This conversation with Diana May left me feeling seen and understood in ways I didn't even realize I needed. I recently re-connected with Diana on Instagram as a result of my quest to clear out a lot of the noise on my feed. I unfollowed a LOT of big accounts and the result was me getting to see content from people in my real life who I had lost touch with. One of them being Diana--who was one for my first and favorite yoga teachers. After discovering that we were both talking about similar concepts in different contexts (same shit sandwich) I knew I needed to bring her on the podcast! Diana May is a life-long learner, yoga teacher, environmentalist, and somatic practitioner.  She has taught full-time for 14 years and since the pandemic has transitioned to being an entirely online yoga teacher.  She believes the big-scale shifts she wants to see in the world comes down to nervous system regulation, the ability to truly slow down, enjoy life in the present moment, and build a compassionate relationship with your full experience.   On this episode we talk about: Diana's backstory and how she came to be doing the work she does today. How the "nervous system" is a buzzword in fitness and wellness spaces and what we actually mean when we're talking about it. The stages of menopause as it relates to the nervous system and how it applies to movement of all sorts. How you might be getting into the late reproductive stage and stages of menopause earlier than you think and some symptoms to look out for. (AKA you're not going insane.) Shifts you can make in your life to support yourself through it. How different types of movement (yoga, strength training, and otherwise) can potentially support our nervous systems or push us into deeper disregulation? How to tune in to know what our bodies actually need. So many other mind blowing things! Work with Diana ⁠Follow Diana on Instagram⁠ ⁠Work with me⁠ ⁠Get on the Kettlebell Social Interest List!⁠ Work with me: Lemonade Calls! ⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram/Threads

Weeee'reeee baaacckkkk. After a short hiatus due to life being lifey, Christina and I finally recorded another episode together. If you missed the memo, Christina and I are each releasing these crossovers on our own podcasts on the same day and will continue to do it for as long as we feel like it and whenever we feel like it. We've got all sorts of things to talk about that aren't related to our work, but hopefully feel relatable to you and your life anyway. Today we're catching up, talking about slowing down, WTF is going on in the world and what we've each been up to since our last episode together a few months ago. This one is both lighthearted and deep. We talk about what's been bringing us joy and also the way's we've both been getting kinda philosophical lately. ⁠Work with me!⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Work with Christina⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Listen to Christina's podcast⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Follow and tag Christina on Instagram

This week's episode is brought to you by. . .the fucking world. And also what my clients seem to need right now in terms of fitness. Here's one thing I've been telling almost everyone lately: If you don’t feel like working out because everything feels pointless right now, stop looking for motivation. You won’t find it. Instead see where you can find momentum to get yourself to do literally any kind of movement. I bet it’ll make you feel better. On this episode we talk about: How current world events have been affecting how I show up as a coach, plus some things I've been thinking deeply about. How even I don't feel like working out much of the time. Alllllll of the different things me and my clients have been using to find momentum. Because motivation is clearly nowhere to be found. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Work with me-Kettlebell Social FAQ⁠ ⁠Work with me 1:1⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram

This episode is airing on Halloween and I decided to do something silly and fun. Because the world is a dumpster fire and while I posted something very heartfelt on Instagram, I decided to lean into something more trivial on here. On this episode we talk about Weird Barbie and all the reasons why I feel like I'm the Weird Barbie of coaches! And of course how that applies to you and your fitness because we all know I'm all about the analogies. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Work with me-Kettlebell Social FAQ Work with me 1:1 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram⁠⁠

