9 Habits That Will Change Your Life: The Best Expert Advice I’m Using This Year

I cannot tell you how excited I am for today's conversation. You made this year

today's conversation. You made this year extraordinary. I mean, this was a year

extraordinary. I mean, this was a year for the record books. And that's why I'm so excited to share the top nine moments

from this year with you. See, we

released 106 episodes and more than 75 globally renowned experts showed up with their absolute best insights, their most inspiring story, the most relatable and

impactful advice. And today we've

impactful advice. And today we've assembled the top nine. I'm talking the best of the best. And this is not just a highlight reel. This is going to be a

highlight reel. This is going to be a master class in how to live your best life, how you think about friendship, health, relationships, habits, how to

find meaning and purpose in your life, how to get unstuck. And it's also why relistening to these moments is so powerful. Even for me in listening to

powerful. Even for me in listening to that with you, I just got a whole new insight that I'm about to share with you. And the clip that you are about to

you. And the clip that you are about to hear hit millions of downloads, millions of listens almost immediately. Women are

not small men. And people are like, well, of course not. Like that's, you know, women aren't small men.

>> No siblings grow up in the same house.

No siblings have the same parents. No

siblings have the same family. No

siblings have the same childhood. This

episode was nothing short of a global phenomenon. And now, let's jump into it.

phenomenon. And now, let's jump into it.

Let's jump into the top nine moments of this year.

Hey, it's your friend Mel and welcome to the Mel Robbins podcast. I am so excited for today. I'm glad you're here. It's

for today. I'm glad you're here. It's

such an honor to be together and to spend this time with you. If you're a new listener or you're here because someone shared this with you, I just wanted to take a moment and personally welcome you to the Mel Robbins Podcast

family. I cannot tell you how excited I

family. I cannot tell you how excited I am for today's conversation. And before

you and I get started though on these most unforgettable moments of the Mel Robbins podcast in 2025, I just want to say something to you. Thank you. You

made this year extraordinary. I mean,

this was a year for the record books.

And whether you've been with me listening to this podcast from day one or you've just started listening recently, the fact that you chose to spend your time here with me is

something I don't take lightly. And if

you're new, I want to welcome you. I'm

glad you're here. The Mel Robbins podcast community has grown like crazy this year. See, after Apple named us the

this year. See, after Apple named us the number one most followed show in the world and the number three, I'm talking third largest podcast in the world, the

third largest downloads, largest listener base. I was just so

listener base. I was just so happy.

And I was happy not because of the ranking, but because the ranking demonstrates something that gives me hope. It makes me feel encouraged. See,

hope. It makes me feel encouraged. See,

every single time you find the time and you make the time to listen to this podcast that has a simple mission of inspiring you to create a better life and giving you the tools and the

resources and access to these worldrenowned experts that are going to help you do it. Every time you make the time to listen to this or to watch this,

you're making an investment in you, in your happiness, in your family, in your financial future. I really do believe in

financial future. I really do believe in my heart that the conversations that you and I are happening, they make you feel clearer. They connect you with what

clearer. They connect you with what truly matters. They're making you

truly matters. They're making you stronger in your body and more hopeful about your life and more confident and how you're showing up every day. I know

I feel that way after every single episode that we record. And that's why I'm so excited to share the top nine

moments from this year with you. See, we

released 106 episodes and more than 75 globally renowned experts showed up with their absolute best insights, their most inspiring story, the most relatable and

impactful advice. We looked at

impactful advice. We looked at everything. We analyzed the episodes you

everything. We analyzed the episodes you shared the most, the clips you replayed, the ideas that you debated in the comments. Oo, you got a lot of big

comments. Oo, you got a lot of big opinions. I love that about you. the

opinions. I love that about you. the

things that hit you so deeply you couldn't stop thinking about them. And

today we've assembled the top nine. I'm

talking the best of the best. And this

is not just a highlight reel. This is

going to be a master class in how to live your best life because these moments that resonated so deeply with you and your fellow listeners around the world, they resonated because they

shifted how you think about friendship, health, relationships, habits, how to find meaning and purpose in your life, how to get unstuck. And before we jump

into these nine moments, I want to tell you about something that I created for you. It's something very special. It is

you. It's something very special. It is

a thank you from my team and from me, a thank you to you because you listened to the podcast this year, because you watched the podcast on YouTube, and because you made the time and invested

time in learning how to create a better life. I love that. And so, I really

life. I love that. And so, I really wanted to give you something. So, what

are we giving you? We're giving you a 20page workbook that is going to help you create the best year of your life.

It walks you through the six questions that my husband and I have asked ourselves every year at the end of the year. Six questions that have guided us

year. Six questions that have guided us for the last 22 years on getting very clear about what we want, where we are right now, and the things that matter

and how to create a plan. It is designed to help you get clear. It's designed to help you get in touch with what matters to you. It's designed to help you make

to you. It's designed to help you make next year amazing. And you can find that at melrobins.com/bestyear.

at melrobins.com/bestyear.

That's where you download it. Feel free

to share it with all the people that you care about in your life. All righty. So,

thank you. And now, let's jump into it.

Let's jump into the top nine moments of this year. One moment in particular that

this year. One moment in particular that shot straight to the top in terms of the top nine moments that made the biggest impact on you came from someone that you

and I both adore. I'm talking about none other than Jay Shetty. Now, you may know Jay as the host of OnPurposed, one of the biggest, most impactful podcasts on the planet. He's also a number one New

the planet. He's also a number one New York Times best-selling author and the chief purpose officer at Comm. Jay's a

former monk and he is someone who has helped millions of people find clarity and meaning. In fact, 50 million people

and meaning. In fact, 50 million people follow him online. But here's why this particular moment on the Mel Robbins

podcast this year rose above just about everything else. Jay said something that

everything else. Jay said something that was so simple, so true that you could

almost hear every single personing listening say, "That's me.

That's me." Because so many of you had moments this year where you just felt off track or you felt unsure or you felt

like life was moving, but you were stuck. Or maybe you're the person in

stuck. Or maybe you're the person in your family right now who's holding everything together. That's what you've

everything together. That's what you've been doing this year. But you are starting to come undone right now. And

so if you've thought at all this year, God, I feel stuck.

How do I get unstuck?

You're not alone. And this first moment that resonated so deeply, that's what this is all about. Jay's talking about what it means to be stuck. See, being

stuck, feeling like you're still in your life as things are moving, but you're not. Feeling scared that you'll always

not. Feeling scared that you'll always be stuck here. This is one of the most universal experiences that you're going to have as a human being. And so many of

you felt so much comfort from the way that my friend J. Shetty described and reframed this experience of being stuck that I want you to come back to this

over and over and over again whenever you or somebody that you love is feeling stuck in life. So take a listen to J.

Shed's brilliant insight.

>> What I'd like people to remember is that you're not stuck. You're actually

grieving a past version of yourself. So

there's a part of you that's died that actually you left behind a long time ago, but there's a part of you that still misses it. You still want things to be the same. You still want things to

be that way. And that keeps pulling you back. And that's actually blocking you

back. And that's actually blocking you from making the next move. It's stopping

you because life used to be this way or life used to feel this way. And so we're stuck not because we don't know what to do next. We're stuck because there's a

do next. We're stuck because there's a part of us that wants to hold on to what we have here. There's a beautiful Zen teaching that says what's holding you back is what you're holding on to.

There's an identity, an idea, a mindset, a behavior, an attitude that is keeping you held back. And once you let go of that, once you open and release your

hands, all of a sudden you feel free.

So, what identity, what habit, what mindset, what expectation are you letting yourself be held back by that if you were to let go of, you could easily move forward. If you've raised

your kids and they've left the house, there's a part of you that misses what the home felt like with their energy.

And now you spend all your day thinking about all the memories in the corners.

You look in this corner and you remember your child growing up. You look in this corner and you remember Christmas dinner. You look at this place. So

dinner. You look at this place. So

you're you're constantly surrounding yourself with an identity that no longer exists. So you don't have the time or

exists. So you don't have the time or the energy or the presence to be able to even think about what comes next because there's a part of you that still feels affected. If you go to a relationship

affected. If you go to a relationship breakup, you keep looking at pictures of when you went on vacation. You keep

looking at the pictures of when you had your first date. You keep looking at the memories of maybe it's a clothing piece of clothing, maybe it's an item at home, whatever you're surrounded by. So,

you're still living as if you're still dating that person. And so, that's all holding on to something that is an identity that's already moved on in life. Your kids have already moved on.

life. Your kids have already moved on.

They're at college or they're getting engaged. Your ex has already moved on.

engaged. Your ex has already moved on.

