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September 3, 2006
CR Isn't About How You Feel About Food
My commenter has graciously responded to my response, with some helpful information. I reproduce it below:
this is my reply. i train thoroughbred race horses and i ride them. i can breeze (ride fast) when i'm down to 150lbs. before this my weight was about 200 lbs. since ive been doing it for 8 yrs im very familiar with the effects of calorie restriction, though i never deliberately go below 150 which is a weight at which there is zero body fat. interestingly, by calorie restriction, i easily get down to 155 lbs, but 155 to 150 is very difficult as i actually have to lose muscle mass. unknown at what weight i would stabilize on more restricive CR. i suspect around 140 lbs. i supplement profusely every day. ive read all the books--best is fantastic journey--and Muscle and Fitness mag is very very good for certain health--nutrition supplement ideas. there are some amazing products out there now. since i eat so little i rely on the supplements including for protein. since i'm sort of dabbling with CR, yes, i do occasionally measure calories. i have a CR tool. BUT, ive never studied CR as a science, so, it is unknown to me what calorie level would be defined as e.g. 10% CR (which personally i believe would do very little good--my calorie restiction is actually about 50% of what I would normally eat which would be about 3000 calories/day. i tend to yo yo in my my discipline as my training horses goes. my "obsession" would be interest in health. i run an hr. per day and lift 30 min/day about 6 days per week. i'm currently of opinion that exercise will be a far more efficient life extender than CR--but, unknown. i'm at age 60 now. while by my definition i do see a food obsession on this blog, i also have the personal believe that people can have an interest in whatever they want. be happy. but, what i have trouble with here is the inconsistency that i see with the discipline required for true CR. when i am "doing it" i try to avoid thinking about food, i eat only once a day with a little snacking. i never eat after 3pm. in short, i avoid food as entertainment. im also of the opinion that anyone enamored of restaurant slop could harldy be doing CR. i prefer my post viewed as other than picking at you. you are very intelligent, and i do believe you are trying to do CR, though honestly i question taht you are pulling it off, simply from what i have stated are the inconsistencies i see. i also think more reading and paying attention will cause you in the future to refine things quite a bit from what you are doing. as i said originally, i would like to read more about the effects of CR, the actual doing it than a daily recitiation of wonderful recipes and what in particular food was ingested, though, as i said, if that is your interest, obsession or whatever you want to term it, understood.
A couple of things: first, thanks for the detailed response! And what an interesting line of work! I've never had the opportunity to ride horses, but they are certainly very beautiful and I would love to ride one at some point. I'm sure they would appreciate the fact that I only weigh 104.
Second, there are a few misunderstandings in your comment. As you freely admit, you're not versed in CR science. If you were, you'd know that while exercise has been shown to extend mean lifespan, it doesn't extend the maximum lifespan. Translation: while you might live a bit longer than you would otherwise if you exercise regularly and efficiently, you won't add anything onto the maximum human lifespan through exercise. Only CR has been shown to actually extend lifespan in mammals. Will it work in humans? We don't know yet! As I've stated many times, the immediate term effects for me are so satisfying (never getting sick, more energy, looking great, feeling great) that I'll take my chances.
Second, on what evidence do you state that 10% CR would do little good? Cause there's tons of evidence that even modest reductions in calories lessen the risk for many diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Decreasing the amount of body fat also seems to reduce inflamation, which is great news for people with painful arthritis. Moderate CR has tons of health benefits. Extreme CR no doubt has more health benefits, but why throw in the towel and chow down just because you're not willing to go extreme if you can get great health benefits from moderately restricting calories (while maintaining adequate nutrition)?
Third: Trust me on this one. If you only occasionally measure your calories, you have no idea how many calories you are consuming. Clearly you are calorie restricted from your previous consumption -- a fifty pound weight loss is indicative of that. But when you don't measure every day, calories creep up. My guess is that at 1500 consistently for about a month, you would drop weight and freak out. But don't take my word for it, try it! My good friend Jason Pontin, editor in chief of MIT's Technology Review, tried my experiment and discovered that sure enough, people underestimate their calories. It takes a lot of discipline and focus to weigh and measure every morsel for a month, and to avoid going out, but I've done it and I gained very valuable information. I suggest that anyone who thinks they know how many calories they're eating try this. Try eating the calories you think you're eating... and weigh yourself every day. Call me when you've lost five pounds in a week. Then we'll know that you weren't eating the number of calories that you thought you were.
