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HEALTH ISSUES, WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ADDRESS, DOCS YOU WOULD RECOMMEND

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Years ago I use to bust my wife's chops because she couldn't read smaller print and would ask me to read it for her.  Past few years my vision has gotten worse and I now need reading glasses and nee to call one of my kids to read small print to me.  Karmas a bitch.

I've also developed gout (didn't know what it was initially) and could stand to lose 20-30 pounds as I sit behind a desk 8-10 hours a day in addition to about 3 hour round trip commute  on train.

Thought I would start a thread for members to share what health problems they've faced, what they've done to address, what doctors they would or would not recommend and if they were happy or regret doing what they did.

All too often I think men don't like talking or discussing subjects such as this.  Whether it be addressing our own mortality, concerns of being made fun / light of or an issue with our male pride that we aren't as healthy / good as we once were.  So I thought by sharing some of our experiences in a somewhat anonymous manner perhaps we could help one another gain insight to what has worked and who has helped you with health issues.

My gout, obviously eating healtier and excercing would help.  I also take a prescription  (anti-inflammatory) when have bad flare ups.  For my vision I went to an eye doctor for first time in well over 30 years.  Got reading glasses.  Have considered lasik surgery as vision has gotten a little worse.  Has anyone had lasik done?  Are you happy with results, who did you use and would you rcommend them or do again if had to.  Are you happy with results?

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I learned from my Dad's poor health due to poor diet, lack of exercise, and smoking/vaping. I have keep my self in good enough shape because I don't want to end up like him. I eat pretty healthy and do enough physical activities that I don't really workout. Im still am the same size waist as i was when i graduated highschool.

Eyes are still good so far, however my wife had LASIK and loves it best money she ever spent. 

My hearing sucks and I'm going to need hearing aids sooner than later due to an ear drum injury and loud things. 

My biggest problem dealing with the repercussions of 28 broken bones, two herniated discs, a fused vertebrate and a blown-out knee. Lately I've been severely cutting back on my ibuprofen intake and been concentrating more on physical therapy and biofeedback. 

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Regarding gout, I've been a gout victim for over 35 years. I always attributed it to quasi-genetics because most of my father's side of the family had it and none of us are/were grossly overweight or had particularly bad diets. For years I took allopurinol to reduce blood uric acid and indomethacin when I had a flare up. After years of on-again off-again attacks, I decided to try to tackle the issue head on. I reduced my intake of "rich foods" and drastically reduced my beer intake. I was never a heavy drinker, but I did enjoy a beer (or 2) after digging in the garden after work.

I always got my worst attacks in the summer when I was more likely to become dehydrated, thus concentrating the uric acid. Also, my beer intake was higher in the summer.

When I started to force myself to drink more water and added a tablespoon of "tart cherry juice" to each 12 oz glass of water, my gout episodes stopped. The cherry juice helps your body excrete uric acid.

I've had so much success with this that I long ago stopped taking the allopurinol and never need the indomethacin anymore.

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Well, I'm no expert by far and I'm not giving advice, especially about specific things. What I'd like to add is that there are no quick and easy answers. I know, captain obvious. 

But the attitude that helped me is what I call "the hour hand" philosophy. You really can't see an hour hand move, but when you notice it again it has. A bunch of little tiny actions add up to real gains. Forget the "take the stairs" crowd. I'm talking even smaller. I started with one simple commitment. Whenever I got on the phone I stood up. I walked around as I was on the phone. You'd be surprised how much of a difference it makes. Try it. I live on my cell. If you have a desk phone, pry open the wallet and buy a blue tooth adapter for it. They cost less than a a bottle of good scotch. I lost about 15 pounds in three months. Which presented me with a problem. Sometimes I had to write while on the phone. So I had an old computer desk thing and put it up on 10" blocks. Cost me $8. Now when I needed to do work while on the phone I had a place to write. Which morphed eventually into a stand up desk a year later and a specialized tread mill for it within a year after that. Changed my life. I firmly believe that sitting down will be the smoking of the future. I think it kills you faster. Sure as shit makes you grumpy. I'll post a pic of my rig. I've moved my computer to the desk and converted to a stand up lifestyle. One of my coworkers has gout also  he is starting to walk more  I get the pain he feels  but after the first two weeks it was less until he doesn't have the debilitating flare ups anymore.

