Health Track

As promised, I took the first step in getting healthier this weekend. I went to the first screening in the Healthy Neighborhood collaboration between the Old North End Neighborhood Association and Penrose-St. Francis Health Services.

The screening took about an hour. I was weighed – with clothes and shoes on, which I think is unfair – measured, poked and prodded, all by cheerful volunteers from Well Centers. They were nice, professional and very non-judgmental.

So the good news – weight, waist circumference and blood pressure are all within healthy ranges. I am more flexible than 60 percent of people my age, and haven’t lost any bone mass, something women need to watch as they get older.

The bad news – I could stand to lose a little bit of weight (who couldn’t?) and my cholesterol is 197. The cutoff is 200 for high cholesterol. My HDL, the good kind of cholesterol, is below 50, which means watching more closely what I eat, and exercising more.

In the interest of full disclosure, I haven’t been exercising the way I normally do. And I have really good excuses for that - the cold weather, single mother of two, life has been especially hectic, etc. But excuses won’t cut it anymore, so armed with these new numbers, I will have to make some small but permanent lifestyle changes.

Check back later this week to read my coach’s advice, and for wellness resources and the recipes that will inspire me.

<- Back to csbj.com

Amy Gillentine :: Jan.25.2010 :: Blog ::

CSBJ reporter Amy Gillentine’s quest for better health

The first step …

Leave a Reply