 exercises? I don't know that many!
Yes you do. For example:
Circuit 1: Wide push ups, iso curls, wide pull ups
Circuit 2: Regular push ups, regular curls, reverse grip chin ups
Circuit 3: Narrow push ups, full supination concentration curls, and narrow grip pull ups

But wait, what the heck are iso or full supination curls? It sounds worse than it is. You can Google them, have Coach Greg show you how to do them, or send me an email. But if you feel like that is too much, stick to regular curls, or just do push ups and pull ups.

The idea though, is to give yourself some variety in your workouts so that you use your muscles differently. This will make them stronger than if you are just pounding out the same movement all the time. AND this applies to EVERYONE, not just the guys on muscle beach. It would take you a LONG time to look like one of those guys.

The end result is that you will keep your heart rate in a good range your whole workout. Your body will be challenged both aerobically and anaerobically. The result will be great calorie burn while building good lean muscle.

IF YOU ARE TRYING TO LOOSE WEIGHT OR TONE YOU NEED TO DO THIS. When you work your muscles you significantly increase your burn. Without the exercises in between the treadmill time (in other words, treadmill alone) your burn will last a little while after your workout (depending on your length and intensity). But if you really bring it, and do some good treadmill and exercises together, your burn could last for hours, or even until the next day. Great up side right?

Take it Outside

If you don't have a treadmill, or just want to enjoy some fresh air, you should take it outside. Be sure to put on some sunscreen first!

You will need a stop watch, and you might even want to carry along an exercise band. You can do the same thing as the treadmill, mix up the walking and jogging. You can stop and do push ups, or if there is a pull up bar on your route do a few.

I need to do this. Coach Greg promised a park run tentatively tomorrow!! If this happens, I'm going to wear biking gloves. That way my hands won't get torn up when I do push ups. This may not be an issue for you, but I have wrist problems, so I do push ups on my knuckles. Knuckles + concrete isn't a pretty picture.

Lets Bring It People

I was very pleased to see David and Missy posing their workouts in response to my last blog post. I'd love to hear from more of you!

Been Sick

2010-04-21T22:29:00.001-07:00

Last Tuesday I got the stomach flu. That can be vary dangerous when you are diabetic. But I was able to maintain phenomenal blood glucose levels for several reasons:
1. I went into it with a healthy lifestyle of eating right, exercising, and having stable blood glucose levels.
2. After getting sick, I would drink about 1/3 of a can of full sugar soda.
3. I tested, tested, and tested some more to make sure my levels were staying where they needed to be.

Even though the worst of it was over in about 24 hours, I was lethargic and lacked an appetite until late in the day on Sunday. I was only eating around 400 calories a day, and yet, my blood glucose levels stayed between 90 and 120 without even trying. Most of the time they were between 100 and 110! 100 is sort of the ideal target, so that was like winning the lottery.

So then what happened?

Well, there have been a few other things going on in my life that I won't bore you with that have been causing me to lose some focus here. I haven't exercised since last Tuesday (I worked out before getting sick), I've been eating higher carb comfort foods, haven't been sleeping as well as I should, and my stress levels are up.

At this point my body is starting to lose control. Sort of like a waterfall, where the water is all smooth and together, but after 20 or 30 feet it can't hold it together anymore and it blows apart into a state of chaotic free fall. THAT inflection point is where I am right now.

So what will I choose to do?

On one hand I say to myself, "well, I'm dealing with a lot right now. I need to get caught back up with my work. I need to make sure I feel strong enough to exercise. Blah blah blah."

On the other, I look at my wife and daughter and say, "I need to be committed to my own health, so that I live longer, live stronger, and set a good example for my daughter."

Its the whole, "the hardest part of the journey is the first step" thing. Or maybe its, "a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step." Or it could be, "a journey of a thousand miles is easier to fly than it is to walk."

In any event, it is difficult to budge. In a week and 2 days I've become sedentary. I need to get moving. I need to say to myself, "Jeff, YOU are a Liveabetic, which means that you have a commitment to life, and right now you are failing yourself and those who love you."

The truth hurts a little, but it is the truth. I'm going to work out tomorrow, Thursday, April 22. If you are reading my blog, and you work out too, let me know by posting a "I did my workout" comment to this post! That will motivate me to know that my struggle has helped at least one other person.

Endocrinologist Appointment Went GREAT!

2010-04-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

I had an endocrinologist appointment today at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Irvine Ca, and he was so impressed with my progress. Since putting me on insulin just about 3 months ago, everything has been brought into control. He didn't test my blood, so I don't have an A1C to report, but based on my average glucose levels from my testing meter I know it would be pretty good.

