Be Where You Are Today
Fitness expert Amy Kiser Schemper, MS, CPT, interviews guests and helps you make sense of the latest in the fitness and nutrition world. Amy is known for her positive energy and no-nonsense approach while encouraging her clients to show up, keep moving & be where you are today.
Be Where You Are Today
From Ellen to Everyday: with Jeannie Stathis on Fitness and Wellness
In this episode of the 'Be Where You Are Today' podcast, host Amy welcomes her longtime friend and training client Jeannie Stathis. The two reminisce about their early training days, discuss Jeannie's fascinating journey from working on the Ellen DeGeneres show to launching her own YouTube channel 'Happy You're Here', and dive deep into fitness, wellness, and creating a joyful life. They also talk about the impact of consistency in workouts, addressing old injuries, and the importance of a supportive fitness community. Tune in for a lively chat filled with memories, laughter, and insightful fitness tips.
[00:00:00] Amy: Hi everybody. I'm Amy and welcome to the be where you are today podcast, where we connect with fitness and wellness professionals to help you wherever you are in your own journey. So today I am here with Jeannie Starr. Jeannie is a long time friend of mine and long time training client. Uh, you may recognize her from being in some of my workout videos.
I look
[00:00:30] Jeannie: much younger than
[00:00:32] Amy: we all were. And also she was on the Ellen DeGeneres show for a long time. I have so many amazing things to say about Jeannie, but I'm going to let her introduce herself and then we will have a little chat. How about that? I'm going
[00:00:46] Jeannie: to be honest. I, I didn't even know the title of the podcast, and it's so brilliant.
That's so brilliant. I know we'll get into it. My best friend, David, who has also been on the workout videos with us, we work out together over Zoom. To your videos three times a week. And whenever we're having a down day, we'll always be like, be where you are today. I
[00:01:04] Amy: love when people tell me that they can apply it to everything.
Cause I'm like, we, and people often quote it back to me. Tell us a little bit about your journey, Jeannie, and just how we met. And yeah,
[00:01:16] Jeannie: so I am born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. And got a like once in a lifetime opportunity. I was a really big fan of Ellen DeGeneres through high school and college.
I wrote in all the time and through a total lightning strike of luck, she, they read one of my letters. She called me live on the show and to make a really long story short, she offered me a job and that was shortly after I graduated from college in 2008. So I moved out here from Chicago. I had no intention.
I thought I'd be a teacher. I got my elementary. school education. That was my college degree, but I worked on the Ellen show for 14 years and I'm still out here. I love LA and I love LA because I've met so many great people. I know. So I think how you, I don't want to assume, but I think how you got a lot of our, a lot of your clients out here in LA was through our friend, Sarah Batey.
Yes. Thank you, Sarah. Big shout out to Sarah. Sarah really knows how to bring people together. She does. So she had told my best friend David and I like, Oh, I've been working out with this trainer. She's really great. Like she's taking new clients. You guys should work out with her. And at the time I was only running.
And I will be honest, I have not been an athlete. I'm five foot one. I'm really uncoordinated. I am really bad at sports. I just was never, I was like a theater kid. I was a choir kid. I was about musicals. Being athletic. Like my dad coached my softball team, hoping I would play softball. I never did. And that transferred over into my early twenties and I thought, okay, running is what people do.
So that's what I'll do. So I never string chained, but David was like, let's give it a try. And I distinct, like I can visualize it. It was probably 2012. Okay. That was a long time ago. Yeah. So it's 2012. And Sarah tells us your name. I look you up on Facebook and I was like, Tollmarker. I'm like. And I was like, she's too fit and she's too pretty and she's probably going to be mean.
Oh my gosh. And I was like, I don't know if I want to do this. Because when you hear trainers, I like, at the time, Biggest Loser was what I got up. Yeah. I don't want somebody yelling at me. Running especially is such an individual thing. You go, you put your headphones on, you run. If I run fast or if I run slow, like that's up to me, whatever.
And I was like, I don't think I want to do this. And he was like, let's just give it a try. And so we, you lived really close by. We came to your backyard and your little back place where we worked out back then. Yeah.
[00:03:29] Amy: Body Fit by Amy Jim, literally the very
[00:03:31] Jeannie: first one, and before Body Fit by Amy was a thing.
It was just Amy. Yeah, it was just Amy. Yeah. Training people. And I was like, I didn't know that someone this pretty could be this nice. And it was true! Because you, you just, you have such a perception of trainers sometimes. Yes. Of they're going to be mean, and they're going to force me to do this. And kind of bringing it back to where this all started, you really, although you didn't use the phrase.
Just be where you are. Stay with your client. Not really until I started the channel. Yeah. Until the videos. You always were that. Aw. Like, it, it just, when we would train, if you have this like weird, kind way to push people, we're like, you can do eight more. That's the goal. And I'm like, yeah, I can do eight more.
