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Today I have the pleasure of being joined by Melissa Huha a health coach with Octavia.

At one point in her life, she realized that she needed to lose weight and she couldn't do it alone so she enlisted the help of a health coach at Octavia. She successfully lost weight and wanted to pay it forward by becoming a health coach herself.

She eats every 2.5-3 hrs and avoids all "white" foods such as sugar, white flour and white pasta. She drinks lots of water and she pays close attention to how the foods that she eats make her feel. She gives an example of apples. This used to be her favorite fruit but now she has noticed that she gets a headache after consuming them.

She likes to read, hike and fish. When I asked what was her purpose in life, she did not hesitate for a second. She quickly said that her purpose is to help others.

If you would like to contact Melissa, please check out her facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/melissa.huha.5

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Today I have the pleasure of interviewing a friend of mine, Mimi Lezanski. We became friends because of 2 shared interests: reading and yoga.

Mimi is soon to be 63 years old. She has recently retired from her career in education but she isn't slowing down. She went to Costa Rica and earned her yoga teacher training certification. She has future plans to learn Sanskrit and to perfect her skill at playing bridge.

She is of Polish descent and follows many of the traditions such as allowing her grandchildren to eat on the couch and cooking with real food rather than eating out of a box. She describes the Polish tradition of multi-generational households and close family ties.

Her love of physical activity began when she taught aerobics at a Jack LaLanne studio in New Jersey and its grown from there. Today her activity ranges from walking to tennis.

Her most important advice is to listen to your body. She was able to quit smoking by listening to the signals that her body was sending her. She listens to her body when deciding what to eat (and what to avoid eating such as drinking wine at night), when to eat (she typically does not eat anything after 5pm) and what exercise to do. For example, she continues to play tennis but will limit time spent on the court when she feels pain in her wrist.

Her purpose in life is family. She was excited to retire from her teaching career so that she could devote more time to her family which includes her husband, two daughters and grandchildren.

Her closing remarks include this gem: life is not over at age 60 or 70! Keep living and doing the things that you love but be mindful.

To contact Mimi, use her email: mmlezanski@gmail.com

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I have lived most of my life in the Northeastern portion of the U.S. but I did spend 10 years living in the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. In this episode, I will compare the lifestyle in the U.S. with that of Cyprus.

I am joined today by my sister-in-law, Helen, who has a similar experience. She was raised in Cyprus and then left the country for school and work. She has lived in Lebanon, Abu Dhabi, Brazil and the U.S. She will help me compare the lifestyle of the U.S. with that of Cyprus.

Some of the differences that we discussed are below.

In Cyprus, most meals are home cooked using fresh ingredients. Cypriots do not buy in bulk. They shop frequently to ensure that they are getting the freshest ingredients. One quirky fact is that there are open-bed trucks that drive thru the neighborhoods selling fresh fruit and veggies in season. If a fruit or vegetable is not in season, you probably won't find it in a store.

Cypriots like to socialize and lead very relaxed lifestyles. Meals can be quite lengthy since people like to linger and talk.

The foods that Cypriots eat are fresh. A typical snack would be fruit or nuts. Every Monday is a day to eat beans and no meat. They use fresh spices, often from their own gardens, to flavor food and to make tea that can be used for medicinal purposes, such as drinking chamomile tea to get ready for sleep. They eat their biggest meal of the day at lunchtime.

Cypriots don't usually go the gym to workout. They stay active by walking, swimming and tending to their gardens.

Family is critically important. A Cypriot's purpose in life would be care of the family.

Overall, the Cypriot lifestyle is more slower-paced than in the U.S. and the foods are fresh. I would say that Cyprus is a good example of the Mediterranean diet and lifestyle.

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In this episode, I had the pleasure of being joined by Cathy Drazek. She is a 51 year old busy mother of two who changed her eating habits because she saw how it was effecting her son.

Cathy was overweight for most of her life. During covid, she noticed that her 14 year old son was also gaining weight because he was mimicking her eating habits. This was the moment when she decided to make a dramatic change.

She consulted with a coach and has successfully been able to lose weight, lower her inflammation levels as evidenced by improvement in joint pain, and has helped her son to improve his own eating habits.

Her purpose in life is continual learning. Age is not slowing her down as she continues to have goals for the future including her plan to establish a "maker space" within the next 5 years. She thrives on teaching others and enjoys the impact she has on youngsters thru her volunteer work with the scouts.

Family plays an integral role in her life. She manages her son's hockey team and loves every minute of it. This is how she manages her stress.

The link to Cathy's crafting business page is below:

https://www.facebook.com/CraftyCathy13

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