The Importance of Healthy Living: A Journey with Nadja Piatka
In a world where fast-paced lifestyles often overshadow personal well-being, Nadja Piatka’s story serves as a beacon of inspiration. At 75, Nadja is not only a bestselling cookbook author and retired CEO but also a testament to the transformative power of healthy living.
A New Beginning: Nadja’s journey began with a significant life change. After her marriage ended, she found herself at a crossroads, facing financial challenges and the responsibility of raising her children alone. It was during this time that she discovered her passion for baking healthy foods, which eventually led to a successful business venture with major brands like McDonald’s and Subway.
The Power of Purpose: Nadja emphasizes the importance of finding joy in what you do. “Don’t follow the money; let the money follow you,” she advises. Her commitment to creating healthy, delicious food not only brought her personal fulfillment but also positively impacted countless lives.
Healthy Living as a Lifestyle: Nadja’s Instagram account, “Eat, Move, Glow,” showcases her dedication to promoting healthy aging. She shares practical tips on exercise, diet, and lifestyle choices that contribute to a vibrant life at any age. Her message is clear: it’s never too late to start taking care of yourself.
Lessons Learned: Through her journey, Nadja learned that resilience and adaptability are key. She encourages others to embrace change and view challenges as opportunities for growth. Her story is a reminder that healthy living is not just about physical well-being but also about nurturing a positive mindset.
Conclusion: Nadja Piatka’s life is a testament to the importance of healthy living. Her story inspires us to prioritize our well-being, embrace change, and find joy in our pursuits. As Nadja says, “Your best years should be ahead of you.” Let’s take her advice to heart and embark on our own journey towards a healthier, happier life.
Subscribe now to stay updated with more inspiring stories and tips on healthy living.
Full transcript below:
Erica Pasvar (00:01)
Joining me today on the More Than Your Age podcast is the woman who is proving that age is truly just a number, bestselling cookbook author, certified fitness instructor, retired CEO of Holista Foods, Najah Piatka. Welcome to the More Than Your Age podcast.
Nadja Piatka (00:19)
Thank you Erica, so happy to be here.
Erica Pasvar (00:21)
I am so happy to have you. love just at the time of our current recording, we connected via Instagram. I guess it was just a week ago and I loved what I saw. And so I’ll just share a little bit for the listeners. You are a 75 year old woman sharing your life and how you are taking care of yourself through exercise, diet and lifestyle. You are proving to everyone that life continues.
and on and it looks incredible at 75. I’m so glad that you are doing this. mean, seriously, I just saw it and I was like, yes, yes, yes. And then, you you responded back and then I thought, wait, I need to hear your life story. I need to hear your story. Why are you so positive about all this? So I saw your page and, you know, everything looks great. And then when I asked you to be an interview, you know, to be a guest on the podcast, I didn’t know your whole resume when you said yes. And then I thought, OK, well, let me take a look more about her.
And then I saw your whole resume of your career and I thought, wow, not just even more of a woman who fits into this qualification of being more than her age. And so I’m just very, very thankful to have you share because it’s going to resonate with the listeners and help the listeners as well. I do. We will talk about kind of where you are now, but we’re going to go a little bit to the to the beginning. So something that when I watch your Oprah video, so for the listeners,
Nadja was on Oprah. So that’s a big fun fame to claim.
You. Yeah, that’s fascinating. So you were married to a dentist a long time ago and you were a stay at home mom. You stayed home and didn’t work outside of the home until one day he left. So what happened?
Nadja Piatka (01:41)
pretty amazing.
Yeah,
well, I was married for just under 20 years. And I had two young children.
know, if it wasn’t a great marriage, but it was what I knew, it was the life I
never had to worry about money.
And I, you know, just was sort of accepting the way things were. And yes, he, you
met an actress slash model and
came home one day and said that he was leaving and he had gone through at the same time of bankruptcy. So he moved to the other part of the country where his girlfriend was and I was left with the house that was being repossessed, the cars that were being taken and the bill of selectors at the door. And I was a teacher by trade when we first got married, but that was like 20 years before that. So
trying to get back into the teaching career. I was very outdated and I couldn’t find work. And, you know, had to move into a house where when the moving van pulled up, he said to my girlfriend that went ahead with the moving van, moving van, so he goes, I’m not gonna load the truck. I think we got the wrong address. And she goes, no, you got the right address. So
Erica Pasvar (03:04)
I’m not going to unload the truck. I think we got the wrong address.
Nadja Piatka (03:10)
⁓ So yeah, things change. ⁓ And it’s interesting, you know, when in sometimes the toughest days, you find out there’s a reason. And it puts you on a path of
Erica Pasvar (03:11)
yeah, things change. it’s interesting, know, sometimes the toughest days find out there’s a reason and it puts you on a path of
Nadja Piatka (03:24)
maybe where you’re supposed to go, you know, I look back and I say, you know, he gave me a favor, because I redefined myself, I, I found my strength, you know, I used to be a gosh and golly, please, and thank you, wife. And then
Erica Pasvar (03:25)
maybe where you’re supposed to go. I look back and I say, you know, gave me a favor because I redefined myself. I found my strength in all. used to be a gosh and golly, please and thank you wife. And
then I had two children. I had to build collectors at the door. I had to find work. I had to provide for them. And I think it just, I found an inner strength that I didn’t think I had.
Nadja Piatka (03:39)
I had two children, had bill collectors at the door, I had to find work, I had to provide for them. And I think it just, I found an inner strength that I didn’t think I had.
And, and it’s interesting, people say, did he want to come back? And yeah, he did want to come back. And I said, I like the new person I am, I don’t want to be that person. I like who I am now.
Erica Pasvar (03:52)
and it’s interesting if you’ll say, he want to come back? And yeah, he did want to come back and I said, I like the new person I am. I don’t want to be that person.
Nadja Piatka (04:03)
so it, it changed my life. And I think, you know, what I love to
tell them because you know, the space that everybody goes through tough times, everybody goes through losses. Everybody goes through situations, they wonder like, why is this happening to me? And I think you have to you know, I learned two things.
know, losing, you know, like, our fancy house and all that. I lost some of my fancy friends too. So I couldn’t afford to keep up and I call that thing the herd, which is okay.
Erica Pasvar (04:26)
I lost some of my fancy friends too. Can the board keep up and put that thing to her? It’s okay.
