Recently featured on the Today Show, Melis Family Minestrone originates from The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People by Dan Buettner, a New York Times bestselling author and National Geographic Fellow.
What began as a simple challenge—making the recipe less labor-intensive—quickly rekindled my passion for cooking and led me deep into the world of Blue Zones. Along the way, I:
Bought Buettner’s book
Reread his 2012 article The Island Where People Forget to Die
Revisited his TED Talk (2009) and TEDMED Presentation (2011)—and you should too!
The Truth About Longevity
No time? Here’s the takeaway: You don’t need to be born into the “right tribe” to benefit from Blue Zones principles—adopting their habits can increase longevity and enhance well-being.
Common myths vs. reality:
Myth #1 – “If I try really hard, I can live to be 100.”
Myth #2 – “There are treatments that can slow aging.”
Reality – How we age is 10% genetics and 90% lifestyle.
Buettner’s research highlights three regions where people live the longest:
Sardinia, Italy (Nuoro Province) – Highest male centenarian population.
Okinawa, Japan – Highest concentration of female centenarians.
Loma Linda, California – Seventh-day Adventists prioritize faith, community, and a whole-food, plant-based diet.
Other Blue Zones include Nicoya, Costa Rica and Ikaria, Greece—all sharing key lifestyle habits that promote longevity.
The Four Blue Zone Principles
Move Naturally
30+ years ago, when I said I wanted to teach fitness, people laughed. Why drive to a gym when you could pull weeds, rake leaves, shovel snow, or knead bread?
Buettner agrees—public health campaigns on diet and exercise rarely work. Instead, in Blue Zones, movement is integrated into daily life.
Example: Albert Lea, MN, one of the few cities successfully implementing Blue Zones principles, has improved smoking cessation, healthy eating, weight loss, and overall life expectancy.
Right Outlook
Taking just 15 minutes a day to de-stress makes a difference. Try:
A quiet moment in the park
A mindful walk
Enjoying lunch without distractions
What’s your reason to wake up each day?
Buettner points out that the two most dangerous life stages are:
Birth (infant mortality)
Retirement (losing purpose)
A rough year in 2014 taught me this firsthand. My accountant encouraged me to keep reinventing myself—a reminder to always seek ikigai (Japanese for “reason for being”).
Eat Wisely
Wine at 5:00 PM – A common Blue Zones practice!
Not a drinker? No problem! Polyphenol-rich foods like dark chocolate, blueberries, and black grapes offer similar benefits.
Plant-Based Eating:
Sardinians consume omega-3-rich grass-fed cheese.
Seventh-day Adventists follow a plant-based, whole-food diet inspired by Genesis 1:29.
Inspired, I revisited Cooking with the Bible by Anthony Chiffolo & Rayner Hesse—a fascinating look at biblical nutrition.
Connect
Family first.
Don’t have a built-in tribe? Create one.
Journalist Jane Howard (1978) wrote about the importance of community—a message that still resonates today.
Final Thought: Live Long, Live Well
Move naturally
Find purpose
Eat wisely
Nurture strong relationships
Longevity isn’t luck—it’s lifestyle.
Special thanks to my friend and Top Floor Fitness colleague, Karen Hunt, for sharing the recipe that sparked this journey!
