Positive Mind, Healthy Heart

Moving from "Can Do" (Potential) to "Will Do" (Committment)


Healthy living - a benefit to the individual and organization - starts with good information. What is a healthy diet?  What's the best way to exercise?  How to manage chronic stress?

And today most people have that information.  They know the difference between an apple and a piece of apple pie, between going out dancing or watching Dancing with the Stars!  But most simply do not put the information to work.  That's because it takes more.  If information alone worked, we'd be a nation of non-smokers.  What is needed is a positive mindset that motivates commitment and sustained action.

Joe Piscatella knows about commitment.  After going through coronary bypass surgery at age 32, his prognosis was not good.  One doctor predicted he would not live to age 40.  But Joe figured out how to stay faithful to a healthy lifestyle on a daily basis, starting with a positive mind.  Today, he is one of the longest-lived survivors of heart surgery in the world, 33 years and counting.

This dynamic and inspirational program is not just about positive thought.  Its about commitment and taking action.  "There are no medals for the 95-yard dash," says Joe.  "You've got to do the work and developing a positive mind is the first step."  In this program, Joe sets out the principles for moving from a "can do" attitude (simply potential) to a "will do" attitude (a firm commitment..  Audiences learn how to get started and stay the course.


Take A Load Off Your Heart

Stress Management for Bailout Times

In this era of too little time and too much to do, of increased career and family commitments, of crawling traffic and never ending e-mails, Americans are living with chronic stress. Indeed, 89% of us say that the stress in our lives is overwhelming. The result is often high levels of frustration, anxiety and anger. 

Says one woman, "I'm dropping kids off to school at 7 am, racing to work at 8, in a grocery store at 5:15 pm, answering e-mails at 9, and doing laundry till midnight. I'm always behind and never have enough time to do my best. I'm always behind. Weekends used to be for kicking back, now they're for catching up." 

In this presentation, Joe examines the impact of chronic stress on cardiac health. He illustrates how stress can trigger high blood pressure, increase cholesterol and produce fatal heart attacks. Joe helps audiences understand that the secret to a balanced life is not to avoid stress, but to manage it; not to react to stress, but to respond to it. He examines the source of stress including Type A personality, and provides audiences with a variety of mental and physical tools to successfully manage stress every day.


Eating Healthy in a Doubleburger.Com World

A Step-by-Step Guide to Healthy Eating in the Real World


A balanced diet is critical for good cardiac health. But how do you sort out what is balanced in a world of conflicting claims where fat and carbohydrates see-saw being in, then out, where a tablespoon of ketchup can contain a teaspoon of high-fructose corn syrup, where food supplements claim to be healthier than food itself, and where new weight-loss diet books appear weekly? 

In over three decades of managing his heart disease, Joe knows fad diets from real science.  His sensible, realistic program offers basic principles for healthy eating, including cutting-edge methods on how to control your fat tooth. (That's right, fat tooth, not sweet tooth!). More importantly, he gives nutritional science real-life application. Audiences will learn how to read food labels to make smart choices at a grocery store, what the secret is to cooking healthy food at home (and having your whole family enjoy it), and how to handle eating in a restaurant.


Women and Heart Health

A Heart-Healthy Lifestyle for Females of All Ages


Contrary to popular belief, men are not the chief victims of heart disease. The truth is that heart disease is an equal opportunity affliction. While about the same number of women as men have heart disease, it is by far the number one killer of women. Indeed, over 250,000 women die from the disease each year; more than the next 14 causes of death combined. In this presentation, Joe examines how primary cardiac risk factors - such as cholesterol, triglycerides, coronary inflammation, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, and others - impact women, and he helps attendees to calculate their personal risk. In addition, he covers women-specific topics such as hormone replacement therapy and signs of heart attack. With a heart-healthy lifestyle, women can prevent, stabilize and even reverse heart disease.


Raising Fit Kids in a Fast World

Strategies for Overburdened Parents


Raised with the temptations of fast food, television and computer games, kids are more sedentary, overweight and out-of-shape than a generation ago. The typical 12-year old today weighs 11.7 pounds more than his or her counterpart in 1973. In the last decade the obesity rate in white children has increased by 50%; in Hispanic and African-American kids, it has doubled. The result: a generation of children with elevated cholesterol, higher blood pressure and more Type 2 diabetes. This may be the first generation not to live as long as their parents. What are parents to do? This seminar offers practical and easy-to-implement strategies for teaching children healthy exercise and eating habits that will last them a lifetime.