My Story

My health journey started in 2016. I was in my mid-forties. I had a small lab products distribution business. I was busy but isolated. Not very active. I was overweight, with high cholesterol, and with digestive issues. In the morning, it was hard to start moving because of how tight my muscles were. In the past, I had been active and I loved running. I always dreamt of running marathons. I knew that it made me feel good. However, I would try going for a run, and then I could barely walk for a couple of days. That was If I did not get injured... 

At the end of the summer of 2016, I went to my doctor with an ankle the size of a soccer ball. I had been there before because of my knees, and I was looking for solutions so that I could run, but the doctor told me that running wasn't for me. It got me really mad. But that moment changed my life.

I decided to do my own research about how to prevent injuries. I started to read a lot about the importance of eating healthy, and that's how I found Dr. T. Colin Campbell's "The China Study". It was such an eye-opener! I really had no idea about the strong relationship between the way we eat and the common diseases in the Western world. I understood that there was no proof of causality, but, to me, the evidence was too strong.

My family has a history of cancer: my grandmother died of cancer, my father died of cancer, and that year my cousin died of cancer. I always had the feeling that I was going to "win" the cancer lottery. There wasn't much I could do about it. However, after learning this new information, I knew that there was a lot I could do. 

After having a bit of turkey on Thanksgiving day, I said: "That's it! I'm going plant-based".

2017 was a year of transformation. I started to feel better and more energetic. In the mornings I could actually move. I started riding my bike indoors in the winter, and once my ankle fully healed, I started running, without problems. At the end of the year without trying, I had lost 45 pounds, my cholesterol plummeted, and even my allergies went away. I finished the year having run 400 miles.

Moving forward to today, almost 10 years later, I feel much younger than then. Last April I ran my fourth marathon, and I qualified for Boston! All powered by plants!!

Along this journey, I always had the desire to share this experience with others. I see family and friends with deteriorating health, and that for them, as it was for me, is just the normal aging process. I have this need to let people know that there is a lot that they can do to feel better.

Last year, I finally decided to start to take action. I started volunteering as a lifestyle mentor with Plant Powered Metro New York. I started volunteering in my running club North Jersey Masters in their beginners running program, to help people start moving. I decided to become a Health and Well-being Coach, for which I just got certified. I became a Food for Life Instructor with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, to show people that anyone can cook healthy and tasty meals just with plants. And recently I also became a certified Running Coach.

I want to help people revolutionize their lifestyle. I want to help them find their inner motivation and strengths to live healthier lives. I want to help them eat better, move more, and connect more.

People save for retirement, I want to help them invest in being able to enjoy that retirement!!!