Don't Waste Your Retirement

The way I see it at this age, most folks consider two directions we can go with how we eat –

LET ‘ER RIP – we’ve dieted, eaten to keep our weight under control our entire adult life.  Let’s just enjoy anything we want to in the way of eating and drinking, not worry about staying trim and fit which we’ve worked on for far too long.

OR

EAT AGE APPROPRIATELY – we’ve got so many more years to enjoy, let’s be sure we eat based on what our aging bodies need right now.  Buckets of protein, high energy foods like berries and nuts, minimum sugar and salt (if any) and meager amounts of alcohol.

I’ve laughed at and examined both options which look attractive for various reasons.  But as many of us would admit, “let ‘er rip” is a bit dangerous for us and “eat age appropriately” just a bit too conservative for us.  And let’s be honest, there are way too many things on the “let ‘er rip” we enjoy and want to continue eating…and honestly lots of things on the “eat age appropriately” that we have to talk ourselves into eating.  Just one day this week I was eating lunch with a friend at a healthy restaurant choice and someone recommended a certain dish.  It looked lovely except for the fact that it’s base was not pasta, potatoes or even rice, but “grains” like bulgar and farro.  I passed and opted for a healthy version of chicken enchiladas.

So with that said, I suggest a 3rd option…combine the 2 with a focus on “age appropriate” eating.  This is all based on the fact that I confess that I would perhaps love an excuse to indulge in a fried onion ring occasionally, a chicken fried steak, a fully dressed smash burger, a dessert here and there, a chocolate malt once a year!  Even a fast food meal which we all know can’t be good for us.  But I just can’t find any good excuses, so I simply plan on indulging a bit in my eating habits as a quick reminder of past times…and do my best not to feel guilty!

But on the other hand, I also confess I’m quite dedicated to an eating rhythm that fits my age and energy.  I know what I like and what I don’t like – much more prone to eat vegetables than fruit, appreciate good seafood over steak, enjoy chicken and pork, but only pork tenderloin.  Not a turkey fan and keep it relegated to the holidays.  Know ham and bacon can add on pounds quickly so stay away from them.  Love, love, carbs – pasta and potatoes – but do my best to enjoy in reasonable amounts and not too frequently.  I talk myself out of things a lot and have a mantra of “I can always eat that tomorrow” to get me through temptations.

So I navigate my way through my likes and dislikes and try to eat the majority of time with a lot of common sense and discipline, going the healthy route.  But definitely on occasion do the dietary splurge to remind myself how much fun it was to have a faster metabolism and not feel guilty about what I was eating.  I do want to enjoy the pleasures and adventures that food brings to our lives.

If you’ve read French Women Don’t Get Fat, or the sequel French Women for All Seasons, I’m sure you were enchanted by the French perspective on eating.  Periodic dieting in France is not a common practice.  They are big fans of a “régime”, learning how to regularly eat to keep our bodies healthy and happy…and not overweight.  Flavor and quality always over quantity.  And by the way, French women’s life expectancy is 85.9 years.  The US?  81.1…go figure.  Moral – pay attention to how the French eat!  But that brings up bread, butter, pastries and cream and a daily dose of wine.  So again…go figure?  BON APPÉTIT!