Free at Last, Free at Last

So now begins the 12 week liquid diet part of the Weight Loss Study where I am the Lab Rat. I've been on the HMR800 now for 24 hours and I'm euphoric. I actually feel released from the burden of food. Noticeable physical changes immediately, I can breathe easier and an almost constant headache/headfog has lifted. It's like when there's a radio playing annoying music in the background and you don't really notice it until someone turns it off.

Oh, never volunteer for a muscle tissue biopsy. Yikes!

How much do I weigh? I'm about 100lbs. overweight.

This is about the 4th time I've had to lose this much. I'm never maintaining a weight, always gaining or losing. Diet over, weight lost, return to double cheese burgers and fries. Either on or off. I exercise the same way. Every summer I'd schedule a week long bike trip for July and start riding my bike in May 5, 10, 15, 20 miles a day working up to the week where I'd ride 50-70 miles a day on Michigander over Michigan's vast rail-trail network. For one week, I'm strong, Xena Warrior Princess strong. Then, vacation over, bike gets put away. I do walk the dogs 2 miles a day year round, but that's hardly exercise when you're used to 10-20 miles a day on a bike.

So they did a body scan. My "before picture". Amazing. Shows the Body Composition of tissue, fat, lean, bone. I've got really dense bones, which is what I've always said, "I'm big boned."

Committed

Just call me guinea pig.

Last week I signed up to participate in a two year weight loss study through U of M's Endocrinology and Diabetes Labs.

This week is a series of baseline tests. Today I found myself with Heidi and Christine in a Lab in Ann Arbor, Michigan, running on a treadmill, wearing a mouth apparatus that measured my expulsion of CO2 as they slowly increased the incline and intensity of my workout. They offered to take a picture. I declined, I almost regret that, but, really, no one wants to see a picture of me sweating and sucking on what looks like an Electrolux strapped to my head.

Just prior to this test I had been relaxing for an hour in a darkened room, all comfy and snuggled on my gurney in order that they get a resting metabolic level of whatever they're measuring, blood pressure, heart rate, CO2. Half of the hour I had on a plastic bubble helmet with more hoses capturing my every breath. I was told not to fall asleep.