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Belletty: Could you tell us about the new food guide pyramid you mention
in your book and why we should abandon the current one provided by the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)?

Crowley: The old one is just crazy! and the newer one harder to follow.
The basic pitch from Harry and I, is that it’s hard to know an awful a lot about
nutrition. Almost all diets are either baloney or don’t work. The best thing to
do is eat a balanced diet. Eat less. Try to go heavy on the fruits and veggies if
you can bare it and stay away from the stuff you know is killing you. The new
food pyramid is generally correct, a little bit hard to follow, in our modest view.

Belletty: Why should our younger audience commit to a healthier
lifestyle now?

Crowley: If you can develop a serious exercise habit as a relative kid, you’ll
work better longer. You’ll have a better time. So often, kids in our society think
working out is just for the athletes in class, the guys on the football team and
all that kind of stuff. That’s not true. This isn’t like that! This is different! This
is a habit for your health for the rest of your life. Never mind whether you are the
greatest athlete or not. You want to use your body. You were designed for it.

Belletty: What advise do you have for a busy individual finding it difficult
to fit exercise time into their schedule?

Crowley: Think about it. If you are over fifty, it’s just desperately important. In
general, awfully busy, very successful women and men do this stuff. Their basic
rule is, think of it as your job. It’s not a decision you make everyday. It’s your
job, you just plain do it. Suck it up! Go to work. Go to the gym. Go out on the
bike. You have enough time, it’s just priority. It’s less TV, more working out.
You just have to fit it in. It’s just too important not to.

Belletty: What do you say to motivate individuals who are stubborn about
making these changes?

Crowley: Well, it’s hard of course, but the big thing is to say, hey look, the way
your body works, you got your hands on the controls all the time. You can’t let
go of the controls! Whether you get a little bit older or a little bit younger, today
is entirely up to you and what you do, how you behave today, decides that.
Once people understand that everything they do has extraordinarily important
consequences to the quality of their life, it’s a little bit easier. A lot of people
go along with this, with great results may I say.

Belletty: What significant difference has the information you’re providing
made in the lives of your readers?

Crowley: Well, a lot frankly! I got two e-mails today from people saying,
“hey, thanks a lot, this changed my life. I lost forty pounds. I feel a lot better.”
It goes on and on. It’s one of the nicest things in our lives these days.

Belletty: Your book has been instrumental in guiding many Americans
towards a longer lasting, better quality of life. Does the rest of the world
share in this new lifestyle option?

Crowley: We’re doing this interview while I’m in my apartment in New York and
I’m looking up at a shelf. This book has been translated into…Chinese, Japanese
and German. It’s in about thirty languages.

Belletty: What do you do for fun?

Crowley: This whole thing is fun man! I got the best job on the planet! My job is
to go around, have an awful lot of fun and then go tell people about it. Go look at
my website, www.youngernextyear.com and press the ski button. See what I do
all day long. My job is to show that life can be a lot more fun than most people
think. I’m seventy-three and I’m having a good time! Yes, I do this for a living.