Health Screening

Oh boy, I did a health screening today at work.  Not something I enjoy – I don’t need anyone else to tell me I’m unhealthy when I know for myself, but I understand the importance.  And, of course, has nothing to do with the fact that I need to do the screening in order to earn my wellness credit for next year (which is $10 per pay-period – so a whopping $240 over the year).  The results were as bad as I was expecting.  I’m obese, which I know, but I haven’t weighed myself for quite some time and it appears I’ve put on about ½ stone over the last year which is disappointing, if not surprising.  What is new from last year is that my blood pressure is high.  That is a little bit concerning.  My cholesterol levels were kind of as expected – low on good cholesterol, high on bad.  All in all, it doesn’t paint a particularly good picture of my health.  Is this the wake-up call I need to do something about it through diet and exercise?  Maybe.  I still feel I live a too sedentary lifestyle, so I can do something about that e.g. by going out more often and more regularly at weekends.  Diet is the tough one.  I think to begin with I at least need to eat more sensibly – cut down on the junk food and snacking, something I’m very guilty of indulging in.  But a lot of the foods I should cut out – bread, pasta, rice, cheese – are my favorites, so that is where I struggle.  I can maybe cut these down gradually, but I’m not prepared to eliminate them totally – I’m not prepared to compromise totally on my enjoyment of food and eating out, one of the joys of life.  But as long as I can do this in moderation and eat sensibly more often than not then I hope my health can improve over time.