Nutrition and my tummy

In a post earlier this year I said I don’t pay much attention to my nutrition and that I’ve always tried to keep my calorie intake in sync with my weight. My belt is my gauge. If it’s tight then I eat less. That worked quite well for many years. I kept my intake of protein, carbs, fats, vitamins and so on in balance with my waist line. In recent years another indicator appeared.

Mixing salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

My little grandson would visit and first thing in the morning climb onto our bed, snuggle up and then stick his finger in my stomach and say “grandpa you have a fat tummy.” I thought that was very cute and would laugh but it got me thinking. I’m 93 now so it’s no surprise that I don’t look like I did years ago but I decided to see if I could do something about this ‘fat tummy’ thing. I made some changes to what I eat and three months later I think I still look about the same all except for the fat tummy which is almost all gone.

My pants are actually a bit loose. I am totally amazed! I kept a daily record of my weight for the 3 months. It went from 148 lb. down to 134 lb. All I really did was to leave the type of food I eat mostly the same except I ate less of it and eliminated sugar and carbs almost entirely. One major change in recent years though has been to double my daily protein intake and that has continued.

I’ve always tried to keep my calorie intake in sync with my weight. My belt is my gauge. If it’s tight then I eat less. That worked quite well for many years. In recent years another indicator appeared.

My food and nutrition for a typical day are two cups of coffee when I get up. I exercise about 8 and an hour later I have a protein shake. For lunch I have a small bowl of shredded wheat with blueberries, raspberries and milk. I also take a psyllium fiber drink and vitamins C, E, D3, fish oil and a multi vitamin. I’ve been taking these every day for sixty years. I also take glucosamine and chondroitin on the advice of a doctor after I had a knee and hand problem a few years ago.

For dinner I have fish or chicken and a vegetable, tomato or salad. Snacks consist of walnuts or mixed nuts or Greek yogurt and an occasional piece of 85% dark chocolate. I don’t drink anything except water, and sometimes some fruit juice. It’s not much, maybe 1200 calories or so.

Preparing my protein drink.

Whatever it is I’ve lost weight and I feel fine. I only wanted to lose weight in one place and it seems to have worked although I’m surprised at how long it takes and how difficult it is to lose fat in that one place.  An interesting fact is that I’m about 3” shorter now than I was 60 years ago. I continue with my almost daily exercise program starting with the low-impact elliptical to protect my fragile joints and spine and it gives me a good aerobic workout!

That I do my nine exercises regularly is very important. How much it contributes to my good health and fitness would be hard to calculate. But to my mental wellbeing and positive outlook on life, it is immense!