Today I have my first ever male guest on the podcast! I vet my podcast guests carefully, and I know you're gonna love our conversation today. Angel and I originally connected over an Instagram post, and when I realized there was another anti-diet personal trainer in the Chicago area, we immediately decided we needed to meet up in real life. After hearing about his very unique story and having some really great conversations this summer, I knew he was a voice that I needed to share with you here. Angel Casas is a weight inclusive personal trainer and DEI activist in the fitness and health space. His professional background is in the real estate and insurance industry but when Covid hit he decided to start a fitness business dedicated to helping people lose weight. Since he himself had lost over 100 pounds, he wanted to teach others how to do it as well. However, helping people lose weight, brought to light his own disordered relationship with food and fitness. He admitted himself into an eating disorder treatment center which was where he learned all things about diet culture, fatphobia, white supremacy, and so many other systems of oppression. This eye-opening experience made him realize how harmful and racist diet culture is, particularly for BIPOC. He now teaches his clients about how to connect to their bodies through intuitive eating and joyful movement and therefore reclaiming the power that was originally robbed from them. On this episode we talk about: Angel's experience with an eating disorder and recovery as a man of color. Why we need to uplift BIPOC voices in both fitness and eating disorder recovery. The intersection of eating disorders, being LGBTQIOA, and religious trauma. Mental health and why we need to destigmatize it. How his experiences with all of the above cause him to change the way he trains clients. So much other good stuff! Work with Angel Follow Angel on Instagram Follow Angel on TikTok Work with me Get on the Kettlebell Social Interest List! Follow & tag me on Instagram/Threads

In real life, I have had at least 5 sobbing meltdowns since last Friday. And I decided to share it with you not because I want a pity party, but because I have a really hard time being inauthentic. This week I cried because: My husband criticized my parking. Then because my toddler wouldn't poop. Also because he wouldn't nap. And again because the restaurant put dressing on my take-out salad and I didn't realize it til the next day when I wanted to eat it and it was soggy, but the reason I didn't eat it until a day later was because the night I ordered it I wound up eating brownies for dinner instead.  So yeah. . .I decided to record a podcast episode about it. Because in talking it through with a few close friends, I realized that I need to take my own advice and have some nuggets of wisdom to share with you too! On this episode we talk about: How trying to be a woman who "has it all" is fucking exhausting. The two things I'm ALWAYS telling my clients and why I need to take my own advice. Why I'm not going hard launching Kettlebell Social this week. How the story I tell myself is that because people know me as fun, positive, energetic Jenna, that nobody wants to hang out with me when I'm crying in the bathroom.  How that story is false. How this all applies to you, your fitness, and your life. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Work with me-Kettlebell Social FAQ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram⁠⁠

Today I'm so excited to be talking with Maya Bryant! I originally connected with her on Instagram because as a fellow dancer, I LOVED the way she called out the bullshit in the barre industry. One of my biggest pet peeves as a personal trainer with a dance background is seeing barre instructors online selling lies in the form of "the 4 best exercises for a thigh gap", because that's not how any of this works. Maya has the best way of calling it out without coming off as mean and in this episode, she brings light to the fact that many barre instructors don't look the way they do because of barre--they look that way because that's their natural body type! After dancing for 20 years, studying Exercise Science in undergrad, being beaten up by diet culture, and eventually falling into compulsive exercise and disordered eating, Maya sought to create something empowering in fitness. During her Master of Public Health Program, she created a workout program, Raise The Barre! Women are under immense pressure to maintain a certain body type that changes every decade and go on extreme diets and exercise plans to try and change their bodies. Those diets, they fail 95% of the time and weight regain happens within 1-5 years. Her research project showed that we can help women feel better in their bodies, without intentionally striving to change them because body image is internal work. In addition to Maya's professional work in Public Health policy, she is also the Founder and CEO of Barre Empowered. A fitness platform for Barre in an empowering way, without the toxic diet culture. At Barre Empowered, Maya helps women feel fierce and fit in their bodies, fall in love with fitness, and develop a life-giving wellness routine that inspires them for a lifetime.  On this episode we talk about: Her path from being a dancer stuck in disordered eating and exercise to How Maya got into barre, what she loves about it, and what really grinds her gears about the marketing? The biggest myths about barre that are being perpetuated and what she wants you to know is LIES. Red flags to look out for when choosing a barre class or following a barre instructor on social media. How Maya brings what she learned from getting her Masters in Public Health to her approach to fitness. What she wishes more fitpros (and the general population) understood about fitness from a public health perspective.  The amazing benefits you miss out on when you're overly focused on aesthetics. How she helps clients set goals to build themselves up, rather than tear themselves down. So much other good stuff! Work with Maya Follow Maya on Instagram Work with me Get on the Kettlebell Social Interest List! Follow & tag me on Instagram/Threads

