Fasting - Living Long and Strong with Verne and Roy

#36 Ageing Disgracefully? – Part Three, DIY for Ageing Backwards

The disgraceful fabulosity of ageing backwards; eat for longevity – all hail to cake!; Dave Asprey’s plan to maybe live forever; Dr Kara Fitzgerald; take this ageing backwards quiz!; epigenetic tests to measure ageing; eating for longevity; would you eat a politician?; time-restricted eating; destressing for longevity; grounding, walking in nature

Feature photo, above: My crazily energetic Les Mills Pump class friends at Craigie Leisure Centre

You know the slightly lame jokes some of us start making about birthdays after a certain age: “I’m not having birthdays anymore” (a bad idea), or “I’ve started counting backwards”.

While it would be a dreadful shame to renounce the champagne, cake, prezzies and general hurrah-ness that go with celebrating the anniversary of ones birth, actually ageing backwards would be a fabulously disgraceful approach to getting older.

#34 Ageing Disgracefully? Part One

Ageing disgracefully; how old are you really, and does age matter?; vanity vs honesty; 3 ways to measure age; biological age markers; perceived age; psychological age; skin deep; Pitu will make you pretty!; reversing ageing: exercise, meditation and more; Human Growth Hormone promise; massage, the tender trap?

“Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m 64?”

The Beatles

How old are you, really? And does it matter? That’s three questions already, with more to follow.

As this new year dawned – where did the last one go? – and a landmark birthday* (musically speaking) approached, I found myself thinking again about age. How significant is the number, if at all? We all know people who are old at 35, and others who still present as physically, mentally and emotionally young into what’s generally regarded as middle to old age.

Reversing ageing — At my birthday lunch last month, taken in fairly good lighting

April 3, 2022June 2, 2022

#20 Orthorexia, a new eating disorder?

Orthorexia – or orthorexia nervosa – is a newish and very first-world condition. And no orthorexic is likely to admit to being one, says VERNE MAREE.

I know a bit about body dysmorphia and disordered eating, so when Roy says things like: “I’ll have just one bite of cake,” or “Let’s share that banana”, my spidey sense is alerted.

You’ll remember that Roy lost 35kg on my Low Carb, No Crap® eating plan; and it’s great that he’s determined to keep it off. But when he asks for three chips with his fish, is he going too far?

He has lost the weight, and he’s keeping it off

March 20, 2022April 28, 2022

#19 When to Eat

When to eat might be as important a question as what to eat. VERNE MAREE spills the beans on how Roy and she are faring with Intermittent Fasting (IF) and Time-Restricted Feeding (TRF).

It’s not just what you eat that matters. When you eat is important, too. I’m a firm believer in both intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding. If you’re not already on track, why not give it a try?

January 7, 2022January 8, 2022

#14 Getting Back on Track after the Festive Season

Getting back on track ASAP after the festive season is a jolly good idea for health and longevity. Fortunately, while you’re still feeling utterly stuffed, it may not be so hard to do.

Have you recently been derailed by mince pies? – or Prosecco, or pavlova, or whatever your seasonal poison may be? I know I have. It doesn’t take long to go off the rails. Fortunately, there’s nothing to stop us getting right back on track – and in the case of Roy and me, that means back on to the Low Carb, No Crap TM eating plan that helped him lose 35kg… and keep it off.

The pics below, taken a year apart, are presented as evidence. (It’s a shame I couldn’t afford a new dress.)

Slim, svelte Roy, Christmas 2020 …

… and again in Christmas 2021

#11 How Much Fat Do We Need to Eat?

How much fat we need depends on other things – how many carbs we can tolerate, for example, and what sort of fat we choose. Saturated fats from sustainably pastured animals is a pretty good start.

Note: The droolworthy featured image (above) is from the cover of The Big Fat Surprise, by Nina Teicholz

I’ve always liked this old 16^th-century English rhyme, mainly because it sounded just like my parents – my tall, skinny, carrot-crunching father and my plump, butter-loving mother. Luckily, though I inherited her penchant for pork crackling, fatty lamb chops and anything sautéed in butter, I also inherited a tendency to Dad’s lanky frame – as long as I curb my cursed sweet tooth!

What is a biohacker? Verne rebounding on a trampoline

October 9, 2021October 17, 2021

#4 What is a biohacker, and why am I one?

What is a biohacker, and why do I call myself one? For me, why I’m a biohacker is to optimise health and wellness, longevity and health-span. In other words, living long and strong! Like to give it a try?

Especially important is health-span – meaning the length of time I’m living a useful, happy and productive life. What’s the point of lingering on to 120 if you can’t dress yourself, scramble your own eggs or recognise your great-grandchildren?