Now What

Squad, today we're going full true crime, Silicon Valley style. I walked out of a three-hour Elizabeth Holmes documentary feeling like I'd been gaslit by a movie screen, so I called the one person who'd unpack every blink with me — my sorority sister, Erin "Borda" Borda — and this conversation did not disappoint.

⚠️ SPOILER ALERT: We talk about the whole movie, ending included. Haven't seen You Can See Everything yet? Pause, go watch, come back. We'll wait.

Meet Erin Borda: Known her since the keg-stand years at UC Santa Barbara. Mom of three. The practical, fact-checking, "wait a second" yin to my "details don't matter" yang. Watched every minute of this movie, re-listened to the original podcast on a work trip, and showed up with receipts. First podcast ever. You're welcome, Borda.

• 🧥 I show up in full black-turtleneck Elizabeth cosplay (hair don't care) — and a crash-course recap of how Theranos went from billion-dollar darling to federal prison

• 👴 The board of powerful old men she fooled — and whether stare, blink, nod is the business strategy I've been missing

• 💔 Tyler Shultz, the whistleblower whose own grandfather didn't believe him — and why every parent listening will feel this one

• 🚩 Billy: we rate him from one to get-the-hell-away (plus the shower scene nobody asked for)

• 🎭 "Two things can be true" — why that final scene had us both questioning everything we thought we knew

• 🔁 Part 2 is coming: we're rewatching with notes and bringing in two psychologists for a round table

Here's the gift of midlife, Squad: you stop being impressed by the black turtleneck. Trust your gut, ask the awkward question, and remember two things can be true at once. Then go see this movie — and come yell about it with us.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist.

xoxo

melis

• IG: erinb.39

• 🎙️ Find her right back here for Part 2 — round table edition

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Squad, I'm three weeks out from walking on stage in a bikini at almost 55, I'm in a Ryan Seacrest podcast contest, and I got SO fired up on this one that I accidentally launched my own contest mid-episode. Buckle up, the F-bombs are flying.

🗳️ VOTE FOR ME, SQUAD! I'm competing in Ryan Seacrest's Top Host competition for my own iHeartRadio podcast, $25K, and a guest spot on On Air with Ryan Seacrest. Round 1 closes Thursday, Oct 15 at 7pm PT. You get ONE free vote every day, and yes, you can buy more. 😌 👉 https://tophost.org/2026/melissa-murphy-2

• 🎤 The Top Host contest, why I want a talk show, and the high school play where I broke character, lost the part, and learned rejection is redirection (sorry, Jen)
• 💪 Three weeks out from my second bikini comp in Playa del Carmen: already tighter than last year's stage body, still fighting the posing, and why having a coach takes the emotion out of it
• 🔥 Shane Gillis, SNL, and the "women dress like whores at the gym" joke. My answer: whatever your size, whatever you're wearing, you BELONG in that gym
• 🏆 The NEW F*ck Shame Challenge: pick one thing that puts you out there, DM me @motivatewithmelis, show me the proof, and one of you gets celebrated LIVE on a future episode

You're getting judged either way: for doing it, for not doing it, for what you wear while you do it. So stop waiting for permission. Pick your one thing this week, do it scared, and let me be your hype woman.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist. xoxo melis

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Squad, I finally got the woman who's been on my "dream guest" list for five years, and within ten minutes we figured out we're basically the same person. Jenny Schatzle is a two-time TEDx speaker and author who got told she was too loud and decided to get LOUDER — and this conversation did not disappoint.

Meet Jenny Schatzle: Keynote speaker, leadership and confidence expert, and author of Breaking the Cycle. She went from Gold's Gym front desk girl to running her own Santa Barbara fitness studio for years, then sold it this year to go all in on helping women stop shrinking. Mom of twin girls, wife of a firefighter, and a professional premature hugger.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE WE GET INTO:

• 📢 Her first fitness class, when people literally walked out, and the one question from her mentor that changed everything: "Do you like you?"
• ⚓ The "toxic anchor": the story we take on between ages 6 and 12, and how hers started the day her dad was too drunk to coach her T-ball game
• 📓 Why we keep buying the new journal, the special pen, and the new diet… and how to stop starting over (the 10-minute rule is a game changer)
• 👧 Real talk on parenting: why every kid ends up a little screwed up no matter what, and what to do instead of trying to fix them
• 🚀 Selling the gym that was her "first child" and reinventing in her 40s. Spoiler: "I'm only good at teaching fitness" turned out to be a lie

