Erin Azar is a Tik Tok star with nearly 700,000 followers! But she is perhaps an unlikely social media celebrity.  She's not a fast runner.  She doesn't have perfect abs, a spotless kitchen or that one secret trick to whatever. She's a mom of 3 from rural Pennsylvania who started running a couple of years ago, after the birth of her third child.   Just a mile a day she thought, as she started documenting her journey on YouTube and then Tik Tok. At the time, she was just looking for a community of others like her to share the journey with. But something about her posts struck a chord, and her videos "blew up" (as the kids say) to millions of views and hundreds of thousands of followers. Erin is a breath of fresh air, exactly what the running community-- and social media needs these days. Special thanks to my friend Kim at AfterShokz for introducing me to Erin.  Kim and her sister, Christy are running the NYC Marathon for Team Fox.  When they told this to Erin, Erin wanted to join to because her father has Parkinson's. In just the last 2 weeks, Erin has already raised over $40,000 for Team Fox.  And she's not slowing down! Huge thanks to Erin for supporting Team Fox, and for taking the time to share her story and insights with us.   #EveryMileMatters!

Erin Azar - Struggle Running Tik Tok Star

Welcome to The Extra Mile, the official Charity Miles podcast where each week we interview people who are going the extra mile for health and to make an impact.  Each interview is conducted outdoors on a walk or run with our guest.  And we invite you to turn on your Charity Miles and come along for the walk or run with us.

Fitness & Nutrition

Health

Health & Fitness

Sami Inkinen is the Co-Founder and CEO of Virta Health, which is reversing type two diabetes through nutrition, lifestyle change, and a new standard of medical care. Prior to Virta, Sami was the Co-Founder and COO of Trulia, which many of you probably used to find a house or apartment. Sami took Trulia public and then sold it to Zillow. Sami is also an Ironman Age Group Champion and all-around world-class endurance athlete. To raise awareness about the dangers of sugar and its connection to diabetes, Sami and his wife rowed from California to Hawaii—2,750 miles, completely unsupported.  I've been personally lucky to know Sami for over ten years now.  I was introduced to Sami through the Global Good Fund, a fellowship program for social entrepreneurs.  Sami became my mentor through GGF, and has always been generous with his time and insight whenever I need it through the years. I've wanted to record this interview for a long time. Big thanks to Sami for sharing so much with us. #EveryMileMatters!

Sami Inkinen - Reversing Type 2 Diabetes

Today's interview is with Jenny Lawson, the president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful, a leading national nonprofit that inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. Established in 1953, Keep America Beautiful provides the expertise, programs, and resources to help people end littering, improve recycling, beautify America's public spaces, and restore and support resilient communities.   Before joining Keep America Beautiful, Jenny was the Chief Civic Innovation Officer at Points of Light where she led forward thinking initiatives, partnerships, and campaigns to advance the mission of Points of Light around the world. She designed, led, and championed programs and research to aid companies in achieving their social change goals through the actions of their employees, including the Corporate Service, Council of Leading Brands, the Civic 50, Ranking of Community Minded Companies, and a newly developed digital community, the Community for Employee Civic Engagement.  So needless to say, I think Jenny has a lot of expertise on how nonprofits can work with companies and communities to advance social change, which is a topic that I know all of us are interested in, particularly those of us who are part of the Charity Miles Employee Empowerment Program.  One of those companies is AT&T; which is supporting Keep America Beautiful now through our Employee Empowerment Program, and connected us with Jenny for this interview.   I met Jenny in a park up in Connecticut, and we recorded this as a live walking webinar with our members and AT&T;'s employees.  It was a bit rainy, but that didn't seem to faze Jenny one bit. Huge thanks to Jenny for all of her insight, and to AT&T; for their partnership in bringing this to life. #EveryMileMatters!

Jenny Lawson - President & CEO of Keep America Beautiful

On March 8th, I ran the Jerusalem Marathon. As you surely know, Israel is in the middle of a war that started on October 7th.  I, like everyone, have a mix of different feelings about this. But I didn't go to Jerusalem to make a statement about my own feelings. I went to listen and try and share what others in Israel are feeling right now. I think a marathon is a great way to experience the true essence of a place. The New York City Marathon feels like New York City.  The Moab Canyonlands marathon feels like the Moab Canyonlands... And the Jerusalem Marathon feels like Israel.   If you listen to this, I hope you feel it too. #EveryMileMatters    