Yeah. And that totally transformed the way that I exercise. So I. I love it. Yeah. And now, I go, we all like, we all ebb and flow in life. Yeah. So I've gone back to running as the older that I get, the more my hip hurts. Yeah. I strength train like I. Told you David and I, we used to work out together, so we trained with you.
[00:04:29] Amy: For years. For years. Yeah. For years. Really up until 2020 when everything shut down. Yeah. Yeah.
[00:04:33] Jeannie: We trained with you for a really long time. And then when COVID happened, we decided, okay, let's continue working out. And Zoom. Yeah. Was new. Yeah. And we were like, what is, I still have a video of us going on Zoom for the first time.
Yeah. I'm like, what is this? Yeah. What is this website? It's just so crazy. And now three days a week at 7 a. m. we get on Zoom together and we like, we're Press play at the same exact time and we do your workouts three times a week. And I, I actually think it's interesting being in my almost late thirties and this is the most consistent that I have been.
When I worked at Ellen, I worked a lot of long hours. Yeah. I traveled a ton all over the world, all over the world and often
[00:05:13] Amy: very last minute.
[00:05:14] Jeannie: Yeah. I would find out like in the morning where I was going that afternoon. And so thank goodness for our personal training sessions that allowed me to remain.
pretty consistent, but as my schedule has gotten lighter since Ellen ending, this is the most consistent I've been, and it's very cool to be like, I feel like I'm in my late thirties and I'm probably like in some of the best shape that I've been. I love that. And I feel the strongest. And it's cool to know.
I really only, I go on a lot of walks with my dogs, but I work out like three days a week with you. Ah, I love that. I love that. 45 minutes later. That's my story. We
[00:05:44] Amy: have a little get to know you game to start this off and then we'll continue this conversation because we have
[00:05:49] Jeannie: lots to
[00:05:49] Amy: talk
[00:05:49] Jeannie: about, but
[00:05:50] Amy: Jeannie does not know any of these questions.
Just rapid fire, answer them quick. Okay. Just say the first thing that comes to your mind. Okay. And I definitely know the answer to this first one. Oh no. No, it's an easy one.
[00:06:02] Jeannie: Okay. Are you a morning person or a night person? I am a morning person. I am not, I am like not a night person at all, but it's maybe 11 o'clock and I could go to bed in three hours.
[00:06:11] Amy: We used to train at 6 a. m.
[00:06:13] Jeannie: Yep.
[00:06:14] Amy: Yep. What city do you consider home? I consider Chicago. Yes.
[00:06:17] Jeannie: Suburb of Chicago, I guess I should say.
[00:06:19] Amy: What kind of music gets you on the dance floor?
[00:06:22] Jeannie: Oh my gosh. 90's pop. Yes! Britney Spears, NSYNC, duh, Backstreet Yes.
[00:06:30] Amy: What is your favorite way to exercise?
[00:06:32] Jeannie: That's so funny.
Strength training. Yes. It's silly because I'm sitting in front of her, but really the only way that I do exercise now is my BodyFit Miami videos. Oh,
[00:06:39] Amy: thank you! We did not pay her to say that. No, we did not. What is your favorite board game? Ooh,
[00:06:47] Jeannie: I guess the first one that popped in my head is Settlers of Catan.
[00:06:49] Amy: Oh, yes. Do you know that one? I have never played it, but people seem to love it. It's so
[00:06:54] Jeannie: fun. It's definitely a more involved game,
[00:06:57] Amy: but
[00:06:57] Jeannie: it's long, it can be long, but it's so much fun.
[00:07:02] Amy: It's so much
[00:07:02] Jeannie: fun.
[00:07:03] Amy: We'll have to play it. What is your most used emoji?
[00:07:06] Jeannie: Oh, probably like the laughing, crying face that's on the side.
That's like, I love that. Not the one that's like head. You know how there's one that's like this.
[00:07:14] Amy: Yeah. I do the one that's like this. Oh yeah. Yeah. It's the little head tilt. I love it. Everybody has their thing. Everybody has their like smiley face. One that they use most often. Yeah. Yeah. Mine are like the muscle and then because I have children, the face plant.
What
[00:07:28] Jeannie: is your favorite weekend activity? Listen, I'm not really like a activity hobby person, but I just really like being at home. Yeah I like not leaving my house. So I would say my favorite weekend activity is to remain in my home. I love that I love that. I think a lot of people relate to that. I know I really do one of that I feel like sometimes people are like People that have laundry lists of hobbies, I don't like talking to those people because I feel inferior.
I
[00:07:50] Amy: think that's okay. I have like no hobbies. No, because, but you know what you like. Yeah. Like, I like being with my dogs. Yeah. Yeah. But I think that is totally, that is your hobby. Yeah. Yes. What does a perfect birthday celebration look like for you?
[00:08:03] Jeannie: Okay. I don't want to stay out late. Mm hmm. So, it would be like a day.