They're in a new relationship or they're alone. So, reality has moved on, but

alone. So, reality has moved on, but you've held on to the piece of clothing, the memory, the photo, the whatever it may be. And that's what's keeping you

may be. And that's what's keeping you stuck. So my question to everyone is,

stuck. So my question to everyone is, what is that thing for you? And how do you learn to release it? That's the

focus. I think we think we're stuck because we don't know what to do next.

No, we're stuck because we're still holding on to what's behind us. And as

soon as you release it, you propel yourself forward. Have you ever felt

yourself forward. Have you ever felt that before and you're holding on to something really tight? If you let go of it, all of a sudden you feel momentum.

Momentum doesn't come from knowing where you're going. It comes from knowing that

you're going. It comes from knowing that I don't want to be here anymore. And I

think if people think about that for a second, what are you holding on to that's holding you back? What are you clinging on to that's keeping you locked

in that's keeping you stuck? Just let

that sit for a minute. What are you clinging on to that's keeping you locked in?

That's keeping you stuck. I want to repeat something else that he said because it really struck me. Jay asked

you a question. He said, "My question to you is, what is that thing for you? And

how do you learn to release it?" You

know, we think we're stuck because we don't know what to do next. Oh my god, that one hit me. It's so true. I've

always felt stuck cuz I'm like, I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. Jay wants you to really consider.

do. Jay wants you to really consider.

No, you're stuck because you're holding on to what's behind you. And as soon as you release it, you propel yourself forward.

Wow. I mean, no wonder that was one of the most rewatched, re-shared, sent to your sister at midnight moments of the

entire year. So many of you wrote in

entire year. So many of you wrote in saying the same thing. I thought I didn't know what to do next. But really,

I was just scared to let go of what wasn't working. Or I was scared to admit

wasn't working. Or I was scared to admit that a chapter of my life was over and I was still holding on to it and expecting my life to feel the same.

No wonder this moment rose to the top.

It helped you see your life with more clarity. I know it helped me, too. I

clarity. I know it helped me, too. I

mean, the truth is, we've all done this.

You've done this. I've done this. You

hold on a little too tightly to something that you've outgrown, the relationship that used to fit, the job that doesn't light you up anymore, the friend group that you used to have so

much fun with, but now it just kind of feels stale. Or maybe you're holding on

feels stale. Or maybe you're holding on to the version of yourself and you're afraid to admit that my gosh, I've just moved past myself. Jay helps so many of

you name that. And once you name it, you can start moving forward again. I mean,

that clip, that was a truth bomb. But

the entire episode was full of moments just like this. And if you haven't listened to it yet, you have to cue this one up next. It is in the show notes.

It'll be linked with all the episodes that we are featuring today that had the top nine moments of the entire year. And

that one you want to relisten to because people kept coming back to this conversation with Jay and all the wisdom that he dropped over and over on so many topics like relationships, purpose. I

mean, you just have to carve out the time to hear it to experience the truth bombs. I mean, it was just mic drop

bombs. I mean, it was just mic drop after mic drop after mic drop. Now, that

was just the first of nine. And after

that Jsh Shetty moment took off, my team and I noticed something really interesting. The next topic that you

interesting. The next topic that you couldn't stop talking about this year was friendship.

Every single time we released anything about the topic of friendship, losing them, making them, outgrowing them, navigating conflict with friends, making

friends as an adult, the loss of friends when you're in your 20s and your 30s, going through different stages of life.

I mean, you went wild for it. And you

want to know what? I get it. Because

nothing will make you feel more confused or more alone than wondering why. Why

does everyone else seem to have this friendship thing figured out except me?

Why does everybody else have a group and I don't? You know, you maybe have this

I don't? You know, you maybe have this experience where you're like, I know that I'm like a person who needs a tribe, but I can't find a tribe. Where

did all my friends go? And how do I make new friends? And how do I find the time?

new friends? And how do I find the time?

And so when we looked at the data, whether that was the clips that you were saving, the ones that you shared, the comments that you left, there was one voice that kept rising to the top when

it came to the experts that appeared on the show. And that voice was Danielle

the show. And that voice was Danielle Bayard Jackson. Daniel Byer Jackson is

Bayard Jackson. Daniel Byer Jackson is the best-selling author of Fighting for Friendship and she is the director of the Women's Relational Health Institute where she leads groundbreaking research

on the science of female connection.

Now, Danielle has this unbelievable gift of taking something that feels personal.

It feels painful. Sometimes the lack of friendship and connection in your life or the fact that friends have fallen off, it can feel kind of shameful. You

know, you have this feeling, is it just me that feels like this friendship thing is so hard, especially the older I get?

And she's going to explain this in a way that will make you think, oh, wait, wait a minute. This is happening to all of

a minute. This is happening to all of us. And this next clip, it's one of the

us. And this next clip, it's one of the top nine clips of the entire year, was one of the most validating things that

you heard all year long. You told us it was a relief that it even made you cry. So many

people, including me, said, "Oh my gosh, learning this, it finally made sense of the friendships that I've lost. It made

me feel like I'm not some idiot or I'm incapable of keeping and making and nurturing friendships. And if you

nurturing friendships. And if you haven't listened to the full episode yet that we've done with Danielle, you have to. It is packed with the kind of

to. It is packed with the kind of clarity and research. More importantly,

like she's got the statistics that lay the foundation and the groundwork that really help you understand the nature of adult friendship. And one

of the statistics that really blew my mind, and this goes for men and women, is that you will replace half of your

friends every seven years. This is

normal. This is what everybody experiences. And that was just the

experiences. And that was just the beginning of the research and the frameworks that Danielle taught us this year about adult friendship that made it

one of the most powerful moments of the entire year. So let's take a listen to

entire year. So let's take a listen to Danielle Bayard Jackson on the Mel Robbins podcast. So men and women um

Robbins podcast. So men and women um yeah there's research that finds that we replace half of our friends every seven years. I hope that that makes people

years. I hope that that makes people feel a little less ashamed if they have friendships that don't work out because what that says to me is that there's

this natural pruning that happens throughout your life. I also hope that that has people release any shame around needing to make new friends because I

hear people say, "I'm out here making friends at 42. I should have had all my friends from high school really because I know some of the friends I had in high school. it would not be appropriate for

school. it would not be appropriate for us to still be friends. It wouldn't make sense to where I am right now or the values I have right now. And so if we are dropping or shedding new friends

every seven years, that means we need to be picking up new ones cuz what is that churn rate look like? How am I positioning myself to invite new friendships into my life? So I hope it

shows us that we will always be having to make new friends. But we even kind of promote the idea to young girls. We'll

even ask them from a young age, is that your best friend? Is that your bestie?

Do you want something for your best friend? And we've got the the chains

friend? And we've got the the chains with like the hearts, you know, from Claire's. It's like best friend. So,

Claire's. It's like best friend. So,

from the very beginning, being trained to identify who that one person is. And

I've also heard it said that, you know, relationships are a woman's primary resource. And I wonder if it's kind of

resource. And I wonder if it's kind of like this social currency, especially at that age, is how many friends do you have? And we see the girl with lots of

have? And we see the girl with lots of friends. And what do I, you know, what

friends. And what do I, you know, what determinations do I begin to make about her? she must be likable and cool, you

her? she must be likable and cool, you know. So, the girl who's got a lot of

know. So, the girl who's got a lot of friends, but especially if you have a bestie because that means you matter.

This is your alliance. You have somebody um who sees you as important. And so,

that best friend phenomenon I definitely see emerge at that stage. What would you say to the person who's listening to you right now who either experienced not having a best friend or not feeling

like they were part of a good friend group or they're seeing somebody that they care about experiencing it right now. You are not alone. There's some

now. You are not alone. There's some

research that finds that 40% of adults don't have a best friend. So there's a lot of people out here who don't have that maybe in this particular season of their life. It doesn't make you any less

their life. It doesn't make you any less important or worthy or lovable to not have that one person. And if you don't, ask yourself if you can get all the things you need from the collective

rather than the singular. I think it's a romantic notion, this idea of the one person who offers you multiple things.

She's your mom friend, your happy hour buddy. It's very cool when that one

buddy. It's very cool when that one person satisfies all those things. But

until maybe you find that person, can you find that from the collective from multiple people? You're getting

multiple people? You're getting laughter. You're getting growth

laughter. You're getting growth opportunities. You're sharing resources.

opportunities. You're sharing resources.

Are you getting that from the village?

Because maybe right now that's more important than having the one person who satisfies all the things. And so I I just need that woman to know you are not alone. There are so many people who are

alone. There are so many people who are in the same boat. and to resist the urge to internalize that and to wonder what's wrong with you because you don't have that right now.

>> Every time I listen to Danielle, I just feel myself exhale, don't you? I mean, that's why this was

don't you? I mean, that's why this was one of the top nine moments of the entire year.

