Dreadful Penny

Years ago, I decided to live to be 120. Let’s ignore the fact that I was severely obese and on three medications for high blood pressure at the time, mmm-kay? And that I’ve only had one grandparent make it past 90. And that my parents are rather unhealthy in their 60s. And that I have a crummy immune system. Me, I’m in this for the long haul. Somehow.

I’ve been taking more of an interest in longevity research, a topic that often crops up on Instapundit (most recently here). I occasionally stop into a few sites to catch up on the latest, like Longevity Science, the Kronos Longevity Research Institute, and the Methuselah Foundation. Much to my surprise, it turns out that longevity is a focus of my new General Practitioner, too. She complimented me on looking younger than my 38 years and then started making suggestions to be sure I go another 38 and beyond.

Some of the front-running concepts in life extension are beyond my willingness to change at this point. Severe caloric restriction? Hell no. As someone with thyroid disease who has dieted her entire adult life, I know what it’s like to get by on 1000 calories per day and I never intend to do it again. Then there’s resveratrol. I’ve tried to incorporate a glass of red wine with dinner, but I just don’t like the stuff. “Eat a few red grapes now and then,” suggested my doc, but I know that isn’t enough to make a difference. Probably. Besides, there seem to be cardiac benefits from the alcohol itself. Resveratrol pills are too expensive for me to consider now, though I expect that if the research continues to point towards its efficacy, prices will drop in a few years.

So what am I willing to do? Get rid of my excess weight, for one. I’ve lost 80 lbs so far and I’ll be glad to get down to “normal” size for a lot of reasons, life expectancy included. (Also a key concern for me: I’m sick of my size being a political issue for assholes who want to further restrict our freedoms. I don’t want to be part of their statistics anymore.) My blood pressure is now normal without medication and while my cholesterol is higher than my doctor would like — I’m a cholesterol skeptic, myself — my HDL and triglyceride numbers are excellent. I’ll exercise, too. For most of this year, I’ve been diligent about working out — hill patterns on the stationary bike, a martial arts class, and a weight training class — but illness and allergies caused me to take a break for the past few weeks. I need to get back into a routine. Maybe I’ll give red wine another try. Grape juice is out of the question because of the amount of sugar it contains, but surely my husband and I can throw back a bottle of Three Buck Chuck each week. I want him with me as long as possible, too.

Hopefully the life changes I’m willing to make a bit of a difference. I’m not trying to get to 200, after all, just a youthful 120.