At this point in time, I’m probably the healthiest I have ever been in recent years. This wasn’t always the case.
To the best of my memory, it was around 2017 when I got my first health scare.
The company that I was with gave us a complimentary health screening session, and the results came back with a little surprise – not quite the kind I was expecting.
All along, I tend to do OK in fitness tests e.g. IPPT and genetically, I don’t really gain much weight that easily at all.
I was expecting to coast along just fine, except that wasn’t the case.
Sky-high cholesterol
For reference, these were my 2017 results versus the so-called desired levels in brackets.
- Total Cholesterol 7.15 (<5.2 MMOL/L)
- HDL 1.61 (>1.0 MMOL/L)
- LDL 4.92 (<3.3 MMOL/L)
- Triglycerides 1.36 (<1.7 MMOL/L)
- Total Cholesterol / HDL → Ratio 4.44 (<4.4)
I suppose it was a timely wake-up call to start focusing a little more on my health.
Coupled with the fact that my dad has medical history (minor stroke) that is of the cardiovascular nature, it is possible that I’m genetically more inclined to have the same medical issues as I get older.
In my older blog posts (here and here), I have written on how I was on statins for a really short time.
Not wanting to rely on “western” medication, I turned to a combination of diet, physical activity, health supplements and health tracking instead, and it has turned out to be a suitable alternative for me.
For the record, I haven’t touched any statins for the past 5 years.
In my most recent blood test, results were great with all metrics within the “desirable” range.
- Total Cholesterol 4.42 ( ↓38% )
- HDL 1.57 ( ↓2% )
- LDL 2.32 ( ↓53% )
- Triglycerides 1.16 ( ↓15% )
- Total Cholesterol / HDL → Ratio 2.82 ( ↓37% )
I’m well aware that cholesterol is a multi-billion dollar industry that is well, susceptible to efforts to push certain narratives.
In a neutral take, cholesterol is produced by the liver. Cholesterol is a waxy substance that is produced by the liver and is essential for the body’s normal functioning. It is used to build cells, produce hormones, and produce bile acids that help with digestion.
Well, in comparison to pushing traditional measurements of what is desirable or not, another option is to measure triglyceride to HDL cholesterol ratio instead.
The triglyceride to HDL cholesterol ratio is often used as a measure of cardiovascular risk along with total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels. Triglycerides are a type of fat found in the bloodstream, and high levels of triglycerides can be a risk factor for heart disease.
This ratio is usually not shown on blood test results, again desired levels in brackets.
- 2017 : Triglycerides / HDL → Ratio 0.84 (<0.87)
- 2023 : Triglycerides / HDL → Ratio 0.74 ( ↓15% )
If I were to use this metric, my cholesterol status would have been stellar for the past 6 years!
Would triglyceride/HDL ratio to be one of the better predictors of heart disease? Feel free to read up more and establish your own take on this.
As for me, I’m happy that the overall status of my cholesterol levels and would continue what I’m doing to keep it that way.
Interestingly, I know more than a few people who have the same issue (cholesterol) as me and the general trend is that we can’t normally tell from the surface.
Even more mind-blowing is that my wife practically eats the same things as me and is the terminator of seafood and yet, she has GOLD-standard cholesterol readings (that’s what the doctor literally said) that are even better than mine.
Us humans? We aren’t all built the same way. Some of us have to work a little harder.
Getting into shape
I’m extraordinarily average.
Neither tall nor short. Very normal at around 1.7 metres in height.
Some time last year, I supposed I have gotten complacent and allowed my weight to make gains at the same rate that the markets have declined.
It was the jolt I needed to act.
Once again, there is no magic solution here.
The same old things and advice did the trick –
- Watch what / when I eat : I took care of the low hanging fruits
- Less carbo, sugar.
- Less supper.
- Meal prep
- Helps that I can make a decent meal in the first place, so this wasn’t difficult.
- Sleep quality
- Enough rest at night to trigger deep sleep for the body to rejuvenate.
- Physical activity / Exercise
- The holy grail. Ultimately, it is just maths and calories. Burn > Eat.
- Habit / Health tracking
- Gamification helps with the process a lot.
Nah, there is no crazy weight loss in a month sort of thing.
In between the 5-kg loss, I even managed to survive an incredible amount of feasting!
- 8 days in Bali
- 9 days in Thailand
- 5 days in Malaysia / Kuala Lumpur
- 3 days on Genting Cruise
- Birthday
- Wedding anniversary
- Christmas
- Lunar New Year
5-kg over half a year is a pretty gentle progress and nothing the body couldn’t adapt to.
Keeping fit is about making small steps that add up.
Meal prepping
As far as cooking goes, I have gotten more into meal-prepping in recent months.
But we aren’t really that crazy about it, you know?
Maybe meal-prep once every week or two, and each time we do it, we make around 6 portions which is good for 3 meals for us.
Meal prepping is an amazing life-hack:
- Eating clean and nutritious food for health : no excessive oil, salt, high cholesterol food
- Cooking only what we like to eat : delicious! zero food waste
- Being money savvy : very light on the wallet, easily $6 per meal (serves two)
- Time saved and very efficient : cook once, eat three times
Given the benefits, I would suggest you give it a try some day. You might just enjoy it as much as we did.
