Longevity Talks with Mike Piazza

What comes after a defining career? Twelve-time All-Star and Baseball Hall of Famer Mike Piazza spent twenty years at the highest level of professional sport. He was 39 when it ended.

In this Longevity Talks conversation with Simone Gibertoni, CEO of Clinique La Prairie, he speaks about the discipline that shaped that career, the months that followed it, and why longevity has never meant living forever to him — but understanding what the body needs as it evolves, so that the years ahead are lived fully.

DISCOVER THE INTERVIEW

Simone Gibertoni — What's made you what you are? Was more talent or was more discipline?

Mike Piazza — Well, I believe it was probably starting the way I was raised. My family, my father is an Italian immigrant to the United States, came from Sicily when he was very young. And as you well know, the history when the immigrants came, they were very poor and they were just looking for a better life. And so they had a tremendous work ethic. And he, at a young age, was drafted to go into the Korean War in the United States. And then when he came out of the war, he started a car company. He was a mechanic. So he started fixing.

Built that into now 30 stores of new car dealerships. And he just had an obsession with baseball. He loved baseball.

So he got me a practice cage and a machine to throw baseballs.

Simone Gibertoni — And this was just behind your house, right?

Mike Piazza — Yeah, right behind in the backyard. My neighbors thought I was crazy. It was it was it was really funny because a lot of my neighbors, the kids would we say in Italian, like Rumpapalli, like always make fun of me and say like, oh, you think you're going to be a star? And I would I would be out there every day hitting the crazy.

And I was so blessed to have great coaches and people that believed in me. And I think I felt like if if someone believes in you, you owe them the effort and the hard work.

Simone Gibertoni — But our mindset is important.

Mike Piazza — Mindset is important because I think for me, it was it was single focus. And you have to sacrifice. You have to be disciplined. You have to be willing to forego things like I didn't do. I wasn't very social when I was a kid. I mean, I had friends and we would do things and go out and occasionally. But for the most part, I was practicing.

I was focused. And I believe that, yes, you do need to relax and and recharge. And but also to do something and to be successful and to be great at something, you have to put in the time. You have to know everything about what you're doing from the front to the back.

So I think those instruction is important. Fundamentals are important. Technique is important. But there's also that, you know, we say it's mindset. You have to have the mindset in the heart. And I think the greatest athletes in history are the ones that have those talents, but also have the heart.

Simone Gibertoni — Talking about the catcher is one of, as we said, most stressful, demanding emotionally, physically. What did you learn about the limit of your body?

Mike Piazza — This theme that we're talking about today, longevity and nutrition and taking care of yourself and rest. I was fortunate. I wish I had the knowledge I have now about nutrition and the science now that we're starting to understand. But generally, I thought I ate well. But eating well, taking care of yourself and getting your rest.

And I've seen, unfortunately, many gifted athletes that did not take care of themselves and consequently did not achieve what they were potentially able to achieve.

So I always said to myself, yes, I want to go out and have a drink and enjoy my life once in a while and be social. But for the most part, I had to take care of myself and be disciplined and say I have to sacrifice for my team and for my career.

Simone Gibertoni — Then at 39, you have a new life. How was the transition from career to being retired? How did you live it emotionally?

Mike Piazza — It wasn't always that way, but I did suffer a little bit of depression when I did retire because I think you lose a little bit of, for me, I lost the camaraderie of the team. Like people say, well, do you miss playing? I said, I miss the guys. I miss the team.

And then just generally having a job. And next thing you know, it's over. And I have to make my own plane tickets and I have to book my own hotels and I'm changing diapers. And I'm like, what happened? I mean, I was hitting home runs in front of thousands of people and now I'm home. So consequently, I wouldn't say depression, like a clinical depression, but I was like, wow, I need to find a new purpose. I need to find a new direction.

And you start eating because when you're playing, you can eat more. And then when you stop and you start eating, you know what I mean? So you have to manage that. So I think you could fall into that trap. And so I had to refocus.

Simone Gibertoni — So you find a new purpose, which is so important for longevity, right?

Mike Piazza — Yes. And I, it's true. And, and I think you have to be open. You can't be so sort of self closed to, to other people and other, I think God puts people in your life to give you little hints. And if you're so like obsessed or narcissistic, you don't hear those things.

And you mentioned about new chapters. I think we have an obligation to pass on our experiences to the next generation. Because I think the gifts that we were given by the coaches and the mentors and, and everybody we learned from, we have to pass it on and make the world a better place. And I think with the emergence of new technologies and all these new, all this new technology and the world is changing so fast. We're still human, right? We still have emotions and we still haven't changed since the beginning of time. And so I think we have an obligation to slow things down and enjoy life.

WATCH THE FULL CONVERSATION

The interview continues well beyond this point. Mike Piazza explains why, for him, longevity has never been about living to 150 — "it's life to your years, not years to your life" — and what watching his own father's final years taught him about the cost of waiting too long.

He also shares what his days at Clinique La Prairie revealed. He arrived, in his words, a little bit cocky, convinced there would be no surprises. His diagnostic results said otherwise, from mercury to cholesterol, and he leaves having rethought protein, sugar and strategic fasting, with a new understanding of why bioavailability determines which supplements are worth taking, and one non-negotiable he has committed to.