Nadja Piatka (04:35)
But I learned, don’t ever love anything that can’t love you back. And homes and possessions are things. I learned that there were more important things. And sometimes the world just puts you on a new path. And I think that’s the one thing. I find women are very resilient.
And we do, you we are, we have such amazing coping skills that, you know, we can, we can not only achieve and provide and do things and, know, let’s face it, I’m not going to say I wasn’t in a fetal position for a while. But, you know, you want to kind of, and what was the breaking point for me was when the bill collector used to come, when I
when we moved in, when we moved into the little house. But the bill collector would come there because there was still money owed. And I used to hide under the table, which was just under the under a window. So when he looked in the windows, and yes, they do look in the windows. But I would just hide under there, and then they think no one’s home and they go away. But one day, my daughter Veronica was home from school. And she was first she came home for lunch.
Erica Pasvar (05:23)
there.
Nadja Piatka (05:45)
And I made her hide under the table with me. And I remember, you know, we were on our hands and knees, you know, nose to nose and, and he’s yelling deadbeat. And, and Veronica is going, mommy, mommy, I have to go to school. I have to go. And I said, no, no, no, you can stay here till he goes away. And you know, and I remember saying to her, you know, Veronica, one day we’re going to laugh about this. It was so that was the, the moment that turned things just
Erica Pasvar (05:45)
gosh.
Nadja Piatka (06:10)
made me realize that I don’t want to be in this position anymore.
couldn’t find work, as I said, because I was unqualified. I couldn’t even turn on a computer. I just I knew so little. so I started doing what I knew. And that was, you know, baking. I love to bake. I always loved I always was interested in food. My parents owned a restaurant. We lived above a restaurant. We also had a grocery store.
before that, you know, I thought all children put an apron on when they came home from school. This was just, you know, just our world. And it was wonderful. You know, we had lots of food and we didn’t, we didn’t have a lot of money, but we had so much bounty, you know, so much to be grateful for. And I loved the food business. And my mother even said to me when I was little, said, Nadja, there’s some people who just have a connection to food. And I really think I did because my two other sisters,
Erica Pasvar (07:05)
You couldn’t find them after school. So I pulled on to that. thought, I love making healthy food. That was something that because I had weight problems when I was younger.
Nadja Piatka (07:05)
you can find them after school. it was, you know, so I pulled on to that. thought, you know, I love making healthy food. That was something that because I had a weight problem when I was younger,
and I started to learn how to eat better. And so I started baking and waking up at four o’clock in the morning to, you know, make muffins and I would sell them to coffee shops in our
Erica Pasvar (07:20)
And I started to learn how to make better. And so I started baking and waking up at four o’clock in the morning to make muffins and I would sell them to coffee shops.
Nadja Piatka (07:34)
⁓ I lived in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada at that time. And in the middle of the winter, getting in my car and, and selling to coffee shops, and I was making healthy muffins, and they were selling off the tray. ⁓ And yeah, so that’s when,
Erica Pasvar (07:35)
I lived in Edmonton, Alberta, at the time. And in middle of the winter, getting in my car and selling to coffee shops and I was making healthy muffins and they were selling off the trade.
Nadja Piatka (07:50)
when people were looking to eat healthy, but healthy didn’t taste good. Now healthy does taste good. tastes better than it did back then. Healthy tastes like cardboard. Back then.
Erica Pasvar (08:00)
You
Nadja Piatka (08:02)
But I was able to create things that I believed in that I loved. And, you know, that led to me outsourcing. So I wasn’t getting up in the morning and baking, I went to a little bakery, had them sign a confidentiality agreement, which I could not afford a lawyer. So I took an old aerobics waiver, just whited up some words. So they couldn’t steal my recipes. And, and they made my products. And then I went out and
start to market and sell and expand the places that we could sell these products because they could deliver for me. And that’s how I got into the McDonald’s business by approaching them. That was hard because Healthy was not big on their menu. It was important, but it wasn’t anything they felt could sell because it never tasted good, except my product did.
So yeah, so it was a it was quite the journey, a lot of ups and downs. But I think having two children and and I did not have alimony. I had child support. Not a lot, but I had child support, but no alimony for myself. So that was, you know, another reason why I had to, I had to find some work to do. But I found such joy in the cooking that, you know,
It’s amazing when you find joy in what you’re doing. I always tell people don’t follow the money. Let the money follow you. Which means if you love what you’re doing, that abundance will happen, but you can’t do something just because, I’m good. It’s just for the money. mean, you can, but if that’s, that might not be your purpose. That might not be your passion. That might be your need at the time. and believe me, if I had found work, I would have taken it.
And
used to pray at night and I used to say, you know, Lord, if I could just find a job, my worries would be over. And I could not find work.
And it put me on a another path. Because if I had if I certainly would have taken that because I would have at least had money coming in. But I share a story.
I had, I got one interview, I mean, I had the worst resume in the world. Have you ever, when’s the last time you worked? 22 years ago. Okay, do you know what computer? I think I can open one. I’m not sure if I can turn it on. like, I was just so bad. my God. I wonder, I don’t even know how I ended up even wanting to show up for this interview, but I did, I did show up and you can tell when you’re, when you’re not doing well.
interview until the person’s expression, you
Erica Pasvar (10:38)
Hehehe
Nadja Piatka (10:39)
and, but I was so desperate. So I kept talking and like, and, and I remember, I saw, I tell people because a takeaway for everyone who’s listening, do not cry during an interview. So needless to say, I had to do other things and
I’m such a believer in, in purpose. I’m such a believer in where sometimes you’re pushed or nudged into other places.
know, people sometimes wonder, you know, why did I, why did I not get that job? Why did not? Why did that relationship not work? Why did that person leave me? Why did this happen? Because we do have things that happen to us. And sometimes we think like, why is this
And when things happen, bad things happen to you, believe me, you think you’re the only one because it’s like such a solitary, awful thing. And what I learned was, you know, sometimes there’s a reason in the universe is just telling you this is not where you’re supposed to be or what you’re supposed to do. And yeah, it’s been even retiring now at 75. And I discovered I’m not good at retiring. I don’t play golf.
Erica Pasvar (11:30)
Yeah.
Nadja Piatka (11:56)
There goes my there goes my day and I love my friends who play golf, but they’re good at it.
I have to share my my can I share my my golf story with you?