Its funny, because I know so much more about my health now, which is a direct result of using the Game Plan worksheets. I knew I had gained some weight (a good thing in my case), I knew that my glucose levels were doing great, I know why I experience highs and lows and what to do about it. It is AWESOME!!

I Just CRUSHED My P90X Workout!

2010-04-11T18:12:00.000-07:00

I know that many of you aren't interested in extreme exercise, and that is totally cool. My mom for example, I just want to get her moving. If you can't remember the last time you did something active, stop reading and go do something.

As for me, I'm at a place in my life where I want to push hard and really try to get fit. It motivates me even more now that I've discovered a few of our friends here in Irvine are also doing the X. LETS BRING IT PEOPLE!! (fists raised).

I'm in my 3rd week of the P90X program and I'm noticing improvements. I just did a personal best in reps on a few exercises. I have noticed that my form on the Ab Ripper exercises is getting better. But it is all about trending. I'm trending in the right direction. I'll never "get there", so I can't say "I have a long way to go." I killed it today, and that is what counts.

How I'm Trending - The LeFever Wellness Game Plan

2010-04-11T11:10:00.000-07:00

What is The Game Plan System?
People always ask, "how are you doing?" Without getting overly analytical about the philosophy of language here, this might be the same as "how are you trending?"

When my diabetes changed, I needed something that would be effective at tracking things that are relevant to my health. I recalled taking a diabetic management and health class at the Alta Bates Diabetes Center in Berkeley California, where the instructor had said that the nutritional program for diabetics was a baseline healthy diet relevant to everyone (diabetic or not).

I wasn't happy with anything I could find out there, so I began to develop my own system: The Game Plan tracking sheets. As these have developed I've generalized them so that you can track all things relevant to YOU.

I've worked in conjunction with my neighbor and friend Greg LeFever to make sure that I'm tracking (generally) the most important things. And through this work, the LeFever Wellness Game Plan Workbook is coming to be.

I've incorporated easy ways to track the following:
+ Diet
+ Exercise
- Sleep
- Energy
- Stress
- Testing (more relevant to diabetics than non-diabetics)
- Medication (as it relates to whatever medication you might take)

This *should* provide a reasonable overview of your total wellness. You don't HAVE to track EVERYTHING if you don't want to. I do, because I want to know what is going on with my body. But arguably my health situation is more complicated and sensitive than a non-diabetic. But, if you are diabetic or have a similar health situation, my hope is that the system I've been developing can help you take control of your health and live longer, healthier, and be happier!

How I'm Trending
So now that you know what the Game Plan worksheets are, and why I've developed them, lets get to how I'm trending. I'm going to provide regular updates on this blog about my personal progress. Hopefully this will encourage some of you as well!

I'm tracking my numbers and totaling them up daily. I enter my daily totals into a weekly sheet and average them for the week. I then put my weekly averages into quarterly sheet which should allow me to average things and see how I'm doing over time. This quarterly average is important for diabetics who (should) have a regular A1C Test done. The A1C test gives you your average blood glucose level over about 3 months - a good measure of your general diabetic health. Of course, my sheets will give a much more complete picture.

Here are my numbers for the first 3 weeks:
(~ Scale of)

Baseline:
Sleep (hr/min)... 7:20 | 6:50 | 7:53
Energy ( ~ 10).... 6.6 | 6.1 | 6.5
Stress ( ~ 10)...... 2.1 | 3.4 | 1.5
Mood ( ~ 10)....... 6.2 | 6.7 | 7.7

Targets: Sleep 8:00 | Energy 10 | Stress 0 | Mood 10

Food:
Calories... 2,447 | 2,502 | 2,229
Carbs ........ 178 | 220 | 194
Protein...... 212 | 148 | 115
Fats........... 106 | 113 | 87
Fiber............ 41 | 35 | 41

Calorie target for me is 2,500, based on a calculation for doing P90X workouts.

Exercise:
Daily workout percentage: 71% | 57% | 57%
Average total daily workout time: 0:50 | 0:42 | 0:37

I need to get my percentage of daily workouts up. Ideal would be about 85%, or 6 days out of 7.

Testing:
Average glucose level: 112.5 | 117.3 | 109
Average number of lows: 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.4
Average number of highs: 1.1 | 1.0 | 1.0

My averages are really great. The range is between 70 and 135, but the goal is to land on 100.
I'm having too many lows and highs. Ideal would be zero for both, but that is difficult. The lower the better, but averaging 1 high per day isn't great.

