Taking the plunge

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

I'm beginning CR and would appreciate your advice/guidance,

particularly on the practical implementation of CR (see below)/

About me:

I'm 36 YO (soon to be 37), 5'5 " , currently weigh 128-130, set point

most likely 125-127. I am guessing I need to end up between 100-110

lbs. BP on the low end (110/68), all other stats normal so far as I

know (don't really have a GP, haven't needed to see a doc in around

10 years). Have horrible eating habits at present, know I need to

improve.

Background & information: read Maximum Life Span when it came out,

have both 120-yr diet and Beyond 120-year diet. Have started CR in

past, but the lack of practical 'how-tos " made it difficult to

continue. (Among many things, I hate to cook and have virtually zero

time during most weekdays, so, for example, salads that require hours

of chopping and slicing are OUT).

Reason I've started again: Simply put, you guys. I've been lurking

for the past 6 months and have been very impressed by your practical

knowledge, helfpulness, and scientific expertise. I'm confident that

with the right help from you, I will be able to solve my pratical

issues.

I'm planning a 3-phase program:

1. Change diet, eat freely. Switch from my current

cheeseburgers-and-fries diet to a vegetable-centric, low-fat,

moderate-protein plan following roughly the outlines in the book. Eat

ad lib from that diet until I'm accustomed to it (probably 4-6 weeks).

I expect to lose some weight during that period (especially as I have

stepped up my exercise program) but while I will be monitoring the

scale, weight loss is not the goal (yet).

2. Low to moderate caloric restriction. When I am confident I have

adapted to the new foods, begin slowly restricting calories to average

1 lb/week weight loss. From previous experience, I expect this will

not be too difficult until I get in the 117-120 range (about 3

months).

3. Begin CR in earnest. Aim for very slow weight loss over next 12-18

months, using more focused version of above.

Areas where I need help:

1. So far, does this approach sound reasonable? Is there anything else

I should be doing?

2. I live in NYC, where eating out is a civic duty, and pretty much

every meal but breakfast is eaten out. I'm willing to modify this

somewhat, particularly during weekdays, but any plan I undertake

realistically has to accomodate restraunt food. Any advice for doing

this sanely and well?

3. As noted, I have virtually zero time for cooking. I can do stews

and soups, but my main plan of attack is to have a " base " for each

meal consisting of fruit or steamed vegetables (frozen or prechopped

from the supermarket) augmented by lowfat protein (cottage cheese, egg

white, salmon) and carbs as needed. Muffins, smoothies, elaborate

casseroles all take too much time. Any advice on solving this

particular problem?

4. Finally, I should note that my husband is not currently into CR,

but is very health-conscious and could be convinced. Since I would

like him around for the next 70-80 years or so, any guidance as to how

to " make the case " ? I'm assuming I should wait until after I've been

CRing for a while.

Thanks in advance,

JTJ