Erica Pasvar (12:08)
Sure.
Nadja Piatka (12:10)
Okay, so I went out with a golf coach, because I thought that now that I’m retired, it’d be nice to play golf. And so it my first lesson, and I hit 75, and I said to my golf instructor, what do we do now? And he said, we go to the second hole. Just kidding. That’s how bad I was. and again, I…
I turned back to, know, just what do I find joy in and I find joy in in sharing things you know that good feeling like when you tell someone about a good restaurant and they go they go that was a great meal and you kind of get this feel you’re not getting anything monetary from it but you just feel good or you tell someone you should watch this movie or you should watch this TV series they go I watched it was so good and you just feel really
Erica Pasvar (12:55)
Hmm.
Nadja Piatka (13:04)
you just feel good. And this Instagram account that I started just over four months ago, I just started it because I thought, you know, I feel like I’m kind of bored. What could I do? But I love sharing things that have helped me along my life, whether it’s do my health, or other things like that. I’m just gonna do Instagram and just put out there everything that it’s helped me just put it out there and wasn’t even just didn’t even think I would have the response I did it was
When I first started, had like family, I’m going, would you like, follow me just so I’ve got a couple people up there? And then all of a sudden, more and more people because and they were saying, I like what you’re saying, you know, I can do this. It’s real. And then, you know, now I’m getting over 10,000 followers a week. And it’s growing. Yeah, and it’s growing and growing and all and it’s just the simplicity of just saying, I just want to tell you what I do.
Erica Pasvar (13:52)
my gosh.
Nadja Piatka (13:58)
what helps me and that is as simple as that. I’m having such joy in what I’m doing and I figured at 75 I hope I can do this like for another 10 years. I’ll be the 95 year old or the 85 year old doing exercise on Instagram.
Erica Pasvar (14:14)
Oh, I believe it.
Well, okay, so Nadja, I want to go, I want to kind of go back a little bit some
some of your story because I’m like, oh my goodness, I have so many questions from kind of the beginning. So I’m curious to know when, after your ex-husband told you he was leaving and you, there was the moment, you you were living in this very nice house and then you with your children, moved to the smaller home.
And then you said the debt collector came banging on the door and you looked at your daughter and you said, you know, one day we’re going to laugh about this. How much time had happened from initiation to wake up call of, okay, I got to figure something out.
Nadja Piatka (14:56)
Well, the moving from the big house to the little house was the you know, was that first transition in lifestyle. And you know, and that was traumatic. mean, it wasn’t traumatic because I was moving out of the big house. was traumatic because I had I had furniture that went from a big home to a little house. So like, where do I put this? That was like giving the giving the guys
that were moving me like first to try and take this like I was going to play. know, and then just realizing like, you know, when like when my son walked in the house, he goes, Mom, are my friends gonna laugh at me when they see where I live now? You know, so you know, the reality that we weren’t where we used to be. And then on top of that, we, you know, we lost our dog, we couldn’t find our dog when we’re moving because, you know, with the going in and houses and you know,
open doors and like we get to the new house and the dog was in the car and then he’s not the kids are crying and like I’m like, just well that ended up the dog had we went back the other house we thought maybe he went there but he wasn’t there. But he ended up jumping into like the sunroof in my car and just sleeping in there because he he didn’t like the new house either clearly. So so my so that was that was such a tough day.
And it is so funny. My mother came to help me. And I really was really, I was really putting it together. And I remember, I couldn’t find a coffee. I needed a cup of coffee. And, and I couldn’t find my mug that I liked. And I remember just breaking down and sobbing. And my mother’s going, we’ll get more coffee. It wasn’t the coffee. It was like just the last straw like just
Erica Pasvar (16:46)
Yeah
Yeah.
Nadja Piatka (16:50)
my god, I cannot do this. So, you know, so that was so moved into the house. I was trying to find work was quite a few months. The bill collectors, you know, were, were coming after us. And, and so that’s when so it was a few months after that, where I started to bake and saying, well, I’ll do this, you know, see if
And as a friend of mine, she had a small coffee shop. So I went to her and I think, no, can I make these muffins and just see if I was back when you didn’t need like the the kitchen, the qualified kitchen. She had a little coffee shop. I had a little kitchen. She was well, bring him in. They were selling off the tray. And that’s when I realized I think I have something that has value. it’s interesting.
The definition of an entrepreneur and I did not make this up, but
But it’s a great definition. And I think it’s something that a lot of people can apply to it if they are entrepreneurs or would be entrepreneurs is an entrepreneur is someone who creates something out of nothing and translates it into something of value that other people want. It could be anything. It could be gadget. It could be a food. It could be something that people not want. But that’s what an entrepreneur does. He creates something out of nothing and translates it into something of value that other people want.
And was as simple as that. And that’s what I did. was a food product. was a food product that was healthier than other muffins, brownies, cakes, cookies that were out there.
Erica Pasvar (18:23)
Yeah, and it was wonderful that you had this friend who owned this coffee shop and you were able to say, know, I’ve got this product. Did you know, how did, did she just say, hey, I’ll pay x amount or did you just say, I don’t know, give me what you need or how did you know where to price it at that point specifically because you were so new to this whole world?
Nadja Piatka (18:43)
Right.
Well, what I did was I just took my ingredient cost, I took my my time cost, and I just said to her, and I asked her, said, What do you usually pay for muffins that a bakery delivers? So that kind of gave me an area of what I could charge. And she was really good. She knew that I needed money, and she wasn’t going to make me cook bake for her for free. she was selling it on her side, and she would be making her margins also. So it was basically just kind of
studying the market, like what does the muffin go for? And what do I need to cover some costs and hopefully make a bit of a margin. And then when I outsource to a bakery, then your structure changes because now you’re doing larger volume production. They’re getting ingredients at higher, like better pricing. They have, but then they have to cover their overhead and their staff. So they have to make a margin, I did. And then I needed some marketing money to be able to get out there and.
promote my product. But what I did for free advertising, I went when I went that day where the when the bill collector came. After that, that’s when I kind of realized I have to do something. And I wrote down on the other cardboard that’s inside pantyhose. I couldn’t find it. I couldn’t find it. I took that and I wrote down
Erica Pasvar (19:56)
Yes. ⁓
Nadja Piatka (20:01)
Five goals and they were crazy lofty goals and i would say if you’re to write a goal just reach for the stars, you know, why do a goal that is not Wow, you know and I wrote down that I was going to own my own business I was going to be an author of a cookbook I was going to have a newspaper column I was going to have a tv show and I would bring value to people’s lives. Those were my goals. I wrote them down
I hid them because I thought if someone finds that they could think I’m certifiable because like really like you can’t even pay your bills you’re going to end within a year everyone except one of those goals came true within a year a year within a year. Yeah, I approached the newspaper because I couldn’t afford to advertise and I said I’ll write a newspaper column.