Because if you've ever looked around and thought, "Is it just me? Am I the only adult who's a loser who doesn't have a tight friend group?" Danielle proved through research that you're not alone.

Not even close. This is what the majority of people are feeling. In fact,

I want to reflect back a few things that really struck me and changed me. And I

know it changed you, too, because you kept writing in about it and commenting about it. And it's also why relisting to

about it. And it's also why relisting to these moments is so powerful even for me. In listening to that with you, I

me. In listening to that with you, I just got a whole new insight that I'm about to share with you. And so, let me reflect back a couple things that really I think are important to take away from

that. That number one, for men and

that. That number one, for men and women, that every seven years, you're going to go through this. She called it a natural pruning or shedding. And

you're going to lose up to half your friends. And that's normal. It's a sign

friends. And that's normal. It's a sign that you're growing and changing. And so

are the people in your life. And that's

a beautiful thing. But you have to be honest with yourself and wake up to the fact that if half are going to naturally come in and out of your life, you got to

be proactive about finding new friends, making new friends, and adding new friends to your life. It's such a beautiful insight because it doesn't make it personal. It just makes it a

priority for you to take this serious.

The other thing that really struck me is that 40% of people say they don't have a best friend. Now in re listening to that

best friend. Now in re listening to that I want to share something that I just got out of that moment for the very first time. It was a moment where she

first time. It was a moment where she was talking about how if you don't have that singular person, it doesn't make you less important and that we have been

led to believe this romantic notion that you should be able to get everything from just one person and that there's this ability to be very satisfied in the collective. And here's what I just

collective. And here's what I just realized that at this stage of my life, I'm 57. I get more from the collective

I'm 57. I get more from the collective nature of friendship.

Having a bestie, bestie, bestie. It can

put a lot of pressure on you to always respond. It can put a lot of pressure on

respond. It can put a lot of pressure on that person to be everything. And I find it really powerful to relax into this notion of friendship as a collective

versus a singular. And I'm just sharing that because it really dawned on me as I listened to her share this moment again as I've been listening just alongside

with you. And that's why I love doing

with you. And that's why I love doing this best of episode because I get something new out of these moments just like you are even if you heard it when we released the episode for the first

time. So, I'm so glad that you're here

time. So, I'm so glad that you're here because what Danielle just gave you and me is permission to stop taking friendship changes personally, to stop making it a referendum on your worth, to

stop assuming everyone else has got some secret friendship manual that you never received.

The truth is your life changes and that means your friendships will change with it. That's growth. And if you're feeling

it. That's growth. And if you're feeling this strain on your relationship with your bestie, maybe lean into the collective. Maybe your bestie is going

collective. Maybe your bestie is going through something. Maybe you're going

through something. Maybe you're going through a really busy part of your life and just take the pressure off because that's going to give space for the friendship to both continue to grow and

for you to grow into relationships with other people. I just love this. And

other people. I just love this. And

here's the part that resonated with so many of you that if friendships naturally shift, that means you're not behind.

You're not starting over. You're simply

living your life. And as you shift and change, now you're making room for the people who fit into the chapter that you're in right now. What a beautiful way to think about it. Now, I know why this resonated. It resonated because

this resonated. It resonated because it's the truth of what we're all experiencing. And it also resonated, I

experiencing. And it also resonated, I know, because it was one of the most shared episodes of the entire year and one of the most popular episodes on Apple of this entire year. And if you

haven't listened to the entire conversation yet, please do. If you

haven't shared this with people in your life, your friends, people that are struggling with friendship, please take a moment and share it because it will take the pressure off your shoulders.

It'll take the pressure off the shoulders of the people in your life that are feeling lonely because they haven't found their people or they're going through that season where they're shedding a lot of people or they're in a

new transition and they're having to make new friends. And this conversation will replace that uncertainty with the kind of clarity that every one of us

needs. All right, now let's switch gears

needs. All right, now let's switch gears and let's turn in a direction that the data was like ding ding ding. Everybody

cares a lot about this. What are we talking about? We're talking about

talking about? We're talking about health. Your longterm health. You cared

health. Your longterm health. You cared

about your health this year. I am so proud of you. I love it when the data shows that you are interested in topics that extend the quality of your life.

And when we pulled the numbers, we were stunned on a particular episode. It was

an episode that we did with Dr. Don Musalem and it didn't just do well, it took off like a rocket ship. Almost all

of you who listened listened to the entire episode until the very last minute because it was just that good.

You hung on Dr. Moose Salem's every word. All the research she was dropping

word. All the research she was dropping and the takeaway takeaway takeaway takeaway of what she was telling you, she tells her patients. Let me tell you about the popularity of this episode and

the advice that you're about to hear and the moment I'm about to play for you.

This episode was only released a month ago. It's already one of the fastest

ago. It's already one of the fastest growing episodes I've ever released.

You've written in saying things like, "Mel, I have sent this to everyone I love." And the clip that you are about

love." And the clip that you are about to hear hit millions of downloads, millions of listens almost immediately.

And look, I get it. I was not surprised when this episode hit the top. I was

surprised by the numbers and the data that accumulated in just one month.

Because when Dr. Muse Salem talks, she makes something as terrifying as cancer and disease feel clearer, calmer, and more in your control than you realize.

Let me tell you about Dr. Don Malem. She

is a double boardcertified Mayo Clinic cancer doctor and a pioneering lifestyle medicine expert. She is also a stage 4

medicine expert. She is also a stage 4 cancer survivor who specializes in helping people prevent and fight disease through both traditional medicine and

lifestyle. The advice she is about to

lifestyle. The advice she is about to give you went viral instantly because in this moment she's breaking down the specific foods that you and

your loved ones need to eat. Why?

Because they fight cancer. These are the five specific foods that she tells her patients to eat when they have a cancer diagnosis. These are the five specific

diagnosis. These are the five specific foods that Dr. Muse Salem ate and focused on when she got her cancer diagnosis. This was so compelling. It's

diagnosis. This was so compelling. It's

so tactical. The research is so unbelievable. There were four and a half

unbelievable. There were four and a half million of you who watched it on Instagram alone. So here is Dr. Dawn

Instagram alone. So here is Dr. Dawn Musalem describing the five foods that fight cancer and the research that explains how they do it. So, there's

research with berries that's so exciting. Both for breast cancer

exciting. Both for breast cancer prevention as well as breast cancer survivorship. You won't believe this.

survivorship. You won't believe this.

For every two servings a week, it can reduce the risk of breast cancer. And

for breast cancer survivors, it can reduce the risk of dying from breast cancer by 25%. This was in the Nurse's Health Study. Such cool data, right? So

Health Study. Such cool data, right? So

berries, but guess what? These purple

sweet potatoes, can we talk about those?

>> Yes. So let's talk about the purple sweet potatoes. Dr. Malem, why do purple

sweet potatoes. Dr. Malem, why do purple sweet potatoes prevent cancer?

>> There's 150% more anthocyanins in these purple sweet potatoes than there are in those berries.

>> Tell me about the word anthocsyanin.

What does it do in your body that helps prevent cancer and cure disease and have you live a longer life? So, anthocyanins

like many of these other phytonutrients we see in these vegetables and fruits that we have here, they have the opportunity to come into our body and what we have is we have tumors genes

that will be turned on and we have tumor genes that can be turned off. That's how

they function with the cancer. And these

different molecules can help to either make cancer turn off so that it's not likely to have this proliferation or they can even turn on things called tumor suppressor genes. These tumor

suppressor genes help to be the brakes on any cancer.

>> Why do vegetables like cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli? Why do these prevent or cure cancer?

>> These are some of the most powerful vegetables when it comes to breast cancer. And there's so many fun facts

cancer. And there's so many fun facts with it. So, if we look at this

with it. So, if we look at this cauliflower and broccoli, these are beautiful cruciferous vegetables. And

maybe when I'm ready to cook these, I'll chomp on a few of these before I cook it. And you know why? Why?

it. And you know why? Why?

>> Because when they're raw, there's an enzyme in them called murosinace.

>> Okay, murosen.

>> Murosenise.

>> Okay.

>> And that enzyme is really magical for trying to absorb the phytonutrients that are in the broccoli, the cauliflower, the Brussels sprouts, the arugula better and more effectively. So when it comes

to breast cancer, it helps to make estrogen into a less proliferative form.

In a more >> proliferative mean, >> you know, when we think of the breast tissue, we think of the fact that the breast tissue itself can be in a proliferative state where cells can grow

more. And what the broccoli can do is it

more. And what the broccoli can do is it can transition the estrogen actually in our body to a form of estrogen that doesn't cause that proliferation.

Proliferation is growth. So you can imagine if something's upregulating growth, that's not a good thing, right?

>> We want things that try to turn off that growth and it keeps that in check. It's

like a master at detoxification.

