Another crack at youth

Nearly four years ago, as my mother lay on her deathbed, she gave me a great gift. “Irwin,” she said, “you are far too young to let yourself go like that.” A mother’s advice is never to be ignored, and on honest introspection, I had to agree with her.


At the time, being 56 years of age, I was packing 187 pounds on a 5’ 7 ½” frame. My face was puffy, my breathing labored, and resting pulse rate hovered around 85. A far cry from the farm boy and young Marine that she remembered. “Mom, you are right. I promise to change.” And I kept my word to her.

Today, quickly approaching my 60th year, I am a slim 142 pounds and have been so for over three years. I can run 5 kilometers in 23:30 – not award winning, but not shabby for an imminent senior citizen. I can bound up a flight of stairs with barely a blip in my heart rate which now rests at 56. My doctor is delighted with my blood pressure – 118 over 68. What is the source of this marvelous outcome?

Very simple – a lifestyle change involving diet and exercise. My diet is not radical. It is satisfying, varied, and allows generous portion sizes. My exercise regime is simple and sustainable. These behaviors are not forced nor consciously practiced – they are simply who I am now. Can you duplicate this result? I believe that you can.

First, the exercise program, for it was the simpler change. I started running daily – rain, shine, snow, travel, no excuse was acceptable. I always found a way to run. At first I had trouble with a mile, but slowly increased my pace and distance until I settled on 3 miles daily. I continue to this day and have no plans to change. It is now a joy and I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I fervently believe that you need to work your body to the point of heaving breath and perspiration – it is a machine that must be worked to maintain its peak condition. If you don’t like to run, then bike or swim or jazzercise, but you must huff and puff and sweat for 20-30 minutes every day. If you are out of shape, then certainly consult your doctor to devise a graduated exercise program.

Diet is a bit problematic, because you need to adopt some general rules and strategies that provide you with excellent nutrition but not excessive calories and still satisfy your hunger. I have elected a semi-vegetarian diet. Don’t get me wrong – I love meat and still eat it. But meat is no longer featured in my daily diet – it is an occasional treat. I now eat beef once a week and chicken or fish several times. But many meals are simply fruit, vegetables, pasta, legumes, rice, etc., with no compulsion to include red meat. Cheeses, olive oil, mushrooms, eggplant, etc., give me the satisfaction that I previously sought in meat.

My only oil is extra virgin olive. My breakfast is typically yogurt and a banana, but often cereal with skim milk and sometimes eggs and hash browns with toast. I love to make marinara sauce from scratch using fresh or canned tomatoes based on a recipe fondly gifted by a Sicilian relative and served, garnished with a fresh basil leaf and freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, over al dente pasta. Freshly made garlic toast from a coarse ciabatta loaf and a nice bottle of red wine complete the meal. Those Sicilian peasants surely knew how to eat!

If during the day you have an insatiable urge to snack, that’s OK. Just don’t give in to potato chips. Instead, have an apple or ripe pear or a handful of unsalted walnuts or almonds or peanuts. Snacks are good, but sugar and salt and fat should not be the theme.

Eating in restaurants is a huge challenge – some offer no healthy options at all. In general, avoid fat and salt and rich sauces. Grilled shrimp is a far better choice than shrimp scampi drowned in a white butter sauce. Salads are usually a good choice but not if drowned in a rich dressing. Get the dressing served on the side or better yet, use unadorned olive oil. Order grilled or baked fish without sauce, steamed veggies, and forget about the French fries. A baked potato is fine – but dress it with olive oil and pepper – leave the butter and salt for your fat, out of shape dining companions. Do you really need meatballs with your pasta? How about a vegetable lasagna instead. Yes you can have a small dessert – but watch the portion size or share it with your friends.

Probably the closest formal diet to mine is the low glycemic index (GI) diet. Low GI diets don’t exclude any foods, but simply ask you to balance out high GI (bad) choices with some low GI (good) foods. For instance, if you want to eat mashed potatoes (bad), that’s OK if you also eat some steamed or sautéed vegetables (good). This makes it a very easy diet to follow and proves very satisfying while still being healthy and allows you to lose weight and maintain that weight loss. It becomes a natural part of your lifestyle and you will in time find yourself planning healthy menus or selecting restaurant choices with little conscious effort and much aplomb.

There are excellent sources of information on the web regarding the low GI diet (e.g., http://www.the-gi-diet.org/lowgifoods/) and many good books. My favorite is “The Low GI Handbook: The New Glucose Revolution Guide to the Long-Term Health Benefits of Low GI Eating”, Brand-Miller and Wolever, Da Capo Lifelong Books, 4th edition, 2010.

If you are interested in regaining your youth and energy, dropping and maintaining weight, gaining energy, and looking 15 years younger, you have nothing to lose. My own journey has been successful and rewarding. Thanks, Mom.