Erica Pasvar (20:44)
Within a year?
Nadja Piatka (20:55)
where I take before recipes like unhealthy, not unhealthy, but more fattening, more sugar, more calories, and I will make them over like a makeover, you know, into a healthier version. So I’ll do before and after. they said, well, that sounds like a really great idea. And I’d seen that in magazines. So I thought, oh, and I knew how to do that. And so they said, well, you know, we have a budget, Ken, for to pay you. And I said, well, I’ll do it for free. I’ll write a column every week.
and you put me in paper and put my picture and then my muffin so people would go buy my muffin. So that was free advertising. And then the article got quite popular. So then they started to pay me, I think like $50 a week or something. And again, there wasn’t the reason it was the advertising, but so that was how I was able to make that goal in the first year. And then writing a book, I took all the recipes I had written and I’d worked on and whatever.
And put those in and those were culminated into a book. So there was there was my book also. So and then owning a business. Well, my muffins I used to when I started in when I I always tell the story when I would get up early in the morning
and I’d be driving down the highway. And, you know, it was just me and transport trucks, you know, and they would come up and kind of.
blind me in my windshield because I was my mirror. And I used to pretend those were trucks hauling my product across the country. So like I visualized and I just got to see it and just got to imagine it just got to know it’s there. And it was fun. It was little games, but they were like valid games. And I like said, I approached the at that time, McDonald’s in Canada had regional offices could make decisions on products. Now it’s all done nationally. So but back then,
And they love the product. And so I got it into the regional office. And then it was doing so well, it was outselling the high fat, high calorie muffins. So I was out, so head office was able to do some testing and I competed against Quaker and kept winning the focus group testing on my muffins. how I got into McDonald’s. So it was bing, bing, bang, like it was like, the universe was just lining up and, and
everything. And I did not get the TV show yet. 30 years, maybe. I don’t give up easy. So and I realized the most important one of my five goals, the last one was I will bring value to people’s lives. And I, I have to understand why I wrote that because it really wasn’t a tangible thing. Certainly wasn’t a monetary thing. But I realized I wrote that because
Erica Pasvar (23:22)
Hehehehehe
Nadja Piatka (23:42)
when my husband left and I was going through everything and even before that I didn’t value myself. And I think I thought if I can bring value to other people’s lives, I must value myself. You know, and that was a very important goal. And I didn’t realize back then I was going to be that profound. But it’s just like, where did that come from? Okay, write that down. I need it. I need one more slot to fill. But it yeah, it really
Erica Pasvar (23:53)
Mm.
Nadja Piatka (24:06)
it really was a wild ride in life. It’s about ups and downs and how you react to it. And it’s interesting, I’m married now to my soulmate. I truly believe I found my soulmate. We’ve married 22 years. And I know I would not have met him if my husband had not left me. I mean, now,
it opened the door to new possibilities. know, when sometimes bad things happen, it’s opening the door to new possibilities. I think I can say to anyone is, you know, just leave yourself open to what the universe might be trying to provide you. Go to those meetings, go to those invitations, go and meet people, go and let people see you, because that’s when the networking happens and just saying, hey,
I know I like to do graphic design, you know, you’ve been might talk to someone who’s going, Oh, I’m looking for some or I like to bake or I like to build stuff or I’m good at bookkeeping or I’m good at whatever, you know, designing clothes, you know, sometimes. And one thing I learned is, you know, you can kind of incubate because when you’re suffering and you’re down and you don’t you have very low self esteem.
don’t want to get out there, you know, you don’t want to
get dressed up and put on the shine, you you just kind of feeling I’d rather like stay in my pajamas. I’ll still all day. And I had those days. But you have to eventually say, okay, you need to, you know, I mean, I remember one Christmas, you know, the first Christmas and just not having enough money for toys and all kinds of stuff. And I remember just getting into a bathtub and just
Erica Pasvar (25:30)
Yeah.
Nadja Piatka (25:47)
not wanting to get out, know, just being in that warm water and saying, I’ll just stay in here forever. I don’t want to move because you’re you’re afraid, you know. and, you know, we, it’s amazing how we do. We are survivors.
Erica Pasvar (26:02)
Yeah. said that you wanted to bring value to people’s lives because you realize you didn’t find value in yourself at the time. And you were dealing with extreme heartache, financial troubles, raising your children.
and the debt collectors came, we talked about that. And then you have this idea and you move forward with this idea of a healthier baking option. like you said, your background pre staying home with your kids, you were a teacher, but that had been 20 some odd years. But you…
If you put that one foot forward to say, okay, I have to do something about this and I’m taking this step and then you get the McDonald’s, which is also fascinating how that happened to
When you took that step forward, at what point did you realize, I do have value? I am worth doing this. And then also,
putting together these skills that you never even knew that you had, that it’s easiest for women to say, I have nothing, I didn’t do anything, but you did. mean, how were you able also to say, okay, no, these are new skills, I can do this? lot of, sorry, big question for you.
Nadja Piatka (27:27)
Yeah,
yeah, no, I don’t. That’s important question. I think that we all have skills. We all have. And skills could be just something we love something we like to do something we enjoy doing something that, like for me, all I always, I always think about food. And even when I would try to relax. At night, I would just read cookbooks in bed because that was like, you know, so I knew that was my my connection and
And even like I, I have any people that can meditate. Because I can’t try. But where my meditation is when I’m in the kitchen, and I’m, I’m cooking, because I always say you can’t cook and worry at the same time. Because you’re in the moment, you’re doing your ingredients, you’re thinking about that without thinking about all the other stuff. So so that is, you know, so I think sometimes, if you can find what you like,
If you can find something that brings you pleasure, you know, if that’s the
that might be where your skill is. That might be where what you’re supposed to do, you know, and it’s interesting. We all have different skills. know, my mother used to say, you know, if we all like vanilla ice cream, you know, there’d be no other flavors, you know. So I think that diversity that we have amongst ourselves is really what makes the world interesting.
but also makes us in a position to be able to supply the world with their needs because we all offer different things.