I'd want to get up early, I'd want to go for a walk or exercise. I'd want a cup of coffee. And, and then I want to just probably sit on the couch, go for another walk. I'm so boring. You are not.
[00:08:20] Amy: You are not. I remember coming to a birthday celebration at your house and it was in the middle of the day. Yep.
And there was a very clear end time.
[00:08:28] Jeannie: I think the best way to describe me is my bachelorette party was one day, it started at 11. It was in Chicago, my, my maid of honor put it on. We went to brunch. We did an escape room, I think, because she was like, what other activity can you do at 1 o'clock? We went back to her house, we had pizza, and I drove my mom home at 7 p.
m. because my mom had too much wine and I didn't drink.
[00:08:51] Amy: So that was my bachelorette party. I had a bachelorette party in Chicago too. It looked very different. We don't have to talk about that. Who or what gives you inspiration?
[00:09:01] Jeannie: I would say, I probably am most inspired by my husband.
[00:09:04] Amy: Bingo!
[00:09:07] Jeannie: Bingo wants you to say him.
Bingo says, what about me? You're talking about how much you love dogs. Probably my husband. He's really smart. He always wants to learn. He's a really hard worker and he's just a really good person. We love Nick. Yeah. He's the best. He's the best.
[00:09:23] Amy: Okay. Thank you for that. Let's get back to your fitness journey.
So I love that about both you and David. When you came to me. Both of you were runners, and you And both of us, I would say, he would say too, we were like non athletes. And I think at that time, and especially for us growing up, that's how we classified ourselves. And now, I say it all the time, everybody's an athlete.
Like, if you can move, you are an athlete. And I think, but we did grow up with that. diet culture. We run to burn calories, or we get on the elliptical for an hour, and gradually, thankfully, when I got into the fitness industry, it was changing in terms of strength training. Yeah, it still originally was like, we want to be toned.
Yeah,
[00:10:04] Jeannie: it's so true. But now, thankfully,
[00:10:06] Amy: it's trending to be strong, and we also now know the benefits of that. So I'd love to talk about, like, when we started, and again, I think what, What really worked is we had a lot of fun doing it. Yes, we did. And I think working out with a friend. Yes. Is, can be really helpful in that way.
So I'd love to talk about that. And then also with your crazy work schedule, how working out played into that. I
[00:10:25] Jeannie: guess I probably maybe started working out a little bit in college, but it really was like the Stairmaster. Yeah. The elliptical. Yeah. Yeah. And the treadmill. Those were the only things. There probably was a bit of an intimidation factor.
Working out with the weights and being around people that are obviously are so much more toned or do this, there's like a little bit of fear. I was so lucky to be able to have a friend who was in a very similar space. He was a runner, but he was not an athlete. Right. But we were going to do this and experience this together.
And it was pretty much, let's go. If we, if it doesn't work for us, it doesn't. And it is amazing how, when you feel like you're in that safe space, when you can find that safety, either if it's with the person that you're with or the activity that you're doing, you really are able to almost become like addicted to it a little bit, but we had a lot of fun.
So yeah, we exercised very early in the morning and we really did just have so much fun. You also did such a great job. Really. Making it different. I remember we would do kickboxing. You would have the actual gloves and stuff like that. And just have to be like, okay, let's try this. What do you like here?
What do you like here? And then you did such a great job of kind of weaving those things together to find things that we liked that always kept us coming back. And then obviously once we became friends with you, we're like, Oh, this is like me going out. That was like me going out was coming to train with you.
But yeah, I think that, I think the best part for me was being with David probably. That was what really. kept me doing it because Working out with a friend, for me, was the best thing. Yeah.
[00:11:49] Amy: It was the best thing. It was so much fun. And you guys, for a while, you were roommates. Mm hmm. And you would run over, because you lived, I don't know, a mile or so away, not far.
So sometimes running over early in the morning, and then have to run back after a
[00:12:01] Jeannie: hard workout. I remember, you would always count down, and we would always think that you're three. You were saying breathe. Oh, yeah. Yeah. That was something that I don't know if people, and I still experience that and get annoyed with you.
I'll think you're saying like three and, no, she's actually just telling me to breathe. We don't have three left. I remember getting real mad. You get real mad at somebody at 6 a. m.
[00:12:21] Amy: If you haven't seen Jeannie on Ellen, look her up. She's all over the internet. But, she's so good. So much fun, did a lot of the giveaways, did a lot of the red carpet, you were all over the world doing lots of fun things for the show on camera, and your personality is exactly who you are.
Totally. Super bubbly, super friendly, so caring, so kind. But we are
[00:12:40] Jeannie: all multi dimensional human beings.
[00:12:42] Amy: So sometimes at 6am she would be
[00:12:44] Jeannie: angry
[00:12:45] Amy: at me. Depending on the
[00:12:46] Jeannie: time. Or, what you were forcing us to do, or encouraging us to do, I should say. And as that
[00:12:52] Amy: is like the highest compliment from a trainer, so it didn't bother me, but I did love seeing that side of you.
