Cholesterol & Weight

Question
Hello,

I was wondering what the main things are that I should do to improve my cholesterol and reduce my weight.  I'm a 38 year old male, I weigh about 220, I'm 6'0", and my cholesterol is 258.  I do not currently work out but I do play tennis two to three times per week.  My eating habits aren't that great nor that horrible.  I drink some beer on the weekends.  

Thanks for your help,
Landon

Answer
Landon,

Our cholesterol levels are determined mainly by our genetics (about 85-95%) and to a lesser degree by what we eat (about 5-15%).  

Saturated fat (animal fat) and trans-fatty acids (margarine, baked goods & fried foods) will increase your total cholesterol and LDL (trans-fats will also decrease your "good cholesterol" or HDL).

Exercise and weight loss can increase your HDL.

Simple carbohydrates (sugar, processed grains, candy, cookies, cakes, soda pop, fruit juice & alcohol), physical inactivity and weight gain can increase your triglycerides.

Therefore, if you wish to decrease your total cholesterol of 258, you may want to decrease the amount of animal fat and trans-fats you eat.

Follow this link to find your optimal lipid levels:
http://home.comcast.net/~lipid-clinic/levels.html

For more on diet and cholesterol, go here:
http://home.comcast.net/~lipid-clinic/diet.html

When it comes to weight loss the answer is simple: eat less calories, exercise more.  Easier said than done for most people.  It seems that most people just cannot eat less.  But, if you can eat fewer calories, and you can get your exercise routine up to "most or all days of the week", then you have a great chance of success.  

It takes 3500 calories to make a pound of fat.  If you decrease your caloric intake by 230 calories a day (about 1 1/2 soda pops or beers or 2 cookies) then you would lose 2 pounds a month.  In one year you could be 24 pounds lighter.  This assumes your weight is stable; you are not currently gaining weight, even slowly.

As you know, there are many, many books on how to lose weight, so I cannot address all topics and questions here.

Best of luck.

Todd
www.lipid-clinic.com

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