>> Let's talk about beans and why do they prevent cancer?

>> This is an amazing plant protein. But

when you think about plant protein, you're not just getting protein, you're getting fiber.

>> And fiber is obviously in all of these plant foods. You only get fiber from

plant foods. You only get fiber from plants. There was just something called

plants. There was just something called we call an umbrella review. 17 million

person years in the study and what it showed us is that there's class one evidence. This is like the highest

evidence. This is like the highest quality evidence we have in medicine that fiber can help to reduce dying from any cause dying from heart disease. It

can also reduce the risk of dying from pancreas cancer in this class one evidence.

>> What?

>> It's really exciting. There was another study, another review of the data that was just published that showed that fiber can help to reduce the risk of cancer by 22%. Why does edeteamame >> prevent cancer?

>> There are very few things we can consume that, god forbid, you ever got breast cancer would reduce your risk of dying.

And edetomame are one of those. And one

of the most influential times you have the edetto is when you're a young girl.

And if you're a young boy, it's going to be very protective for his prostate, too. So, we know that soy is also good

too. So, we know that soy is also good to reduce the risk of prostate cancer.

There's even some research that says it reduces the risk of lung cancer, and it's amazing for the gut microbiome. But

let me talk about breast cancer because a lot of women with breast cancer avoid soy even though that we know this data that it looks protective. They avoid

soy. Well, the American Cancer Society's 2022 data on nutrition and exercise update dedicated three paragraphs to the safety of soy and breast cancer survivors. And it didn't just show

survivors. And it didn't just show safety. In this beautiful metaanalysis,

safety. In this beautiful metaanalysis, it showed that there was a 25% reduction in breast cancer coming back.

Let's talk about kiwi. This is super cool. So this really gets like on the

cool. So this really gets like on the cellular level at the level of DNA. It

can reduce oxidative stress. So

oxidative stress is what comes from us from everything as simple as breathing oxygen from the environment to having any stressors in life to just really living. Okay? We get this oxidative

living. Okay? We get this oxidative damage that builds up. Certain foods can even kind of cause this trigger as well.

But what these little magical fruits do is they go in and they help to turn off that oxidative stress. They come to the rescue. I I mean, don't you just love

rescue. I I mean, don't you just love her? If this is the first time you're

her? If this is the first time you're experiencing the magic of Dr. Don Muse Salem, you have got to listen to the entire episode because she just, you

know, you know what I almost imagine when I'm when I'm when I'm listening to her. I'm imagining being a patient in a

her. I'm imagining being a patient in a hospital and in she walks and you could see her wearing a cape. I love the word she's talking about science. Super cool.

beautiful metaanalysis, fun facts, tamer, tumor genes turning. I mean, it's just like she has this ability

to bring something to the conversation about a topic that's terrifying, cancer.

And as you listen to her, you feel hopeful. You have clarity. You you

hopeful. You have clarity. You you

believe the science. She's so

enthusiastic about how your body can heal and these things that you can eat that I mean these are her words, tumor genes turn off. I I I mean I just I just

photo nutrients. I I I'm so excited by

photo nutrients. I I I'm so excited by the fact that you have this episode as a resource. I'm excited that you have a

resource. I'm excited that you have a world-renowned Mayo Clinic cancer doctor who's a stage 4 breast cancer survivor who is sharing this with you because

cancer is one of those topics that we tiptoe around. And I know it feels big.

tiptoe around. And I know it feels big.

It's heavy. It's scary. It's out of your control. You doubt whether or not your

control. You doubt whether or not your body can manage it. But Dr. Malem, she doesn't speak to you from fear. She

speaks to you from power, from lived experience, and from science. Science

that she is so excited about. And that's

what made this moment explode. Dr. M

Salem is living proof that your body wants to heal and it knows how to heal.

And she gave you the very specific takeaways backed by extraordinary research to prove to you that there are things that you can do. She's reminding

you that your future, it's not passive.

It's your responsibility.

She's telling you your choices matter.

Your habits matter. The food you eat, it matters.

You matter. That's why this episode took off the way that it did. It didn't scare you. It empowered you. It made you

you. It empowered you. It made you smarter. Now, the success of the episode

smarter. Now, the success of the episode with Dr. Don Muse Salem didn't surprise me because you deeply care about your health. It's one of the reasons why you

health. It's one of the reasons why you listen. But the next top moment of the

listen. But the next top moment of the entire year of the Mel Robbins podcast was shocking. I did not expect this. The

was shocking. I did not expect this. The

team didn't expect this. I am startled by this next moment. This one was a shocker when we crunched the data and discovered one of the top moments of the

entire year was an episode about sex.

Wow. And it came from the episode entitled Your Guide to Better Sex, Intimacy, and Love from a World Leading

Sex Therapist. This was one of the most

Sex Therapist. This was one of the most talked about, most rewatched, most shared conversations of the entire year.

And I get why. Because Vanessa Marin makes this topic feel normal. Vanessa

has been in clinical practice as a licensed sex therapist for over 20 years and she's been married for 16 years. She

knows what it's like and she turns the lights on a topic that so many of us have kept in the dark literally. She has

this way of giving you permission to understand yourself better and communicate better without the shame, without the pressure, without the shoulds or the hinting or the withholds, you know, where you're thinking about it

but you don't really talk about it. And

that's why this next moment struck such a nerve. It was kind of like a

a nerve. It was kind of like a collective sigh of relief. And and you know, I'm kind of happy that this was one of the biggest moments because I think we all want to have a great sex life and we don't really know how to

talk about it. And that's why this was also one of the most refreshing conversations of the entire year because one of the things Vanessa talked about

is the timing of sex. literally what's

the best time of day to have sex and when you should have sex and what to do and not do once you're in bed. Now,

isn't it interesting that the third largest podcast in the world in terms of downloads and global listeners that the advice about sex and improving your sex life was something that was one of the

most powerful clips globally? I guess

we're all kind of struggling with this.

We all want to feel more satisfied and more connected. We want to feel more

more connected. We want to feel more empowered. And this particular piece of

empowered. And this particular piece of advice that I'm about to play for you, it changed my life. It's a piece of advice that I put to use immediately the

second I was done talking to Vanessa. I

shared this with my husband, Chris. It

is so brilliant. It is so obvious. It is

kind of one of those things that once you hear it, you're like, "Oh my god, I have been so over complicating this. Why

did I not think about this sooner?" Wait

until you hear what sex therapist Vanessa Marin said when I asked her, "Vanessa, when is the best time of day for sex?"

>> Another classic mistake that I see most couples making, which is that we leave sex to the very end of the night. We

just have that idea in our heads like, "Oh, we're all teeth brushed, all cleaned up, crawling into bed. That's

the time for sex." That is the worst time for sex. By the time you're crawling into bed, you are exhausted.

You're thinking about the next day.

You're thinking about the crazy day you just had. You're doing that mental math

just had. You're doing that mental math in your head of, "Okay, if I fall asleep in the next five minutes, then I can get this many hours of sleep." That is the worst time to get excited about sex. So,

I always encourage couples, try to have sex as early in the evening as you can.

Obviously, everybody has different schedules. We have different things

schedules. We have different things going on, but try to prioritize it as early as you possibly can. So, if it's we're not going to watch TV until we've had sex first. Maybe it's even we're going to have sex and then we're going

to have dinner or we're going to have dinner, have sex, then we'll come back and clean everything up, but do it earlier so you actually have the energy to have that intimacy with each other.

>> What I'm hearing from you, which is interesting because I feel myself also having a little bit of a visceral like, oh god, is this idea of you got to plan it.

>> You're like, yeah, no kidding, Mel. You

have to plan it. Like cuz I think I believe in the myth that it's just supposed to happen.

>> Mhm.

>> Which is clearly not working.

>> Mhm.

>> And that's what happens in the beginning of a relationship when you first it's brand new. You will literally going to

brand new. You will literally going to the grocery store is the hottest date on the planet and then you're having sex in the backseat of the car in the uh parking lot. Like those days are over.

parking lot. Like those days are over.

So you're >> I want to challenge you on that though.

>> Okay. If you really think back on it in the early days of a relationship, so I'll I'll talk about me and Xander when we started having sex and then we're planning dates with each other. We're

scheduling sex >> because you're planning dates.

>> We're planning dates. I would know. He'd

ask me out on Friday. Hey, you want to go hang out on Friday? We'll go to dinner. Come back to my place. We're

dinner. Come back to my place. We're

having sex. That's scheduling sex. It's

not that we've never had to schedule sex before and now we're old and boring and we have to do it. We've been scheduling sex our entire relationship. What are

some little things that make a big difference in your sex life?

>> Oo, I'll give you three.