Yeah, yeah. I think I get that too, because people, because again, I'm a trainer, there's a stereotype with that.
[00:13:04] Jeannie: You also, though it's so funny, I get so annoyed at you, but you're so hard to get annoyed at. Particularly when you're standing right there in front. Like, even on your videos now, I don't even get that mad at you.
Not true. David on the other hand I swear it's at you. He would get mad. And would swear at you to your face. I was never that bad. My, uh, my athletic
[00:13:19] Amy: club community calls it their workout words. Yes. Yeah. When they have to use their workout words. Yeah. We definitely
[00:13:23] Jeannie: used a lot of those at I
[00:13:25] Amy: love that. I think it really speaks to what you said.
I love that you said it was a safe space. Yeah. And I think for a lot of people, that's what I hear from a lot of people in the community. I think post pandemic, a lot of us have learned. That we can work out from home, that it can be effective. And for some people really thrive on the gym. Yeah. Some people really thrive on the energy of group classes or gyms.
And I, and I love that. I used to be one of those people too. But, but I think finding a way to work out at home or strength train in a safe space, like you said, with a friend, with a trainer you trust is huge for people and huge for consistency. It definitely is. I think we all have an idea or have had an idea in the past of what.
Fitness should look like or what it has to be, or there has to be an end game, like a certain size or something like that. And finding a way to have it just be a part of your lifestyle totally. And have that flexibility to be like, Hey, I'm really sore today. I need this or we need to do this. We have so many funny stories.
Like one time Jeannie came, it was just her at 6am and we were in my very first, um, so many people will remember from the early YouTube videos. And it was dark outside and we turned the lights on and there was a moth, like a huge moth. I'm literally saying the largest moth. It was like huge.
[00:14:41] Jeannie: It was huge.
And everything is scarier at 6am. It is! Like everything is scarier in the
[00:14:46] Amy: dark and it was really dark outside. dark and this moth would not leave us alone. No. We couldn't get it out the door. No, no, no. So we, it's, if we had kids, Kurt would have been, at that time we didn't have kids, so Kurt was sleeping peacefully in the house.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And we didn't want to wake him up. Otherwise I would have gone to wake him up and been like, come get this moth and he'd be fine. Would have been like, you're ridiculous. But instead, we turned my back porch light on and outside the gym and we worked out in the dark. Yeah, we did. Thinking that the moth would fly out to the light.
Go to the light, my moth friend. And every time we'd be like, maybe it's safe to turn on the light. Yeah. And then we would just be screaming. And it never was. It never was. Yeah. But. Just a very be where you are today moment. Yeah, 100%. We were
[00:15:29] Jeannie: going to be in the dark. It was such a fun memory. I just want to reiterate, it just was.
It just was. A huge moth. Now I want to go to one of my, actually probably one of the most vivid moments that I have with you is, So another thing that you started doing was you had Saturday morning boot camp. Yes. And we would do that in the park for years. And so that was another great way to be able to, it was that group class setting, but also we all knew each other.
And I distinctly remember. You saying to me, I think I must have been like not late But you had I think already revealed the news to some people or something. And you're like, yeah I'm like not gonna be drinking for nine months and I was like, oh cool like Maybe a little challenge or whatever. That is and you tell me that you're pregnant with a baby.
Yes, and it was like I just remember being so excited and just so happy for the two of you. I
[00:16:20] Amy: know, you were so sweet. And it just was like And you've always been so My kids adore you. Oh my gosh, they're the best. Um, and David, and I feel like all David had a similar reaction, but he was like, Why would you not drink for nine months?
That's
[00:16:33] Jeannie: exactly it. That's what made me I was coming off of that or something. But yeah, but I think it's just fun. It goes back to the fact of it's been so fun to see you. Body Fit by Amy Al. Yeah. But also your family girl. And are my, it's just like this. I know when you get married
[00:16:45] Amy: and if you haven't seen it, Jeanie and David.
Mm-hmm . Did a, when she was getting married mm-hmm . In 20 17, 27. Yeah. 'cause Kai was like a year old. Yeah. Yeah. Your, it was like our first like real big date weekend. Yes, yes, yes. Before your wedding. But we did a whole series. Yeah. I think we, yeah. Wedding workout. Yeah. Several workouts. Yeah. Called the wedding workout series.
Yeah. And yeah. People, even though in every one of those workouts, we had so much fun. We did, you can find them cause they all have fun titles. We did upper body, we did back, we did core, but people, every workout, we would say, this is Jeannie's bridesman because he is your best friend. He was on the bride's side in the wedding.
And we would reiterate, like when you get married to Nick, people say, still ask me if you were married to David.
[00:17:30] Jeannie: And I'm not. If I, if David would have married me, I would have married him. Yes, you are not his type. He was not my type. He was not that interested in me. You guys are
[00:17:38] Amy: besties. Yes. We are very much so.
