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At 102yrs old, I still help run my business: Here are my 3 daily practices for a happy, healthy life
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Deborah Szekely recently hit a huge milestone: she turned 102 years old this month.
And not only is Szekely often out and about visiting friends and speaking at conferences, but she also works three times a week at the fitness resort and spa that she co-founded in 1940.
“When I woke up the morning I turned 100, I couldn’t find anything that was different so I kept on doing the [same] thing,” she tells CNBC Make It.
“It’s not a thing you do. It’s a part of life, it’s something you automatically know I’ve got to do that. It’s not an option.”
Here are three daily practices Szekely swears by and credits for her longevity
3 daily habits this 102-year-old does to stay happy and healthy
1. Move daily
“I’ve always tried to walk a mile a day, and we count footsteps so we know when it is,” Szekely says.
“I can’t take a nap in the afternoon unless I’ve got my steps in. It’s not anything that is rigid, it just is something you do. Just like waking up in the morning.”
Her advice for making daily movement easier to achieve is “find friends who are active.”
“I’m Jewish, and I have a [friend who is a] Catholic nun who loves to walk. And so we walk,” Szekely says. “She appears and out [we] go.”
Szekely’s exercise habits are less vigorous than they used to be when she was younger, but still effective, she explains. Moving naturally through low-intensity physical activity like walking is a practice that the world’s longest-living people do often.
When Szekely lived in Tahiti with her family, she would bike to school, and back home for lunch. She also practiced Pilates regularly as an adult, and owning a fitness resort helped when it came to prioritizing exercise.
2. Eat a pescatarian diet
Szekely has followed a mostly plant-based diet since she was a child. “I’m a pescatarian. And I actually have been fortunate of never eating meat because of my parents,” she says.
Her eating habits align closely with the Mediterranean diet which prioritizes whole grains, fruits and vegetables, fish and more.
Here’s what a typical breakfast, lunch and dinner looks like for Szekely:
Breakfast: Yogurt, a banana and whole grains
Lunch: “I always have a salad,” at home, she says. But when she has lunch at restaurants, she likes to try different things, she adds.
Dinner: “I go out a lot,” she says, so she chooses from fish, salad, a baked potato or tries something new.
In the early stages of Szekely’s fitness resort and spa, she was the chief cook and would manage the farm. Her diet consisted of fresh foods that she incorporated in the meals she served there.
3. Socialize and always ‘be learning’
Szekely’s social calendar is pretty stacked.
“I have season tickets for every play that the [Old Globe Theatre] has in San Diego,” she says. “I go to the theater a lot, and I love opera.”
A few hours after our conversation, Szekely attended her birthday celebration, where she was the guest speaker for several dozens of her friends. She also speaks at her resort every Wednesday and mingles with guests several times a week.
In addition to her social activities, Szekely always looks to learn more, and longevity research shows that people who reach age 80 and beyond learn something new every day. Szekely knows four different languages and immerses herself in different cultures.
“My German is rusty, but my French is excellent because I think a lot in French [and] I dream in that,” she says. “And Spanish, I speak every day.”
If there was one takeaway that Szekely would want to leave you with, “the main thing is: Be learning.”
A school building in Fakai village, reportedly used as a food storage facility by the notorious bandit leader Bello Turji, has been destroyed.
The facility, which had been stocked with large quantities of food supplies, was completely razed, leaving the structure in ruins.
According to local sources, the school was repurposed by the bandits to support their operations in the region.
It served as a key logistical hub for storing essential supplies, ensuring the group’s ability to sustain its activities over time.
The destruction of the stockpile is seen as a major setback for Bello Turji’s network. By eliminating a critical resource hub, the operation is expected to disrupt the group’s supply chain and hinder their ability to operate effectively in the area.
Counter-terrorism expert Zagazola Makama reported that the incident underscores ongoing efforts to counter the influence and operations of bandit groups in the region.
Residents of Fakai village and surrounding areas hope this effort signals further strides toward restoring peace and security.
President-elect Donald Trump launched his own cryptocurrency on Friday, sparking a feverish buying that apparently sent its market capitalization soaring to several billion dollars.
In a message posted on his Truth Social platform and X, Trump unveiled the so-called meme coin, which is designed to capitalize on the popularity of a certain personality, movement or viral internet trend.
“My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It’s time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING!” he wrote.
Meme coins have no economic or transactional value and are often seen as a means of speculative trading.
“This Trump Meme celebrates a leader who doesn’t back down, no matter the odds,” the coin’s official site says.
In the hours following the overnight launch, the crypto community posed questions about the legitimacy of the $TRUMP coin, and its actual link to the president-elect, with some fearing a scam.
But the fact that the announcements came on Trump’s official social media channels seemed to reassure the market, as did the fact that Trump has used one of the companies behind the project, CIC Digital LLC, in the past to sell non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
By mid-morning on Saturday, the market capitalization for $TRUMP stood at nearly $6 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.com.
Neither Trump nor the company managing the launch, Fight Fight Fight LLC, offered details about how much he made from the initial batch of meme coins released.
The coin’s official site said 200 million meme coins were issued, with Fight Fight Fight saying an additional 800 million would be added over the next three years.
Formerly a cryptocurrency skeptic, the president-elect is now a convert and has become a champion of the concept.
Before this new announcement, Trump and his sons Donald Jr. and Eric started their own crypto venture – World Liberty Financial – and other members of the incoming administration have previously disclosed investments in and backing for cryptocurrencies.
Last summer, Trump spoke at a Bitcoin conference in Nashville, where he pledged to make America “the crypto capital of the planet” once back in the White House.
The meme coin is Trump’s latest merchandise push, which recently included a line of perfumes, colognes, watches and “President Donald J. Trump First Edition” silver coins selling for $100 each celebrating his election win.
He famously used a photo of him sitting next to first lady Dr. Jill Biden at the re-opening of Notre Dame Cathedral to promote the cologne line.
The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, has again approved the distribution of new kits and uniforms to NPF personnel in the rank-and-file cadre, reaffirming his commitment to improving officers’ welfare and boosting their morale.
This initiative underscores his vision of enhancing improved working conditions and professionalism within the force.
Spokesman of the police, ACP Muyiwa Adejobi, who made the disclosure, noted that the IGP expressed optimism that, with the approval of the 2025 budget, more welfare-focused projects will be implemented to further support officers in carrying out their duties effectively.
“The Nigeria Police Force remains dedicated to maintaining a well-equipped and motivated workforce for the safety and security of all Nigerians,” he said.
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