First one, gratitude, which you might not expect, but research has shown that gratitude is actually the number one predictor of marital satisfaction. And

we talked earlier about how emotional and physical intimacy are really deeply intertwined. So, if we want to feel

intertwined. So, if we want to feel closer to our partner and get like the maximum bang for our buck, gratitude is the fastest thing that you can do. It's

literally a few seconds to say, "I appreciate this about you. I saw that you did that. Thank you so much for this." Second thing is some form of

this." Second thing is some form of physical contact with each other. We

talked a lot about nonsexual touch. It's

so important to have that nonsexual touch. And in particular, I like a

touch. And in particular, I like a six-second kiss and a 20 to 30 second hug. We actually have research showing

hug. We actually have research showing that those are the specific time frames it takes for our body to release oxytocin. The bonding hormone, the trust

oxytocin. The bonding hormone, the trust hormone, makes us feel close to each other. And then the third thing, eye

other. And then the third thing, eye contact. It is wild how few couples make

contact. It is wild how few couples make eye contact with each other. And I think that there is no greater tragedy than being in a long-term relationship with

somebody, but feeling literally and emotionally unseen by them. So those

three things, you can do those three things in under a minute every single day, and those will make such a big impact. I I just have to say hearing

impact. I I just have to say hearing this again alongside you, I truly understand why this was one of

the most powerful moments of the entire year for all of us. I mean, I'm just going to reflect back to you what changed my life about this.

When she said that thing about the fact that you've always been scheduling sex and that basically a date is scheduling

sex, I I I just was like, "Duh, Mel, you just look at it differently when you're in a long-term relationship." Why did I not think about this before? It's so

true, isn't it? I mean, because by the time I crawl into bed, I'm wrapped up like a human burrito. I'm horizontal.

I'm done. And if Chris even breathes in my direction, I'm like, "Okay, how about the morning? How about the morning? I'm

the morning? How about the morning? I'm

too tired." And that's what I love so much about Vanessa's work that she takes something that so many of us feel embarrassed about or you feel shameful because you think that you're doing

something wrong or you can't believe that it's gotten to this point where you're no longer having sex as much as you want to or you're an angry like it just and removes every ounce of shame from it. And there's one other thing I

from it. And there's one other thing I wanted to reflect back to you that has made a big difference. You know those three things she said at the end that really impact your sex life all based on research. The first being gratitude and

research. The first being gratitude and that's kind of like remembering who you married and being appreciative of all the things they are doing right of how hard they are trying of the good things that are easy to forget about the

person. But the two things that have

person. But the two things that have made a big deal for me is the hugs. The

physical contact and that research about a hug needing to last between 20 and 30 seconds. You know, Chris and I were

seconds. You know, Chris and I were always touchy feely, but the hug thing whenever I pass him in the kitchen, we now have this habit where we stop

like one of us will grab the other one by the shoulders and we just hug. And 20

seconds is longer than you think. And

practicing doing an extra long hug like that, it just makes you feel more connected to your person. It's really

remarkable how these two simple changes, making it a point to hug a little longer than normal and do it once a day. My

rule is I if I pass Chris in the kitchen, I stop and I hug him. That's

the rule. It happens every day now. And

then just scheduling sex, having it before we go out, having it before dinner, having it earlier in the day.

Holy cow, small changes, extraordinarily profound impact. So, you

know, I think it really was such an important moment globally because, you know, if you've been silently wondering, why don't I want sex as much as I used

to? Is something wrong with me? Is

to? Is something wrong with me? Is

something wrong with us? Why? Why can't

it just happen naturally like it used to happen? Well, what we learned from

happen? Well, what we learned from Vanessa is it didn't happen naturally because we were scheduling it through something we used to call dating. And

Vanessa just brings this huge collective oh you're not broken. Your relationship

isn't broken. You're just human. And

your body and your brain are tired at night. It's not that you're not

night. It's not that you're not interested. That's why this moment

interested. That's why this moment became one of the most replayed, rewatched, and shared of the entire year. It didn't make you feel guilty. It

year. It didn't make you feel guilty. It

made you feel understood. It took the pressures off your shoulders and gave you permission to approach intimacy with more humor, more grace, and way less self- judgment. And if you haven't heard

self- judgment. And if you haven't heard the full conversation, you should because it's everything you need more of in your relationships. Simple, doable

shifts that make sense, that are grounded in research, and that help you make connection easier instead of

heavier. So, let's now go somewhere that

heavier. So, let's now go somewhere that I really wasn't expecting the data to take us, and that's into the emotional

world of men. Now, this moment genuinely surprised me because when we crunched the numbers from the entire year, one of the moments that absolutely

took off was about something that most people never really consider. They don't

talk about. They don't know what to do about it. And that's what's really going

about it. And that's what's really going on beneath the surface with the men that you love. And I have to be honest with

you love. And I have to be honest with an audience that's mostly women. Now, we

have a lot of men that listen, but women are the gateway to the Mel Robbins universe. But here's what I was not

universe. But here's what I was not expecting. I was not expecting the

expecting. I was not expecting the conversation about the emotional life of men to explode in the way that it did.

But you devoured it. You shared it with your partners, your sons, your dads, your brothers, your friends, and messages poured in like Mel. This this

episode finally helped me understand him. I wish I had heard this and knew

him. I wish I had heard this and knew this years ago. Please, Mal, please have Jason Wilson back. Jason Wilson is the founder and director of the Cave of

Adullum Transformational Training Academy, which is a pioneering school in Detroit, where young boys learn emotional resilience, discipline, character, and integrity. Jason received

the President's Volunteer Service Award from President Barack Obama, and his work with young men was the subject of an awardwinning ESPN film documentary.

the executive producer, none other than Lawrence Fishburn. Jason Wilson is also

Lawrence Fishburn. Jason Wilson is also the author of the best-selling book, The Man the Moment Demands, a guide that reframes what it means to be a whole man

in today's world. And I'm I'm encouraged to see that there are so many people right now talking about the state of men and explaining how men are in trouble in

terms of their emotional and their mental health. But there's not a lot of

mental health. But there's not a lot of people who are telling you and me what to do about it. Like once you know that somebody in your life may be struggling,

they may not have a lot of friends. They

may be kind of shut down and not expressing themselves. What do you do

expressing themselves. What do you do about it? How do you support them in

about it? How do you support them in opening up? How do you support them in

opening up? How do you support them in creating friendships with guys and really living a more healthy life in terms of being happy and connected and

more resilient? And how do you do that

more resilient? And how do you do that in a way that really opens the door for not only you to change how you're relating to the men in your life, but for the men in your life to really

receive this message and feel inspired and encouraged to change themselves. And

that's exactly what Jason Wilson did for you and me. He opened the door to what's underneath the silence and underneath the anger. And he does it with so much

the anger. And he does it with so much love and honesty.

This is why this moment became one of the most unexpected and impactful moments of the entire year. And you got to listen to the whole episode. It's

just so profound and helpful. And Jason

spent a lot of time talking about how the men that he works with, the boys that he works with are either angry

or they seem silent and shut down. And I

was really interested in this topic because I am married to a man who for a lot of our marriage was very shut down.

He was very quiet. He seemed very stoic.

And even when you're dealing with somebody like that, there's anger underneath there. And so I was asking

underneath there. And so I was asking Jason, why are these the two things that we see? Why do we tend to see the men

we see? Why do we tend to see the men and the young men in our life either expressing and holding a lot of anger or

just seeming very stoic and silent? And

just wait till you hear what Jason Wilson said about the reason why men are either angry or silent.

>> You can't be weak. You can't be soft.

You can't be a simp as they say if you're just angry. If you're silent, you look stoic now. Oh, he must be strong

cuz nothing ever phases him. And so men, anger is a very safe emotion to express.

When our feelings are hurt, we're angry.

When we're sad, we're angry. When we

lose, we're angry. When our wives express that they want to spend more time with us cuz they miss us, we're angry. It's a surface emotion. That's

angry. It's a surface emotion. That's

why I tell men to dig deep. What What

are you really feeling? And I compare it to masculinity to uh the crayon analogy in this book. As men, we stay within the

eight box of crayons. Okay? And we may pull out four. Women have 64.

>> That's why we confuse you so much.

>> But this but this is this is interesting. We were created for all of

interesting. We were created for all of those emotions. They're not exclusive to

those emotions. They're not exclusive to you. That's true.

you. That's true.

>> It's there, but we've been hoodwinkedked by allowing society to define what a man is.

>> And so when women are communicating with us, they may pull out, I'll use analogy of uh the color violet and all we have is purple. We can't meet the moment. Or

is purple. We can't meet the moment. Or

even more complex issues, they ask for lime and we're trying to put green and yellow together.

