high cholesterol, need weight loss advice please

[andcol]

The lower the carbs the better.

Sorry I disagree with this statement. There is a certain level that I feel (and it is personal) is better to stay above. For me I didn't like to go under 60g/day and I am now on far more than this. What matters is that your body can cope with what you eat in an appropriate manner without spiking too high and staying high for a prolonged period.

 

[Snapstinget]

The fact is, we are all different, and what works for one person may not be appropriate for another.
But in general the key is to reduce body fat.. This is not as difficult as it sounds, given that the body will always prefer fat as an energy source if given the chance. But you can really only do it if you can find a way of doing so that feels right for you.
It's also important to take it slowly and to accept that results may take a while.
The good thing for you is that your blood sugars don't seem too bad, and that as has been pointed out, your total cholesterol hasn't resulted in the nurse trying to put you on statins. So don't despair - you've got a great starting point.
I don't know how bad your arthritis is, or how painful, but studies show that it can actually help to do stuff like walking**. As a mum you'll be rushing around anyway*, so you won't need to fit much more steady exercise in, but if you leave out the porridge*** and walk for up to 30 minutes a day you'll be well on the way.
*Indications are that the absolute most efficacious way of improving blood sugar and cholesterol is physical activity that involves sudden bursts of activity, i.e.. has your heart racing and then getting back to normal in short sharp bursts. Think a waitress at a busy cafe ... or a mum with small kids.
** Walking has been shown to have an amazing effect on the body's ability to cope with/utilise dietary fat.
*** Health care professionals somethimes seem to leave theoir heads behind them when they get their degrees. If anything contradicts what they learned for their exams, they flatly refuse to believe it.

 

[goose64]

are you me? I have exactly the same problems & I take statins for my cholesterol but I had to change as the ones I had weren't strong enough & the stronger ones almost crippled me & I put on nearly a stone in 2 weeks (arrgh) I have taken mystelf of my new stating & back on the old until I see my GP late in the week.

I find that losing weight is difficult bu I am managing it atm - I have reduced my carbs again (they were creeping up) and I have stopped snacking & have now lost around half that stone I put on in just over 2 weeks . I can't exercise as I am still recovering from the damage statins did to my arthritis

 

[Daibell]

Hi. I

The fact is, we are all different, and what works for one person may not be appropriate for another.
But in general the key is to reduce body fat.. This is not as difficult as it sounds, given that the body will always prefer fat as an energy source if given the chance. But you can really only do it if you can find a way of doing so that feels right for you.
It's also important to take it slowly and to accept that results may take a while.
The good thing for you is that your blood sugars don't seem too bad, and that as has been pointed out, your total cholesterol hasn't resulted in the nurse trying to put you on statins. So don't despair - you've got a great starting point.
I don't know how bad your arthritis is, or how painful, but studies show that it can actually help to do stuff like walking**. As a mum you'll be rushing around anyway*, so you won't need to fit much more steady exercise in, but if you leave out the porridge*** and walk for up to 30 minutes a day you'll be well on the way.
*Indications are that the absolute most efficacious way of improving blood sugar and cholesterol is physical activity that involves sudden bursts of activity, i.e.. has your heart racing and then getting back to normal in short sharp bursts. Think a waitress at a busy cafe ... or a mum with small kids.
** Walking has been shown to have an amazing effect on the body's ability to cope with/utilise dietary fat.
*** Health care professionals somethimes seem to leave theoir heads behind them when they get their degrees. If anything contradicts what they learned for their exams, they flatly refuse to believe it.

I thought the body always went for carbs first for energy then fats which is why long distance runners hit the 'wall' when their carbs run out and, given a bit of time the body turns to ketosis to burn fat

 

[Snapstinget]

Hi. I

I thought the body always went for carbs first for energy then fats which is why long distance runners hit the 'wall' when their carbs run out and, given a bit of time the body turns to ketosis to burn fat

Actually not; depending on the intensity of the exercise, we burn proportionately more or less fat and less or more carbs. We can also burn a bit of protein, too. Roughly speaking, if you walk briskly you'll be burning a bit more fat than sugar (carbs).. The faster you go the faster ther body needs to metabolise its energy stores, and fat (and protein) require more processing, so the body draws more and more on carbs. We burn proportionately most fat when we are watching telly (as long as we don't exert ourselves by reaching for the remote). The toruble is, we don't burn MUCH fat while we're lazing about. And we don't push the body into dealing with the fat sloshing around the system either, which may impact on our lipid profile (aka cholesterol figures).

The key to a successful marathon or ultramarathon is to run at an intensity where you also burn quite a bit of fat, i.e. not flat out. You can train your body to use more fat for fuel on a marathon; it is quite possible to run a 100 kilometres on nothing more than a baked potato (a famous anecdote from one of the greatest ultra runners) and in the old days marathoners didn't take any extra energy on board.