💥 PLOT TWIST TAKEAWAY

You could read 50 self-help books and nothing changes until YOU decide it does. The story you've been telling yourself since you were seven isn't yours, and it doesn't get to be in charge anymore. Set a timer, take the next small step, and take up space. Loudly.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist.

xoxo

melis

🔗 Connect with Jenny:

📸 @jennyschatzle

🌐 jennyschatzle.com — get on her email list for the deeper conversations she doesn't post on Instagram

📚 Breaking the Cycle: Free Yourself from the Story That's Holding You Back — I read it in a day and a half, and it has homework after every chapter (do it!)

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Squad, you asked, you DM'd, you demanded, so Papi is back in the chair for the full debrief on our pickleball weekend with Terrell Owens. Papi is my husband, a reluctant pickleball player, and possibly the reason a Hall of Famer lost a match. This conversation did not disappoint.

Meet Papi: Husband. Father of three. Self-described "doesn't really like people" guy who played his second pickleball game EVER with an NFL legend. Showed up with a Target racket and left with T.O.-brand shorts. Growth.

🔥 IN THIS EPISODE WE GET INTO:

• 🏓 The Target racket that a pickleball pro thought was broken, and why Papi is the only person who cost T.O. a match all weekend
• ⭐ What T.O. is REALLY like up close: lunch, a private dinner, the 49ers game, and the question that got him to admit the Dallas star celebration was 100% planned
• 💪 The man didn't play football until his junior year, was never the fastest, and outworked everyone. At 52, he played for five hours without breaking a sweat
• 📸 The Kobe photo he pulled up on his phone that I will never get over
• 💍 "She wants to marry you." Papi's emotional growth journey, live on the mic

💥 PLOT TWIST TAKEAWAY

Papi showed up with a Target racket, one game of experience, and zero interest in meeting strangers, and it turned into one of the best weekends of our lives. T.O. didn't get to the Hall of Fame by being the fastest. He got there by refusing to be outworked. So stop waiting until you're "good enough" to start. Show up with the cheap racket. We are not done.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist. xoxo melis

🔗 SHOUTOUTS

• 🏓 Terrell Owens: thank you for being so generous with your time. We're obsessed. [T.O.'s IG handle — double-check]
• 👕 Check out T.O.'s pickleball clothing line, [line name — verify spelling]. Ball Don't Lie.
• 🎬 T.O.'s documentary drops November 5th. Viewing party, anyone?
• 🌿 Silverado Resort in Napa: Allison and the team, you were incredible
• 🙌 Angie, you are a rock star

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Squad!

We just dropped kid #2 off at college, and I made the drive down with the man who rated my driving a 3 out of 10 in under a second. Papi is my husband, my co-parent, and the slowest driver in Northern California — and this conversation did not disappoint.

Meet Shannon "Papi" Murphy: Husband. Father of three. Drives like a 90-year-old on his way to the early-bird special and critiques from the passenger seat anyway. Currently entering his pickleball era and claims to be "very good" at ping pong despite never touching the one in our house.

🔥 In This Episode We Get Into:

• 🚗 The driving showdown: he rated me a 3, I rated him a 6 (too slow), plus the bumper I lost and the tree I hit (not my fault, I was grieving)

• 🎓 College drop-off, round two: 5.2 minutes in the apartment, one roommate met, and who actually cried first (he lied)

• 🏠 The quiet house, the room I can't go into yet, and life with one kid left at home — senior year, the countdown is on

• 💑 What happens next fall when it's just us across the table (his answer: "we'll work through it or we won't." Romantic.)

• 🏓 Papi's pickleball era, my pay-only volunteer policy, and why we are DONE doing things for free

💥 Plot Twist Takeaway

Drop-off day isn't the end of your story — it's the part where you get your time back. Miss them. Cry at a Chevron. Then pick up a paddle, raise your rates, and take up space. We are not done.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist.

xoxo

melis

🔗 Connect with Papi

🏓 Find him on the pickleball court, still swinging like it's a tennis racket

🌐 He lives at motivatewithmelis.com whether he likes it or not

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Squad, today's guest went viral doing pull-ups to Biggie Smalls before "going viral" was even a job — and it landed her on Ellen. Except the show's producers made her cover her arms and told her not to mention that she lifts. We're getting into that, and about thirty years of proof that your strongest years might not be behind you.

