Happy Birthday, Dad!

I'm wishing my dad a very happy 79th birthday today!  I am very blessed to have both of my parents living about 5 miles straight down the road from me (they moved to West Michigan from Chicago when my dad retired almost 17 years ago).   My dad is probably the youngest 79 year old you'll ever meet, with the energy and enthusiasm that rivals someone a generation (or two) younger than he.

One thing that keeps my dad so youthful is that he is a life-long learner.  Over the years, I've watched him grow and change, and that continues to this day.  As my dad watched me lose weight, he started asking questions about how the plan worked.  Because my mom has been diabetic for a long time and struggled to maintain stable glucose levels, my dad was particularly happy that my own glucose levels quickly went down and stayed down (and are still normal!).  Right around the time I reached my goal (almost 19 months ago), my dad called me and told me that both he and my mom and decided to go on Take Shape for Life/Medifast.  He has carried around a bit of extra weight for most of his adult life - not terrible, but he wasn't in a healthy BMI range, either.  My mom has struggled with her weight for much of her adult life, at least since her early/mid 30's, and her excess weight was certainly a contributing factor to her own diabetes.

I knew that my dad was primarily starting the program as a way of encouraging and supporting my mom, but he went into it with commitment and enthusiasm.  My dad never does anything half-heartedly, and that was certainly true of 5&1.  He stayed on plan and really encouraged my mom, too, and within a couple of months he reached his goal.  Amazingly, he now weighs less than he did when my parents got married over 58 years ago!  He was able to reduce both his blood pressure and his cholesterol medication, which pleased him and impressed his physician.  Because of my dad's decision to go on plan, my mom ended up losing 40 pounds herself and is now off of her day-time insulin (she was previously taking 4-7 units of insulin after every meal) and only needs a bit of insulin during the day when she gets into sweets or eats too many carbs.  Two years ago, my dad was concerned that my mom would soon be in a wheelchair, but because he led the way in getting them on Take Shape for Life/Medifast, my mom is in better health today at 80 than she was two or three years ago.

For my dad, this hasn't been a diet - it's become a new way of life.  Even though he reached his goal over a year ago, he continues to eat 5-6 small meals a day and is maintaining his weight loss.  I do have to confess that while he dutifully ate Medifast oatmeal while he was on 5&1, that was the first thing he replaced when he reach week 4 of Transition and was able to reintroduce whole grains, and I don't think he's had any since :-).

My dad reads my blog every day and is always sending me ideas for future blogs - things he's read in the newspaper, an article he found on line, or something from his morning devotional reading.  Next to my husband, my dad is my biggest cheerleader (my mom is right there, too!). I am so blessed!

My dad is living proof that it's never too late to make healthy changes in your life.  It always comes down to what we really want, and the choices we're willing to make to achieve our goal. 

What choices are you going to make today?  I hope you choose wisely :-)

Happy birthday, Dad!