Jerusalem Marathon

Maria Baltazzi is an Emmy Award winning television producer, traveler, marathon walker who raises money for cancer charities, author and longtime Charity Miler with over 8500 Charity Miles!   Maria recently wrote a book called "Take a Shot at Happiness" which invites and coaches us to explore happiness in our own lives. While Maria discovered that her own "happiness essentials" include faith, self-love and physical health, she encourages people to explore and understand their own personal meanings of happiness. She also draws from her experience as a producer on shows like Survivor to help us all think like storytellers to script, perform in and capture our own reality shows of happiness. Thank you to Maria for sharing so much with us. Thanks also to our sponsors at Factor 75. Eating better is easy with Factor’s delicious, ready-to-eat meals. Every fresh, never-frozen meal is chef-crafted, dietitian-approved, and ready to go in just 2-minutes.  You’ll have over 35 different options to choose from every week, including Calorie Smart, Protein Plus, and Keto. Also, there are more than 60 add-ons to help you stay fueled up and feeling good all day long.  I've been enjoying Factor for two months now, as I get back in shape. I've lost 15 pounds since starting Factor, and I've taken nearly 90 seconds off my mile pace for my long runs. My favorite things about Factor are:   The variety of meals, all of which have been delicious. The convenience.  They're really ready in less than two minutes which makes the healthy choice the easy choice when it comes to mealtime during a busy/hectic schedule.  You all know that we work hard to develop partnerships with brands that we believe in, brands that share our values, and brands that can help us all live healthier and make an impact. That's why we're truly grateful for our partnership with Factor and I hope you'll check them out. Head to Factor75.com and use code MILES to get 50% off your first box while subscription is active.    --- Here are some noteworthy timestamps for the interview.... 02:59 Maria's Journey with Charity Miles 04:08 Maria's Role on Survivor and Connection to Ethan Zohn 06:19 Maria's Transition from Producer to Author 06:46 Understanding Happiness through Survivor 08:27 Maria's Personal Journey to Happiness 09:19 The Role of Storytelling in Happiness 10:06 The Power of Photography in Capturing Happiness 17:06 The Impact of Storytelling on Personal Behavior 25:40 The Foundational Three Elements of Happiness 29:07 Exploring the Concept of Happiness 30:00 Making a Choice for Happiness 31:04 The Role of Education in Happiness 31:47 Personalizing Your Happiness Essentials 33:09 The Importance of Exploration in Happiness 35:13 The Role of Faith in Happiness 37:21 The Problem with Prescriptive Self-Help Books 38:18 Understanding Happiness as a Choice 45:53 Practical Steps to Cultivate Happiness 51:48 The Connection Between Happiness and Resilience 

Maria Baltazzi - Take a Shot at Happiness

In this episode, we're thrilled to walk with Susan Greeley, SVP and National Director of Wellness Services for Castle Connolly Private Health Partners, one of the newest partners in our Employee Empowerment Program.   Susan is also a registered dietician, cookbook author and the host of her own podcast,  A SENSe of Wellness.  So we recorded this as a doubler that Susan will be releasing on her podcast too :)   Susan lives near me in New Jersey, so we were able to meet up for a walk in a park near my home.  It was a beautiful, chilly day before Christmas.  And since we were in the holiday and new year spirit, our conversation weaves through several themes that can help us all stick with our 2024 resolutions.   Hint: make them easy and fun. And don't go it alone.   Here's a quick rundown with timestamps:   00:05 Introduction and Welcoming 02:23 Susan's Background and Role in Wellness 04:02 Susan's Cookbook and Approach to Wellness 05:13 The Importance of Support and Community in Wellness 05:48 Gene's Background and the Founding of Charity Miles 07:13 The Impact of Charity Miles and the Importance of Community 10:10 The Importance of Change 15:26 The Role of External Support in Behavior Change 16:58 The Importance of Community and Positive Surroundings 28:11 The Impact of Charity Miles Beyond Fundraising 33:32 The Power of Intrinsic Rewards 36:11 The Role of Feeling Good in Behavior Change 37:21 The Problem with Wellness Challenges 39:52 The Importance of Consistency 40:13 The Power of Tiny Habits 53:36 The Role of Fun and Laughter 55:18 The Importance of Sleep, Hydration, and Outdoor Activities 56:37 The Power of Community   --   We're also thrilled to introduce our newest sponsor, Factor, America's #1 Ready-to-Eat Meal Delivery Service. Simply put, Factor meals are Easy, Nutritious and Tasty. No matter your eating or dietary style, Factor serves up the meals you’re looking for with a flexible menu of chef-crafted, dietitian-approved options. Imagine having delicious, chef-prepared meals that align perfectly with your diet - be it Keto, Vegan, Protein Plus, or Calorie Smart - delivered right to your doorstep and ready to eat in under two minutes. With over 34 meal options and 45 add-ons each week, including snacks, smoothies and more, Factor makes it easy and tasty to keep your health journey on track. No more boring salads. Just mouth-watering dishes like roasted garlic filet mignon and shrimp, or blackened salmon with smoked gouda cauliflower grits and broccoli. Charity Miles members get 50% off your first order of Factor plus Free Wellness Shots for Life! Just go to charitymiles.org/factor to claim this exclusive offer. No commitment is necessary—skip or cancel at any time. But, of course, I don't think you're going to want to skip or cancel once you try it. Huge thanks to Factor for their support, and for helping us all make it easy and delicious to reach our 2024 goals. 

Erin Azar - Struggle Running Tik Tok Star

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