Erica Pasvar (28:54)
Yeah, I like that. When, because you kind of mentioned too with the distributing to McDonald’s, how are you able to be introduced to the company? then, because you know, people will hear that your everyday folk will say, I don’t know how this stuff happened. Like, how did you know to approach whoever you needed to approach?
Nadja Piatka (29:15)
Well, it was always the goal to expand the business and in my dream or my goal is when I say own a business, I said to own a business nationally. Again, dream big if you’re gonna dream, just I’m not gonna, you why not, right? Why not?
as I said, it was different back then where McDonald’s had regional offices that could make decisions.
Now, yes, it’s different. You would have to go try to get in the door of the head office, which I would have been very different and difficult. So it definitely is a matter of timing. Sometimes the timing is there, and you can take advantage of it. And I think it always a matter of idea, luck, and timing in life.
Erica Pasvar (30:00)
Yeah, and then you got that. Then you got a chance to be on Oprah, which is really exciting. How was that for you when you walked in and seeing this, you know, icon really?
Nadja Piatka (30:11)
Well, it was it was amazing
because I I’m a great gold setter. I just figured this is right down and see if it sticks. it’s amazing once you define once you define what you want, what you’re looking for. It really is much a clear path to get there. And I remember writing down and putting on a little card that I will be a guest on the Oprah Winfrey show. And I carried it in my wallet with me all the time. So it was like
Erica Pasvar (30:16)
Mm-hmm.
Nadja Piatka (30:39)
You know, I was tuned into that. so I used to, you I was supplying Subway. Also after McDonald’s, I supplied Subway with their low fat brownie, which is, supplied them for about 10 years. And the Harpo Studios was across the street from a Subway restaurant and they were selling my brownies. So her staff would come in to get them because they liked them.
And then, you know, my picture was on the point of sale. So there was that, you know, connection. So it’s almost like that’s how it happened. But I know to get on the Oprah Winfrey show back then, like people would, you could send products and I’m sure most of them didn’t even get to her, you know? So, so that was how I ended up getting on the Oprah Winfrey show. And it’s funny because I used to tell my friends,
I’m going to be on Oprah Winfrey show. don’t know how I’m going to and I remember I remember getting the call from in the displays at Harpo studios and you they said hi, this is the Oprah Winfrey show calling and first I thought I was like, my God, my friends are playing a joke on me and then I thought well they went to a lot of trouble because Harpo studios is on the display like whoa, they’re good. ⁓ And yeah, and so they they called.
Erica Pasvar (31:27)
Yeah ⁓
Nadja Piatka (31:51)
They loved my story. She loved that story of a woman, you know, single unemployed mother, you building a business, getting into these national accounts, Subway, McDonald’s. And, you know, in a few days, Oprah and her TV crew were at my door and they spent a day with me filming. They were amazing. You they checked all my references. They called McDonald’s. They called Subway, you know, just to go and make sure of the story.
is, you know, everything I’m saying is, is, is lining
a few days later, they flew me out there. It was pretty cool. They also might, they had seats for my family, because I know you have to wait, you had to wait a long time to get seats. But if you’re a guest, you had like, seats in that. And I remember flying out there, and I get to the airport, there’s a sign, you know, in a stretch limousine, I get there, I’m going
set for me like, whoa, and the driver and I get in the car and they and take me to the hotel, which is and they said, okay, in morning, don’t put any makeup on, we’ll just pick you up and get there and they do your makeup and I was there the same day that the the the show that Donald Trump used to have remember the what was it called apprentice.
Erica Pasvar (33:12)
Apprentice.
Yeah.
Nadja Piatka (33:14)
So
all the apprentice staff were there because they filmed two shows in one day. They recorded one day. So I was there. The other apprentice staff was there. Donald Trump was there. Like it was like this was years ago before, you know, political anything happening. But it was quite the experience, you know, for me. And next thing, you know, we filmed the show. They did my segment. And it was life changing because after that, my
customers I was trying to reach were now answering my calls. It was the Oprah blessing. Okay,
Erica Pasvar (33:46)
Of course.
Nadja Piatka (33:49)
it was great. And I’m forever grateful to her for getting for having me on her show because she does make the final choice. She does, you know, she, oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, she does make the final choice. And, and so that was a truly a gift that I will that I will always appreciate. Yeah.
Erica Pasvar (34:10)
Oh, yeah, I mean, just life
transforming for Well, so, you know, because of that and there’s been, you know, transitions, you were making great money. You wrote bestselling cookbooks. We talked about that. You’re CEO. And it’s easy for people on the outside to see success and the huge win and forget that there are tough seasons in entrepreneurial life. And we know that there was definitely there were tough seasons at the beginning of
starting this whole career path, when you were very successful, what would you tell yourself in the moments that, if you had moments that made you wanna quit or if you were feeling like giving up, how did you get through those hard moments in the midst of high success?
Nadja Piatka (34:56)
was just gonna say, what would I tell someone? I’d say, don’t let your husband come back once he’s left. I know that, yeah. But I think it’s just having faith and just believing that what I was doing was a really positive, good thing. I’ve always been a great proponent of people eating healthy, people improving their lifestyle.
Erica Pasvar (35:02)
You
Nadja Piatka (35:22)
lifestyle habits, exercise food, I know that is what defines our aging, the quality of our aging. Not only that, but while we’re young, it makes us feel better, look better, more energetic. I mean, there’s it’s plus plus plus, you know, healthy food. And so so I really believed I was giving a good message, a good message out there that was going to help people just like now with my Instagram account, I really know my heart, I’m giving a good message, you know,
And I’m showing people you know that you can be fit at any age and it’s never too late to start You know, so so that to me I think is what kept me going because I’m going you know, I’ve got an important thing to say here and And it’s something that I think a lot of people need need to know And it is it and I think what’s nice is people do if you show them what I found and here’s the thing because way back then was like
selling something healthy was like, my god, healthy place so horrible. And even when the president of McDonald’s got wind of, you know, these regional offices trying to bring this healthy muffin in, you know, and I remember him meeting with me and he says, nausea, goes, we used to have a healthy muffin. It was it was a brand muffin wrapped in cellophane. And he said, yeah, he said, we sold 6 million of them.