Again, research has shown over and over again that people underestimate their calories. Meanwhile, the CR Society folk who actually DO measure our every morsel of food consistently report higher calorie intakes, at lower weights and BMIs, than those who "estimate." Coincidence? I don't think so.
Furthermore, CR is not about how you *feel* about food. If you find that it's easier for you to cut calories if you don't think about food, don't consider "food as entertainment" and don't eat past 3 pm, then great! You've found what works for you! But CR is about how many calories you eat, while maintaining adequate nutrition, not about your relationship with food. You can hate food and do CR, you can love food and do CR. I happen to enjoy my food and to love the process of cooking delicious meals for my loved ones. This is entirely consistent with my practice of CR because since I weigh and measure all the food I cook at home for myself and my loved ones, as well as entering it into nutritional software to be sure we're getting the nutrients we need, I just see cooking on CR to be an exciting challenge, and a way to express my love both through the excellent taste of my dishes and through the nourishment they provide. A perfect combination, IMO!
Enjoying food is not inconsistent with CR... as long as you're willing to put in the work to make sure you're controlling calories and getting optimal nutrition. In fact, one of the most frequent objections raised to CR by those who fear to try it is, "I love food too much!" One of the purposes of my blog is to show that you can love food, feed your family delicious creations, work an intense job, and still do CR. CR isn't just for ascetics who want to lock themselves up and deny themselves pleasure... it's for people who love life and want more of it!
I enjoy cooking, and my readers seem to enjoy the recipes, so I'll keep posting them. The fact is, if you've done CR for a few years, it's no longer that exciting to write about the day to day effects on your body. In the beginning, it's fun. "I lost two pounds this week... I feel euphoric... I discovered eggwhites... I put olive oil on my kale!" But after awhile, you get sick of reporting that sure enough, another winter cold has made it through your office and you didn't get sick (in spite of sharing a cup of green tea with a co-worker who became ill the next day.) You get sick of saying, "Yup, I still have more energy, look 22 at 32, and feel great!" It's boring to report, over and over again, that you have the body of a 22 year old with the brain (and income) of someone much older. CR does all that, but you get used to it. Early in my blog, I wrote much about these things. But they're status quo now. I never cease to be grateful for the wonderful gifts that my CR practice has bestowed upon me, but they're no longer front page news.
Re: restaurants. There are many ways to do CR. You don't have to renounce eating in fine restaurants, you just have to be careful what you eat and how often. For me, part of the calculation with my CR is a cost/benefit analysis of what I enjoy now vs. what I hope to enjoy later. I love eating out in the great restaurants of Philadelphia... I hardly think it's fair to refer to Le Bec Fin's cuisine as "slop." However, I eat nice dinners out about twice a month, and when I have to go out for work, I order salads with grilled chicken and vinegar on the side. Eating out from time to time is part of what constitutes quality of life for me. I want to enjoy my life now and for many years to come... by keeping my daily calories very low, I can afford the twice monthly or so splurge. Enjoying restaurant food doesn't indicate a lack of discipline, rather, it's a conscious choice to enjoy certain pleasures now while balancing them out with lower calorie, nutrient packed meals on most days.
Re: reading and paying attention. I've read a lot. All of Walford's books, almost the entire CR Society archives, and yes, Ray Kurzweil's Fantastic Voyage (I think that's what you meant when you said Fantastic Journey.) As we discovered when I cooked lunch at his house last December, Ray and I eat a lot alike. High protein, lots of eggwhites, fresh veggies, unsaturated fat as found in olive oil and hazelnut oil. I look forward to cooking for Ray again!
I choose to practice moderate CR, but not for lack of information. The health benefits of moderate CR are astounding, and it's also much more fun to wear a bikini at 104 than at 137, which is how much I weighed pre-CR. My current practice reflects a conscious decision based on my many different priorties in life. CR and life extension is one priority, but so is my job, my friends, and having fun! I have fun with my CR, but I also have fun going out from time to time. CR is never far from my mind, but I wouldn't let it prevent me from travelling for work, or eating on the run when my circumstances require it. I do pretty well (may I remind you that I've maintained a weight almost 40 pounds below my pre-CR weight, and with excellent nutrition as monitored on nutritional software) but there are things in life that matter to me as well as CR. Another purpose of this blog is to show how you can live a full life and incorporate CR. CR shouldn't be something that limits your choices... it should expand them! When you feel better, look better, and live longer, healthier, you have more options. You can look forward to more of a future, and a world in which you will be a participant for many years to come. That's exciting and challenging. Between my work and my CR, as well as my volunteer work for the Methuselah Foundation, I try to strike a balance between living my life now and creating the world I want to live in later. It's not always easy, and I do get stressed out, but it's worth the effort.
