My pre-weight loss blood test...any ideas?

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I have decided I really, really must get into some sort of shape. I am extremely overweight and so I went to see my Doctor for a check-up. (This was also partly brought on by my brother's recent diagnosis with type 2 diabetes, so I thought it best for me to be tested too).
The Doc said my heart rate was up from the last reading twelve months ago but not by too much and still okay but in the upper realms. Exercise and diet were the key, obviously. For what it's worth I used to smoke but gave up in 2004. I take a 20mg tablet of Atorvestatin for my cholesterol each day, by the way.
So to today, a week after my blood test. I rang for an appointment but there were none to be had. I explained that I needed to find out if anything was amiss or should be followed up. The woman on the desk got my results and said that both types of cholesterol were fine and in fact everything was normal (she mentioned other stuff but it went over my head to be honest) and with no trace of diabetes found.
So, with everything seeming to be okay and me being fit enough(it would seem) to start of gently exercising, do you think I need to contact the Doctor to go through my results more fully, or do you think that if anything were amiss I'd soon be contacted?
All I'm looking for here is a bit of advice to take this niggling little concern away.

Thanks, Bill
 

gaz

Cycle Camera TV
Location
South Croydon
The internet is generally not the best place for advice on whether you should just go for it or not, we don't know you or your family's medical history, and nor are we trained medical professionals. i would be on the safe side and just go and see the doctor and talk to him about your plans to lose weight.

Best of luck with shedding the pounds.
 
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TheBoyBilly

TheBoyBilly

New Member
Thanks Gaz, point taken. I hadn't looked at it that way in all honesty. It's just that I don't really want to bother my GP when if there was something to worry about I would assume he would contact me. I shall just have to get an appointment.

Thank you too for your good wishes,

Bill
 

Bill Gates

Guest
Location
West Sussex
TheBoyBilly said:
I have decided I really, really must get into some sort of shape. I am extremely overweight and so I went to see my Doctor for a check-up. (This was also partly brought on by my brother's recent diagnosis with type 2 diabetes, so I thought it best for me to be tested too).
The Doc said my heart rate was up from the last reading twelve months ago but not by too much and still okay but in the upper realms. Exercise and diet were the key, obviously. For what it's worth I used to smoke but gave up in 2004. I take a 20mg tablet of Atorvestatin for my cholesterol each day, by the way.
So to today, a week after my blood test. I rang for an appointment but there were none to be had. I explained that I needed to find out if anything was amiss or should be followed up. The woman on the desk got my results and said that both types of cholesterol were fine and in fact everything was normal (she mentioned other stuff but it went over my head to be honest) and with no trace of diabetes found.
So, with everything seeming to be okay and me being fit enough(it would seem) to start of gently exercising, do you think I need to contact the Doctor to go through my results more fully, or do you think that if anything were amiss I'd soon be contacted?
All I'm looking for here is a bit of advice to take this niggling little concern away.

Thanks, Bill


A bit surprised you couldn't make an appointment when you want one. The opposite with me; but the same result - no appointment, however I did get the GP to phone me and discuss the results.

Phone the surgery and try and get the GP to phone you back. You're probably OK to crack on but you need reassurance to give you the confidence to do so.
 

ASC1951

Guru
Location
Yorkshire
TheBoyBilly said:
It's just that I don't really want to bother my GP when if there was something to worry about I would assume he would contact me.
That's why we pay GPs £120,000 a year, so that we can bother them without feeling guilty. Don't assume he will contact you - they are so busy that the system works on you bringing problems to them, not the other way round.

Here is my experience, gained from smoking until 30 years ago and occasionally being at least 45lb overweight:-
- giving up smoking is by far the most important thing to do and you've already done that;
- regular exercise will make the world feel a much better place, but if you are overweight as opposed to unfit diet is the key to losing it. Better food and less of it.
- you don't need to go balls out with the exercise until you are a lot closer to your proper weight. You just need to do it at a level that makes you sweat and unable to talk evenly; and do that for at least half an hour most days.
- it will take a long time, it really will. Months. Possibly a couple of years. Ignore all methods that tell you you can lose excess weight a lot faster than it got there, because the body has physical and mental 'starvation mode mechanisms' to make you put it straight back on.
 
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TheBoyBilly

TheBoyBilly

New Member
Thank you Bill, and ASC1951.
I always have a problem getting an appointment with my GP as, even when I get through at 8am or just after they always seem to be fully booked. It makes me wonder how all these other folk get in when they could hardly beat me to it in the morning, as you have to make your appt 'on the day'. I shall try the Call-back system that Bill mentioned. I am pretty clued up as to how to go about my initial training and diet. It's putting it into practice that's the bugbear, what with my shifts which are all over the place. Still, happy to report that the new-ish lady in my life is going to sort me out good and proper, and admonish me if I should come of the rails. With the nicer weather hopefuly around the corner it should make for a good time to start. And I'm not short of a decent bike either. Thanks for your advice, it was most appreciated and has eased my mind considerably,

Bill
 

srw

It's a bit more complicated than that...
TheBoyBilly said:
s you have to make your appt 'on the day'.