>> And because men, we're not used to expressing the gamut of emotions that we have as human beings.

we can't meet the moment. And so I need to learn how to express more than my anger. If you don't trust me with the

anger. If you don't trust me with the finances, it's not the anger I need to express. It's the hurt you make me feel

express. It's the hurt you make me feel because my father never trusted me with anything that required responsibility.

And so when a man can express his heart to his wife or the woman in his life, a mature woman, she drops her guard. And

now we can communicate.

>> You know, I've said this before and I'm going to say it again. I absolutely love Jason Wilson. I love his work. I love

Jason Wilson. I love his work. I love

his best-selling books. I love his voice.

I love how he can just get in there with a level of conviction.

He has this way of saying out loud what so many men are living in silence and frankly so many women like me need to hear. And once you understand that anger

hear. And once you understand that anger is often the only emotion that men were ever taught to access, everything shifts. The shutdowns make more sense.

shifts. The shutdowns make more sense.

The short fuse makes more sense. The

silence makes more sense. It doesn't

excuse hurtful behavior, but it explains the wiring and the experiences underneath it that created it. And that

explanation is what so many of you said felt like a lifeline. Because when you love a man, whether you're talking about your partner or your dad or your brother or your son, you want to understand him.

You want to be connected. You want a relationship that's not built on guessing. That cranbox metaphor was so

guessing. That cranbox metaphor was so helpful. So many of you wrote in and

helpful. So many of you wrote in and commented about that in particular. I've

never even thought about it. Like my my the men in my life I've judged because they're only doing life with four or five crayons, but there's so many more complex emotions underneath. And just

knowing that it makes me feel excited because I can lean in and be curious and be softer and communicate in a different way to help them express it. I'm just so

grateful for that conversation and I'm grateful it really resonated with you which is why it was one of the top nine moments this year. Are you ready to

shift gears again? Because coming up, the next moment was the top moment for all podcasts everywhere. What you're

about to hear comes from an episode that we did on women's health with none other than Stanford University's Dr. Stacy

Sims. Dr. Stacy Sims has a PhD in exercise, physiology, and nutrition science. She's on the faculty at

science. She's on the faculty at Stanford University teaching about lifestyle medicine and at Auckland University of Technology where she teaches sports medicine. She is a

renowned researcher and has directed research programs at Stanford Auckland University of Technology and the University of WCAD. and she has

published, check this out, 107 peer-reviewed research papers, which in normal person speak is a ton. And you do not want to miss

this moment because it's where Dr. Stacy Sims unpacks a fundamental medical truth. Women are not small men.

truth. Women are not small men.

Everything you've been taught about your health, how to take care of yourself, exercise, diet, is working against you.

This advice that you're about to hear, it comes from the single most popular episode that the Mel Robbins podcast has ever released in the last 3 years that

we have been doing this show. And it's

also from the number one most shared episode of every single episode on the planet on Apple in 2025.

That's how inspiring and how empowering this advice is. It started from when I was teaching at Stanford and wanted to wake some of the undergrads up after you

in lunch and afternoon sleepies come in and I was teaching about sex differences in training or high performance. So I

would started with women are not small men and people are like well of course not like that's you know women aren't small men but what I mean by that is everything from what happens in uterero

until we die is different for women than men. So when we talk about women are not

men. So when we talk about women are not small men and we see all the guidelines that are out there for exercise, all the guidelines out there for mental health, for the connections, the socioultural

pressures, we experience things differently as women than men do. But

that's not ever really explained. So

when we say women are not small men, it makes people take that pause and ask, well, what do you mean by that? What

topic? So today, what I mean by women are not small men is we're going to dive into exercise, especially how what we do should change as we move through our

lives. What does that motto women are

lives. What does that motto women are not small men mean in practice? I think

when we look right now at what's being portrayed in social media, fitness trends, the medical trends, >> all of that data is really drawn from

men and just generalized to women, which is a huge disservice. So, I want women, especially you as a listener on this podcast, to take a pause whenever you see a new trend come up or someone

pushing something to just go, well, where did this originate? How does that appropriate for me as a woman in my phase of life? And when you take that pause, you begin to have an objection to

some of the things that are being pushed on you and an objective view of how you should approach things to make it beneficial for you. I mean, if you look

at most women who make a point to get up, do some training, go exercise, and it happens so often after four weeks of following the same kind of training

program as their male partner. Their

male partner has gotten leaner, fitter, better cognition, you know, focus, all of the things that you want out of fitness. And the woman's like, "How come

fitness. And the woman's like, "How come I'm fatter and tired and I don't have any like increase in my fitness like my partner does?" And I see it all the

partner does?" And I see it all the time. And I'm always explaining, well,

time. And I'm always explaining, well, one, your partner might get up and go, fastid training. Women's bodies don't

fastid training. Women's bodies don't respond well to fastid training.

>> What's fast training? I don't even know what the heck this is. Like, what

training?

>> Facid training means you're not having any food before you go do exercise. If I

don't have food to counter the fuel that the muscles are needing from a contraction, I need to find a way to supply that fuel. So, it goes into a little bit of a tizzy. And one of the

first things that starts to get broken down is your muscle mass. because muscle

is a pretty active tissue and the hypothalamus is like, well, I don't know if I'm going to be able to supply the food that this muscle needs if I don't have any food coming in. So, it's a very

small amount of food that a woman needs first thing in the morning to then go be successful in her training. And it

doesn't mean a full meal. It could be the protein coffee. It could be a couple of tablespoons of yogurt, a half a banana. It's not a lot, but it's enough

banana. It's not a lot, but it's enough to bring your blood sugar up and tell your brain, "Yeah, I heck, I've got this." I cannot thank Dr. Stacy Sims

this." I cannot thank Dr. Stacy Sims enough. This episode changed my life in

enough. This episode changed my life in fundamental ways. There's so many

fundamental ways. There's so many changes that I made. And what we were just talking about, the fact that women forever were basically taught to exercise on an empty stomach to maximize

calorie burn and that works against you.

I didn't know that. And so a fundamental change that I've made is that when I get up, I eat breakfast. I fuel myself. And

that's with everything from, you know, making eggs in the morning to making a smoothie to having one of these Pure Genius shots. Pure Genius is something

Genius shots. Pure Genius is something that's also changed my life. It's why I became the co-founder of this new protein company, Pure Genius. I was

inspired to do it because of how much I've been learning from all of these medical experts. Now, after learning

medical experts. Now, after learning from Dr. Stacy Sims, I never ever ever exercise on an empty stomach. I don't

even go for a walk on an empty stomach.

You have to listen to this episode. It

is so packed with eyeopening, researchbacked validating tactical effective changes that you and me as women and all the women in your life, we

need to make. So there's no question in my mind why this was the number one most shared episode of the entire world across the globe of every single podcast. That's how good it is. So

podcast. That's how good it is. So

please make the time and spend the time with Dr. Stacy Sims. Learn about the ways that women are not small men and what you and I have been led to believe that's untrue that works against your

body. I know you're going to love it.

body. I know you're going to love it.

And since we're in the lane of taking back your health, let's zoom in and switch directions

and really focus on something that every single one of us needs to be serious about as we get older. And that is how

to protect your strength, your mobility, and your future. See, Dr. Stacy Sims came in and gave us a complete body

reset.

But then Dr. Vonda Wright came in with a reckoning. Now let me tell you about Dr.

reckoning. Now let me tell you about Dr. Vanderight. Dr. Vonda Wright is one of

Vanderight. Dr. Vonda Wright is one of the leading experts on aging, mobility, longevity, and long-term health. Dr.

Wright is a double board certified orthopedic surgeon and internationally recognized researcher whose groundbreaking work on mobility,

muscularkeeletal aging, and longevity is transforming how we understand the aging body. Dr. Wright has treated more than a

body. Dr. Wright has treated more than a 100,000 patients and has multiple number one best-selling books at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Wright was the

of Pittsburgh. Dr. Wright was the medical director of the UPMC sports complex and the director of many of their biggest research groups, including

the performance and research initiative for M's athletes. She is redefining what's possible for strength, movement, and vitality at every stage of life.

When my team and I crunched the numbers for this episode, my jaw hit the floor. This conversation

wasn't just one of our top health episodes of the year. It was one of the top episodes of the entire show. Period.

And the reason is simple. Dr. Vonda

Wright doesn't speak about aging like it's a slow decline. She talks about it like it's something you can train for.

She doesn't come rolling in with fear.

She comes in with fire.

Every single person I know who heard that episode said the same thing. Okay,

this changes everything.

Cuz she kept saying over and over, "Getting old is inevitable. Getting weak

is not." This is the moment that I'm about to play for you that made millions of women stand up a little straighter and take ownership of their future

because you're about to hear this worldrenowned medical researcher and orthopedic surgeon get very choked up and start crying.

