Category: Non-Fiction

Up In The Gym, Working On My Fitness

Posted on by Jennifer Gregson

Exercise. It can seem like a dirty word, right? Like a curse.  I’ve never been that big on exercise. For example, in gym class as a kid, I would purposely get hit with the dodgeball so I could sit down.  I was tall, uncoordinated, and fat. Starting in 2nd grade I was almost always the tallest and biggest girl in class.  

I have tried many things over the years, some of which I enjoyed and some I hated – almost exclusively for the purpose of losing weight.  Now, that’s not 100% true – I loved tap dancing in college and the two years of karate I did, but otherwise, most things were punishment for being fat and eating too much.

Enter working with my nutritionist.  We had been working on mindset, feelings about my body and Intuitive Eating but not much about movement.  During one session I mentioned that I enjoyed going to Curves back in the day and only stopped because the rents in Manhattan are insane and they were sorta forced out.  I followed the owner to another gym but I hated it – because I really don’t like traditional gyms. So, Diana asked me what about Curves I liked the most and I said, “I knew what to do – you go in, you do your circuit, and you get out.  I liked the music and the coaches and the community aspect”  

She then said something that pretty much changed my life.  She said, “Oh, that sounds very similar to this new place I heard about called OrangeTheory, and one just opened down the street.”  Well, I immediately went home and started doing what I do best – research. I looked at the company’s main website, I watched YouTube videos, I read blogs, and I searched on Pinterest.  

I was pumped and wanted to try it, but I was also scared.  I’m still fat and haven’t worked out in any real capacity in years.  I’ve dabbled and done things at home here and there but I didn’t stick to anything longer than two or three weeks (if that).  I thought about walking and losing more weight and getting more fit before I started. BUT I couldn’t stop watching YouTube videos and reading blogs and basically obsess over this gym.  My husband finally said – just go and try it! And my Mom agreed – she said, “What are you waiting for?” 

I hemmed and hawed a few more weeks, walked past the place a few times and looked through the windows, and finally, I walked in and talked to the nice woman at the front desk and she signed me up for my first FREE class during Mayhem.  The 2nd hardest week of classes at OrangeTheory (the first being Hell Week). AND I did it and I didn’t die – in fact, I distinctly remember feeling proud of myself. I had so much fun – it was the hardest thing I’ve done since giving birth to my son and I loved every stupid minute of it!  And I signed up right then and there for a membership.  

That was the middle of May 2019 and I have consistently gone 2-3 times a week since.   Have I lost weight? Probably – I don’t do the scale anymore, but my clothes all fit better – I’ve gone down a size in shirts, pants, and had to buy new bras.  Have I gained muscle mass? YES! I can actually feel my biceps and my legs are super shapely. Have I become a fitness person? You bet…it’s crazy, but I love going to my OrangeTheory classes.  I look forward to them, I miss them when I have to be away, I adore the people I’ve met there from the other students to the staff. The coaches are phenomenal, they play the best music, and there is so much community – exactly what I was looking for.

Is it for everyone? No. If you hate group classes or hate the rower or treadmill or weights – then you are not going to like it.   I love it. Hands down, the most I’ve stuck with anything since those dancing days so many years ago. I have gained confidence, respect for my body in ways I didn’t have, and I’m just super proud of myself.

It’s crazy to call myself a fitness person, but I really am and it’s amazing!

What does your fitness journey look like?  What do you do for exercise and why do you love it? Please share below!

 

Resources

Looking to obsess and research the crap out of OrangeTheory Fitness (OTF)?  Look no further than this list of cool YouTubers and books!

OrangeTheory’s Website – here you can see what makes them different and check to see which studio is closest to your house 

Andrew Coleman Smith – the MAIN man of OTF YouTubers – he also has a Facebook Group

Grace Keller – Very down to earth Mama who keeps it real

The Fat Gay – Hilarious. Downright hilarious – he is fluffy and he is killing it at OTF.  

Hashtag Sab – She is sooooo amazing and her Instagram content keeps me motivated

Splat! – The funniest book I’ve read and totally relatable.  Want to know what Hell Week is really like? Read this book.

PUSH – One of the main founders of OTF’s book – I haven’t actually read this yet but it’s on my TBR list.  

 

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Act As If

Posted on by Jennifer Gregson

I had the immense pleasure of being interviewed yesterday by my friend, Brenda Vander Zaden, for her Postpartum Body Series project.  I had the best time talking about how much stronger I feel within my body after giving birth to my son – you can watch the Facebook Live HERE if you’d like!

The other thing we talked about is the concept of Acting As If and I thought it was perfect for this week’s blog post.  

Acting As If is an old theatre concept that is used when embodying a character in a play or movie and something I studied for years as a young actor, but it has also been insanely useful in my everyday life.

First, ask yourself: Who do you want to be?

For example, I want to be a professional writer.  Great!  How does a professional writer act?  What things do I have to do? What beliefs do I need to have? Once you have the answers, you just have to Act As If you are already that person, doing and believing things they would.