One other thing that helped me.  And this isn't as easy as it seems.  I only eat half of what I get put in front of me.  Yup.  Especially in restaurants. Face it man, you're full after the appetizer.  Believe it or not the toughest part was the waiters and peers.  "Didn't you like it?" "What's wrong?" We are children of a time where most of us really didn't have the options we have now. Our mothers slaved over a stove to make what they could and you had better not waste any. Clean your plate. It's ingrained.  Break that brainwashing and watch the difference in your health. Eat what you want, just half as much.  I ended up losing almost 80 pounds over almost 5 years.  

Here's my work rig:

 

IMG_2276.JPG

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^ I never thought of that, I don't have a desk job but for some reason whenever I'm on  the phone I pace. I've always done it and I don't know why but I always do it. Now that it's warm outside whenever I'm on the phone I'm usually outside walking around my property. I guess that helps contribute to me being in decent shape. Great idea for people with desk jobs. 

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I eat very cleanly.  There is no substitute for a good diet even if you don't work out. There's an old saying, "abs are made in the kitchen."

I have a long commute to NYC by car everyday but go to crossfit 5 days per week. I used to just go to the gym and lift, got way to bulky and started to get a lot of orthopedic injuries. I'm not advocating you go do crossfit, I'm not one of those religious zealots, but I recommend you first get your diet right by writing down everything, everything I mean it, you put in your mouth for a week. You'll be stunned at what you see.  

Start an exercise program that will do some strength and some conditioning.  Stretching is important too.  If you want to be able to move as you get older then you need to be moving now.   

Lastly, before you say you don't have time, is make time to do it or accept the results of not finding it. 

 

One thing I forgot, the ultimate killer of your testosterone production is belly fat and age. One we have control of one we don't.  Eat well and maintain a good weight and those levels will surprise you in how much you can recover them. 

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Great points. I had forgotten to mention the writing down of everything you eat thing. I had a nutritionist that wanted me to email every little thing. After a day you avoid stuff just to not have to write it down. It surprises you how much you actually eat. Almost unconsciously. When you pay attention you'll be amazed. 

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I'm just going to chime in on my experience, take it for what it's worth.

March 20 I was 274lbs.  This morning I'm 257.   I'd like to get down to 220.    Maybe by the end of the summer?.

Here's what I did.

First, my wife wanted a Fitbit and asked me if I wanted one...shrug.  Ok.   So we started wearing them.  Flex 2 by the way.

What it did was to make me aware of when I wasn't at least moving around a bit.   The next thing was to encourage me to do 10,000 steps a day.

The next thing that happened was a friend who had moved to North Carolina showed up and had lost 40lbs.  I asked him how?   "Stopped eating lunch".

I figured I could do that...so I would eat something, 300 calories or less for breakfast then eat a decent dinner...not really watching what I eat...just don't stuff myself.  I did that for a few weeks and immediately dropped 5-7 lbs.

Then I started walking a mile at lunch and when I get home my wife and I walk 1.5-2 miles.

I'm doing 13k-15k steps a day now.

I also bought the Fitbit Aria scale and it tracks your weight for you.

My calorie goal is 500 or less before dinner then I can eat whatever I want for dinner.   No snacking, no sugar/candy/whatever.

I've noticed i'm filling up faster and am not eating as much.  I go up or down a lb or two every day but it's continuing to trend down. 

I"m almost 50, so it's not like I have the metabolism I did 30 years ago....this is definitely working for me.  

Good luck.