I'd be a bit concerned about your nutrition if you have to fill in gaps, even protein, at 1500. It's easy to get low calorie protein with eggwhites, and fairly easy to get all essential nutrients at 1000, so I'd think you could get it all packed into 1500. Granted, before I discovered Lewis Labs brewers yeast, I had trouble meeting my requirements of B vitamins and copper, and I still depend on supplements for the majority of my zinc, but really, your diet should give you most of the nutrition you need. Software is your friend! If you're low on B vitamins, try brewers yeast and mushrooms. If you're low protein, try eggwhites. Calcium a problem? Nonfat yogurt is your friend, plain is amazing with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, a chopped up red pepper, and a tiny dash of half-salt. Add some fresh ground pepper and I'm getting hungry again!
Speaking of food: this weekend I've cooked some excellent dishes. Today's lunch was green peppers stuffed with nonfat ricotta, tomato and basil, topped with tarragon vinegar and baked for forty-five minutes in dry white wine. Salad of kale topped with strawberries, raspberries, and eggwhites marinated in balsamic vinegar, finished with a half cup of nonfat cottage cheese and topped with a dressing of hazelnut oil, balsamic vinegar and cinnamon. Quorn tenders and hazelnuts have also graced our plates over the weekend.
In tonight's dinner, I sought to incorporate the fresh basil I hadn't used up at lunch. I made a stew of tomatoes, red pepper, and garlic cooked in two ounces of white wine, with Quorn and tons of caulliflower, 300 grams for MR! I added fresh basil after the veggies were properly steamed, and MR loved the taste. He had a strawberry parfait for dessert, with fresh organic strawberries layered between fat free ricotta and a teaspoon of Walden Farms chocolate sauce, topped with hazelnuts and flax oil. We added olive oil to his main dish after removing from heat. Delicious! He mentioned that early in his CR list career, people assumed he didn't care much about food, since his posts so frequently said that he wouldn't eat such and such food because of it's such and such negative health effects. What his readers didn't realize is that there's a universe of healthy foods out there that can be enjoyed (in measured amounts) with beneficial effects on your body. MR and I love food... and we use it to fortify our bodies and minds. We may or may not accomplish the great work, but at least we'll have had a decent breakfast!
Posted by april at September 3, 2006 7:45 PM
Comments
A great summary of who you are and what CR means to you! And I second all your opinions on the many ways to do CR successfully. You main point, I think, is that full information makes for better CR - both a more complete understanding of what you are eating and more knowledge of CR itself.
This makes me think that you should write a book (which I would gladly co-author) on "A Food Lover's CR". People are always saying that they love food too much to do CR to me - and I am always countering this just as you do.
Posted by: Little MR at September 4, 2006 10:40 AM
April, I want to make a sucralose sweetened pie for my birthday, (thinking of a lemon meringue). I could just modify a low cal recipe on the net, but thought I would check with you see if you remember posting a recipe for a yummy pie. It's so hard to search your past recipes.
Posted by: Hazel at September 4, 2006 1:01 PM
*raises hand*
I would buy such a book :)
Excellent post!
Posted by: gregg m. at September 5, 2006 7:52 AM
I think one day you should write a book... You have great communication skills and you put your thoughts across very well...
Posted by: Matt - UK at September 5, 2006 11:12 AM
I keep thinking as I read your blog that I wish I was a better cook. I really admire your knowledge of foods, not only their nutritional composition but their flavor characteristics and how one food will interact with another. I think it would be really fun to attend a cr cooking retreat and learn more about the whole process of creating cr friendly meals from scouting great products in the grocery store to planning and preparing perfectly zoned recipes. I can not think of a more knowledgeable and charming instructor than you April. What do you think of spending a few days at a waterfront cabin somewhere in the world with a group of forward thinking health conscious individuals, beautiful scenery, and excellent food?
Posted by: Christine Davidson at September 6, 2006 2:08 PM