Chef AJ: Laughter, Resilience, and Healing Through Plant-Based Living
03/12/25 • 55 min
In this deeply personal and inspiring episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, Dr. Laurie Marbas sits down with Chef AJ—plant-based advocate, culinary expert, and comedian—who shares her incredible journey of health transformation, resilience, and humor in the face of adversity.
From her early days as a self-proclaimed junk food vegan to discovering the healing power of whole foods, Chef AJ opens up about the wake-up call that led her to a healthier lifestyle. She also candidly discusses her recent cancer diagnosis, the emotional and physical challenges she’s faced, and how she uses comedy as a powerful tool for coping and healing.
Tune in for a conversation filled with wisdom, raw honesty, and laughter as Chef AJ reminds us all that transformation isn’t just about food—it’s about mindset, joy, and embracing life one healing habit at a time.
Topics Covered:
- Chef AJ’s plant-based journey and overcoming unhealthy habits
- How small changes create lasting health transformations
- Facing a cancer diagnosis and finding humor in the hardest moments
- The role of laughter and improv in healing
- How to navigate anxiety and fear with resilience
🎧 Don’t miss this episode packed with inspiration, laughter, and practical takeaways for your health journey!
👉 Download The Habit Healer Manifesto & Stay Connected: https://www.drmarbas.com/habit-healer-wallpaper
👉 Follow Chef AJ & Learn More About Her Work: https://www.chefaj.com/
A Big Thank You To Our Sponsors:
If you want the best supplement to help you on your plant-based journey, you have to try Complement: https://lovecomplement.com/?aff=62
If you want to work with the best Whole Foods plant-based body recomposition coach, I highly recommend checking out what https://www.fitvegancoaching.com/ offers. I did their program and was able to lose 7% of body fat, build lean muscle, and improve my running time. As a loyal subscriber, you get $100 savings on their coaching services.
If you’re ready to break free from the cycle of prescriptions and build habits that create real, lasting health, this podcast is for you. Because you are always one healing habit away.
👉 Don’t forget to subscribe and share with someone who needs to hear this!
In this deeply personal and inspiring episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, Dr. Laurie Marbas sits down with Chef AJ—plant-based advocate, culinary expert, and comedian—who shares her incredible journey of health transformation, resilience, and humor in the face of adversity.
From her early days as a self-proclaimed junk food vegan to discovering the healing power of whole foods, Chef AJ opens up about the wake-up call that led her to a healthier lifestyle. She also candidly discusses her recent cancer diagnosis, the emotional and physical challenges she’s faced, and how she uses comedy as a powerful tool for coping and healing.
Tune in for a conversation filled with wisdom, raw honesty, and laughter as Chef AJ reminds us all that transformation isn’t just about food—it’s about mindset, joy, and embracing life one healing habit at a time.
Topics Covered:
- Chef AJ’s plant-based journey and overcoming unhealthy habits
- How small changes create lasting health transformations
- Facing a cancer diagnosis and finding humor in the hardest moments
- The role of laughter and improv in healing
- How to navigate anxiety and fear with resilience
🎧 Don’t miss this episode packed with inspiration, laughter, and practical takeaways for your health journey!
👉 Download The Habit Healer Manifesto & Stay Connected: https://www.drmarbas.com/habit-healer-wallpaper
👉 Follow Chef AJ & Learn More About Her Work: https://www.chefaj.com/
A Big Thank You To Our Sponsors:
If you want the best supplement to help you on your plant-based journey, you have to try Complement: https://lovecomplement.com/?aff=62
If you want to work with the best Whole Foods plant-based body recomposition coach, I highly recommend checking out what https://www.fitvegancoaching.com/ offers. I did their program and was able to lose 7% of body fat, build lean muscle, and improve my running time. As a loyal subscriber, you get $100 savings on their coaching services.
If you’re ready to break free from the cycle of prescriptions and build habits that create real, lasting health, this podcast is for you. Because you are always one healing habit away.
👉 Don’t forget to subscribe and share with someone who needs to hear this!
Previous Episode
Carrie Barrett: From Resistance to Resilience
In this episode of The Habit Healers Podcast, Dr. Marbas sits down with Carrie Barrett, a former radio host turned endurance athlete, triathlon coach, and plant-based advocate. Kerri shares her inspiring journey from a self-proclaimed “chunky kid” with unhealthy habits to running marathons, conquering triathlons, and discovering the power of plant-based nutrition. She opens up about overcoming fear, embracing failure, and the serendipitous path that led her to working alongside Rip Esselstyn and the Plant Strong movement.
