How Eating for Pleasure Became Eating for a Purpose

By Beebop

Today’s blog prompt asked, “What are your family’s top 3 favorite meals?”
Most people would rattle off their comfort foods, and honestly, if you had asked me that question when I was young, I would have given you an entire menu.

Back then, I absolutely lived to eat.

I ate like food was a sport — and I played varsity.
Huge bowls of pasta two or three nights a week.
Pizza like it was one of the main food groups.
Philadelphia cheesesteaks so often I could’ve had my own parking spot.
Ice cream every single day… sometimes twice.
And I’m not talking two scoops — I’m talking “hand me the whole container.”

I’d pull into McDonald’s and order five cheeseburgers, a large vanilla shake, and just for good measure, a vanilla cone on the side. No lie. That was nothing for me.

And of course, all of that showed up on the scale.
I had a 42-inch waist and tipped over 250 pounds, and I carried it like it was normal life. I didn’t even question it. I was young, I felt invincible, and the truth is, you can get away with a lot in your teens, twenties, and thirties… until you can’t.

Everything changed when I turned 55.

It wasn’t a dramatic health scare. It wasn’t a doctor yelling at me. It wasn’t even a diet plan. It was something much simpler and much more powerful:
I realized I wanted to stay on this earth long enough — and sharp enough — to enjoy my life, my marriage, my work, and my family with a clear mind.

It hit me one day:
I was working so hard to build a future, but I wasn’t taking care of the body and brain I needed to enjoy that future.

At 55, I made a decision that felt like flipping a switch.
I stopped eating like a teenager and started eating like a man who understood what was at stake — my longevity, my energy, my clarity, and my ability to stay fully alive and involved with the people I love.

And that’s when I shifted from living to eat… to eating to live.

My meals changed.
My lifestyle changed.
My mindset changed.

And so did my waistline — dramatically.

So when I get asked, “What are your family’s top 3 favorite meals?”, my answers today look nothing like the food that ruled my younger years.

Now, if I had to pick my favorites — the meals I enjoy and the ones that take care of my brain — it would be:

A grilled salmon fillet with broccoli and a baked sweet potato.
That’s clarity on a plate.

A big chef’s salad with grilled chicken.
Fresh, crisp, and clean — I feel lighter the moment I finish it.

Homemade chicken chili.
Comfort food without the crash.

These aren’t meals that slow me down. They’re meals that keep me moving forward.

And honestly, all this ties right into brain health and staying sharp as I age.
When I eat clean, I think clearer.
When I sleep better, I live better.
When my body stays lean, my brain stays young.

I’ve never been a drinker — not a sip — and looking back now, that might be one of the best accidental decisions I ever made. The science says alcohol shrinks the brain; I prefer to keep as much of mine as possible.

But here’s the real secret weapon for a young mind: kids.

Spending time with young children — listening, answering their wild questions, laughing with them, getting pulled into their little worlds — nothing keeps you sharper. They force you into the present. They keep your mind limber. They remind you how to imagine again. My grandkids do more for my brain than any supplement ever could.

So no, I don’t live to eat anymore. Those days served their purpose — and believe me, I enjoyed every cheeseburger.
But now I eat to live.
To stay sharp.
To stay strong.
To stay active.
And to stay fully alive for as long as I can.