Very much so
[00:17:41] Jeannie: besties. And I feel, though, that was. I have so many, just because the buildup to your wedding is so exciting and doing those workouts was just like, we had so much fun and I diligently, cause I remember you told us, like you said, okay, what are each of your goals for this? And I knew I wanted to have, as I think most brides do.
I was like, I want to have. My arms to be toned. Yeah. And David, I think, was his core. Yeah. And the Wedding Arms Workout, I still do that one a good one. It is a really good one. And it's quick. It's 18 minutes or something fast. Yeah. It's really, really, maybe 20. You wanted it to be short. Yeah. It's so fast.
And I also, just watching it, I'm like, oh, I'm just like, oh. It's like a blast to the past. I know. That was just so much fun to be there and to think about that time of getting ready for such an exciting time in life. And then the wedding was so much fun. So fun. I did get married on Amy's birthday. She did.
My sincerest
[00:18:26] Amy: And this just speaks to Jeannie's kindness and personality and thoughtfulness. At her own wedding, she had a piece of cake with a candle delivered to me at my table for my birthday. I was like,
[00:18:37] Jeannie: my very good friend, it's her birthday and I feel really bad that I'm making her travel. She's her child.
Oh my gosh. Still very little. I was just like, I want to be sensitive to the fact that she's like celebrating her birthday here. Oh my goodness. It was really fun. It was like
[00:18:48] Amy: the best birthday party I've ever had. It was a really, it was a really, it was a really fun party. You bought me drinks and dinner and a dance party.
And a piece of cake. And a piece of cake. Yeah. We also, this also speaks to Jeannie and, Being a morning person, we ran a 5k. We did run. The morning of Jeannie's wedding. And I signed up for it and I, because a big group of friends, bunch of your bridesmaids, a bunch of our friends who were also my training clients at the time.
And Kurt was like, I can't believe you signed us up for a 5k. It's our first weekend away from our one and a half year old child. We've never spent a night away from him. And it's our first time to sleep in. And you signed us up for a 5K.
[00:19:28] Jeannie: I'm sure you felt like you had to. I was
[00:19:30] Amy: probably like, really, please do this with me.
Because I think I was nervous who was going to do it with me. I knew Amy would. It was so much fun and also, and then we could go back and take a nap. But I was like, oh yeah, I didn't really think that through. However, I want to do it. I'm going to do it with Jeannie. And also if all of my training clients are there and you're not, and your trainer is sleeping in, not going
[00:19:51] Jeannie: to be, but it was a beautiful day.
By that point in time, I have done a few half marathons in my like early twenties and they had this race and it was so close to the wedding venue. And I do love, I doing like those short runs. I was like, this is a great way. I know I'm not going to be able to sleep and people thought I was nuts. They were like, are you sure?
And I'm like, I know that I have friends that will do it. Like I know that I will. And I did. I had a really big group. We
[00:20:15] Amy: had a big group. And we wore t shirts. We wore t shirts. Mine said, it's my birthday. Yep. And Jeannie's said, it's my wedding day. Yeah, it's my wedding day. So people yelled at us the whole time.
It was great. It was really fun. And we had plenty of time before the start of the wedding. It was great. And also, as soon as we Someone who likes to sleep in was wide awake at 5 a. m. on my wedding day. Like the adrenaline, there's just too much. You have so much of it. But also it really was, as we always say, get those endorphins going.
Yeah. Like a great way to start and to relieve some stress. Yes. I
[00:20:41] Jeannie: think too, and I know that maybe not everybody has this, but one thing that I feel really lucky that I have always had through you and through friends that ran that race with me and throughout is Having friends that prior, I don't want to say prioritized fitness because I don't have anybody, like, they just want to be healthy, so it's all about movement, and okay, we would go on hikes, or walks, or whatever that is, and I feel very fortunate to be surrounded by a lot of people in life that don't, that it's not like, let's go run 20 miles, that's not who I am, and so it's so cool to have friends and people in my life that are like, let's go.
Like, last time we went for brunch, this time let's go for a hike. And so I feel really lucky because I am a person who, as the older that I get particularly, I'm so much more motivated when I'm exercising with a friend, and that's why I'm so grateful for David. And it's so funny too, because I feel like with COVID, I, we obviously did not see one another for a long time.
And then when I saw you for the first time, for me, you were like, I haven't seen you in so long. I'm like, I see you three times a week. I see you three times a week. I do not feel like I have not seen you in so long.
[00:21:46] Amy: That is, I will say, I love when people tell me that cause they're like, I feel like I see you all the time.
And also when they say that working out feels like you're working out with a friend and I think that is the difference. It still is, Hey, it's just you and me working out. I want you to feel comfortable. I want you to feel like I'm just here for you, even though I am going to push you, I'm going to try to find ways to have you challenge yourself, but in a way that's.