 

 

 

 

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On 5/8/2017 at 2:03 PM, Walt of Destiny said:

Great points. I had forgotten to mention the writing down of everything you eat thing. I had a nutritionist that wanted me to email every little thing. After a day you avoid stuff just to not have to write it down. It surprises you how much you actually eat. Almost unconsciously. When you pay attention you'll be amazed. 

I recently turned 64, am in reasonably good shape and health for my age. However had terrible eating habits (candy, sweets, over eat, fatty foods,  late night bowls of cereal, etc). Have been concerned for quite a while about what trajectory my health will take as I get older if I continue on that path. Have been 185-195 over the last 10 years.   So 2 months ago I re-joined Weight Watchers.  Key to WW is the tracking of everything you eat and the food points you consume.  Helps you make better food choices and portion control.  

Early March was 195 lbs, as of this week, am down to 177. My goal is 175 which represents a loss of 10%. Waist size, which had grown to 36, is now 33/34. Blood pressure down 10 points.   I will say I believe I have a screaming high metabolism rate, so weight comes off easily.  The challenge will now be to stay disciplined and not fall back into my old habits. I never worked out but am now planning to exercise more. Baby steps.

 

Btw, the May 7th GunForHire podcast was devoted to the importance of physical fitness. 

Also, have any of you noticed the transformation that Tex Grubner Outdoors on Youtube has gone thru? He was the overweight guy who shot himself in the leg while practicing. A total joke of a gun owner.  Not any more. I can't speak to the quality of his channel, but kudos to him for his amazing change. 

 

 

 

 

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I'm having RA because of my diet which was red wine and red meat every single night as well as because of poor exercising and general bad diet... started to have bad cholesterol levels as welll. now I'm changing it, but only now I realized how much of a mistake i've done until now.. which puts me in a situation that i need to search for https://onlinepharmacyreviews.org

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13 hours ago, Zeke said:

I'm oddly surprised At Fitbit's stock

What do you mean?   The fact that it's down 80%?  I was looking to get one after an ad on tv yesterday.  Then I did some reading on their forum and it seems it's just ok.  I think it's more functional than my Nike 2 Apple Watch though. 

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62 years old, Hurt on the job @54.  Needed back surgery, fusion with rods and screws, Failed! Then had bloodclots both lungs, 2 heart attacks. Had to put in a spinal cord implant. Worked about 50% but would not charge. DR. had inserted it wrong! Had to go thru the back surgery again! Finally working now. Get about 50% pain relief. They were giving me opoids by the 100s.  Still have lots of pain. Stay away from back surgery! Needless to say I cannot work anymore!

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7 hours ago, 1563621 said:

62 years old, Hurt on the job @54.  Needed back surgery, fusion with rods and screws, Failed! Then had bloodclots both lungs, 2 heart attacks. Had to put in a spinal cord implant. Worked about 50% but would not charge. DR. had inserted it wrong! Had to go thru the back surgery again! Finally working now. Get about 50% pain relief. They were giving me opoids by the 100s.  Still have lots of pain. Stay away from back surgery! Needless to say I cannot work anymore!

Wow, that's a lot of shit to go through.  

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11 hours ago, 1563621 said:

62 years old, Hurt on the job @54.  Needed back surgery, fusion with rods and screws, Failed! Then had bloodclots both lungs, 2 heart attacks. Had to put in a spinal cord implant. Worked about 50% but would not charge. DR. had inserted it wrong! Had to go thru the back surgery again! Finally working now. Get about 50% pain relief. They were giving me opoids by the 100s.  Still have lots of pain. Stay away from back surgery! Needless to say I cannot work anymore!

Stay away from bad surgeons not back surgery! My back surgery gave me so much relief I wish I could use had the surgery sooner. But I had one of the best  lower back surgeons in the country. 