Last Friday I woke up SO dead tired and was trying to rally and get myself to go lift. But then I was like, why?! Knowing that the whole reason that I work out is to feel better and move about my life with more ease. Forcing myself to lift when I was every possible kind of tired would have pushed me farther away from that feeling on Friday. So I skipped it. So many of us work out for mental health or physical health or to live just live our damn lives but then turn around and do things that are literally the opposite of that. And today we're gonna talk about it. On this episode we talk about: Why always doing sets of 10 is keeping you stuck. Why you need to stop going to the gym for an hour. What factors you need to consider before you automatically choose the most reps and sets in the range in your program. How all of the above waste a fuck ton of time and brain space. What you're missing by constantly chasing sweat, burn, and breathlessness. Why you need to stop listening to every piece of advice you hear from fitness professionals, your doctor, that non-diet dietitian or therapist you follow on IG, and that lady you overheard talking after yoga. Why I didn't get offended when someone gave me a form check on one of my IG reels last week. Why I might give opposite cues for the same exercise depending on what client I'm talkling to. Why I'm flexible about not using kettlebells all the time, even though they're my favorite. All the details about my newly refreshed online group strength training program & community, Kettlebell Social! Get on the interest list-Kettlebell Social ⁠⁠⁠⁠Work with me-Kettlebell Social FAQ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram⁠⁠

Today's episode is such a fun and mind blowing conversation with my friend Shohreh Davoodi. Seriously. The original plan was to talk about self-trust in fitness but we went in so many interesting directions (as two people with ADHD would). I had so many lightbulb moments when talking to her. Shohreh and I originally connected several years ago as two of the only HAES personal trainers in Facebook group full of non-diet dietitians and therapists. Over the years it's been awesome to watch her work (and life) shift and grow and I'm excited to let her share some of her wisdom and magic with you today. Shohreh Davoodi is an unapologetically queer writer and creator. Driven by a passion for equal rights and representation for LGBTQIA+ folks and people of color, her work supports and celebrates the queer and BIPOC communities of which she's a proud member. Shohreh is currently working on her first novel, and she is the author of the Substack newsletter, The Queer Agenda. She happily resides in Denver, Colorado, with her fiancée, but Texas will always be home and she's forever a Texan at heart. On this episode we talk about: Shohreh's personal and professional journey and how she came to be doing the work (and living the life) that she is today. Why changing directions can be so hard and scary and how to get yourself out of the cycle of trying to force yourself into ways of being that don't feel right or authentic for you. Self-trust and of the things in life/society/systems that prevent us from trusting our own internal wisdom. How we can reclaim and practice self-trust with our fitness and wellness. Finding more joy and ease and what that can look and feel like in fitness and in life. Allllll the queer shit! Comphet: why it never dawned on a lot of us that we could be anything but straight. Check out Shohreh's website⁠ ⁠Read Shohreh's substack⁠ Follow Shohreh on Instagram/Threads Follow Shohreh on TikTok Work with me Get on the Kettlebell Social Interest List! Follow & tag me on Instagram/Threads

I decided to record an episode that is essentially a love letter to kettlebells. But first I wanna share a bit of my backstory around them. Kettlebells were my intro to strength training. My friend Ashleigh taught me how to use them (see Season 1 Episode 44 "Toning Is For Printers" An Unfiltered Convo With Ashleigh Brodhead (the Friend Who Taught Me To Lift Heavy Shit)" They were my gateway to a new way to see exercise. For the first time ever, the point wasn't to burn calories, or to get toned. The point was to master new skills, to play, and to fuck around and find out how strong I actually was.  When prepping for this episode I referred back to an IG reel I recorded to the "it's corn" song. Remember that? LOL. I basically choreographed a whole damn musical for it and today it's being repurposed into a podcast. Some of the reasons are joking, but most of them are real. There's a reason I love to nerd out over kettlebells, use them a lot in my programming, and teach them to any client who is down to learn.  And in this episode, we talk about 11+ reasons why I think you might love them too! Watch the kettlebell/corn reel Get on the interest list-Kettlebell Social ⁠⁠⁠⁠Work with me-Kettlebell Social FAQ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow & tag me on Instagram⁠⁠