It's comfortable for you. So I love when people tell me that. It, it, it,
[00:22:11] Jeannie: and you really, you are raising up a good point where it's like maybe, maybe you don't necessarily have friends that like to exercise as much as you or are looking for that same, but you really can. That's what's so great about the platform is like you have it.
Right there on your television. All you have to do is press play and I do think that's what's so fun about You're you do such a wonderful job of being able to take who you are and really translating that to the camera We're like you really truly I think about looking at your Facebook page and being like I'm not this person like this I don't This is like, this person is not my people, which was rude of me to judge.
I was very wrong. Listen, we all do it. We do it. I did it. And I was like, and just how wrong I was. And I was like, Oh, this is like my friend. She gets me. She's going to push me. She's not going to scream at me, but like, it's just. People have that like at their remote, they have it at their fingertips, and that is really cool.
[00:22:58] Amy: And also I want to talk, because we have a ton of, we have a lot of runners in our BodyFit community who do, like you have done in the past, supplement their running with strength training, which is super important. And then you, like me, have had some pain, had an injury. I was the same way after I ran a couple half marathons, and then ran a marathon in my 20s.
And my knee, just, I ran, it was fine, but my knee has never been the same since. sense, just some tendinitis. And so I know that my, I still love to run if I get out to do it, which I don't often, but, uh, my long distance days of running are over and that's okay, but I'm still able to do all those things that give me that we, we call it the runner's high, that adrenaline endorphin rush, which has been researched.
It's like a very real thing in terms of our mood and our energy levels. But tell us a little bit about your hip and like how that's been a part of your journey. Yeah.
[00:23:48] Jeannie: So I. I think my hip really comes from genetics. So my grandma, I always, my grandma lived with us for the last four years of her life, and she never left the house.
She was always too scared to, but she was really tiny, very frail, Yeah. walked with a walker, really. I'm a very young person in an old family, so like my grandma was probably, 77 when I was born. So she was already got there. Yeah, but I only knew her with a walker and I learned later on Oh, she had such bad hip pain.
Yeah, and then my mom the same thing My mom has had two hip replacements. My grandma did not choose to get them. And so genetics is a very real thing Exactly, and I found that it really started I had done a couple half marathons that okay I want to do a marathon and I started training for it and once I hit 15 miles I remember coming back from that run and being like, Oh boy.
Yeah. I, I did not do right by my hip. And so I learned what I couldn't do. So I knew that long distance running wasn't for me. I shouldn't really, that wasn't the right exercise for me. I can do three miles or four, I can do that. You can
[00:24:46] Amy: run. I can run, but
[00:24:47] Jeannie: the long distance isn't for me. Also plyometrics, a lot of jumping will bother me quite a bit.
So even in your workouts, a lot of times I'm very like, if you're doing a jump lunge, I don't do those just because I'm like, it's just better for me to stick with what I know that I can do, but it is. Funny how I think I continued to run a little bit longer distance, not maybe half marathons, but after that and how I dealt with, and it was like a very nagging aching pain that I would deal with a lot of times.
And I was like, Oh, that just is what it is. Yeah. I guess if I exercise, that's what I'm, that's what it's going to be.
[00:25:18] Amy: Yeah.
[00:25:18] Jeannie: And it's interesting how And again, this is for me and for my body since I've transferred over to, for running and the plyometrics and the jumping being a much smaller part of what I do, how I do not have the pain anymore.
[00:25:30] Amy: Yeah. Yeah. I really
[00:25:31] Jeannie: do not have to. And we
[00:25:32] Amy: got really focused. I remember at that time of just saying, yes, maybe long distance running is not in your future. It doesn't mean that you're Not going to ever run again, and it doesn't mean that you can't work out, but we got super specific working with the band, working with internal and external rotation, abduction, adduction, all the things that I try to include in a lot of my workouts and just realizing, I remember I, we had talked about that with your grandma and we probably all have a grandparent like that in our life who was just like, strength training was not the norm.
Nobody was doing mobility work back in the old days. Like, it's just, knowing that there are things we can do, yes, we're all going to be fighting genetics for everything. But finding what we can do, how can that support what we want to do? Yeah.
[00:26:12] Jeannie: And I remember you even telling me something as simple as, you said when you stand, do you like pop your hip?
[00:26:17] Amy: And yeah, which we all do. I totally do that.
[00:26:20] Jeannie: And I think that all the time when I find myself just maybe settling and maybe I'm having a conversation with somebody standing of like just that idea of shifting myself and being like, stand on your own. Also very focused core
[00:26:29] Amy: work we talked about and just like having that support.
Yeah. Yeah. And
[00:26:33] Jeannie: it is funny how. So, you would assume, based on, because when I was probably in my late 20s, I had a lot, like, it would be like so aching, particularly at night. And I remember I would sleep, and it's one of those pains where you're trying to stretch as much, almost like trying to stretch out the pain.
