Current weight: 285.6 lbs
Total weight loss: 20.2 lbs
I’m happy to report that these last couple of days have gone well.
Reassessing and recommitting on Saturday was really helpful for me as part of this process. Especially after the previous week when I felt like I was slipping a bit and falling back into old habits and getting discouraged.
Now I feel like I’m back on track with my health and wellness efforts and doing a better job of not letting ‘perfect be the enemy of the good’.
Basic Lab Work – Final Result
I mentioned before that I had some basic blood work done last month – just part of a normal annual physical exam. Fortunately, it was all normal – except for a slightly low Vitamin D.
The only concern my primary care doctor had was my urinalysis, which was positive for ketones in my urine. For those who don’t know, positive urine ketones are a good thing for someone on a ketogenic diet. It means that you are burning fat for fuel and is part of the health strategy.
During the visit, I had told her I was on a low-carb diet so I was surprised when she was concerned that I had ketones in my urine. Especially since my fasting glucose was normal. The whole conversation was done through her medical assistant, so I didn’t speak to her directly. But, maybe she was concerned about a condition called ketoacidosis. (This is a life-threatening condition that happens most often in type 1 diabetic when there is very high blood glucose and blood ketones at the same time).
Anyway, whatever the reason, she wanted me to have my hemoglobin A1c checked. As far as I know, my blood glucose has always been normal. But I agree that it was a good idea to check this since I don’t think I have in the past.
Hemoglobin A1c
For those who aren’t familiar with the hemoglobin A1c test (also called glycated hemoglobin), it is a pretty common blood test used for two main reasons:
- To diagnosis diabetes.
- To see how well diabetes is being managed.
It is different from a fasting blood glucose level in that it measures your average blood sugar level over the last 2-3 months. So it is definitely a helpful tool.
How it works:
The test measures what percentage of your hemoglobin is glycated – meaning coated with sugar. The higher the percentage, the more of your hemoglobin that has sugar on it, and the worse your sugar levels have been over the last few months. The lower your percentage, the better your sugar control has been.
My Hemoglobin A1c
So I went to have my blood drawn (again!!). My result, fortunately but not surprisingly, was normal. My value was 5%, which was within the standard range of 4.8-5.6%.
Like my other basic lab work, I was happy that this one was normal.
I generally don’t like going to doctors or getting tests done, and sometimes I postpone things longer than I should. But, I do think knowing your baseline is very important. Whether it’s your weight, or your glucose level, or your cholesterol, or your blood pressure.
Baselines are a good first step in any health and wellness endeavor – knowing where you are helps you get to where you want to go.
Day #70:
Current weight: 285.6 lbs
Total weight loss: 20.2 lbs
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