We recently connected with Rachel Brenowitz and have shared our conversation below.
Rachel, so many exciting things to discuss, we can’t wait. Thanks for joining us and we appreciate you sharing your wisdom with our readers. So, maybe we can start by discussing optimism and where your optimism comes from?
In my teenage years, I struggled with regulating my emotions and even more so with containing them. I would allow frustration and anxiety to flow over and tamper with other parts of my life. The lightbulb clicked when a teammate and friend of mine pointed out that the frustration of making a bad play in a softball game would inevitably cause me to make more. I realized that I didn’t want to be the player that was “always in [my] head,” anymore or the friend who was easily triggered and held a grudge. I started by deciding who it was that I wanted to be and who I wanted the world to see me as. With the help of therapy, I had settled on wanting to be someone that others wanted to be around and to me, that included being optimistic. You don’t know what you don’t know, and with help I’ve made progress toward being someone that I can be proud of.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
It’s such a fun time to be in the fitness industry right now. With the sheer saturation of information in the media, people have so many questions and new approaches – a lot of which I’m learning about along with them! What I really appreciate about it is that when I first started coaching, some of my ideas and opinions seemed taboo or “soft” and now approaches to women’s wellness specifically are much more accepted and discussed. I get to learn but I also have more support when I preach about intuitive lifestyle focuses. My passion really blossomed when I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease myself and it just confirmed that everyone’s bodies are their own and that one method doesn’t fit all. Right now, I’m busy obtaining my master’s in health science with my concentration being integrative health and wellness. This has helped strengthen and build my expertise on my more-or-less holistic approach while still coaching group fitness classes and working with individuals on their wellness journeys. I’m always looking to reach more groups of people and more individuals to take these journeys with them. My future plan is definitely to expand and to form more connections with other wellness professionals in the Baltimore area.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I think that I’ve been successful to this point because of how committed I am to growth. I’m constantly striving to reach another goal or another milestone. I was always eager to learn more, to do more, to pick up an extra client or an extra class. I believe that seeking after and accepting those extra responsibilities are what has opened up so many opportunities for myself. Because of those opportunities I’ve met so many great people and have learned so much. I have had great relationships with the people I have trained and taught because I am empathetic toward their lives and situations. I have the honor of being trusted with the state of their minds and their bodies, and that’s not something I take lightly. If someone needs me to be flexible, then I’m flexible. If they need a little more tough love and accountability, then that’s what they get because I meet them where they need me. I’m not successful unless they are.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
One book that I always go back to is Behave by Robert Sapolsky. It’s a homage to my undergraduate senior neuroscience seminar where we had weekly discussions covering every detail of his earlier book, Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers. An expert in neuroendocrinology, Robert Sapolsky explores how various biological processes influence human behavior. It’s vast and it’s dense, but Sapolsky has a way of making such advanced concepts a digestible read, at least whilst pacing yourself through it. He touches on how genes interact and how their influence the rest of the body is immensely more complicated than once thought. And that it’s not just hormones but the interacts between hormones are worth noting. His work itches a scratch I have in my professional life working in research. I’m currently involved in neuropsychological clinical trials that are contributing to what we know about chronic pain, stress and sleep. It’s overwhelming how much information there is to take away from this novel, but I continue to recommend this book and others of his to people looking to understand human behavior and biology.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/bodybybren
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/body.by.bren/
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-brenowitz-a97924109