Up the physical activity
My wife and I both started walking a lot more in the past few months.
Of course, the on-going National Steps Challenge was a great bonus (haha) coupled with Stepn (even with the crash) contributed more than a few bucks to our grocery runs which we’d do after finishing our walks.
Besides, with a view like that, what’s not to like?
Walking is a simple, low impact activity that is great for most people.
Adding it to our routine effectively ups our physical activity in addition to what we were already doing.
Can’t muster the energy and motivation to workout? Just walk it off!
Gamification via tracking
As you can see from what I wrote above, I probably spent like 30 days out the half-year when I was perpetually on feasting mode.
There are gonna be days when we stray off the path, but it’s OK.
We just gonna make sure that we keep the momentum going and kick-start the process again ASAP when that happens.
For me, I find the idea of gamification very helpful for me for nurturing habits like working out or drinking water.
In my experience, I find that a combination of habit trackers and health trackers worked pretty well.
I can access the Notion templates that I made via the mobile app which makes input rather effortless – simply check off the items when I’m done for the day.
Using basic checkboxes to represent an activity e.g. palm for push-ups, hanger for dead-hang, person for walking etc, I checked each item when I’m done for the day.
When I see the column of checkboxes lined up, the OCD in me would try rather hard to make sure it stays that way.
Tracking health
Likewise, I have been using a custom-built Health Tracker to stay on top of my medical status over time – because it is always difficult to access medical history when .. we don’t even have them?!
I have a little hub that I use to track my basic health metrics e.g. weight, blood pressure, pulse over time plus complimentary notes on general status mood and sleep. Especially with wearable technology these days, it is easier to obtain some form of these information.
On top of it, I also write down note-worthy information (date, issues rectified, costs incurred) from my regular visits to my dentist and optometrist.
Tracking past visits to GPs or the polyclinic were helpful for me as I had allergic rhinitis. Side-story: After getting Covid last year, somehow I decided it was a good idea to take myself off the nasal spray that I was using and miraculously, I survived and am generally doing fine on most days. On days when my nose feels stuffy, I would pop a Zyrtec to keep it down.
For medical checkups and blood tests (I do one annually for cholesterol etc), I would also store the relevant information for easy access with attached images for clarity.
For upcoming medical appointments, they usually go into Google Calendar but I have it here too for cross-referencing.
Notion templates like these are examples of what thousands of people are sharing with others.
Well, mine was originally made for my personal use – I simply made some basic edits so that it can now serve as a reference point for others.
People tend to misunderstand the strength of Notion – its customizability to fit anyone’s needs is its true super power. And that means taking inspiration from others to make the perfect product for ourselves.
If you’re curious to learn more, simply follow the instructions in the tweet below (click on it) to get Health Assistant for FREE.
If personal finance is more of your cup of tea, I have also built a free starter pack of 6 templates to help you get started with building your own.
In case you’re wondering, I have plenty more freebies to give out in future to you (and all readers of my blog).
This includes Finance Navigator – a zero-based budgeting solution built using Notion which I’m currently testing out with early-access users.
You can think of it as a minimalistic version of You Need A Budget (YNAB) that costs $0.
You know how people always complain about how expensive YNAB is?
I thought .. what if I build a simple and functional version of it, then hand it out for free! That’ll be epic haha.
So there you have it!
Either (1) subscribe to my blog or (2) follow my Twitter account for Notion content : that’s how the free downloads are going to be given out in future
Chat again soon.
Till then, have a nice weekend!
If you have made it this far into this post and found it helpful or informative, consider subscribing to be effortlessly notified of new content and resources such as free downloadables that I’m creating →
Connect with me via Facebook | Twitter | Telegram | Discord | RSS Feed | Linktree
Hitting the Like and Share button (floating at the bottom-right corner) will help my content to reach out to more people who would benefit from it!
Free downloadables for you
As a thank-you gesture for reading and being part of the Turtle Investor family, I created Free Downloadables exclusively for you so do check them out!
If you have found them useful, please help me out by giving them a 5-star rating – I’d really appreciate it!
Did I mention I have a brand new shop? Basically an upgraded version of my dedicated referral links & codes page and some are exclusive offers. In my virtual store, I penned down my thoughts and listed some awesome products and services that I’m already paying for that helped to supercharge my financial journey. Check it out – it might have something you want!
Hello! I’m Kevin, Turtle Investor
At the age of 30, I am the Personal Finance Blogger who laid claim to a negative net worth of minus $25,755 – and decided to turn things around.
- Seven years later in 2019, I hit CPF Full Retirement Sum (FRS) of $176,000 without making a single cent of CPF top-up
- In nine years, I have added more than $1 million to my net worth
- In total, I have earned more than six-figures in alternative income in addition to my job
My blueprint for financial independence can help give you a head start in your own FIRE – Financial Independence, Retire Early (optional) – journey. More tidbits about myself here if you’re curious.
I am married to a lovely wife and that means dual income with no kids. In my free time, I chase miles so that we can fly in business class. My hobbies include making pocket change off this blog and sharing everything I know with you!
Leave a Reply