Another reason to be thankful for my nutritionist!!!

I got my new cholesterol reading!

My old numbers as of 8/2/2006 (I was probably about 137-9 lbs at that time.)

Cholesterol: 203
Triglycerides: 99
HDL: 64
LDL: 134

For the last few months (about 3 months now), I've been on a diet of sorts... well, not a diet... I went to a nutritionist and we worked together a food plan that I can stick with. Anyway, THIS is my new cholesterol after I lost a ton of weight (about 13lbs according to my GP... I'm now at about 123-125lbs.) The blood test was done 11/15/2007. I got my results just yesterday! :-)

Cholesterol: 172
Triglycerides: 30
HDL: 63
LDL: 90

(Please pick up your jaw after yourself... ;-) )

My GP was quite surprised when he saw the numbers too... especially since he knows that he did NOT prescribe me ANY meds to deal with the cholesterol! Needless to say, he asked for my nutritionist's business card and he's gonna send his clients there. I had hoped for a drop in the numbers to avoid having to go to the next step to take the cholesterol meds. (I hate taking meds, PERIOD!!!) But I didn't expect THIS much of a drop!!!

I'm so thankful for my nutritionist! She gave me the tools that essentially made my life a LOT easier in the end. She's gonna be THRILLED when she sees the new numbers!!! :-) I look better than I did a couple of years ago and I'm not exactly a spring chicken either! I feel better too! Of course, I'm not gonna go and race against some kid in their mid-20's... (well, maybe I can if s/he's out of shape...) but I'll give them a run for their money.

Loop Brain Fart

Okay, this is bad! I had a lesson today on my loop jump and my secondary coach claims that this is probably my second best jump (next to the waltz jump.)

Problem is... I don't believe it! My consistency for landing this jump clean has been about 50-50. It's pretty much a mental thing! Partly it's an energy thing. (i.e. I have to go into my lessons awake for one and we all know I'm NOT a morning person! LOL!!!) Partly it depends on whether or not my lower back is acting up again. But my biggest one is fear. If I go into it too quickly, my chances of making that jump is zip. I freak out. My secondary coach's response to this today is.... "Get over it!!!" (Figures!!! But a very true statement.)

I probably will not skate much this week (aside from hanging out with skating friends this weekend that are visiting. It will just be low stress and having a bit of fun.) But I need the rest!!! I need sleep badly!!!

Light at the end of the tunnel for another skill or two: Brackets are starting to come along. If I keep at it, my NYC coach will actually SEE brackets come Christmas time when I do finally see him again. And OH!!! My show stop is also coming along too! There's hope for my artistic program yet! I might actually LOOK like a show skater for once!!! LOL!!!

Bronze Debut at Skate San Francisco and catching up

It's long overdue for a post! :-)

I made my Adult Bronze Ladies debut just 3 days short of my 40th birthday!!! (EEEEK!!! Scary to admit that I'm that old!!!) It was a fun experience!!! I have two new programs (artistic and technical), two new skating dress and a LOT of makeup and hair spray. Double EEEEK!!! Along with travel cost to Lake Placid for Adult Nationals -- it's gonna cost me a fortune this year!!!) :-(

Anyway, it was a BLAST!!! I had a wonderful time competing with my fellow Adult Bronze Ladies skaters at both the technical and artistic event! It also helps that I would be competing with friends too!

Pictures: Technical Artistic
Video: Artistic

Part of the reason why it took me this long from when I passed my Bronze FS test to compete now is b/c I've been working on my jumps and spins. Since my last post, I have been landing both the loop and the flip jump clean about 50-50 times. My secondary coach has been reworking my entry to the flip so I wouldn't "toe turn" to get the rotation. (I still got the bruises from being on the harness last week b/c of this. OWWWW!!! I hope that no one thinks I'm being physically abused or something...LOL!!!) I tried out the entry this past Sunday and it's feeling better already. :-)

She also said my loops are pretty decent, but I gotta deal with my "brain freeze" on my entry to the loop at speed. I have yet to land that loop jump during my runthru on the program, but I can land them usually when I'm just doing it in isolation. Since the music is kinda fast, it seems to "rush" my brain for some reason.

I have a backsit to play around with now and trying to get lower. My camel is STILL non-existent since my free leg isn't high enough and my torso isn't low enough yet on the spin.

As for my primary coach, he's doing a quickie assessment of all my spins and jumps and seeing what needs to be worked on. Yes, my technical isn't strong at all for Bronze. I need to land those loop and flip jumps clean, get my lutz, sit lower on the backsit, get my camel...yadda yadda yadda.... (Translation: tell me something I don't already know...*rolleyes*)

So back to work! As my primary coach says whenever I say hello to friends at the rink on the ice at our Monday night public session: "Less talking, more skating..." *evil stare*

Other things:
Well, I had a blood test done back two summers ago b/c of a fall I took on the stairs a while back. Well, I'm glad to say it's not from a lack of iron or something weird in the blood. I think it's just plain heat exhuastion. (It was rather WARM that day!) BUT... my doctor did find a brand new problem... my cholestorol was borderline high. (203 and LDL was at 134!) Did everything I can to eliminate foods with high cholestorol (I miss my shellfish!!! :-( ) ... and now I'm under doctor and dietitian supervision to lose weight to see if that lowers my score a bit. Getting close to my goal of 123 lbs (from 139!!!) (I'm at 126lbs now!) I hope that cholestorol number will go down too!!!

5 step mohawks

This is the general idea of where you should be going towards...