<p>I have a firm policy of never spending MORE than 20 minutes on the exercise bike. I would apply the same rule to an elliptical or treadmill. Unless your goal is to train for distance running, it’s probably more effective from a fitness standpoint to get on, go hard, and get off. And, a lot less boring.</p>
<p>One of the hardest workouts in the world, Tabata intervals, only takes 4 minutes:</p>
<p>A variation on this where you go really hard for 15 seconds and rest for 45 seconds would be a great workout combined with an easy warmup and easy cooldown.</p>
<p>Idad, my triglycerides are 76 and HDL is a fine 78. I don’t eat refined carbs much at all (I’m the only non celiac in my family so we just don’t have bread/pasta around, for them or me) and I drink water and skim milk. Occasionally a diet soda. But I eat a lot of fruit, and apparently too much chocolate. I appreciate all the advice, at least I feel better for not enjoying the elliptical!!!</p>
<p>^^ It’s nice when everything feels right. I don’t get that very often anymore.</p>
<p>4.1 for me. Started with H at a slow pace which felt pretty good. He turned at 1.75 and I picked it up a little on my return. 50 and sunny after horrible 40 degree rain yesterday afternoon and all night.</p>
<p>Family exercise today–oldest D and husband are here for the New Year. I went to the gym with them and my younger D for a spinning class. We’re having another holiday celebration and exchanging gifts with them this evening. I will definitely need to exercise some will power not to go overboard with food/wine.</p>
<p>9.1 miles today. First 4.5 were uphill against the santa ana winds, lots of debris swirling around, and lots of dodging branches on the ground. I’m tired.</p>
<p>In class the other day, one of the ladies commented that we only had 5 minutes left. We have a fairly loose time schedule, but tend to be done by 10:30 so this was 10:25. So I told them… well that means we’ve got time for another Tabata circuit! </p>
<p>Those are excellent. I wouldn’t worry about the LDL or total cholesterol numbers based on those. I wouldn’t be surprised if your fasting blood sugar test was an anomaly and that it is back to normal next time. Those HDL and triglycerides, and your diet, do not indicate insulin resistance, which makes “pre-diabetes” unlikely.</p>
<p>I am lurking away on this forum just to admire the work ethic here of intense workouts.</p>
<p>Nice find, abasket! You are a deal shark.</p>
<p>I am enjoying my new Withings body scale, and just got my HS-CRP result back from doctor … I would say the healthy eating is paying off … My result suggests I’ve moved towards an ultra health state based on inflammation markers, but my body fat is still > 22% (female). More work to go in January, so am looking forward to several nights and weekends of long Nordic ski treks to burn off a bit more.</p>
<p>Four years. Awesome! I don’t know about everyone else, but there have been many days when reading something on this thread gave me a little motivation to get up and exercise when I might otherwise have found an excuse not to.</p>
<p>I think the most interesting part of the journey for me has been transitioning from the excitement of significant fat loss to finding ways to make exercise a sustainable part of my lifestyle. That has meant less intensity and looking for more variety to keep it interesting. It helps that I’ve been lucky enough to avoid any kind of significant injury. A couple of rolled ankles/face plants and nursing a pulled calf muscle for a couple of weeks has been about the worst of it.</p>
<p>" I don’t know about everyone else, but there have been many days when reading something on this thread gave me a little motivation to get up and exercise when I might otherwise have found an excuse not to."</p>
<p>:) Ditto. Without you, my friends, I would have never attempted a marathon. Thank you all for motivating me to drag my rear end out of the nice comfy chair when it was totally unmotivated! Congrats to Sabaray for starting the thread, and congrats to all regulars and lurkers! Yeah, missing BC, too. </p>
<p>If LDL is calculated as TC - HDL - Triglycerides/5, then LDL is 249 - 78 - 15 = 156. This is commonly considered “borderline high”.</p>
<p>You may want to check your past measurements to see if there is any trend going on. Also note if there are any trends with the important ratios: TC/HDL, Triglycerides/HDL, LDL/HDL.</p>
<p>The fasting blood glucose > 100 may be more worrisome; you may want to check if there is a trend going on there as well. Note that diabetes is considered a high risk factor for heart disease and many other problems.</p>
<p>If you notice any trends, you may want to see if they correlate to changes in diet and exercise habits. Note that “exercise” includes daily activity – for example, did you change from a job where your commute involved walking to/from a subway station to one where you drove door to door?</p>
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