Sound simple? It is, in theory, but it can be difficult at first.  Keep at it though, it gets easier, I promise. 

To follow the example, and one straight out of my own life, a professional writer believes her books will find their ideal audience, she schedules writing days and times and follows through with her plan, and she shows up on social media as a professional giving helpful advice and showcasing her books.

Now, you have a plan! Think these things, do these things, and soon enough – you are that person! It’s a little like fake it until you make it, but I feel like this is more genuine, more active. 

You can use this for anything…I use it in my day job when I need to do something I’m scared about, like having an interview or talking with clients. I use it as a mother and I think – what would a calm and peaceful mother do in this situation?  It’s pretty amazing what things come to mind almost immediately when you think like this.

Have you ever used this concept? Do you think you might going forward in some area of your life? Let me know in the comments below!

 

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Embrace Your Joy!

Posted on by Jennifer Gregson

In my last article, I talked about the phrase “life’s purpose” and how I think it can sometime’s hold you back from doing the things that you love and care about.

This week I want to talk about embracing the things you enjoy. In the same vein as last week, I really dislike the way basic is used around things like Pumpkin Spice Lattes or watching Grey’s Anatomy. It feels like when we don’t like something that someone else does, we have to mock or belittle that.

Why? 

I feel like we should embrace the things we love no matter what – as long as they aren’t causing harm to someone else, of course.  I adore PSLs and I will be getting one (or possibly that new drink with the Pumpkin Spice foam) next week for my birthday! I love watching The Good Place and reruns of Friends and Gilmore Girls on Netflix. I am obsessed with all things Disney! 

In fact, my husband and I were on our honeymoon around this time 13 years ago in Walt Disney World and people tended to mock us for that – saying it wasn’t a place for childless adults.  We did not care! Disney has been my happy place since I was a small child and that has not wavered. 

And that’s OK.  

So, what’s one thing that you love or obsess over that people tend to give you grief about or mock you about.  Is it a guilty pleasure TV show or a seasonal drink? Is it reading in bed all hours of the night or the gym you go to?

Comment below and let me know what’s one thing that brings you joy that you’re going to embrace today!

Have a great day,
Jennifer

New Year…Who Dis?

Posted on by Jennifer Gregson

Hello to 2019 and to my lovely readers.  How were the holidays for everyone?  How has January been so far?   Christmas was really nice and a little crazy (seven year olds are good for that) and January has been a bit of a whirlwind as I onboard two new Virtual Assistant clients, gear up for another 6 months of helping my son’s Parents’ Association, and finishing up the first draft of my next novel!

While reading through the old blog archives, I  realized that I’ve never really introduced myself (and if I have…it was years ago) so no time like the present to give you a few facts about ME!

1. I was born and raised in St. Louis, MO and went to college in Springfield, MO so I spent the first 24 years of my life in Missouri.  I loved growing up in St. Louis (and I lived in the city – if you’re familiar with the city, I grew up just a few blocks from The Hill across Hampton Avenue) we had an amazing Art Museum, Science Center, The Arch, good food, and Botanical Gardens.

2. I was homeschooled from sixth grade through High School.  The one thing St. Louis didn’t really have was good public schools.  I hated school, like so much I did not want to go back and would get sick (either real or fake) to stay home.  We tried a few other options (that didn’t really work – including a private religious school – which was worse that the public school in terms of how kids treated one another and the teacher’s being weird bullies themselves) but eventually we landed on homeschooling and I thrived.  I was able to do my regular school work along with all the passions that I had – photography, theatre, writing, and music.  It was a multi passionate kid’s dream!

3.  To go along with Number 1 – I moved to New York City right before my 25th birthday having never visited (I also didn’t have a ton of people that I knew there – there was a few friends of friends, or people I went to college with but weren’t exactly close to) but I flew up there with my parents, dropped my stuff at the 92nd Street Y (where I was staying) and immediately fell in love with the city.  By the first night, standing on the Staten Island ferry, watching the lights of the city start to come on I turned to my Mom and said, “I’m home!” and it’s true then and it’s true now.

4. I moved to New York City to pursue my first love of musical theatre.  I took classes, singing lessons, went on auditions, and did a few off-off-off-off broadway shows.  I had fun when I was doing something, but the constant rejection finally took it’s toll and I decided to hang up the towel.  I still love musical theatre and Broadway, but it’s not a huge part of my life anymore and actually I’m okay with that.  For years, after I “quit” auditioning, I couldn’t watch The Tony awards – it was just too hard – now it’s just not that entertaining because I don’t know as many of the shows.  Although – if someone has some Hamilton tickets lying about – I’ll take them off your hands.  HA

5. I love coffee!  While in college I got really into teas and so some of my “old” friends think it’s funny how much I love coffee, but coffee was my first love.  I’m the youngest and my much older brothers both drank coffee as did my parents (my sister did not drink coffee though) so I wanted to be like everyone else, so they would let me have some with milk and sugar and it was heavenly.  I’m not a coffee snub, I know what I like and I enjoy every last drop every day!