Hmmmm... I didn't think they were allowed to do that.

Still, happy to report that the new-ish lady in my life is going to sort me out good and proper, and admonish me if I should come of the rails.

Top tip - she won't. Or if she does, you risk a falling out. Find someone you're less close to but who you're unhappy to let down.

Even better, pay someone to train you. I faffed around for about 20 years not losing weight but knowing exactly whatI ought to be doing, and it's only this last year when I've finally got a trainer that I feel I'm making real progress. Yes, it's expensive (though less than you think) but it's worth it.
 

Bill Gates

Guest
Location
West Sussex
plank said:
and this is an interesting article on cholesterol

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35058896/ns/health-heart_health/

It could all be wrong of course...


It isn't.

But of course you can always trust your GP because most anything you read on the internet is rubbish. ;)

The first post I ever made to an internet forum was August 2005 on the old Cycling Plus. I was using my own name in those days. It was about how taking statins had affected me, and the purpose was to warn others of the dangers. The response was hysterical. You would have thought I'd murdered the pope. There are some on here who were present in those days and may remember.

Well to all those people who gave me a hard time I'd just like to say that you can't say I didn't warn you.
 

plank

New Member
Do you think statins are actually bad for you? I haven't looked into it very much but was coming to the conclusion that;

at best they could have some benefits but didn't actually do anything to solve the problem (which I thought was is a build up of arterial plaque caused by oxidised cholesterol on irritated areas)

at worse they were a waste of time and money

Having said that I thought cholesterol was essential for membrane maintenance and creation so seems potentially harmful to try and limit production!

But like I said I didn't look into it too much, espically I don't think I would take them when they seem to be recommended based on bad tests!

Would be interesting to hear more.
 

Bill Gates

Guest
Location
West Sussex
plank said:
Do you think statins are actually bad for you? I haven't looked into it very much but was coming to the conclusion that;

at best they could have some benefits but didn't actually do anything to solve the problem (which I thought was is a build up of arterial plaque caused by oxidised cholesterol on irritated areas)

at worse they were a waste of time and money

Having said that I thought cholesterol was essential for membrane maintenance and creation so seems potentially harmful to try and limit production!

But like I said I didn't look into it too much, espically I don't think I would take them when they seem to be recommended based on bad tests!

Would be interesting to hear more.

http://www.spacedoc.net/lipitor_side_effects.htm

Read number 9. That's me

http://www.westonaprice.org/Dangers...t-Popular-Cholesterol-Lowering-Medicines.html

Describes how it works
 

plank

New Member
Wow very nasty, I haven't read how it works yet, just your report.

Out of interest have you altered your diet or made any other changes/had further testing.
 
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TheBoyBilly

TheBoyBilly

New Member
My Doc wanted to see if the Atorvastatin I was taking was doing any damage to my liver or kidneys. I will have to discuss this with him. A quick perusal of Bill's links is really quite scary. I had heard something on the radio about statins but nothing very conclusive seemed to come out of the discussion. I was thinking along the lines of how one day a certain food is bad for you and the next the elixir of life. It's a minefield.

Bill
 

Bill Gates

Guest
Location
West Sussex
plank said:
Wow very nasty, I haven't read how it works yet, just your report.

Out of interest have you altered your diet or made any other changes/had further testing.

Was taking ateronon but it's very expensive and eat 30 grams of tomato paste a day now instead. Hardly eat any bread or pasta (small particles of LDL) and replaced with oat cakes (Nairns- large particle LDL). Otherwise eat fairly normally with regular helpings of avocado pear and nuts and red peppers with salads. Not worried about eating eggs or red meat. Steak is a favourite of mine.

Also supplement 2000mg or 3000 mg cod liver oil a day and 200 mg CoQ10 a day
 

Bill Gates

Guest
Location
West Sussex
TheBoyBilly said:
My Doc wanted to see if the Atorvastatin I was taking was doing any damage to my liver or kidneys. I will have to discuss this with him. A quick perusal of Bill's links is really quite scary. I had heard something on the radio about statins but nothing very conclusive seemed to come out of the discussion. I was thinking along the lines of how one day a certain food is bad for you and the next the elixir of life. It's a minefield.

Bill

I was doing VO2max interval training at the time trying to build top end speed. Instead I was doing myself enormous muscle damage, including my heart.
 
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