Skip to main content

I'm 45 and Grateful

It might be hokey to count your blessings, but counting your blessings got to be a cliche because it helps make you happy. I just turned 45 and instead of mourning the loss of my youth, I have much to be grateful for.

I have better judgment than I did even a few years ago. Yes, I have more life experience, but mostly I credit hanging around critical-thinking low-carbers who inspired thinking and self-study. Simply remaining alive and calling it experience is like dumping puzzle pieces out of a box without putting them together.

I feel better than I did in my 20s. Carbs weren't a good fuel for me; I was nutritionally deficient as well. On low-carb plus supplements, I reversed a boat load of health problems: weight gain, wonky blood sugar, fatigue, dental problems, GERD, acne, allergies, constant sinus congestion, and others.

I'm better looking than I was at 26. Without wheat or dairy proteins, my acne finally cleared up after over 30 years. And I finally lost my baby fat.

Age 26.
Age 44.
Financial security! I'm grateful to my younger self for all the hard work, good decisions and fiscal restraint. (Friends who lived like the idle rich when they were young and broke--traveling, getting high, following their bliss--ended up middle-aged and broke.) I never took a vacation where I had to stay at a hotel (by myself) until last year--and then I stayed at a YMCA. I've never set foot in a spa. If you look and feel good and have a pleasant home to relax in, why bother?
Labels:

Comments

Galina L. said…
Happy birthday, Lori! You have many reasons to celebrate! How many people look better at 45 than at 20? Not many is a confident guess. Having a facial would be a total waste of money for you! For you it is a harvest time to have fruits of your labor.
Many people my age I know are scared of negative changes in life and health adding up quickly. They observe it as something unavoidable, like the seasonal change of weather.
I am an odd person (from the point of view of the most of them) who follows a ridiculous diet, gives a strange health advice when asked, does some age-inappropriate exercise routines. However, there are some people(a minority) who finally started to follow my odd recommendations out of disrepair and got better.
February 10, 2014
Lori Miller said…
Thanks, Galina! It's usually men (like Michael Anthony Hall) who end up better looking as they get older.

I hope more and more people catch on to the benefits of LCHF.
February 10, 2014
horfilmania said…
Happy Birthday and congratulations on finding low-carb so early in life! Enough to make a difference in how and when you age.
February 10, 2014
Galina L. said…
I wish I found LC at least at 45 years old, I was gaining weight uncontrollably between 45 and 46, ten hours of cardio a week and "healthy"diet din't work at all, and it took me 3 years to loose the gained in one year 26 lb on a LC diet which I started at 46 yo.
February 10, 2014
Lori Miller said…
Thanks, Horf! It would have been nice to discover LC in my 20s, though!
February 10, 2014
Lori Miller said…
My mom didn't start LC until she was 80 and had had diabetes for many years. Better late than never, though.
February 10, 2014
Lowcarb team member said…
Happy Birthday Wishes ...... you were fortunate in finding LC earlier in life than I did, although my health has always been good, but I'm so much happier with my present LCHF lifestyle. The sad fact was that it took Eddie becoming a Type 2 diabetic before we both became so much more aware of how we could live a far healthier lifestyle. It's never too late to improve your health, fitness and outlook on life.

Have a good day

All the best Jan
February 10, 2014
Lori Miller said…
Thanks, Jan! Sometimes a health scare is a blessing in disguise.
February 10, 2014
tess said…
hope your birthday has been great! many happy returns! I believe that counting one's blessings IS enriching, and you seem to have found your "riches" :-)
February 11, 2014
Lori Miller said…
Thanks, Tess!
February 11, 2014
Unknown said…
Forty-five and grateful – That’s good to hear. At this age, it’s really fascinating to reminisce about all the things that happened in our life, even the health problems. Weight gain, wonky blood sugar, fatigue, dental problems, GERD, acne, and more – I guess at one point in everyone’s life, they experienced some, if not all of these things. But everything all of that is in the past, and what matters now is you are in great shape! Anyway, with all your hard work and achievements, you really deserve a vacation, and I hope you’ll get to go on one soon. Enjoy!