She's going to describe to you what it's like to see women come into her office.

women who have been so busy taking care of everybody else that they never took the time to take care of themselves. What you're about to

hear is the real truth of what you and your loved ones are going to be facing if you don't take your mobility and

strength training and truly truly choosing how you age seriously.

You know what, Mel? I don't mean to cry in public, but I am still a practicing surgeon.

I have looked into the eyes of more than a 100,000 people in my lifetime as a doctor.

And I started as a cancer nurse, right?

But I see the future of people today, every day when I take call. And this is what it is. And I've got to solve for this. You and I have got to solve for

this. You and I have got to solve for this.

When your aunt Mary breaks her hip and I'm called to the hospital bed to see her, she is laying there in excruciating pain, baldled up at the bottom of the

bed with that horrible blue gown on that we put people in. And she doesn't want to be moved up because it hurts too much, right? From bones that she never

much, right? From bones that she never even paid attention to, never knew she had cuz we ignored it and now they're screaming. That's number one. Number

screaming. That's number one. Number

two, what's happened to her is she's laying there in a pile of her own urine because she was not treated for the gynecoinary syndrome of menopause. Her

pelvic floor got weak. So many women do not talk about the fact that they become incontinent in late in life and have urinary tract infection. So she's

painful. She is incontinent which if she even realizes it is pretty she feels ashamed about that.

I need to do a 45 minute surgery on her where because she's broken her hip, I need to put a rod down that the size of my thumb. Actually,

my thumb. Actually, I cannot do that if her heart is not healthy enough to withstand anesthesia.

And many times her heart is so unhealthy because she's taking care of everybody else in the world except herself that the hospitalist have a hard time clearing her heart. And do you know what

else? She either has a touch of dementia

else? She either has a touch of dementia or she has full-blown Alzheimer's.

That is the state of women that I see every time I go to fix a hip on call.

And do you know in her lucid moments what she is saying to me? She is

standing there with her daughter. It's

usually the do eldest daughter at the bedside. She say she's looking at me.

bedside. She say she's looking at me.

She's looking at her daughter and time after time again she'll say something like, "I've not always been like this. I

don't know how I got here. Don't ever

let this happen to you. Don't get old."

Well, I am not blaming her at all. I see

the future of women. Mel, I can't not not cry. If we know we have within our

not cry. If we know we have within our hands to change the trajectory of our future and if we uh choose to not be the

victims of the passage of time, we don't have to end up like all those women I take care of, 30% of whom after they break a hip will die. We can choose

another path, but it takes conscious effort and a belief that we are worth it.

>> One of the things I love most about Dr. for Vonda, right, is that I really feel

her passion and her belief that you and I are worth it. I believe her, don't you? When she says, "We have within our

you? When she says, "We have within our hands the ability to change the trajectory of our future

if we choose not to be the victims of the passage of time."

And I also love that in this episode, she gives you the very specific and simple things you can start doing every

day with things that are already in your home to take better care of yourself, to build your strength, to build your mobility.

Every time I hear this section of the episode, something inside me goes still.

I think of my grandmothers.

I think of women in my life who are aging who have taken care of everybody else but haven't really taken care of themselves.

Because that's what she's talking about.

The women in your life that she's caring for every single day.

She sees them in pain. Women who didn't know what was happening inside their bodies. who spent decades taking care of

bodies. who spent decades taking care of everyone but themselves.

And now, as they age, their health is unraveling.

And here's why this moment rose above almost everything else we published this year.

Dr. Wright wakes you up without shaming you.

She's showing you the cost of ignoring your own needs, of ignoring your body.

And then she hands you back your power in the exact same breath.

Because Dr. Wright's whole message is this. You're not too old. You're not too

this. You're not too old. You're not too late. You're not past the point of

late. You're not past the point of changing. Your body will always respond

changing. Your body will always respond to the positive stress that you give it, the strength training, the nutritional changes, the mobility exercises. And

when she says you do not have to be the victim of the passage of time, you can feel that in your bones. And you may not even be thinking about yourself. I hope

you are. I hope you are. But you may be thinking and have this renewed sense of hope for one of your aunts or maybe for your mom or for your grandma or for your

older sister who has been so busy taking care of her aging in-laws that she's let herself go and she's kind of saying, "I don't know how I got here." That's why

this episode was one of the biggest across every platform. And Dr. Wright started something that also went viral.

She started something called the viral push-up challenge. You loved it. She

push-up challenge. You loved it. She

told you and me that we had to be able to do 11 push-ups. I was like, "On our knees?" She's like, "Nope, on your

knees?" She's like, "Nope, on your toes." And she shared how to do this

toes." And she shared how to do this challenge with a level of humor and passion. You can start against the wall.

passion. You can start against the wall.

You can start against your kitchen counter. When you're ready to get down

counter. When you're ready to get down on the knees, you can do it on the knees. And over time, she wants you and

knees. And over time, she wants you and me to be able to do 11 push-ups. And you

loved the challenge, and so did I. In

fact, I did my push-ups this morning.

I've been working on them all year thanks to Dr. Wright. I'm still doing a couple on my knees. I'm not to the toes yet. It takes time, but I feel the

yet. It takes time, but I feel the strength. Now, if you have not listened

strength. Now, if you have not listened to the entire conversation or you listened and you're like, "Oh my god, I remember how amazing that was. I got to listen again." What are you waiting for?

listen again." What are you waiting for?

Your best years are not behind you. You

are building your best years right now.

And Dr. Wright is here with one of the most popular episodes of all time to give you the playbook on how to do that.

Now, after hearing Dr. Right? And

feeling that jolt of urgency and the hope about your intelligence and your body and the strength that you can build. Now, I want to pivot and take you

build. Now, I want to pivot and take you somewhere deeper because one of the biggest patterns that we saw when we

looked back at the entire year was you weren't just working on your health, you weren't just focused on building better habits, you were also working on

healing. And when it comes to healing,

healing. And when it comes to healing, there's one voice globally that rose above almost every other guest because he has this ability to help you

understand yourself on the deepest level. And that is Dr. Gabbor Mate. Dr.

level. And that is Dr. Gabbor Mate. Dr.

Gabbor Mate is a world-renowned physician and number one best-selling author whose groundbreaking work reveals how childhood experiences

and trauma shape your emotional patterns, your relationships, and even your physical health across a lifetime.

His insights have transformed the global conversation on healing. and his clarity and compassion help people like you and

me finally understand themselves in a way that opens the door to real change, real connection, and real freedom.

This episode was nothing short of a global phenomenon because Dr. Gabbor gave you the single

most viral moment of the entire year.

The moment you're about to hear had 25 million people watch it because it

clicked for so many of you. If you've

ever wondered why does my childhood impact me but it doesn't seem to impact my brother? Why do I have a terrible

my brother? Why do I have a terrible relationship with my dad but my sister has a great relationship? Why is it that

I'm more sensitive and I don't feel very connected to my family? I feel like an outsider. And one of the things that Dr.

outsider. And one of the things that Dr. Gabbor Mate talks about in his work is that understanding

how your childhood shapes you gives you more compassion for yourself as an adult and it opens the door for healing and for you to consciously become the kind

of person you want to become. And one of the biggest insights that he shared is the fact that your childhood was very different than your siblings. And so

let's drop into the moment where Dr. Gabbor Mate tells you the truth about your childhood

that you need to hear.

>> No siblings grow up in the same house.

No siblings have the same parents. No

siblings have the same family. No

siblings have the same childhood. Why

not? There a whole lot of reasons.

Number one, there's the birth order.

Parents don't relate to the first child the way they relate to the second child.

Then there's gender differences. Parents

don't relate to I'm not talking about whe the parents love the kids or not.

I'm talking about what actually happens.

The child doesn't experience the parents love. The child experiences the way the parent shows up. Um number

one. Number two, the parents relationship might be in a different phase one child than another. The

parents might be in a different economic situation.

The parents lives might be different.

Then each child will evoke a different response from the parent. Like with my three kids or your three kids or Yeah, you have three children. Yeah, you have

two daughters and a son. I have two sons and a daughter. It's not that I loved or we loved any one of them more than the other, but we responded to them differently. And there's one more

differently. And there's one more factor, which is children are born with different temperaments, >> which is they experience the world differently. So even if I could be the

differently. So even if I could be the same parent to all my kids, which I couldn't be, they still have three different parents because they would experience me differently.

>> That moment hit you so deeply and I know it hit me deeply too, both as a child and also as a parent. No siblings grow

up in the same childhood. And when you hear him explain it so plainly without judgment, like I really in listening to

it again with you, I'm thinking about the line that this is not about how you experience love from your parents.

It's how you're experiencing the way your parents showed up with you. And

when you really take that on, whether you take it on as a parent or you take it on as your experience as a child, that every child experiences

a completely different parent. They have

a completely different childhood.

