Last week we had our annual health fair at work, which involved me getting my cholesterol and blood pressure tested. Things were fairly good with my "good" and "bad" cholesterol numbers in the range they should be (though the "bad" was up a few ticks from last year). However, my blood pressure was a little elevated. Could have been nerves from having a needle stuck in me, or maybe I was just having a bad day, but it would be nice if I had a low enough number than environmental factors would only have a minimal effect.

So, needless to say, I was a little surprised. This past year I was more active than ever with all of the running and biking over the past 6 months, and have not gained any weight. I honestly expected my numbers to improve instead of worsen. So my new obsession of the moment is eating healthy. I went to Trader Joe's and loaded up on more healthy foods (whole-wheat bagels, oatmeal, protein shakes) and am also trying to hit up the salad bar at lunch more often than not (which is very hard). I know it's an overreaction, but the sooner I start trying to be more aware of my eating habits, the easier they are to stick to.

Also, I have been trying to hit up the fitness center at work at least 3 days a week. In addition to getting regular exercise, I'm trying to keep my body in good running form so I will be ready for future races. I have yet to decide on my next marathon, though I recently became interested in the Cleveland Marathon in May, which is obviously very convenient geographically. I do plan to run in the Turkey Trot in downtown Cleveland on Thanksgiving morning. It will be my first and I hear they are quite fun, so I'm pretty excited. It's a 5 mile run through the downtown area with a few thousand other people, helping to burn some calories and make some room for all of the food that will follow later in the day.

This entry was posted by Brad, on Wednesday, November 09, 2005. You can leave your response.