Medication:
Novolog (meal time insulin).. 12 | 14 | 11
Lantus (baseline insulin)........... 7 | 7 | 7

The Lantus is a once daily injection. Recommended starting dose is 10, but I've been right at 7 with perfect fasting levels in the morning as a result of my combined efforts.
The Novolog will go up and down based on the number of carbs in my diet. Because I'm doing the P90X system, I require more carbs, and thus more Novolog insulin adjustment.

Perspective:
To put the medication in perspective, if you eat like crap and don't exercise, a diabetic would need MUCH more insulin to correct. And even if you are able to pull your blood glucose into check, you will still be suffering the effects of high calories, fats, cholesterol, a sedentary lifestyle, etc., etc.

To put it all in perspective, YOU NEED to take it ALL into consideration, and find the right balance for YOU to make it work. You need more than the doctor and meds to make this happen. You need to think about what you are eating, getting regular exercise, getting more sleep and reducing stress. Tracking energy and stress also gives you insights to your general health, and being aware will help you improve your attitude.

If you have any questions let me know. I'd also encourage you to contact Coach Greg. He is a certified nutritionist and trainer, and can help you figure out what will work best for you.

OH MAN!!

2010-04-11T01:14:00.000-07:00

The first theme today was "hazmat crew"

Sick Kid
Lily has been sick, really for the first time in her young life. She doesn't understand what throwing up is, so I've spent the day cleaning up kid vomit from the carpet. But I love her so much it doesn't matter! She is getting better now. Which of course means that Missy is coming down with it now. So round 2 is tomorrow.

Called On My Crutch!
If you know me, you know I pretty much bleed Diet Mountain Dew. I used to be proud of that (weird thing to be proud of I know), but I'd like to start making changes for the better. Anyway, I got an email from Coach Greg that said "Whats up with the soda?" (We are neighbors and he saw me pulling the 12 pack out of the back of my car - BUSTED!!) BUT he has a great point. I need to transfer myself to healthier forms of caffeine. In the ideal world I wouldn't drink caffeine at all, but with several irons in the fire - one being a rambunctious 2 year old, I need my fix. Possibly a saving grace, Coach Greg sent out an email to THIS ARTICLE that explains caffeine is a metabolism booster. Makes sense.

The second theme today was "lack of follow through"

SOOOOO, I DIDN'T WORK OUT TODAY
I know, and after all that preaching about how you have enough time. The reality is, that if I get up early and work out, I get it done. If I think I'm going to get it in later in the day, all bets are off. Sometimes it happens that way, but there are no promises. Especially when you have a sick kid! To get on track I'll wake up tomorrow and read my own post from yesterday to motivate myself.

And when did it get so late
Man, I haven't been sleeping as much lately. I can't believe it is almost 1:30 AM. I need to hit the sack. I've been using my game plan tracking sheets so I know what has been going on. Time to get real and pull my self back onto the straight and narrow.

I NEED To Work Out

2010-04-09T23:01:00.000-07:00

The last couple days I haven't had time to work out. UGH! I HATE to say that because it sounds so stupid. I didn't forget to eat. I made time to go to the bathroom. How did I NOT have time to get in some exercise?

There are a few things here...

1. Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life.
All is not lost. I'm not going to "slip" into a degenerative cycle because I had a couple off days. I'm going to focus. Tomorrow is Saturday so I'll plan out my day, prioritize, and make sure to get in some exercise. Even a little counts - something, anything.

2. It doesn't require an hour of my day.
Exercise is cumulative. Coach Greg will tell you that!
I've been working my way through the P90X program, and I'll try to get in my workout tomorrow. But if I can't I'll focus on doing some exercises throughout my day. Strategies for this are below if you are interested.

3. I make the most of things I'm already doing.
I take the stairs, I park out a little further in the parking lot (usually). I choose not to get lazy with my day. If there is an opportunity to do something active rather than inactive that accomplishes the same thing (stairs vs. elevator) choose the active thing. I don't always do this, but I try to.

4. I'm still benefiting from work I've already done.
I may not have put in my time today, but I usually do. This means that I'm still on fire from the time I have put in. It also means that I do things that many people don't.

5. No More Excuses, I'm Going To Get It Done
I'm worth more than getting out of shape, and so are you. I don't care if I only have 20 minutes tomorrow, I'm going to work out. It just doesn't matter. I'm going to make time for my family because tomorrow is Saturday. But you know, I'm going to make time for myself too, because the time I spend exercising is an investment in my being around for more years. And I want those years to grow old with my wife and see my sweet girl grow up. So yea, I'm going to find time to work out. And I bet that if I make it to 20 minutes, I'll plow through to 30 or 40 just because.

