When I first had my cholesterol tested at age 35 my doctor asked how much I exercise and how much red meat I eat. As someone who had yet to begin her recovery journey from perfectionism I answered, “well, I could be better about both.”
The reality? I lifted weights, climbed, and ran several times a week each. I was exercising a lot, and honestly struggling to eat enough to keep up with it all. One of my real questions was “how do I get enough protein to recover from all of this? I don’t eat a lot of meat.”
But I did eat red meat - A couple of times a month I would meal prep with ground beef and eat it a couple nights in a row. My doctor didn’t wait to hear how much exercise or red meat I was getting, she heard “I could be doing better.”
She jumped right to recommending I exercise more and eat less red meat. Sure those are text book ways to help naturally lower cholesterol, but it didn’t sit right with me. How much could exercising more and eating less red meat move the needle when I was already doing so much of one and relatively little of the other? In fact cutting something out of my diet (without discussing real alternatives) and increasing my activity felt down right dangerous.
Maybe if she had taken the time to hear my real answers and still insisted these were the best approach, I would have considered it more fully, but for years after that I operated with a fairly defeatist attitude about this element of my health. In my mind, this would just be the way it was until I was ready to get on a statin.
Last year I saw a registered dietician who helped me problem solve solutions for my genetically very high cholesterol. I’ve been taking fish oil for a year and have blood work scheduled in a few weeks to find out if it has helped make a difference. We also talked about low fat instead of full fat yogurt (a big source of protein for me), and plant creamers instead of half and half in my daily coffee. These were among other small tweaks but arguably more meaningful to my own unique situation. Maybe there will be a day that I cut out red meat all together but for now I am happy to have these more nuanced solutions for my situation.
Where am I going with all of this?
You can have all the ‘right’ information but if it doesn’t fit with your lifestyle then it won’t be helpful for you. You can ‘do everything right’ and still experience real health issues.
It can feel so discouraging to have all the right information, or even do all the ‘right things’ when the traditional advice isn’t working for you.
Every person is unique and finding people in your corner who will help you navigate unique solutions is so important.
Side note: I had a visit with a new primary care provider yesterday and it was the first time in years that I felt seen by my provider. I'm so excited to have a doctor I look forward to checking in with!
If you have been dealing with health concerns that don’t feel like they are being addressed in a way that works for you, I encourage you to speak up about it or look for someone who can help. Maybe a new primary or a registered dietician who can take the time to get into the nitty gritty details with you?
This doesn’t mean you should always like every answer you hear from a provider, but their recommendations should feel rooted in your reality, and they should work to help you understand how to make the advice work in your life.
Warmly,
Katy
P.S. I help people manage injuries and improve bone and metabolic health through my customized coaching programs built for helping you get active outside! Let’s chat and see if it’s a good fit for the health conditions you are dealing with. I’ve been told I ask a lot of good questions.