Erica Pasvar (36:43)
million of
them to six million different people.
Nadja Piatka (36:44)
to six million different people,
which means nobody bought it twice. And I said, I think they’re gonna buy this twice. And that muffin in Canada is called cranberry orange. It is still on the menu. It’s still the top of my, I sold it to Quaker. you know, they’re good for them. And I’m happy I did. And good for me. But it was, it’s still, and so what I could,
Erica Pasvar (36:58)
And good for you.
Nadja Piatka (37:11)
prove and I think this is what you know maybe answer your question if you can prove that what you are doing what you are selling what you are saying is it you know it’s it’s true and it works and it helps people doesn’t matter you can compete with the biggest you know like I believe in the David versus Goliath when when my muffin was outselling theirs at Quaker you know they had more money to compete more food scientists in their kitchen
I had my kitchen, you know, that’s where I did my food science. And, and, but my product kept outselling theirs. So if you have something, don’t be afraid, like, my God, they’re bigger and better and all this stuff. Stay true to what you are. And you will, you will like David versus Goliath. How did he do it? Because he was, he had the, he had the belief, the strength of his will and what he was doing was, the right thing. So
So it’s, it’s always important to don’t underestimate yourself. Don’t think, it’s never been done before. What am I, what am I thinking? And people will tell you that they’ll say, you try to, there are no women suppliers getting into McDonald’s. That never happened. And so give it up, but you can’t, you know, don’t listen to the naysayers. because, you know, that is not what, what your
where you’re meant to be. You’re supposed to stay true to what you believe and if you do, it’s amazing. It does work.
Erica Pasvar (38:34)
Yeah, yeah, that’s awesome. That’s wonderful. So flash forward, you have a very successful career and your you know, the hard days are happening and you’re you’re remembering the purpose and your why behind all of this. And so now you’ve retired and we’ve talked about that you decided to start this Instagram account. And it’s very age positive, as you said, talking about just that you can be fit and work out eat healthy at any age. I’m curious to know, did you
Have you always had this positive outlook on age or aging?
Nadja Piatka (39:10)
I really believe that if you take care of yourself, aging can happen in two ways. It can happen in a real declining way. And I know, I just got a comment today on Instagram from a woman who works in a hospital and she says, she sees 75 years old that they haven’t exercised, they haven’t eaten well, they maybe smoke, they don’t move.
And she says, they, you know, their bodies are declining. So I know the formula, if you apply these lifestyle things, and I really investigated and love to read about the blue zone in the world, the blue zones are the pockets in the world. And they’re all over, they’re not like one country, they’re like in Italy, and, you know, a part of the US and in Japan. so if you Google blue zone, and I talked about it on my website, my website is naja, eatmoveglow.com.
And they, it’s a clear example of people in these pockets because they move in a lot of these places. There’s a lot of stairs and hills in their villages. So these older people got to keep climbing, you know? And I would say once you stop climbing stairs, you stop climbing stairs. You stop being able to climb stairs. You know, so these people, you know, they keep, they, they, they’re always moving.
Erica Pasvar (40:23)
Mm.
Nadja Piatka (40:30)
They’re eating the Mediterranean diet, so they’re not eating processed foods. They’re not sitting on the couch eating ⁓ high fat, high sodium, high calorie. We are famous for junk food because you know what? It tastes so good. The sugar is so addictive and it’s such a comfort to us. So it becomes where we go to when we want to feel good, but it kills us slowly.
Erica Pasvar (40:44)
Alright.
So it becomes where we go to, we want to feel good, it kills us slowly
Nadja Piatka (40:56)
and it ages us, you know, and that’s what another reason why I love showing people like, regardless of your age, if you do this, this will be the results. If you do that, this
Erica Pasvar (40:56)
and it ages us. And that’s another reason why I love showing people, like, regardless of your age, if you do this, this will be the result. If you do that…
Nadja Piatka (41:07)
will be the results. You choose which way you want to go and it’s all doable. And you don’t have to have a ton of money. mean, get out and walk, you know, I even show on my Instagram where if you don’t have weight, you can’t afford to wait. So I say fill up two water, two jugs of water, juice bottles or milk jugs.
Plastics instead throwing it out fill up with water use them as weights, know You don’t need you know, you don’t need a ton of weights to to work on your on your muscles And also it’s really important because when you do exercise that it helps with osteoporosis It helps with all the aging Issues that we naturally get and you know, here’s the thing There are some things in life So I don’t want to get this polyantholic if you eat well exercise
You will live to be forever. You’ll live forever. You’ll be great. And, you know, and we’re all going to die someday, but it’s how we’re going to live until we die. Are we going to be in the woods until we die for the last 10 years? Are we going to be taking care of ourselves? And then we die. You know, that’s, that’s the way, the way it goes. But it’s really important that we, when we, when we take care of ourselves, though, like I said, the quality of our aging is decided by us in.
Again, there are things you can’t control. I mean, you can have an accident. You can be in a plane that goes down. You can have cancer. Like I had leukemia. And for a year, it took a year for me to get my strength back. When I had leukemia, when I was going through chemo, I could barely walk from my bed to the couch. But I knew that I had to find my strength again. So those are things you can’t control.
Erica Pasvar (42:40)
and but I knew that I had to find my strength again. So those are things you can’t
control. But lifestyle, what you eat, how you exercise.
Nadja Piatka (42:46)
but lifestyle, what you eat, how you exercise,
those are things you can control. And diabetes, you juvenile diabetes, you can’t control. But type two diabetes, that’s a lifestyle disease. And it’s from what you eat and how you move. there are ways, and we know the formula, and that’s why on Instagram I say, this is what I do. And it’s funny, I don’t call myself an influencer, I guess legally, officially I am.
I call myself a a guide to ages living. So I’m just guiding and showing people. I’m not telling you. I’m not trying to convince you. I’m not trying to influence you. I’m just saying I’m your guide. This is what I do. This is what has helped me. And you decide.
Erica Pasvar (43:33)
And you know, it’s only been four months and you said you just seen this extreme growth and people, you you mentioned the lady commenting of who works in the hospital and so seeing people decline in their health.
What, in just a short span that you’ve been doing this, have there been some, I guess, people who’ve reached out that you have been inspired by them or that you’re excited to see a potential change in them or kind of what have you seen with everything so far?
