Numbers... And the Necessary U-Turn

Friday and Saturday was a bit of a decadence.  Friday night I wanted to meet Annie for a glass of wine.  I suggested Campbell's Apartment in Grand Central Terminal - too crowded. As was Bobby Vans. We ended up at the upstairs bar at Smith & Wollensky's, and decided to split....a steak! Good? Yes. Can I live without? Yes.


Sat.  started off strong with a handful of strawberries, then a blueberry smoothie I made in the afternoon.  We also decided to make lasagna in the crock pot. Additionally, I pulled a trick I've used before. As part of my goal to drink much less, but enjoy liquor more, I bought some high end whisky the ensures much less trips to the bottle. That may sound insane, but the rationale is whisky only on special occasions, and not having cheap booze around helps ensure that...it's stupid trick I play on myself, but if it works, it works.

Well, the test results are back in, and though not as bad as when I first went on this quest 10 years ago, but they are terrible, and I've got a lot of work to do to bring down my cholesterol and purify my liver. What was amazing when I did my quest was how quickly the liver cures itself without liquor, and cholesterol drops without pills, but in changing your diet. Let's a take a look from a decade ago, with a description for what is considered optimal levels:

Total cholesterol levels less than 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) are considered desirable for adults. A reading between 200 and 239 mg/dL is considered borderline high and a reading of 240 mg/dL and above is considered high.

LDL cholesterol levels should be less than 100 mg/dL. Levels of 100 to 129 mg/dL are acceptable for people with no health issues but may be of more concern for those with heart disease or heart disease risk factors. A reading of 130 to 159 mg/dL is borderline high and 160 to 189 mg/dL is high. A reading of 190 mg/dL or higher is considered very high.

Normal levels of AST and ALT may slightly vary depending on the individual laboratory's reference values. Typically the range for normal AST is reported between 10 to 40 units per liter and ALT between 7 to 56 units per liter. Mild elevations are generally considered to be 2-3 times higher than the normal range.

JANUARY 7, 2009  (probably a regular check-up)

Cholesterol:           268
LDL Cholesterol:   197
AST:                         93
ALT:                         94

OCTOBER 30, 2009 (the day before my vegan quest)
Cholesterol:           300
LDL Cholesterol:   227
AST:                         36
ALT:                         73

DECEMBER 7, 2009 (just five weeks into veganism, and booze free)

Cholesterol:           208 (down 92 points!)
LDL Cholesterol:   150 (borderline high, but trending in right direction)
AST:                         25
ALT:                         30

APRIL 14, 2010

Cholesterol:            170 (living healthy in the optimal zone, and without any drugs)
LDL Cholesterol:    105
AST:                        15
ALT:                        16

OCTOBER 25, 2019 (Why I need to comeback special!)

Cholesterol:            280
LDL Cholesterol:   212
AST:                        30
ALT:                        57