George
February 25, 2014
Lori Miller said…
Thanks for the kind words, George. But I'm a homebody and I'd have more fun sprucing up the house.
February 25, 2014
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fermented bread and butter pickle recipe ft. L. Plantarum

After Dr. Davis said the other night that  L. plantarum  may reduce some of the effects of the herbicide glyphosate (which is everywhere), I'm re-running my recipe for fermented bread and butter pickles. Pickling cucumbers naturally have  L. plantarum  bacteria on them, and fermenting them with some brown sugar multiplies these bacteria. (Just don't use chlorinated water to wash them.) And if you're growing your own cucumbers, avoid spraying the fruits with  Bacillus thuringiensis , or Bt (leaves and vines are OK). It's unclear what effect a big dose of Bt would have on humans. Another benefit of DIY pickles: no emulsifiers like polysorbate 80, which is a common ingredient in pickles. If you have GI problems, it could be from emulsifiers. These sweet-and-sour pickles are the tastiest I've ever made. There's just a little added sugar (some of which the bacteria will consume) and turmeric that gives the pickles their bright color.  Special equipment Quar...
Post a Comment
Read more

Collagen-filled Low Carb Burritos

Low-carb, grain-free Mexican food is hard to find, but it's easy to make your own at home. This recipe has an authentic ingredient: carne de lengua, or beef tongue. Don't be put off: beef tongue is tender, delicious, and full of collagen. Look for it directly from farmers in your area. To cook it, cut it in 1" to 1-1/2" slices and pressure cook for one hour. Enjoy the delicious broth as a bonus. Ingredients 1 slice cooked beef tongue, peeled and cut into small cubes 1 egg wrap (I use these  from Egglife) 1/4 cup cooked black or pinto beans Chili pepper Oregano Garlic (powdered or minced) Cumin Guacamole (with no emulsifiers) Salsa Shredded cheddar cheese Sour cream or homemade cream cheese  with no emulsifiers  Put the egg wrap on a plate and put the beef and beans down the middle of it. Sprinkle with the herbs and spices. Wrap, turn over and microwave for 1-2 minutes. Spoon salsa over the burrito and sprinkle with cheese. Add guacamole and sour cream or homemade crea...
Post a Comment
Read more

15% Off Starter Culture

Starter culture for the wonderful cream cheese I made is 15% off for the next two weeks (through June 18, 2025). The shop (BacillusBulgaricus.com) also offers rennet and starter for other cheeses, yogurt, kefir, kombucha, sour cream, fermented vegetables, and more. They ship to 118 countries across six continents. The coupon code is LORI_sekd3tkb at bacillusbulgaricus.com .  Photo from Pexels .
Post a Comment
Read more

Getting Over Palpitations

Note to new readers: please note I'm not a health care provider and have no medical training. If you have heart palpitations, I have no idea whether the following will work for you. Over the past several days, I've had a rough time with heart palpitations and feeling physically jittery. I was wondering if I was going to turn into one of those people who can't sit still. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it would be a major lifestyle change. Kidding aside, something wasn't right and I really needed to get back to normal. I tried popping potassium pills like candy. I ate more. I doubled up on my iron dose. I went to yoga and even got on the treadmill at 6 AM yesterday. I tried the nuclear option of eating more carbs to stop peeing away minerals. Most of these things helped, but the problem kept coming back. A comment from Galina made me look up epinephrine, one of the drugs my surgeon used to anesthetize me Friday. First, the assistant at the surge...
16 comments
Read more

Carrageenan: A Sickening Thickener. Is it a Migraine Menace?

Let me tell you about my ride in an ambulance last night. I woke up at six o'clock from a nap with a mild headache. I ate dinner and took my vitamins, along with a couple of extra magnesium pills. Since magnesium helps my TMJ flare-ups, I thought it might help my headache. Then I went to see my mother. A few hours later, I had a severe headache, sinus pain and nausea. During a brief respite from the pain, I left for home, but less than a mile later, I got out of my car and threw up. A cop, Officer Fisher, pulled up behind me and asked if I was okay. He believed me when he said I hadn't been drinking, but he said I seemed lethargic and he wanted the paramedics to see me. (Later he mentioned that a man he'd recently stopped was having a stroke.) Thinking I had a migraine headache, the paramedics wanted to take me to the hospital. But since I knew that doctors don't know what causes migraine headaches, and I didn't know what effect their medicine would have on m...
15 comments
Read more