Meet Marisa Inda: IPF World Champion powerlifter, six-time national champion, with an all-time total of 430kg at a 52kg bodyweight. Elite strength coach with Juggernaut Training Systems and RP Strength, author of Fuerza, and mom of two. Went from teenage bodybuilder to powerlifting record-holder, and hit her best-ever competition lifts — a 336 squat, 224 bench, and 419-pound deadlift — at 41.

🔥 In This Episode We Get Into:

● 🎙️ The real story behind her Ellen Show appearance — and why producers told her to cover her arms and never mention that she lifts weights

● 💪 Her best competition lifts happened at 41 — numbers that would make anyone rethink what's possible after 40

● 🤰 Training through pregnancy, the gym whispers that followed her, and why she never bought into "you're a mom now, sit down"

● 🧠 The "toning" myth she wants banned from the fitness conversation forever, plus the biggest mistake she sees women over 40 make in the gym

💥 Plot Twist Takeaway

Your story doesn't end at 25. Or when you get married. Or when you become a mom. Or when you turn 50. Marisa's proof is written in her own numbers — her best lifts came in her 40s, and she's still chasing more. You are your own Picasso, Squad. Pick up the damn bar.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist.

xoxo

melis

🔗 Connect with Marisa

● 📸 @marisainda

● 🌐 juggernautai.app (@juggernautai.app) and @rpstrength — her powerlifting/power-building coaching through Juggernaut Training Systems and RP Strength

● 📚 Fuerza — her book on getting strong, now ebook-only, available through her Instagram

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Squad, I'm back — and yes, we're opening with death, because that's just how we do things around here. Full transparency: I thought about easing back in soft. Instead you're getting real life, real chaos, and the actual reason the show went quiet this summer.

• 💔 My brother-in-law Sean's sudden passing at 58 — and why the show really went quiet for a month
• 😅 The "medical condition" I have where I laugh at the most inappropriate times — funerals included — and why that's actually how I process hard things
• 🌪️ Choosing chaos over quiet: why I picked "go bigger" instead of easing back in gently
• 💪 Training for bodybuilding competition #2, one week before I turn 55 — proof I'm not just talking reinvention, I'm living it
• 📣 Publicly calling out my dream guests — Zarna Garg, Erin and Sara Foster, and Shop With Caroline — right here, right now

Death sucks. Still true. But it also clarifies the hell out of things — it cancels the noise and tells you exactly what matters. Protect your energy, clean house, and go after the thing you think you're too old or too tired for. If I can do a second bodybuilding show a week before I turn 55, you can do the thing on your list.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist. xoxo melis

⭐️ Loved this episode? Leave a 5-star review ONLY (we're not accepting anything less, respectfully 😌) 👉 RateThisPodcast.com/nowwhatwithmelis 📸 @motivatewithmelis ▶️ @NowWhatPodcastwithMelis 🎵 open.spotify.com/show/0MbAB2rFGYnUijWehLtN4C 🎙️ podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/now-what/id1828005485 🌐 motivatewithmelis.com 📧 [email protected]

Squad, she's back — Lori Montry, author of You Are Not The Problem, joined us back on Episode 58 and I took approximately 47 mental notes I'm still unpacking. This time she's got an update, and it is NOT the one either of us expected.

Meet Lori Montry: Somatic practitioner, author of You Are Not The Problem, and proof that even the person who wrote the book on not being broken can still fully spiral over a race. Also: a brand-new National Senior Games gold medalist, which — yeah, we're getting into that.