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Lots to talk about lol but I"ll stick to one issue. If you work outside use sunscreen protection! I  was mostly outside for 35 yrs and contrary to youthful exuberence we are not invincible. I thought I was but have recently, past 5 yrs or so, been routinely cut up, sliced,burned, frozen.....currently have a dozen stitches in my neck, again...melanoma, basil/ squamus cell, AK,  have and had all. All on neck and face. Fortunatly I never worked with my shirt off so not by design I'm good there. Keep some sunscreen in your truck, car even your toolbox lol, and use it. It can take many yrs for skin cancer to develop, that peeling burn you got last July can come back to haunt you 10-30 yrs later. Next, blood pressure. Watch and maintain, get meds if needed, they changed my life no more chronic headaches. Thats all for today.

 

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13 hours ago, fishnut said:

Stay away from bad surgeons not back surgery! My back surgery gave me so much relief I wish I could use had the surgery sooner. But I had one of the best  lower back surgeons in the country. 

I thought I was in good rothman hands!

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36 minutes ago, 1563621 said:

I thought I was in good rothman hands!

Lol  I hear you. I lucked out, I was injured at work so the workman's comp gave me a choice of 3 Dr's. I chose the one in Princeton  (I followed the money) and  completely lucked out. Can't say enough good things about Dr. David Lamb of the Princeton neck and back Institute. To top it all off he's pro-2a also. 

Good luck I wish you the best I unfortunately have a small idea what you're going through.

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On 5/15/2017 at 6:21 AM, 1563621 said:

62 years old, Hurt on the job @54.  Needed back surgery, fusion with rods and screws, Failed! Then had bloodclots both lungs, 2 heart attacks. Had to put in a spinal cord implant. Worked about 50% but would not charge. DR. had inserted it wrong! Had to go thru the back surgery again! Finally working now. Get about 50% pain relief. They were giving me opoids by the 100s.  Still have lots of pain. Stay away from back surgery! Needless to say I cannot work anymore!

WOW....I cant imagine what you have gone thru since I run a loaner dept for Spinal. I see these pieces on a daily basis. 

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19 minutes ago, CageFighter said:

WOW....I cant imagine what you have gone thru since I run a Loaner dept for Spinal. 

What does that mean?  Loaner Dept for Spinal?

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1 hour ago, Rob0115 said:

What does that mean?  Loaner Dept for Spinal?

I work with the surgery kits for spinal surgeries for a top medical device company. Meaning if ur having back surgery, ur most likely using our products. We handle all ur implants, rods, screws, drill bits, etc.   :p

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10 minutes ago, CageFighter said:

I work with the surgery kits for spinal surgeries for a top medical device company. Meaning if ur having back surgery, ur most likely using our products. We handle all ur implants, rods, screws, drill bits, etc.   :p

Oh wow, that's cool  What type of implants go into the spine?  I hope you wash those hands after range trips!

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On 5/15/2017 at 5:37 AM, Rob0115 said:

What do you mean?   The fact that it's down 80%?  I was looking to get one after an ad on tv yesterday.  Then I did some reading on their forum and it seems it's just ok.  I think it's more functional than my Nike 2 Apple Watch though. 

Everybody I know has one.

i know the have a lawsuit pending for hr accuracy. But since ipo, no bueno.

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13 hours ago, siderman said:

Lots to talk about lol but I"ll stick to one issue. If you work outside use sunscreen protection! I  was mostly outside for 35 yrs and contrary to youthful exuberence we are not invincible. I thought I was but have recently, past 5 yrs or so, been routinely cut up, sliced,burned, frozen.....currently have a dozen stitches in my neck, again...melanoma, basil/ squamus cell, AK,  have and had all. All on neck and face. Fortunatly I never worked with my shirt off so not by design I'm good there. Keep some sunscreen in your truck, car even your toolbox lol, and use it. It can take many yrs for skin cancer to develop, that peeling burn you got last July can come back to haunt you 10-30 yrs later. Next, blood pressure. Watch and maintain, get meds if needed, they changed my life no more chronic headaches. Thats all for today.

 

Spray on sunscreen. Best invention for those of us that jus do this shit, and rarely a hot chick or Tex to " rub in the lotion "

jus sayen 

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