Carrie completed her first marathon and triathlon in 2002 on a complete whim and it should come as no surprise that her results reflected this. Still, though, when you invest a few thousand dollars in unknown sports, what do you do? You sign up for more races, of course!
This 20-year investment in running and triathlon may not have provided much of a monetary return, but the true ROI has been invaluable in terms of experience, friendships, self-confidence, resilience, coaching opportunities, and mentorships. Today, she splits time between Bend, Oregon and Austin, Texas where she’s a coach, writer, podcast host, editor and producer - including:
"The PLANTSTRONG Podcast," hosted by Rip Esselstyn
“Hit Plat Not Pause” Podcast, hosted by Selene Yeager
The "Women's Performance Podcast" hosted by Sara Gross
She's written two books (available) on Amazon and her work has been featured in Austin Fit Magazine, Triathlete Magazine, Active.com and more.
Follow Carrie:
- Instagram @tritobefunny: https://www.instagram.com/tritobefunny?igsh=ZjFmM3hqM2h6NGo=
- Instagram @icouldneverdothat: https://www.instagram.com/icouldneverdothat?igsh=MXJqZHNuaDEwOGpm
- Website: https://www.podpage.com/icouldnever
Download Your Free Habit Healer Manifesto Wallpaper Here - https://www.drmarbas.com/habit-healer-wallpaper
Join the Healing Kitchen Community - https://www.skool.com/healing-kitchen
A Big Thank You To Our Sponsors:
If you want the best supplement to help you on your plant-based journey, you have to try Complement: https://lovecomplement.com/?aff=62
If you want to work with the best Whole Foods plant-based body recomposition coach, I highly recommend checking out what https://www.fitvegancoaching.com/ offers. I did their program and was able to lose 7% of body fat, build lean muscle, and improve my running time. As a loyal subscriber, you get $100 savings on their coaching services.
If you’re ready to break free from the cycle of prescriptions and build habits that create real, lasting health, this podcast is for you. Because you are always one healing habit away.
Subscribe, share, and leave a review to join the movement!
👉 Don’t forget to subscribe and share with someone who needs to hear this!
Next Episode
Dr. Steven Lome: From Near-Death Wake-Up Call to Life-Saving Cardiology
What happens when a cardiologist ignores his own health, only to have an aha moment that changes everything? Dr. Steven Lome shares his powerful transformation from an overweight, overworked doctor to a lifestyle medicine advocate. But that’s just the beginning.
During a half-marathon, Dr. Lome miraculously saved not one, but two runners who collapsed from cardiac arrest—an event so rare, even AI struggles to calculate the odds. In this episode, we dive into his life-changing wake-up call, the myths about exercise and diet, and the power of a plant-based lifestyle in preventing heart disease.
Join us as we explore:
✔️ The moment his daughter’s words made him rethink everything
✔️ Why exercise alone won’t save you from heart disease
✔️ The shocking half-marathon event that made national headlines
✔️ How diet, not just medicine, is the key to preventing heart attacks
✔️ Practical steps to heal your habits and transform your health
Don’t miss this mind-blowing conversation that proves small changes can lead to life-saving transformations.
👉 Download The Habit Healer Manifesto & Stay Connected: https://www.drmarbas.com/habit-healer-wallpaper
A Big Thank You To Our Sponsors:
If you want to work with the best Whole Foods plant-based body recomposition coach, I highly recommend checking out what https://www.fitvegancoaching.com/ offers. I did their program and was able to lose 7% of body fat, build lean muscle, and improve my running time. As a loyal subscriber, you get $100 savings on their coaching services.
If you’re ready to break free from the cycle of prescriptions and build habits that create real, lasting health, this podcast is for you. Because you are always one healing habit away.
👉 Don’t forget to subscribe and share with someone who needs to hear this!
#HabitHealersPodcast #HeartHealth #PlantBasedLifestyle #Cardiology #HealthyHabits #HeartDiseasePrevention #LifestyleMedicine #WholeFoodPlantBased #HealthTransformation #CPRSavesLives #MindBodyHealth #RunForYourLife #HeartAttackPrevention #FitnessAndNutrition #WellnessJourney #HealthyLiving #DoctorApproved #FoodIsMedicine #LiveLonger #HealingHabits
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