WHAT CAN BE DONE??
This isn't rocket surgery. And yet, obesity is an epidemic. Confused?
Here are some examples of things I do to get more active. I'm not an expert, but it seems like getting active is a good start. So I do these whether I'm getting in a workout or not, because being active applies to EVERYTHING! Your workout should be icing on the cake, but you MUST make the cake. MMM, cake! No no, forget the cake! Get active.

Abandon your cart? You deserve to be fat!
I NEVER abandon my cart at the grocery store. There is nothing more lazy than this. What does it take you to return it? 2 minutes? And after all the walking you JUST DID in the store. If you were really in that much of a hurry you could be running through the store, but you didn't do that did you? Even when I have a full cart and my 2 year old daughter, I unload everything into my car, then take the couple minutes to walk the cart back to the store and enjoy the stroll back to the car holding the hand of the cutest little girl in the world! Presto - that is 2 minutes of movement I wouldn't have gotten otherwise. My point - if you abandon your cart you are choosing to be inactive, squishy, and in A shape not IN shape.

Make the Easy Active Choice
I have stairs and walk up and down them many times throughout the day. I choose to walk every other stair when going up. Not exactly the same as doing squats, but not a bad way to up the intensity. When I'm feeling extra sprite I explode up the stairs to increase the intensity further. I have a hand on the railing so that I don't fall, but this is a great way to get some lower body movement in.

You Have Time To Pee, You Have Time For Squats
Next time you go to the bathroom, drop and do 20 push ups, or 20 squats. Use good form and put a smile on your face, because you are revving up your metabolism. Think of your metabolism as your calorie and carb burning gas pedal. Little pumps on the gas speed up the burn. And you can do this without really breaking a sweat. Do what you can do. Start small, work your way up. If more people assumed that movement was as necessary as eating and going to the bathroom we would all be in much better health.

But They Will All Think I'm Crazy
So be the crazy one. I'm good with that. But then again, I'm trying to GAIN muscle weight, and they are thinking about being a contestant on The Biggest Loser, so who is crazy again? If you're worried about people in your office thinking you are crazy, then maybe you should just pack on 400 pounds and die of a heart attack - NO WAIT - DON'T do THAT. Get more active and look better and make those sedentary people jealous of your new awesome physique! I've done push ups and squats when I've worked in a cubical and it actually got others doing them too. Well, it got some people doing them, others chose to be inactive. But it turned my perspective around. I wasn't worried about them thinking I was crazy, I thought of them as being the crazy ones. Go for a fast paced walk, and stop at each block corner and do some push ups or squats. People in their cars will be like "damn, I should be doing that instead of this milkshake and fries!"

Exercise Made Easy
So you've got enough reasons to exercise, but exercise is hard and boring, and I don't like to do it, and its easier said than done, and wahhh wahhh pssssst.

Exercise can be fun. I'm trying to motivate my mom to exercise more, and I think this might be a good point for her - so listen up mom!

Here is What I Do #1: Break It UP
If you HATE, LOATHE, DESPISE, exercise, break it up.
Get a watch or timer. Walk for 2 minutes then 20 squats. 2 more minutes then 20 lunges. 2 more minutes then 20 jumping jacks. Repeat that 3 times. If you do it in less than 22 minutes I'll be surprised.

What happens is that you get so focused on the INTERVAL, and WHAT IS NEXT, that your mind is thinking about that and not "Oh geez I have 15 more minutes of walking on the treadmill." BUT your mind is actively engaged into your exercise, not watching TV while on the treadmill.

Here is What I Do #2: Break It Up Some More
I know, YOU are special. You REALLY HATE, REALLY LOATHE, REALLY DESPISE exercise. The ONLY form of physical strain that works for you is lifting the super-sized milkshake high enough to take a sip from the straw. I get it.

So break the 3 circuits above into different times of the day. Do one loop through in the morning; another mid-day; and one in the evening. If you are in different places and don't have a treadmill, go for a walk. Most of the time if you look you will find a way to make this possible. You just need the motivation.

Here is What I Do #3: Tell People About It
If nobody knows you are trying to get healthier, it is easy to stop. Build in some accountability. Tell your family and friends that you are trying to get healthier. If you have kids, tell them. Again, do what you are capable of doing, but remember that getting healthier is an investment in yourself, extending your life and the quality of the life you have, and it is an investment in making more time to spend with all of these people. So tell them you are doing it and why you are doing it. I'm so on fire about it that I talk to everyone about it. Quite frankly I think my friends and family wish I would shut up a little bit about it.

Here is What I Do #4: Do What You Can Do
I'm doing P90X. I want to go run a 5K because I'm a little crazy and think that would be fun. But it doesn't matter what I'm doing. Do what you can do. If that means that you walk to the end of your drive way and back, then do that. But whatever it is, do it. Then, do it some more. And then some more.