Suddenly, so many things about your life make sense. The roles you took on, the

make sense. The roles you took on, the ways you coped and adapted, the guilt you may have carried, the reactions you wish you didn't have, the patterns that

you're trying to break. That moment, the one you just heard, was the single most viral moment of the entire year.

Because perhaps for the first time, you realize nothing's wrong with you. You

were doing the best you could with the version of the world you grew up inside of. And what I love about this episode

of. And what I love about this episode is that so many of you sent it to your siblings.

You sent it to your partner, your therapist. You forwarded it to your

therapist. You forwarded it to your group chat. It didn't just explain your

group chat. It didn't just explain your past. It gave you permission to stop

past. It gave you permission to stop fighting against it, to heal, to forgive, to understand, to

accept the reality of what it's like for absolutely everybody in their childhood.

This conversation with Dr. Gabbor Mate helped millions of people this year soften toward themselves. It helped you drop the shame you may have been

dragging around. It helped you

dragging around. It helped you understand your family with a little more compassion. It helped you

more compassion. It helped you understand the tension or the frustration or the friction that you may feel with your siblings or with your parents. It helped you feel a little

parents. It helped you feel a little less alone in the ways that you struggle. And if you haven't listened to

struggle. And if you haven't listened to this episode yet, I'm telling you, do it. It will change the way you see

it. It will change the way you see yourself. It will change the way you see

yourself. It will change the way you see the people that you love. It will change what you believe is possible for your own healing. It will help you see your

own healing. It will help you see your childhood as something that is in the past and your future as an adult as something that you can take control of

and change for the better. How amazing

is that? Just hearing it, it's it's so powerful what he says that obviously it's one of the top nine moments of the

entire year. And that brings me to the

entire year. And that brings me to the final conversation that we had this year on the Mel Robbins podcast. It didn't just stay with me. It

podcast. It didn't just stay with me. It

changed me for the better. It changed

the way I see the world, the way I show up in my own life, the way I think about what is possible at this very overwhelming moment in history.

Who am I talking about? I'm talking

about the conversation we had with the remarkable Brian Stevenson. Now, if

you've been with me this year, you already know Brian isn't just one of the greatest civil rights attorneys of our time. He is one of the single greatest

time. He is one of the single greatest human beings I have ever had the privilege of sitting down with. Brian

Stevenson is the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative. He has argued and

Justice Initiative. He has argued and won landmark cases before the United States Supreme Court. He wrote the number one New York Times mega

best-selling book Just Mercy, which became a major motion picture. And none

other than Michael B. Jordan played

Brian Stevenson in the movie. Brian

Stevenson has also received dozens of awards like the MacArthur Genius Grant and the Gruber Prize for Justice. This

was one of the most meaningful conversations of my entire career. And

so many of you reached out from around the world and said the exact same thing that listening to this episode with Brian felt like someone was turning on a

light in a very dark room. And this

moment in particular that you're about to hear is one that I've gone back to over and over again. So, let me take you back to one of the most powerful moments

on the Mel Robbins podcast this entire year. It's a moment when I asked Brian

year. It's a moment when I asked Brian Stevenson, "How do you find hope in those moments

when you start to feel despair?" Our

hope is what can sustain us when things look bleak and difficult. And that is the reason why I believe that hopelessness is the enemy of justice.

Justice will prevail if we allow ourselves to give in uh to hopelessness.

Hope is our superpower. It's the thing that will get some of us to stand up even when people say sit down. It will

get some of us to speak even when people say be quiet. It's the thing that will get us to believe we can do things that maybe other people think we can't do. I

have to give it to my clients. And I

can't give someone something I don't have. And so for me, it's an orientation

have. And so for me, it's an orientation of the spirit. I think learning about hope is a really important action item.

Sometimes I think we don't think of learning as an action item, but I do. I

think to learn is to do something.

>> And learning the stories of what hopeful people did despite the odds is one of the most important things we can do to prepare ourselves to train ourselves,

our minds and our bodies to do hopeful things in our lives. Just like we have to train ourselves if we want to be fit or run a race. I think we have to train ourselves, prepare ourselves to be

hopeful in the midst of so many difficulties and the world is just filled of stories about hopeful people and I think we need to learn them and be

shaped by them and I hope we prepare people to be better informed, better citizens, better stewards of the opportunities we

have to create a more just world.

>> I just love Brian Stevenson.

Don't you feel lifted up when you listen to him speak?

I know I do. And did you catch what he said about hope? That it is an orientation of the spirit. It is

something that you can train for. And

that learning the stories of hopeful people, what they did, how they thought, that's how you can develop this orientation of the spirit. And I know

for sure that every time that I hear Brian Stevenson speak, not only about his career, about the stories of the people that he has represented, about the courageous people that have stood up

to injustice, it makes me feel more hopeful. It's as

if he's handed you and me a flashlight and a compass at the exact moment you think you're lost.

Hope makes you realize that you're not.

And Brian Stevenson isn't just talking about the justice system. He's not

talking about the world at large. He's

talking about your life, your relationships, your future, your dreams, your ability to keep going when everything in you feels as though it's

going to shut down.

Hope is not a mood. It's not passive.

It's not something that you just sit back and wait to feel.

Hope the way that Brian teaches it, this orientation of your spirit is a discipline. It's a choice.

discipline. It's a choice.

It's a muscle. It's a way of standing in the world even when the world feels unsteady.

And I think that's why this moment rose above so many others this year because it's true. He's reminding you of

something that is inside of you. And so

many of you said the same thing to me.

That hearing Brian talk about hope made you feel hopeful, a little less overwhelmed, a little less defeated. You felt him pick up your

defeated. You felt him pick up your spirit just a bit. You felt more capable of choosing the next right thing even

when life felt heavy. And if you have not listened to that remarkable episode yet, I'm telling you, it's one of the

most heartopening, grounding, clarifying conversations we've ever had on this show. It will stay with you as it stayed

show. It will stay with you as it stayed with me. and it's going to strengthen

with me. and it's going to strengthen you. And after a year like this one, we

you. And after a year like this one, we all need a reminder that hope is not naive. Hope is necessary.

naive. Hope is necessary.

And I just want to say to you, I am so proud of you. I'm proud of the way that you showed up for yourself this year.

I'm proud of you for spending time together with me, sitting side by side with me, as we have been learning from all of these remarkable people who have flown in from around the world for one

reason. They showed up for you. They

reason. They showed up for you. They

showed up because they believe that you can create a better life. And I believe it, too. I'm proud of the things you've

it, too. I'm proud of the things you've learned, the things you've questioned, and the ways you've grown this year. And

I want to remind you that if there were things that you were inspired to dig deeper into, if there were episodes after listening today that you wanted to go back to, scroll down wherever you're

listening through the description and you will see a link to the show notes.

The show notes are going to be packed with links to the episodes that we featured today. They'll be packed with

featured today. They'll be packed with resources for you, including this gift that my team and I have for you, which is a 20page workbook that you can download for free that will walk you

through the six questions that my husband and I have been asking ourselves every single year as a way to complete the year and create a plan to make the

next year one of the best years of our life. So, you can find all that in the

life. So, you can find all that in the show notes as a resource and a gift to you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you

you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you

from the bottom of my heart for letting me be a part of your life. It is truly one of the best gifts I have ever received. And one more thing, as your

received. And one more thing, as your friend, in case no one else tells you this, I wanted to be sure to tell you today that I love you and I believe in you. And I believe in your ability to

you. And I believe in your ability to create a better life. All righty. I will

see you in the very next episode. I'll

be there to welcome you in the moment you hit play. And thank you for watching all the way to the end. Thank you for being here with me on YouTube. Didn't

you just love this episode? I hope you will take the time to share it with your friends. And one more thing I wanted to

friends. And one more thing I wanted to ask you because I know you're the kind of person that loves supporting people that support you. One of my goals is to have 50% of the people that watch the Mel Robbins podcast here on YouTube be

subscribers to the channel. It's free.

It's the best way for you to show me and the team that you really love all of this content that we're bringing you.

And that way you never miss a thing. So

do me a favor. If the subscribe button is lit up, just click it. That way

you're subscribed and you can help me reach my goal that 50% of the people that watch here on YouTube are subscribers. Thanks for doing that. I

subscribers. Thanks for doing that. I

really appreciate it and so does the team. All right, I know you're thinking,

team. All right, I know you're thinking, "All right, give me another video, Mel.

This was amazing." Here's what I want you to watch next. In fact, this is what we're going to do. I'm going to send you to the video where I walk you through the six questions that are in this

20page free workbook. The episode goes as a companion to the best year ever workbook. You're going to love it and I

workbook. You're going to love it and I will welcome you in and we'll get started the moment you hit play. I'll

see you there.