You know that saying "You can pick your friends but not your family?!?!?"
I hear ya about the genetic loading. My dad died of MI at age 52. My mom isa health nut who exercises, eats low fat, etc., but her cholesterol is >400. So...I've got the risk factors on both sides, plus a few of my own. I smoked and drank coffee for several years (smoke-free 8 yrs; coffee free 3 yrs, decaf coffee/softdrink free 1 yr), and I'm still working on the weight loss.....
My mother has been a great example; she's the only one of her siblings who has lived a heart-healthy lifestyle since her 30s. The pay off has been huge....all of her siblings have had devastating cardiac events or strokes. By contrast, she's 74, and her only health problem is her elevated cholesterol. No heart problems, no related complications, and she can still run rings around folks half her age.
The cholesterol dilemna is big for me given my family history. Also, I had the kind of platelets that are sticky and little -- the highest risk when paired with elevated cholesterol. This is why I had to take it a step further and go the Ornish route. I had followed the low-fat diets religiously for 10 years and this really didn't help my cholesterol. It stayed the same and/or creeped up. Taking the fats down to 10% and following the other Ornish guidelines made the difference for me in the cholesterol arena. 100 point LDL reduction, and the platelets have normalized. THANK THE GOOD LORD!!!!
Gotta enjoy each day, that's for sure....each day is a gift!
Best regards
Mary Ann
ps the eliptical trainer is my favorite piece of gym equipment!