Here is What I Do #5: Eat Something HEALTHY Afterward
The most important food you consume is what you eat in the first 30min to 1 hour after exercising. All your muscles are ready for nourishment and you need to give it to them. Personally I like ProGrade Workout Protein, mixed with one scoop of the ProGrade Meal Replacement, with 2 TBSP of peanut butter and 8oz of water. Quick soap box here, but the COST to your wallet for that fast food isn't much, but the COST to your body is high. Conversly, the ProGrade mix costs a little bit, but A) it replaces a meal (reduces your other food cost for that meal), and B) gives your body some awesome nutrient rich goodness. Sometimes I think I just work out so I can drink that delicious slice of heaven!

In the interest of full disclosure, I would love it if you would pick up some ProGrade from the links above and help out my buddy Coach Greg. And, if you have any questions about the stuff (remember I'm not an expert about any of this) contact Greg and he can help you out. Here is his website: www.LeFeverWellness.com.

Getting the Right Blend

2010-04-06T09:40:00.000-07:00

I thought about the major areas of health that I needed to track. It is possible I’m missing some, but these seemed like a pretty good start:

- Food
- Exercise
- Medication
- Sleep
- Energy
- Stress
- Mood

Food (diet) and Exercise

This isn’t a diet plan. What you weigh is important, but notice that I’m not tracking that. I believe you should focus on getting fit and healthy first. If you do that the weight loss will follow.

So to that end, it is important to eat the right foods. I’m not a nutritionist, which is why I talk regularly to Coach Greg LeFever from LeFever Wellness. I even pulled him along with me to my diabetic nutritionist meeting a couple months ago. Since he is a certified nutritionist AND personal trainer, he can really give me the scoop on my day-to-day diet and exercise.

Medication and Western Medicine

On one hand I think there are lots of people that ignore their health, then go to their doctor to fix the problems. On the other hand, I know there are people out there that vow to never take medication and hold a bias against the medical industry. I’m somewhere in the middle, and try to take the benefits of each without getting militant about it.

I think you need a good primary doctor, and specialists as needed. You should be research the medications being recommended, and be your own advocate. It is entirely possible that a good portion of the medical insurance and pharmaceutical industry is going straight to hell, so listen and learn as much as you can so you aren’t just a paying customer.

My position is that western medicine is an essential component to overall health, but it isn’t the panacea many people assume it is. As for me, I need my insulin. I tried managing my diabetes without it and couldn’t control my blood glucose levels.

Sleep, Energy, Stress and Mood

I’ve never had a doctor ask me how I was sleeping, or if my stress has been elevated lately. I suppose if you have issues with these things, then it might be a relevant question, but for most that wouldn’t come up. Nonetheless, I believe that amount of sleep, energy level, stress level, and mood are worth tracking. Getting enough sleep, reducing stress, and tracking overall mood and stress will tell you volumes.

For example, if you were to average 8 hours of sleep per night, and remove things from your life that cause undue stress, you would be healthier.

How Livabetic Came To Be

2010-04-05T22:14:00.001-07:00

Fall 2009 – Changes in my body led to serious health issues

Jan 2010 – I went to a diabetic specialist at the Joslin Diabetes Center at UC Irvine in CA and got new tools for dealing with my diabetes.

I started to realize that there were many things my doctors and nutritionists would never ask that had HUGE implications for my health.

I also noticed that the anti-medical crowd didn’t have all the right answers either, often times because their positions didn’t take my specific situation into account.
I began to realize what should be a no-brainer. You need a balanced blend of different perspectives, need to become an expert in your own health, and apply the best thing for the best situation.

I’m not a doctor, nutritionist, or an expert in anything. But I can tell you exactly how my body is working, because I am becoming very disciplined in taking care of my own health.

What is a Livabetic?

2010-04-05T22:13:00.000-07:00

Initially it was an offshoot of my diabetes, an obvious play on death vs. life. But I think that anyone can be a livabetic, because isn’t about being “not-diabetic” and completely about being focused on living a healthy life.

Diagnosing yourself as a livabetic is simply a firm commitment to your own health. That’s it.

The Purpose of This Blog

2010-04-05T21:39:00.000-07:00

Working on my health is the most important gift I could give to myself, and to my wife and daughter. It will hopefully give me more time with them, and make that time better quality.

There are a few people in my life, family and friends, who have motivated me to do better with my health. I hope I have also motivated them. So, if I can motivate anyone through this blog to take their health seriously, and give the gift of a longer, better, healthier life to themselves and those around them, then it has succeeded.