I think I will keep playing this game...

Well, what do I say...??? This is the end of Week six for me. And looking back I am rather surprised at how this journey is taking shape.. I wrote that at the end of six weeks I would post how I am doing.. So here we go...

Blood Sugar... This was what started me thinking about my health. I had a screening on April 19 and it showed my blood sugar at 180.. I have been tracking my blood sugar daily and I have learned a lot about myself and what I take into my body.. Caffeine seems to be a really bad thing for me! When I have a Coke or two, my blood sugar will spike within a few hours and will remain elevated for a day or two... So no more caffeine for me.. The average blood sugar reading for the first week was 145, with some large spikes during the weeks, and after discovering the issue I have with caffeine, my blood sugar average for the past week was 131..

Blood Pressure.... My blood pressure has declined from an average of 144/94 to 132/82 in six weeks. I have been focusing on making sure I keep stress in check as well. My Mean Arterial Pressure (MAP) went from 110 to 99 in the same time period.

Weight Loss.... I started this little exercise weighing in at a modest 266 pounds. Then I bought a new scale and discovered it was two pounds heavier than my old one.. So I actually began weighing in at 268 pounds. In six weeks I have lost 21.2 pounds... I have reminded myself that this is not about weight loss, but I can tell you that it is about health. Last Saturday I woke up and went on my timed 1 1/2 mile run.. I was able to complete it in 16 minutes and 10 seconds... I was able to jog the entire time and I didn't even feel exhausted when I was finished. We later loaded the bikes up and rode the Marysvale bike trail.. 14.8 miles.

Nan is really helping me with this lifestyle change. She encourages me to exercise and makes eating healthy easier by not having so many sweets around. I have even found it easier to make these changes in social settings as well. Nan and I have even started parking our cars and walking to visit people, or take things around town. Planning on being active takes a little time and effort, but the results are wonderful. I am even wearing T-shirts again without looking like they are form-fitting..

I am drinking and enjoying water now... It took four weeks, but I find myself drinking it without all the yuck factor that I have had for it.

I really appreciate all my friends and family support in this effort. I am seeing enough success and improvement in my health that I will give this another six weeks... ;-)