6. I’m multi passionate – I mentioned this up in number 2, but although I love writing novels I also love learning about witchcraft and shellwork, pulling tarot cards and researching meanings and history, I love music and still want to learn how to play that guitar properly, I love singing and entertaining still even if I’m not auditioning, and I love planners and planning, I love helping my clients with their VA stuff, and I love so many other things – I never realized there was a term for it – I just assumed I was flighty, but nope – I’m just multi passionate and it’s been a glorious discovery!

7. Random facts: I type 100 words per minute with about a 98% accuracy rate.  I worked at The Disney Store for about 6-8 months after college (if you know St. Louis, it was the Crestwood Mall location – which sadly isn’t there anymore).  I haven’t drive a car since August 2001 (since moving to New York City).  I know about 95% of Friends episodes – meaning I can recite the whole show while it’s going on, and I’ve even been known to know an episode just from a screenshot or line from the show.  (I can also do this with certain movies – Ghostbusters, Back to the Future, and Ferris Bueller)  

Okay, so here’s seven things about me — what else would you like to know?  Ask below – I might do a part 2 if I get enough questions, or I might just answer them in the comments.  Also — I have a few ideas for the next few blogs, but then I’m tapped out, so if you have any ideas of what you’d like to see from me and this blog, let me know!  

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What I’m Currently Reading

Posted on by Jennifer Gregson


Starting a writing career involves a lot of sitting down and well…writing, but one must also keep the well fully stocked with new images and new ideas.  I do this in a few ways – movies and TV shows (because I’m visual like that), listening to music (because music feeds my soul in a way that other things do not), and reading books.  Here are a few of the books I’ve either just finished or are currently reading in both the Fiction and Non-Fiction categories.  Note about the non-fiction though, these are writing related or personal development type books, not the non-fiction books my husband likes to read, which are usually about a founding father or a war of some sort.  

Fiction


I just finished two amazing books recently.  Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy and The Order of Omega by Kirsten Martin. Both are YA books but one is a coming of age story and the other is sci-fi/fantasy.  Julie Murphy’s book is becoming a movie soon (with NEW Dolly Parton music!!!) and Kirsten Martin’s book is the 2nd in a Trilogy called The Alpha Drive.  I actually just started the 3rd book (Restitution) the other night.  Dumplin’ was traditionally published, while The Alpha Drive trilogy is being self-published.  I follow both authors on various social media channels and, actually, Kristen’s YouTube channel has been an amazing help to me during my own writing and publishing journey over the last few months.  

Lately, I’ve been trying to read more indie published books, especially other YA (Young Adult) books but Dumplin’ caught my eye (and I believe was in a BookBub special) because of the mostly black cover. The only thing in the very middle is a plus-sized girl in a red dress and big blonde hair (this is small and in cartoon form) and I was like – who is this character?  Since the next step after finalizing revisions of my own novel is choosing and working with a cover designer, I’ve been paying more attention to covers.

I recommend both of these books – and I would highly recommend reading Dumplin’ before seeing the movie.  If you like sci-fi/fantasy books then The Alpha Drive is a fast-paced trilogy with a complex protagonist who is trying her hardest to save her friends and family from an evil organization.   I have quite the long list of To Be Read under this section – most are already on my Kindle, but if something pops up in my inbox (I get a lot of author’s newsletters) or in a BookBub special I’ll most likely add it to the pile.  

Non-Fiction


I just finished Prosperity for Writers (along with the workbook) by Honoree Corder and I’m currently knee deep in Write. Publish. Repeat by Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant.  Prosperity for Writers was very eye-opening in terms of mindset, which I talked about a few weeks back, and how I view money and the process of making money, spending money, and the whole myth of the starving artist.  This tied in quite nicely with Write. Publish. Repeat as the authors of this book are also of the mindset that writers can make money, in fact, can make good money, as long as they are producing quality products (books) and lots of them.  I’m barely 1/3 of the way through and it can be quite overwhelming because they give you a ton of info so I put it down quite often and read other things and then come back to absorb some more.

I consider my writing a career, a new career sure (and very young) but I am trying to think of this like a business and myself a businesswoman.  This is not easy for me, it doesn’t come naturally so reading these books are helpful, but they are also filled with new decisions, new ideas, and new ways of thinking. I’ll be honest, I get burnt out or down on myself so I like having a few different books in slightly different categories to bounce around in. So, in that vein, I also have quite a big To Be Read pile under this category as I have books about publishing, marketing, and some health&wellness type self-help books too.

Do any of these sound interesting to you?  What have you been reading lately?  Do you use an eReader or tablet to read on or do you like what I call Dead Tree Books? (I call them that because I personally detest the REAL book label – I read a real book, even if it wasn’t printed on paper and I’m currently writing a real book even if my readers read it on an eDevice of some sort – a small pet peeve of mine!)  Do you like self-help type non-fiction or more of the civil war/Benjamin Franklin biopics type non-fiction? Let me know what you’re currently reading and give me some ideas for my ever-growing reading list.  Thanks!