Is salt really my friend?

I slid my arm into the cuff, the blood pressure cuff at the drugstore. My son took his and wanted me to take mine. I pressed start and it squeezed off the blood flow then slowly released. My son was delighted with the numbers. "Look at how high they are mom." I frowned. Yes, they were high, too high. Something has to be done.

It took me a few months to decide how to address this. According to WebMd, I wasn't in the danger zone yet but I was approaching. My dad just had another surgery to place yet another stent. It's genetic, he told me and then advised me to get an MRI just to make sure I didn't need a stent. 'What if it's not genetic," I thought. My dad lived high on the hog for many years. I even learned  how to make him a gin and tonic when I was a kid. He drank a lot, smoked even more, and ate rich food for most of his life. And, that behavior really took a toll on his health. I took stock of my life, my son, my husband and I decided that I needed to drop some pounds and make some major changes before it was too late.

I decided to give 6 Week Body Makeover a try. They offer a money back guarantee and I thought what the hell. I can do this for six weeks. If I'm still overweight with high blood pressure, I can try something else. I still have time.

I knew going into the diet plan that after it's over, I can't just go back to eating salt, sugar, and butter slathered on my bacon. What I'm searching for is a healthy way of eating that I can deal with for the rest of my life. In the process of following this eating plan, my taste buds are supposed to be getting used to eating without added salt, oil, butter, or sugar. Those are my four favorite food groups, along with bacon. I've always been a salt fiend. I stopped using Morton's years ago and only used sea salt. You know, the one with all the minerals and it's supposed to be better for you than table salt. But if you use too much, like anything, then it's not good for you.

So far, I haven't been hungry (a big fear of mine which makes me reach for the Cheez Its) and I've actually lost 12 pounds and shed inches from my body. And, today, for the first time, my unseasoned food (actually, I loaded it with ground pepper, fresh thyme, garlic, and hot peppers which are all ok to eat) actually tasted pretty good. I was surprised because just last night I was whining about how I couldn't eat salt or soy sauce. Do you know how hard it is for a girl with Japanese blood NOT to eat soy sauce. I grew up seasoning everything with soy sauce. I used to drink shots of soy sauce.

I'm hoping that after I've reached a healthy weight for my age and size that I can add back in just a few of my favorites, like soy sauce and salt. Maybe a dash instead of a steady pour. And, perhaps I can drink a glass of wine once a week. I just have to wait and see. But I need to do this for myself and my family. I want to be active and healthy and my bacon on bacon lifestyle just won't do anymore.