The reason I got blood work this week was for my Nutrition class. I need my blood type and cholesterol levels for a paper (that’s due today!).
I’ve actually always been curious about my blood type, but have never given blood because I’m always training for something or another and didn’t want to risk passing out on a solo run (one time I passed out at a club and it was scary, but that’s another post for another day).
As expected, my cholesterol results are good 
LDL Cholestrol aka “bad cholestrol” was down, HDL aka “good cholesterol” was up. And my triglycerides were pretty low too! I actually thought that was be higher since I eat a fair amount of fats and my body fat % is pretty high, but I think I need to re-read the explanation because I was wrong.
For reference, here’s an explanation from Web MD
LDL Cholesterol
LDL cholesterol can build up on the walls of your arteries and increase your chances of getting heart disease. That is why LDL cholesterol is referred to as "bad" cholesterol. The lower your LDL cholesterol number, the better it is for your health. The table below explains what the numbers mean.
LDL Cholesterol
LDL-Cholesterol CategoryLess than 100
Optimal100 – 129
Near optimal/above optimal130 – 159
Borderline high160 – 189
High190 and above
Very highIf you have heart disease or blood vessel disease, some experts recommend that you should try to get your LDL cholesterol below 70. For people with diabetes or other multiple risk factors for heart disease, the treatment goal is to reach an LDL of less than 100.
HDL Cholesterol
When it comes to HDL cholesterol — "good" cholesterol — the higher the number, the better it is for your health. This is because HDL cholesterol protects against heart disease by taking the "bad" cholesterol out of your blood and keeping it from building up in your arteries. The table below explains what the numbers mean.
HDL Cholesterol
HDL-Cholesterol Category60 and above
High; Optimal; helps to lower risk of heart diseaseLess than 40 in men and less than 50 in women
Low; considered a risk factor for heart diseaseTriglycerides
Triglycerides are the chemical form in which most fat exists in food and the body. A high triglyceride level has been linked to the occurrence of coronary artery disease in some people. Here’s the breakdown.
Triglycerides
Triglyceride CategoryLess than 150
Normal150 – 199
Borderline high200 – 499
High500 or higher
Very high
I was most happy to finally find my blood type – O for Olivas!
By the way, Ben says he doesn’t donate blood because, “If someone wants my blood they have to come take it from me.”
He’s joking. Or crazy.
This morning was a rest day from running so I did some strength training. I am determined to build up some upper body strength. I was a “base” in cheerleading aka on the bottom of the pyramid (I know you’re shocked). Anyways, we didn’t do any strength training but I was naturally pretty strong.
I think incorporating strength 2 to 3 days a week will get me back in jiggly free arm zone in a few months.
After my improvised strength routine I made a massive smoothie. It’s not oatmeal weather here yet. But even if it was, I wanted a smoothie.
In the mix: frozen berries (because I forgot to refill the ice trays), spinach, chia seeds, Cherries Jubilee protein powder, almond milk.
If you like it then you should put some rings on it.
Cereal rings that is Plus golden raisins, almond butter and more cereal.
Since it was 10 by the time I ate I was also ready for a snack and had a piece of cinnamon roll with pumpkin butter.
Question: Do you know your blood type?
Have you had your cholesterol checked?
hi! 🙂 i recently had biometric testing through my job (vzw) and got my results just a few days later! my cholesterol was good which i was super happy about. i just wish i knew my blood type 🙁
I donate blood pretty often, it’s easy for me, I have good veins for it so I’ve never dealt with a painful experience. My boyfriend usually walks out with the bruises. Re: cheerleading – I was a base too and I miss it! It’s been 10 years since I cheered competitively but on a recent trip to Key West with some fellow cheerleaders we were able to throw some liberty, extensions, awesomes, straddles and even a double twist out. It was pretty amazing how everything just comes right back to you! I wish they had adult cheerleading gyms where you could just throw stunts – that would be my ideal way to strength train!
I am partaking in a college health study at my school cal poly slo, called Stride. We had a bunch of things tested and cholesterol was one of them. Apparently I have low bad cholesterol and low good cholesterol…I’ve tried to donate blood, but twice they said that my veins were too small. You look really strong!!
I’m A neg! I love giving blood. I once gave double red cells and was sick for a week afterwards! Never had my cholesterol checked tho.
I have A+ blood. I got my cholesterol tested years ago at a health fair and it was good. But I’d love to get tested again, I geek out over stuff like that.