Nadja Piatka (44:03)
It is so gratifying. I first of all, I, I’d love to study things. So I will, you know, see what other influencers or people are doing. But what has been so amazing to me is getting comments from people or private messages saying direct messages saying, you know, I, I thought it was too late for me to, to, work out, but I could see that, you know, if you can do it and like, you know, someone say I’m 52 or I’m 65.
and like, my god, you’re 75 and you’re doing I can do it. I had this one girl was like in her 30s. She goes, I was so afraid of getting old, but now I’m not afraid anymore. You know, there’s like just amazing comments
just just felt I mean, it just makes me realize those comments inspire me to keep going. And you know, one girl said, know, her, her mother died.
And her mother was in early 70s. And she says, you know, my mother didn’t take care of herself. was she wasn’t, you know, she wasn’t well. And she passed away. She goes, but I see what you’re doing. And I’m going to, I’m going to change the way I eat. And I’m going to start moving and walking. And I’m going to make sure that I don’t end up like my mother. And I just said, you know, your mother would be so proud of you to know that’s what you’re doing. So those are the things that
just inspire me to keep doing what I’m doing. Because,
know, it’s, it’s, it’s funny, I’m, I’m, I’m learning so much. mean, at the start of setting, starting social media at 75, like, I started the account, it’s like, Okay, what do we do now? And like, Oh, my God, but so my head’s like, my head hurts. But I figured I’ll keep the Alzheimer’s away, you know, and, and what I’m But it’s, it’s nice that because
Erica Pasvar (45:35)
Hehehehe
Hahaha
Nadja Piatka (45:51)
I think I help people, if they’re gonna make a choice, make a choice because there’s products that I have tried that really helped me. There’s things I’ve done for my skin like red light therapy and things that have really helped my skin with aging.
And so I love to tell people because instead of them trying A, C, and D, this is what works. And it’s really interesting, I can see how
influencers hate to turn the money away because you get money thrown at you I get so many companies with products saying you know if you promote
know you get you know you get paid or whatever and I I turn away 95 % of them because they’re products I never use and I don’t want to go and say hey this is
then
realizes something that is not good for someone, it’s not even good for me, or I don’t even like it. So I think that’s what I really learned that I don’t care. You know, I really think and it’s funny, the good products, the products that I like the products that I bought myself, I’m now getting connections with them. And so I’m happy to collaborate with them because I’m happy to share those information. But I’m just going to keep doing what what I think works for me. And just let people know and if they want to do it great, but I love setting the example.
Erica Pasvar (47:09)
Yeah, that’s huge and it’s also makes people trust you too if you’re promoting something just for the paycheck then you know and probably you’re probably like it’s easier to say I’m retired. You know, I’m good I don’t need you What and and I I don’t think we really I mean we kind of touched it a little bit what made you decide to say Yeah, let me just start an Instagram page and promote positive aging
Nadja Piatka (47:20)
I guess, okay. yeah, yeah.
Well, you know, it’s interesting. First of all, I was bored. Because I really was. And I would wake up in the morning. And before when I had my company, I was dealing with supply chain issues and COVID. And, you know, my god, like it was I was I had a lot of, you know, like, sleepless nights, because you’re you’re dealing and then you’re dealing with your investors and people yelling at you. So I did not miss that at all. Believe me, it’s like, okay, thank you. Done. But then it was like, it quiet. It’s like,
And I can wake up morning and all like all my only decisions of the day was what I was gonna make for dinner That was it. maybe we’ll shop online. Okay, and that was in ice after a while And I mean it was it was nice to start but then after a while I said, what can I do and then I remember I love talking about what I do and talk about, you know staying healthy and and looking your best, you know as you get older and then so I
when I started that Instagram page, I thought to do that was like post stuff for fun. and then and find my daughter Veronica, you know, I said, I don’t know if anyone’s gonna really care. And Veronica said to me, was well, mom, know, if they don’t, you’re just maybe giving, leaving something for us. Here’s mama, she gets older, you know, just kind of, know, and I said, Okay, for the family, all right, we’ll do it, you know, but I have to say,
Erica Pasvar (48:49)
Yeah.
Nadja Piatka (48:55)
when things started to grow and then I was up to 85 followers and I thought okay maybe maybe and these were people I didn’t know they weren’t family members okay maybe they like what I’m doing and then and they kind of was like staying steady there and I thought ⁓ well maybe it’s not really what people care about and I remember and I remember kind of feeling down about it I thought okay we’ll just do for the family but I was hoping maybe
would have been something more of value that people would have liked, but maybe it wasn’t, you know. And I remember my husband Doug Kim coming home, and he had flowers for me. I’m going, what? It’s not my birthday. So Chris is any any raw flowers home. And he said, you know, any he if he Remember, Naja, the book, your favorite book called Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. And the book was written like 100 years ago. And it’s got these stories that apply today. And it’s a small book. And I encourage anyone to
to reading it on Amazon, know, think it’s like thousand three print, you know, it’s just an amazing book by Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich. And there’s those stories in there. And the one story was two feet from gold. And it’s about these couple of guys, they buy this gold mine, and they’re working the gold mine, working the gold mine, they’re not finding any gold, they got their digging and digging, you know, and finally they say, you know what, we’re gonna sell this.
Erica Pasvar (50:04)
and it’s about these couple of guys, buy this gold mine and they’re working the gold mine, working the gold mine, they’re not finding any gold, they’re digging and digging and finally they say, you know what, we’re gonna sell
this, this is a dumb idea, but we’re never gonna work in that, so they sell it and then the guy who buys it in two feet, he finds gold. And the guy who says, you know what, put two feet in gold, but keep doing what you’re doing, you know?
Nadja Piatka (50:17)
This is dumb idea. This is never going to work in that so they sell it and then the guy who buys it in two feet He finds gold and my husband said remember that book two feet from gold and keep doing what you’re doing, you know, and I
thought yeah, okay and I did and then like all the sudden just One of my one of my reels I mean my reels are getting millions of views one has three million views a hundred thousand likes
Erica Pasvar (50:40)
You
Nadja Piatka (50:45)
going from family to 85 followers and then like this happening so So yeah, so sometimes you know, don’t give up, you know If you don’t if you really feel what you’re doing is important to you and important to others Don’t give up don’t give up because it you’re you maybe you may be two feet from gold
Erica Pasvar (51:05)
Yeah, I’d like that. I’m gonna have to check that book out. And how sweet of your husband too. Also, by the way, for the listeners,
Nadja Piatka (51:09)
Great book, great book.
