February 4 - The First Walk
4th February 2019
And so, the journey begins. Well, it really started last Sunday, when Blue, about 40 of his canine friends, me and a dozen or so other HSSC volunteer dog walkers, strolled along 4 miles of snowy trails in a Twinsburg township park. Blue did better than me, judging by how my legs felt the next morning, but it was good to kick off our transformation with all our friends in such a beautiful place.
Which sort of begs the question: If Blue and I are on a journey, where are we going? Glad you asked.
As many of you know already, I'm sure, change is hard, even if you're excited about where it will take you. Setbacks, roadblocks, excuses. they all stand ready to allow you to ease yourself back onto the couch, even if you're a dog. Transformation 101 tells us to fight this by, first, knowing where you are and where you want to go, then making a plan to travel from here to there.
In the world of healthy living, there's a concept called, "baselining". (If you're in healthcare, you know about this already.) Baselining simply means knowing where you (and your dog, if he or she is going along with you) are right now.
Blue worked with Melisa Kauffman, DVM, Shelter Veterinarian for the Humane Society of Summit County, to learn his "here to there". Dr. Kauffman believes in the value of a healthy weight for a dog's quality of life. As she put it, "Weight management in dogs is very important. In addition to an overall decrease in energy and quality of life and a shortened life span, being obese/overweight can lead to systemic illness such as heart disease and respiratory disorders, skeletal diseases like arthritis, and liver problems. Being overweight or obese can also make a dog prone to Diabetes mellitus."
Dr. Kauffman continued, "Blue weighed in today at 103.6 pounds. My first goal weight for him would be 85 pounds. Also, don't forget that an exercise program is fine, as long as Blue's activity level ramps up gradually, but that proper diet is also very important. I'll be working with you on that over the next few days."
All this is a little spooky, because it's exactly what my doctor told me when I got him involved in this.
So there it is: Blue needs to lose about 19 pounds, or roughly 18% of his body weight, and so do I. As my doctor put it, "For over 40 years, your idea of a healthy lifestyle has been to sit at a desk for 50 weeks out of the year, eat too much and move too little, then kayak the Grand Canyon or hike 60 miles in the Rocky Mountains with 50 pounds on your back. And here you are, wondering why your joints hurt, your cholesterol is high, and your arthritis is getting worse. Hopefully, you're going to learn something from Blue."
And so, Blue and I have our "baselines". We know where we are and where we're going. Stop by later this month for a report on our progress, Blue's new diet plan as prescribed by Dr. K, and some of the adventures we've had to help us stay on track.
In the meantime, don't forget to hit the "Support" button. Blue and I need all the help we can get if we're going to get this done. Because low-calorie, high-quality dog food and treats, well, cheap they aren't.
Ted