And now being 10 years later, I'm like, oh, it's almost, almost really non existent. But learning what I can do and how far I can push it, and I do think that is what has been a blessing of being so consistent. It's like, yeah. I know better what I can do and when I can push and when I can't. And it's been interesting.
It'd been fun learning that and figuring out, Hey, and I feel like now I'm just recently, I'd say in the past few months, David and I have been very consistent with our exercising for probably the past, Two, two and a half years. And so I'm able to get a little bit heavier and I'm able to do these things and go even like kettlebell swings.
Like I used to go with a low kettlebell and I'm like, okay, no, I can do like a heavier kettlebell. I'm not going to have that pain. And
[00:27:27] Amy: yeah, learning your learning your body. Trust me. Yeah. I love that. I love that. And of course, big disclaimer, talk to your doctor if you have pain. Physical therapy. I always recommend if you're having some long term chronic pain or pain Tightness or tension, but there, it's a good example of there are a lot of things we can do to manage and also to keep moving and keep moving in the ways that are fun for you just with some slight adjustments and being super intentional about how we're training.
I think we'll get back to that in a second, but also I want to, before we wrap up, I want you to tell us what you're working on today, post Ellen show. And also one of the things I know you're working on is with your brother who has a company that has done some. Like corporate wellness and group wellness things in the past and workplace wellness.
I have been lucky. He's hired me to work on some stuff, a program for nurses, a program for kids, high school kids who were taking for testing of ways to get moving to support overall health and wellness with that. So I've loved working with him on that, but you have a current project with him and I want to hear more about that.
Yeah.
[00:28:32] Jeannie: So I worked on the Ellen show for 14 years and that ended about a year and a half ago or almost two years ago now. And when you do something for a really long time and it was such a big part of my life time wise and just the magnitude of the show, it took up a lot of brain space. And when it ended, I was like, okay, I really need to think, go back to what like brings me joy.
And I did get my degree in elementary education. I've always loved working with kids. I was lucky to be able to work with kids a lot on the show. And I felt like I want to figure out ways that I can. Can continue to do that. So my brother, he does, he has a company called smart health wellness and performance, and he started out, he is a corporate trainer and got started working with the Benson Institute at Harvard in this raising the resilient kid program.
And basically it just, what he's specifically doing now is working with teachers, physical education, teachers, coaches, parents, and ways to be able to. Give kids mental fitness techniques. So something that he just started this year, he partnered with a few different companies and got this wonderful grant from a County in Illinois.
And so every week, this year, this school year, I should say we launch out, it's called the mental fitness technique of the week. And it's. meditation or visualization. There's focus and concentration exercises, but they're basically just these short little one to three minute long videos with this simple exercise that he basically puts out to teachers or to anybody who would be watching.
And these are hopefully tools and techniques and all different kinds that the goal is to be able to try and Um, expose kids to so many different ideas, so many different ways to manage whatever they're possibly going through and give them these, this like little tool kit in their pocket to go, okay, if I'm stressed out, maybe I just do this breathing technique or whatever it is.
So we launched, those are on his YouTube channel. It has been so much fun. Doing them because I'm rooting back like going back to get this also been really fun working with my brother Yeah, and we have a podcast called raising resilient kid podcast where I have no idea how to raise a resilient child I am NOT a mother I have two dogs But we're talking to really wonderful people that are in the education field that our parents that our teachers that our coaches and they offer So much like a wealth of knowledge about what we can do to be able to be best make our kids into wonderful human beings, which we all hope to.
I love that. It's really fun. And then I started doing this side project. I was inspired by my friend who actually like has this really successful YouTube channel, BodyFitbyAmy. And I think I knew, I knew I wanted to, I love teaching and I love kids, but I also love performance. And so people would always say, well, what do you think you want to do?
I'd be like, I don't know. Like, it would be fun to have like kids TV show, but I thought, what, who can do a kids TV show? I don't know how to. And my husband, he's like, you just need to do it. And I am, I'm a big person. I. Um, get a little stalled by perfection. I think it's got to be perfect. I was on TV. I needed to be wonderful.
And I kept telling myself, don't let perfection get in the way of progress. Just do it. Late last summer, I launched a YouTube channel called happy you're here and toddler programming for kids. They range from five minutes to 20 minutes long. And it's just what I really focus on is just having like safe, Quality screen time for your kids.
And it's been really, I often say, I really want to always try to live in authenticity. What feels authentic and good to me and doing this YouTube channel has been the best. It combines the, my education background with my performance and with my producing that I learned on the Ellen show and snatching together.
Never have this much fun doing something. It's just it's so much fun. It's so rewarding and I just I love it So it's been really it's in it's so scary to I did the same thing for 14 years for so long I traveled the country and I got to do all this amazing stuff and when this chapter ended I was like, what do I do like what and it's so cool to be doing something to be doing a number of things that Really energize me and bring me so much joy, and I hope that they're helping people
[00:32:24] Amy: I, I feel certain that they are, and I love that because, and this was such a good reminder to me.