Erica Pasvar (51:13)
if they’re not watching and they’re just listening, I mean, we’ll put your social media handle on the show notes. But Nadja, you and your husband are just adorable and you’re so delightful. mean, I just, I’ve really, I…
Nadja Piatka (51:24)
Thank you. Thank you.
Erica Pasvar (51:27)
have just enjoyed this conversation and just your overall spirit about you is just very kind. this has just been really enjoyable. Well, Najah, we’re getting close to the end of our time. Absolutely. And so I want to ask you my last question. And this is a question I ask all of my guests. And you have thrown a bunch of nuggets that could fit under this question. But I’d love to just hear any final thoughts. So if you could encourage one woman.
Nadja Piatka (51:36)
Thank you, Erica.
Erica Pasvar (51:52)
who does feel blocked or limited to pursue a dream or a goal based on her age or life circumstance, and you’ve had both, what would you say to her?
Nadja Piatka (52:02)
I would say to her, don’t let that what is happening to you, define where you’re going to go. like I said, everyone has issues, problems. I that’s just life, isn’t it? know, and how do you react to them? The old saying is like, how do you react to what’s happening to you? That’s a really important thing. And sometimes when those things happen, those tough things, like I said,
losing that job or that relationship or you know, whatever. So you have to say, know, is the universe pointing me in another direction? And don’t underestimate yourself. realize that, you know, if you’re going to dream, dream really big and take that chance because if you don’t, you might think, you know, I would have, could have, should have and age
Again, as I say on my Instagram, age is just a number. It really should not stop us or define us or block us. And yes, women do not have an expiry date. And it makes me crazy when people say, you know, when I’m posting it. And generally, I have the nicest people, but I do have a few haters. And my girlfriend who’s who has an Instagram where she goes, you know, you’re doing well, you got haters. So, you know, people will say, well, you know, you are old, you’re 75. So act your age.
I’m thinking, well, who told who who decided 75 is old, I didn’t get the memo. So you know, so I think you just have to overlook your circumstances and overlook your your your age. And thing I say is, whatever you do in life, in and I think about this every time I do a post, or something on Instagram, I always say, what will my
daughter and son think of this, even though they’re adults, my my children are in their 40s, late 40s. So but they’re still my children, right. And, and so that’s why, you know, I know, in Instagram, you know, they’re the, you know, you get the woman my age wearing bikinis, which is fine. And I’m not and I think if that makes them feel good, that is their right. And I totally accept that. But for me, there’s things that when I
Erica Pasvar (53:46)
Yeah.
Nadja Piatka (54:02)
when I’m going to wear something or I’m going to do something, say, well, my children think of this. And I think it’s because I was a single mother and raising my children. So I was always aware of, I am their prime example. I am their prime mentor. And that put me in a real position of responsibility. But I also feel with my followers, I’m in a position of responsibility because I’m giving them ideas and showing them things. So I have a responsibility to them that I’m giving them things that will help them not hinder them.
Erica Pasvar (54:31)
Yes, yes, absolutely. Najah, you said something too in that I don’t remember what it was. was going to try to repeat that I just, when I go back and edit it, I’ll say, that’s what it was. And I’ll have to message you and say, this is what you said, Najah, that just was really, just hit me, just struck a chord with me, a good chord. But if you’ll go ahead, Najah, and if you’ll just share where people can find you, we’d love to have them see you.
Nadja Piatka (54:55)
Yeah, thank you. I’m a Nadja, N-A-D-J-A, Eat, Move, Glow on Instagram and my website is NadjaEatMoveGlow.com. happy to, and on my website, I’m now going to be doing full length exercise videos because on Instagram, you’re only allowed a maximum of three minutes as you know. so it doesn’t, recipes, I have to like sometimes fast forward things so I can do things a little longer, do.
full length exercise videos and just put all my information on how I exercise when I exercise what I do I would say to people I’m not a bodybuilder I’m not looking to bulk up I just want to be able to wear sleeveless dresses yeah yeah yeah we just started so you know I’m I just learned you know all the you know the do’s and don’ts of Instagram as you know there’s YouTube that we’re just
Erica Pasvar (55:37)
Are you going to post them on YouTube as well or just your website?
Nadja Piatka (55:49)
I’ve just signed on to that and then I’m going to probably do TikTok. I think that seems to be another avenue. So learning, learning, doing stuff and hopefully I can just keep sharing more information.
Erica Pasvar (55:56)
Yeah.
Oh, I’ve loved what I’ve been seeing so far. Okay, this is what you said. So somebody reached out and said, your age, you’re 75, your age. And I’m thinking, you’ll hear that all the time for whatever age that may be. And I’m just thinking like the things that you’re doing, you are a 75 year old woman. I read on, I guess it was threads or something that somebody said, 40 is the new 20s. And I had interviewed a woman a while ago who she was in her late 60s and she said,
I’m not in my 40s. I’m not in my 50s. I am 68 years old and that’s okay. And 40s, and so I responded to the comment about the, because I’m in my early 40s. And so my comment was 40 is 40 and we should be so thankful that we get to have these years and what we’re getting to experience. I know, I said something else too, but it’s like, no, we’re not going back. We are here where we are we need to show other people that, hey, it’s okay.
to be the age you are and let’s embrace it and celebrate it and enjoy the life that we’re given.
Nadja Piatka (57:01)
Absolutely. And you know, I say that at 75, you know, whether you’re 75 or 65 or 85, your best years should be ahead of you, you know, you should not look at them as like, oh, I’m on I’m on the downside now. So that the mean you can really have a beautiful life then. And you know, I look at it, and I’ll just finish off by saying, you know, I’ve been on this planet for three quarters of a century. God willing, I’ll have another quarter of a century to be on here. But when
When I cross those pearly gates, I’m not going to be in a walker. I’m going to be wearing high heels.
Erica Pasvar (57:33)
I love that.
That’s wonderful. Well, Nadja, thank you so much. This was such a treat. I really enjoyed our time together. So thank you for joining me today on the More Than Your Age podcast.
Nadja Piatka (57:48)
Thank you, Erica. was great pleasure.
Erica Pasvar (57:50)
Absolutely.