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Now 67, Maye has been modeling since she was 15; she's also a licensed dietitian and nutritionist.
As it turns out, one of her best strategies for staying svelte is also a solid way to pinch pennies.
Here's what Maye told New York Magazine's Kathleen Hou:
The other night when I went out to eat, there was lamb shank, which is my favorite food in the world. It's a rich meat. I ate all the vegetables. I packed that and most of the potatoes and ate it for three more meals with a lot of veggies. You don't gain weight that way. I've learned to experience it.
While Maye didn't make a direct connection between saving food and saving money, her habits could be connected to the rough financial times she endured while raising Elon and her other two kids.
As Business Insider's Lisa Eadiccio reported, when Maye and her family moved from Johannesburg, South Africa to Toronto, she worked five different jobs to support them.
In those days, one of Maye's clients would give the family a roast every month, not knowing that they couldn't afford to buy one on their own.
"He gave us this huge roast once a month for the three of [my kids]," Maye said. "And I'd cut it in four, freeze three [pieces], and we would have a roast once a week that we could share."
Of course, packing up three-quarters of a huge restaurant dish is also a preventive measure against overeating - something Maye's struggled with as well. After getting divorced, Maye told New York Magazine, she "started eating everything" and gained 40 pounds. She became a plus-size model at age 32, before losing all the weight and going back to a size six.
Maye summed up her approach to health and money perfectly when describing what wellness means to her: "Science and common sense."