You and I were talking about this. We just celebrated 10 years of the BodyFit by Amy YouTube channel, and you were there when we started when it was literally like, I was making videos for you guys. Yeah, you were. Kurt had this idea, let's put some videos on YouTube. He'd done a lot of research on kind of putting it out there, like, he has the production background, I've been on camera, and I've been a trainer.
But we were thinking like, Oh, just my clients are going to watch it and it'll be fine. And then it grew. And now we're in this place of just trying to figure out what's next for us. Obviously the podcast is one and it's, I can get really discouraged on obviously online fitness has really grown. Sure.
There's a lot of people out there doing it now post pandemic. And you reminded me, I was asking you about your channel and you were like, the biggest thing is that I'm just having fun doing it. And that was such a good reminder to me of, and that's why the business coaches and the people that you, they'll say, if you.
Love it, and you're passionate about it, then there's no metric, even though they would say, of like, success, especially in the YouTube world, because it's up and down, and it's very dependent on a lot of factors, but I needed that reminder of, I love what we're doing here, and I love hearing from people, and I think you were totally doing that for parents, and as a parent, one, as a parent now of elementary school kids, School age kids.
The project with your brother with Resilient Kids, like, we all need that information. We are all searching for that information. Of course. And having it come from experts and then also just like a friendly face. I'm sure for you, like, the kids really respond to you. Yeah. It's really fun. As a parent of former toddlers to find stuff on TV or on YouTube that doesn't drive me nuts.
It doesn't drive me crazy. It's not just, I would watch these like just music on loop and just like balls and yeah, like trucks and things like that. To find something like your channel, I think for parents is just. We trust you. You have the background. Yeah. You have the elementary education background.
Yeah. You have the performance background. Yep. So it's entertaining. Yep. You have the production background. Yeah. So we know it's gonna be well done, but we are gonna feel like our kids are just in a room with you. Yeah. And is the goal. I would like to, I've, I've told you this before, but I would like to come on and be a voice.
[00:34:37] Jeannie: Don't worry, Nick. Literally every, he's, do you have a voice for Amy yet? I'm like, I am the only one doing these things. I do everything. I'm going to have Amy. I'm like, don't worry, my husband's your biggest, I'm like, I know, but you are so right. And I think all of this circles back even back to the fitness journey of finding what.
Is fun. Finding what makes you keep coming back. And if you can find that in a career, so cool. But it also goes back to exercise. We're like, I love knowing that like when I wake up in the morning, I'm going to see my best friend. We're going to exercise together. We're going to feel good afterwards and we're going to be able to go on with our days, being able to find those things.
things that bring you joy that just you can have fun with. It's such a gift. And I think we just sometimes it just takes a little time to figure it out. Exercise wise. Life wise. It
[00:35:26] Amy: does. Yeah. I could tell you if you have a specific goal in fitness, I could tell you the formula. Like I've done education.
I've worked with clients like this is it. You have to do this, but if it is not enjoyable in some way, like you enjoy doing it, maybe you hate me in the moment or it's hard because you're working hard. But if you don't find that joy in it, you're not going to sustain it, or it's going to be hard to be consistent, or it's not going to be enjoyable for your overall lifestyle.
And I think that's such a good reminder for all of us on this. I'm going to put all the links of your channel, your work with Tom. Yes. Um, I love you so much. Jeannie is one of my. people in the world. Thank you for being here. I love you so
[00:36:08] Jeannie: much. I'm so
[00:36:08] Amy: proud
[00:36:09] Jeannie: of you.
[00:36:09] Amy: I'm so grateful for you. Oh, thank you. I mean,
[00:36:12] Jeannie: it's when, when we were celebrating your 10 year anniversary, Nick said, my husband said to me, he's Amy really is like one.
probably the person, the most in your life, other than my parents, who has provided so much value in your life. Oh my gosh. And it really is true. It is so true. Like you don't even know that you're doing it, but it's like just the way that you encourage me and so many of us that, that watch and work out with you.
I'm just so grateful for you. so much and I'm glad you're my friend. You're going to make me
[00:36:38] Amy: cry. Uh, well, I am so grateful for you because you think, I mean, we said this at the 10 year, but just having, That support the support of the body fit community in general, but in the beginning it was you guys, it was my clients, it was my close friends, it was Kurt, it was my family, and I don't think we could have continued if I didn't have that support.
So thank you. Thank you Jeannie for being here and thank you to all of you for joining Jeannie and me today. If you're listening to this podcast, be sure to check out my YouTube channel where you can find hundreds of free workouts, and you can check out the bonus feature workout that Jeannie and I are about to do.
We're going to do five minutes of mobility and a five minute plank challenge. I'm Amy. And until next time show up, keep moving and be where you are today.
