How Longevity Expert Valter Longo Plans to Live to 120

The musician turned scientist has translated his intermittent fasting research into a lifestyle

There are many ways to live a healthy life. The Health Diaries is a weekly series about the habits that keep notable people living well.

Intermittent fasting is one of the hottest fields in longevity research, and Valter Longo, PhD, author of The Longevity Diet and director of the University of Southern California’s Longevity Institute, deserves much of the credit. Several studies, including Longo’s, have linked calorie restriction to a lower risk of disease, better brain function, and, yes, a potentially longer life. The Italian gerontologist has been dubbed the “fasting evangelist” after he helped create a so-called fasting-mimicking diet based on his research.

The method involves eating a low-protein, plant-based diet with a five-day fasting sequence. Longo has also created a corresponding meal program he calls ProLon, short for “pro-longevity,” which his research has linked to changes in biomarkers associated with aging, inflammation, cancer, and diabetes. (Longo says he donates the revenue from ProLon to charity.)

I wake up at 7 a.m. every day. And every other day, I start with a workout. I do about 40 minutes on a bike at high resistance, like I’m going uphill. Then I do some sets of pushups, pullups, and situps. I follow it up with a light breakfast. I usually have tea with one to two slices of cinnamon raisin bread and apricot preserves.

I pay really close attention to my weight when it comes to my eating and fasting. I’m currently at 172 pounds, and my BMI [body mass index] is 22.5 to 23 [which is in the normal range]. If I start to get to 174 or 175 pounds, I start a “snack for lunch” strategy. I keep my snack at 100 calories — usually nuts, olives, or a small salad. But if I do have lunch, it’s usually rice, garbanzo beans, and salad with salmon.

Dinner is my biggest meal — and it’s my only major meal most days. A typical dinner looks like 300 to 400 grams of garbanzo beans, peas, pasta, and lots of olive oil with mixed vegetables. For dessert, I’ll have nuts, dried fruit, or 85 percent dark chocolate. It’s very bitter, but once you get…