• 📚 The book launch update — and why something she didn't expect to be stressful nearly took her out
• 💥 The full crash: overtraining, an Oura Ring basically begging her to stay in bed, and the trainer conversation that stopped her in her tracks ("What's your priority?")
• 🏅 The National Senior Games plot twist — she almost didn't show up at all, switched to a race she hadn't run in 35 years with zero training, and then... won gold
• 🧠 Her reframe on hormones and midlife that made me physically gasp (estrogen is doing WHAT for us?)
• 💍 Why "I can be mediocre for free" might be the most useful sentence you hear all week

You don't have to be the superstar version of yourself to show up. Lori almost skipped her own comeback because she couldn't guarantee she'd be perfect at it — and she won gold anyway. Squad, that's the whole show in one sentence. Go be imperfect and show up anyway.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist.

xoxo

melis

📸 [Lori's IG handle]

🌐 LoriMontry.com

📚 You Are Not The Problem — book one of a three-part series, get it wherever you buy books

📧 Weekly Readers Circle — Zoom, Mondays 5pm MT, kicks off August 17th, open enrollment anytime

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Squad, most of us spend years becoming really good at something — a career, a role, a title — until that thing quietly becomes who we are. My guest today didn't get to ease into that realization. A car accident took the one thing this sharp, strategic corporate attorney depended on most: her brain. Overnight. What she found in that silence, and what she built from it, became a bestselling, award-winning book and a framework that's now helping high achievers everywhere strip back the layers keeping them stuck.

Meet Martine Cohen: Two law degrees. A career built on being the sharpest person in the room. Then a 2016 car accident took her cognitive function overnight, and she had to rebuild her sense of self from scratch. Now she's an award-winning author (No More Layers), speaker, and self-leadership coach who teaches people how to do the identity work she was forced into — without the concussion.

🔥 In This Episode We Get Into:

• 🚗 The car accident that took Martine's brain overnight, and the terrifying question that followed: "Who am I if I'm not this?"
• 🛁 The bathtub epiphany that started her healing, and the "layers" she found underneath (perfectionism, worthiness, control, and more)
• 🧠 Why "turn your fear into curiosity" might be the single best brain hack we've ever had on this show — and why fear and curiosity literally cannot coexist
• 😤 The fight Melis has with her alarm clock every single morning, and why Martine says nobody wins that fight
• ☕ The cappuccino ritual that sounds silly and isn't — a two-minute reset that changes your entire day
• 💍 Guilt, motherhood, and why "I love my kids AND I wish I worked at Dunkin' Donuts today" can both be true at once

💥 Plot Twist Takeaway You don't need a concussion to lose yourself. Midlife will do it just fine — a divorce, a layoff, an empty nest, a body that stops cooperating. Martine's plot twist is that the identity crisis isn't the end of the story. It's the invitation to finally ask who you actually are underneath the layers everyone else built.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist. xoxo melis

🔗 Connect with Martine 📸 @martinecohen_ 🌐 martinecohen.com 💼 LinkedIn: Martine Cohen NML 🎁 Free 2-day Mindset Reset (gift for the Squad!) — martinecohen.com/connectwithme 📚 Grab the book, No More Layers — on Amazon, Indigo, and Barnes & Noble

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Squad, we're going international today. My guest lives in London, and he just informed me that men have their own midlife hormone crisis and nobody bothered to tell us. It's called andropause, and yes, my first reaction was exactly what yours is about to be.

Meet James Davis: Coaching psychologist, men's health advocate, keynote speaker, and author of The Midlife Male Handbook: A Man's Guide to Thriving Through Andropause. Spends his days explaining menopause to rooms full of confused men and andropause to rooms full of skeptical women (me). Married to his own midlife journey — he lived through a full andropause dip himself, in Marbella, of all places.

• 🎙️ I ask James point blank if men are just trying to steal menopause now too — his answer changed my mind
• 📉 What andropause actually is, why it creeps up over decades instead of hitting all at once, and why that makes it so easy for men to write off as "just getting older"
• 💬 Why most men have zero language for what they're feeling — and how that silence is quietly wrecking marriages and mental health
• 💍 The real talk on what happens when a menopausal woman and an andropausal man are living in the same house at the same time (spoiler: it's not pretty)
• 🧠 The "do I want to be right or do I want to be happy" line that's staying in my head rent-free

This isn't about men stealing your moment, Squad. It's about realizing your husband, your brother, your dad might be going through his own quiet identity collapse — and he doesn't have the words for it. Start the conversation. It might save more than his mood.

Because midlife isn't a crisis — it's a plot twist.

xoxo melis

• 📚 The Midlife Male Handbook — available on Amazon now (buy it for the man in your life, he won't ask for it himself)
• 🌐 jamespdavis.com
• 🌐 themidlifementors.com

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