I knew it was coming. I knew that though eventually, though I exercise more than the average American, my less than perfect eating habits, coupled with my family history were going to catch up with me. And this week, they did. For the first time in over a decade, I had my cholesterol checked. And its high – my LDL is 150. That’s not emergency statins high, but it is definitely “you have to make some changes” high.

So changes I’m going to make.  Goodbye to the buttered toast in the morning, and a bag of chips at lunch. Hello to whole grain cereals, and fruits and/or vegetables at every meal. As of now, I’m not going to turn my diet completely upside down (I’ve tried that before, and failed). I’m not going to give up Sunday Chinese takeout with E, but the next time my coworkers want to go for cheese steaks, I’ll take a pass. The goal for now is reasonable, long term changes. If that doesn’t bring the numbers down sufficiently, I’ll consider becoming a frutarian.*

It’s funny, but I’m looking forward to making these changes. Exercise can hide aesthetic indicators of a poor diet, but it can’t hide the facts in the blood work.  For a long time now, I’ve said I needed to learn more about nutrition, and change the way I eat. Now I have the motivation to do so… and a deadline.

Next test is in three months. Let’s see how much progress I can make by then.

*Kidding!

(not really).