I am still trying to get in the swing of things after a really crazy weekend. We were super busy all weekend long, and then spent all of Sunday relaxing on the couch after having a little too much fun on Saturday night.
Friday night's date night went really well and we totally indulged in way too many bad-for-us foods, which leads me to believe it is time to make a real change in my behavior on the weekends, but we will get to that in a minute.
We headed to dinner at BW3's for Mike's celebratory outing. We ordered beers, a fried appetizer, wings, and cheese covered potato wedges.
We sat outside so we could enjoy the beautiful weather, and I am glad we did since yesterday and today are FREEZING cold!
I ordered my favorite thing - traditional chicken wings with the salt and vinegar dry rub. We rarely go out to eat there, so I figured I might as well get my favorite thing.
When we headed to the movies, neither of us were hungry, but again, since we rarely go out to the movies, we thought it would be a good idea to get some movie theater popcorn with butter. We each had a good amount, but didn't even finish half of the small bag we ordered.
Side note - American Reunion was awesome... if you liked the other American Pie movies, you will like this one just as much. Totally cheesy, totally predictable, totally too much male genitalia shown on the big screen, but totally worth it. 2 butter covered thumbs up from me!
On Saturday morning, we got up, Mike headed to a work function, and I got ready for a bridal shower. We headed to Greenville as soon as he got home and I made it to the shower just a few minutes late. We decided to spend the night in Greenville, since it was also a friend's birthday, so we wanted to celebrate.
These pictures are from later in the night, but here I am with the bride to be and then another picture with one of my best friends, who also lives in Greenville.
I indulged HEAVILY in some celebratory drinks and even drank liquor, which is a BIG no-no for me normally. I am just not a fan of liquor... this theory was further proven later that evening, when I had to sleep on the bathroom floor. Yikes.
We woke up Sunday feeling awful. Mike had ran 7 miles on Saturday while I went to the bridal shower, and he said he felt like it was for nothing after eating and boozing it up that night. I was not feeling good at all, so we spent the ENTIRE day on Sunday on the couch. Even though I was OK with this, since we really wanted to catch up on some TV, I did not like the hungover feeling of a queasy stomach, constantly hungry, and sadness. I haven't felt that way since Mexico, and it did not feel good.
Getting Personal
Normally, I would just chalk our weekend up to a wash and start fresh on Monday. We always eat really well during the week, and even mostly on the weekends, but this was just one of those times where we let it get out of hand. Normally, I would just let it slide, but, I was smacked in the face this morning with reality, so it is time to make some real changes about these every once in a while weekends.
I had a doctor's appointment this morning just to get my yearly physical. This is with my primary care doctor, so I had gone in a few weeks earlier to get my blood work drawn. The last time I went to the doctor, my cholesterol was all out of whack and I knew I had to make some changes to my diet.
When my doctor came into the room, we reviewed all of my blood work. My triglycerides (bad) were back in the normal range, when before they were elevated. My HDL (good) was too low before, but now was high, which is great. My LDL (bad) which was elevated before, was now really low, which is pretty awesome. He told me I was at the perfect weight for my height, and my BMI which used to be in the overweight category, is now in the normal category, which I already knew, but it was nice to hear from him. My pulse had dropped from the high 80s to the low 60s, which is a pretty direct correlation to the running.
The only thing that was not any better, and had actually gotten worse, was my blood pressure. I know I have touched on it before, but I have had issues with this in the past. I thought that I had a pretty good handle on it, since for the last few years, my blood pressure has been completely normal, but I guess not.
The first question my doctor asked me was, how much salt do you take in daily?
I immediately jumped into my purse, showed him mynetdiary and explained that I only allow myself 1500 mg of sodium per day... usually. As soon as those words came out of my mouth, my mind started racing through the salt and vinegar wings, cheese fries, popcorn, and beer on Friday, the deli sandwiches, cheese dip, and alcohol on Saturday, and the tortilla chips and salsa on Sunday. There was my answer.
Now, I am not saying that there isn't more to it than just sodium intake, because there absolutely is. I have a STRONG family history of high blood pressure, stroke, etc., which is why I have always been a little more concerned with it than most, but it is something that I really need to take more seriously. I guarantee, that if I hadn't had the weekend that I had, my blood pressure would have been in more of the normal range. Blood pressure is one of the few things that is directly related to sodium, meaning, you spike the sodium, you spike the blood pressure. You remove the sodium, the blood pressure returns to normal, if there isn't some other underlying disease or issue. I also have a bit of what some would call, anxiety and 'white coat syndrome.' Even as a nurse, I get super nervous and anxious about going to see the doctor. Reverse the roles, and I am cool as a cucumber.
I now have to check my blood pressure each morning and night for several months, to make sure that it is not consistently high, and so that I don't have to be put on any type of medication. I 100% believe that this is something that can be managed by my lifestyle, and I will do everything I need to in order to avoid medications.
My doctor kind of laughed at me when I said that I monitor my sodium levels as close as my calories, he said, "wow, the things you will do to avoid a pill." He really does know me so well...
Overall, I think this last year has made drastic improvements on my health, I just need to do a lot better with my weekend indulgences. I know we all need to have them every once in a while, but I would say that 3 full days of it is a little more than what I needed. For some people, their bodies can tolerate that without any issues, clearly mine can not.
I think I am going to do a little experiment with my blood pressure... I'll keep you posted.
Disclaimer: I am in no way, shape, or form trying to provide any advice on dietary or medical changes, I am only providing my opinion on these topics and how I plan to make changes in my own life. Please refer to your own health care provider for any medical advice or treatment options.
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