Thriving Minds with Alberto Zandi

This week Alberto sat down with Dr Tim Spector, a world leading gut health expert, medical doctor, Professor of Genetic Epidemiology at King’s College London, bestselling author, and co founder of #ZOE.

In this conversation, Dr Spector explains why the gut microbiome is one of the most important control systems in the human body, shaping metabolism, immunity, mood, cravings, inflammation, and even the way the brain functions.

He breaks down complex science in a way anyone can understand, and challenges some of the biggest assumptions people still have about food, calories, supplements, protein, fasting, and weight loss.

This episode is one of the clearest and most practical conversations you can watch if you want to understand what to eat, what to avoid, and how to build a healthier body and mind through better everyday decisions.

You will learn
• Why calories do not tell the full story, and why two people can eat the same food and have completely different responses
• What the gut microbiome actually is, and how it affects your brain, immune system, weight, mood, and energy
• How to identify the foods that are quietly driving inflammation, hunger, and overeating
• Why ultra processed foods are designed to make you eat more, and how to spot the worst offenders
• What a healthy day of eating should really look like, from plants and fermented foods to protein and meal timing
• The truths about keto, fasting, creatine, alcohol, supplements, and Ozempic

Follow Dr. Spector:
https://www.instagram.com/tim.spector/
https://twitter.com/timspector
https://www.linkedin.com/in/timspector/

Dr. Spector Books:
https://amzn.to/4m1KJND

Follow ZOE:
https://www.youtube.com/c/ZOE-health
https://www.instagram.com/zoe/
https://www.facebook.com/joinzoe1/
https://www.tiktok.com/@join_zoe
https://zoe.com/zoeverse

#GutHealth #Microbiome #Nutrition #HealthyEating #Wellness #TimSpector #Podcast #HealthScience #FoodMatters #ZOE #thrivingminds
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This week Alberto sat down with Thom Elliot, co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, one of the UK’s most recognisable and successful pizza brands.

Thom shares the real story behind building Pizza Pilgrims from a single van into a national business with over 800 employees, and what it actually costs to scale in hospitality. From long hours and financial pressure to the emotional toll of leadership, this conversation goes far beyond the highlight reel.

They explore the early days of the business, the realities of growth, why hospitality is often romanticised from the outside, and how pressure, responsibility, and risk change as a company scales. Thom opens up about burnout, identity, and the challenge of staying grounded while building something that demands everything.

You will learn
• What it really takes to build and scale a restaurant business
• The personal cost of entrepreneurship in hospitality
• How leadership pressure changes as a business grows
• Why success does not remove stress or uncertainty
• How to build something meaningful without losing perspective

Follow Thom & Pizza Pilgrims
https://www.instagram.com/pizzapilgrims/
https://www.youtube.com/@UC_LiCe5657Ynu5G7lIzHGjg
https://www.tiktok.com/@pizzapilgrims

https://www.linkedin.com/in/thom-elliot-9115ab2b/

#podcast #entrepreneurship #pizzapilgrims #startupstory #hospitality #founderstories #businessjourney #streetfood #smallbusiness #motivation #thrivingminds
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This week Alberto sat down with Martin Brooks, a world leading body language and communication expert who helps people use non-verbal communication to transform their professional and personal lives.

Martin’s work sits at the intersection of psychology, communication, and human behaviour. He explains how body language shapes first impressions, why the body often reveals what the mouth is trying to hide, and how small changes in posture, voice, gestures, and eye contact can completely change the way others respond to you.

You will learn
• How to make a stronger first impression through posture, eye contact, and a genuine smile
• How to look more confident by changing your internal state, not just your posture
• The hand gestures that make you seem more credible, persuasive, and assertive
• How to spot signs of deception, including truth slips and duping delight
• How to read interest, disengagement, and power dynamics in real time, in person and on Zoom

Follow Martin:
https://www.instagram.com/martinbrooks1968
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/martin-brooks-94566312
https://twitter.com/impacttologist

https://successthroughimpact.com

#bodylanguage #communicationskills #confidence #socialskills #psychology #selfimprovement #charisma #publicspeaking #personaldevelopment #leadership
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This week Alberto sat down with Dr Andy Cope, also known as The Happiness Doctor, a world leading positive psychology researcher, speaker, and best selling author, best known for his work on human flourishing, and for the idea that happiness is the goal behind all your other goals.

In this conversation, Andy breaks down what happiness actually is, why we confuse short term pleasure with long term contentment, and why chasing happiness as a destination usually makes us feel worse.

They explore destination addiction, the modern obsession with being busy, and how consumer culture trains people to believe that the next promotion, the next purchase, or the next milestone will finally make them feel fulfilled.
This episode is simple, practical, and immediately usable, it is a toolkit for feeling better on ordinary days, not just special ones.

You will learn
• What happiness really is, and why you do not need to be happy all the time
• Why happiness is often a starting point, not the reward at the end
• The four minute rule, and how the first four minutes of any interaction can change everything
• The simple habits that make you more present, gratitude, better questions, and fewer distractions
• The relationship ratios that predict thriving teams and thriving families, and how to apply them

Follow Andy& Art of Brilliance
https://www.instagram.com/thehappybloke/
https://www.facebook.com/Art-of-Brilliance-185597948129457/
https://x.com/beingbrilliant
https://www.instagram.com/artofbrilliance/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/art-of-brilliance/

Get Andy's Books:
https://amzn.to/4bkTT2U

#Happiness #PositivePsychology #DrAndyCope #Mindfulness #MentalHealth #PersonalDevelopment #ThrivingMinds #Wellbeing #SuccessMindset #SelfImprovement
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This week Alberto sat down with Maria Hatzistefanis, founder and CEO of the Rodial Group, bestselling author, and a Dragon on Dragons Den Greece.

Maria grew up on a small island in Greece, dreaming of a bigger world. She moved into magazines, studied business at Columbia, entered investment banking, then got fired at 25, a moment that forced her to choose what she actually wanted.

With 20,000 in savings and no beauty industry experience, she started Rodial from home, faced investor rejection, and built the brand through focus, persistence, and product storytelling. She took a suitcase to Cosmoprof, met suppliers stand by stand, found the lab she still works with today, and launched with a tight initial range, because focus beats noise in the early days.

You will learn
How Maria built Rodial from home, with limited capital, no funding, and no industry background
Why launching with focus beats launching too many products, and how to pick a niche that travels
How to win attention without huge budgets, naming, storytelling, press strategy, and consistent brand positioning
How to think about influencers realistically, what works now, what changed after Covid, and why long term partnerships matter
How to handle failure, cash flow pressure, and decision making, including the lesson from a mistake that nearly ended everything

Follow Maria:
https://www.instagram.com/mrsrodial
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/maria-hatzistefanis-64b7985
https://www.tiktok.com/@mrsrodial
https://twitter.com/MrsRodial

Get Maria's books:
How to Make Your First Million: Build wealth with style and audacity
https://amzn.to/4crK3P1

How to Make it Happen: Turning Failure into Success
https://amzn.to/46B3DEN

How to Be an Overnight Success
https://amzn.to/4b1ACmV

How to Live Your Best Life: Transform your mindset and manifest
https://amzn.to/4blUL8F

#entrepreneurship #founderstory #startupjourney #mariahatzistefanis #mrsrodial #rodial #beautybrand #businesspodcast #startupadvice #femalefounder #thrivingminds #marketingstrategy #brandbuilding #entrepreneurlife #dragonsdengr
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