I’m O+ and I just had my cholesterol checked a couple months ago. Happily, my LDL cholesterol went down and by HDL cholesterol went WAY up from last year (when I wasn’t eating well or exercising normally)!
I can’t donate blood due to anemia and low body weight (I’m hoping after I have a child, I’ll be able to donate. I mean I’m low. It’ll take having a kid for me to get up to the minimum weight, but I’m also really short), but with all the blood tests I’ve had for anemia, they’ve never told me my blood type and I want to know it! I did have my cholesterol checked last month though at a health fair and it was really good. It’s always been excellent- probably because I’m a vegetarian and work out 5-6x a week :). But I seriously want to know my blood type now!
Put away those guns. Somebody is going to get hurt.
Ha! Thanks 🙂
I bloodtyped myself in high school anatomy and I got A positive, but considering I was doing it in a high school lab who knows how sure that is lol. Im a health science major in college and when I took anatomy here last year I asked the professor if we were going to do it again and she said no – funny how they trust 17 year olds with needles but not 20 year olds?
Congrats for having low cholesterol!
Funny timing reading this post – I just today was reading about cholesterol and fat in my nutrition book. And I don’t know my blood type but both of my sisters do so I’m not sure why I don’t. I’d like to know it though – next annual appt, I’ll get them to test it. Have you read about eating for your blood type? I haven’t (mainly b/c I don’t know my type) but I think it could be interesting…
http://www.webmd.com/diet/eat-right-for-your-type
I am O-.
Known found that out when I found my baby id card in middle school that had all my info lol.
Wish I could give blood, but I’ll probably never be able to being 4 foot 10 inches tall. ^_^”
Thanks for the little lesson on cholesterol!! My Dad is always talking about his and now it kinda all makes sense now.
My blood type is O, as well 😛
xxx
I’m A+. So are my husband and daughter. I didn’t know my blood type until I got pregnant and the nurse told me.
I had my cholesterol checked about a year ago and I assume everything was normal (it has been in the past) because they didn’t call and tell me otherwise. That’s the military health care system for you. They only call if the results are unfavorable. Bah.
Triglycerides can be elevated by the amount of sugar you eat, believe it or not. My husband had high triglycerides, cut out regular soda, and they dropped significantly. I’m not sure if this is a proven thing, since I’m clearly not a doctor, but it worked in his case.
I have no clue what my blood type is! I need to do more strength training. I have free weights but I am rarely motivated to pick them up.
I’m O negative! And I need to get my cholesterol checked…it was high a few years ago when I was sick and I’ve been meaning to check up on it since!
Bases are the best!
I was a base, and I’m 5’3″ and 120 lbs- therefore, too heavy to fly. I was the strongest base on the team. Its because red heads are strong, tough chicks. =)
Yes we are!
I need to get my cholesterol checked. The last I heard, it was higher than normal in both the good and bad categories, so overall, I’m fine. 😛
Ryan’s an O-type, so he donates fairly often. I try to go in, but I guess I don’t have enough iron for them to want my blood! 😛
I’m an O+ and a regular blood donor. I highly recommend that everyone who can, should donate. My husband also has a fear of fainting (he did once) and won’t donate even though he has volunteered to help with snacks at the Red Cross. I’ve given > 3 gallons and I love that the people at the donor center know me, and I know them. Give it a try – they’ll be very nice and you can let them know your concern about fainting.
Last time I had my cholesterol checked it was on the high side, according to the Dr. that’s because my HDL number was really high (around 80 if I remember right).
It’s always nice to have your “data”, you know? Cheers on your strength training.
The very same thing happened to me. My overall cholesterol score was around 209, but my LDL was low and my HDL was over 90. The doctor said not to worry because a very high HDL practically puts you at negative risk for heart disease.
I have no clue what my blood type is…I’m guessing I should.
Nice gun show you gave there! Good luck with the strength training!
i’ve never had my blood type checked but i’ve been told that i’m B pos from my parents. theoretically i could be O as well. but i’ve never given blood (i constantly go back and forth between anemia) so i don’t truly know. i’m pretty sure i’ve had my cholesterol checked. but i can’t remember.
maybe i should make a PCP appt to find out. or at least call my doc to find out!
My blood type is AB+. That’s the universal receiver! I thank you in advance for your blood. I can’t remember any of my numbers from the last time I had a blood test (a couple of years ago), but I think I was surprised (and relieved) at my cholesterol level.