I feel less than truthful.  Well, maybe that’s a little over the top but I feel obligated to let you know what I am all about.  Not Jodiojo or MP4, etc, although ultimately they end up being one in the same, but me.  Jodi.  The psycho woman with the big afro and personality to match.

Many of you have been allowing me into your minds/homes/lives for years and the trust level you have with me is astonishing, and at times unnerving, but that trust is what has allowed me to be as open with you as I have been.  Whether I am sharing about my personal experiences or my work in general, they are directly tied to me.   Every day I put them out to be read, inspected, surveyed and basically judged by those I do know and those I don’t.  Essentially it is the same thing you do with me when you first work me so I am not saying any of this to garner self pity.  I, instead, pray that you read on and see where I am going with this.

I would be lying to you if I tried to say that teaching/coaching/blogging is easy.  At times, this can be paralyzing because as a group fitness instructor turned personal trainer turned mommy turned coach I have lived my life publicly, although I am one of the most private people you will ever meet.  My body, my thoughts, my creativity and my work are all subject to immediate judgment and unlike your average employee who is brought in for a yearly review, I receive mine in real time from many different “bosses”–not always in the kindest ways.  Imagine the emotion of a 5 year old who works diligently on a craft so that he/she could hand it over to whomever for them to say, “Good job”.  That’s a crucial moment that can really crush a kid’s spirit if given the chance.  I lived that way.  I am a super softy who used to wear their heart on their sleeve.  It took nothing to rattle my cage even though you would never ever know or ever think that I had that kind of emotional capacity.  But as I continue to understand myself and women as a whole, more and more I realize how silly this has been all these years.  We cannot, and should not be governed by what others think of us.  We’ll go crazy if we do.

I serve the lean community; those of us who aspire to have a body that is worthy of nakedness.  I have been doing so for 15 years now.  On paper it is a great goal to have but in reality, it can be very caustic.  A goal is never bad in and of itself (assuming it’s legal and not socially awkward), it’s what we become to get the goal that’s the bad part and being fit can have that affect on us.   Debilitating control, daunting rituals and endless comparing can suck all the life out of a great endeavor and make it like a millstone grinding us down to a nub.  We’re not happy until we get there and then when we do get there, we’re still not happy.  So when I think about what I am being party to, I constantly have to remind myself that yes I am here to get you from A to B.   I am here to make you laugh, because we all need to laugh these days.  I am here to keep you safe while dieting because it’s a jungle out there.  And while all of these are well and good, they’re not my absolute, true goal for you which is why I feel less than truthful today.

When I realized how silly it was for me to allow others to decide how my day was going to go, I also remembered how *real* the pain was.  Even though I didn’t want to feel that way, I couldn’t ignore how real it was.  Rejection is reality.  It’s how the world operates.  Feeling exposed is definitely not fun and most of us have grown up with some adult making us feel less than special at some point in our lives.   Thus we walk around proving ourselves constantly through our jobs, our personal belongings, our relationships and without a doubt…our bodies.  Our actions scream “I am important.  Look at what I have done.”  The crazy thing is one day we realize that no one is listening to us shout because they themselves are shouting and life has become one big shout fest.

I cringe at the thought of coming off “preachy” but I need to let you know that that’s not what I want here.  I do not want us to shout in any capacity.  Do I want us to have healthy bodies?  Heck yeah!  Do I want us to be happy with the work that we have done in the kitchen and in the gym?  You betcha!  But when I sit down to write that’s not what I’m thinking about.  I’m thinking, “How can I relay this information in a way that’s fun to read and educational but drives the point home that leanness is just a lifestyle—not an answer.”  It is not going to solve world peace or change the economy and it certainly isn’t going to make people like or accept you more.  If they do, run from them because they are not the ones you want in your life long term anyways.  I know you are thinking, “I read all this to get to that point? Really?”  and I am going to tell you yes.  Because I know firsthand that we can think we know things in our minds and yet, be thoroughly betrayed by our hearts.  We need to live this lifestyle because we feel good doing so and because it makes sense to us, but not because we are proving to whomever that we are somebody now that we have a ‘hot body’.

There is no doubt that this is going to affect how I write and what I write about.  All of us here at Jodiojo think like this on a personal level, not just on a company level so I know they are all nodding their heads as they read along.  This is important for me to point out because when I go into my series on goals or on body types, if you don’t understand where I am coming from you’ll have a hard time picking up what I’m putting down.  I also want you to understand my mindset when I write a post because I can be blunt, funny and loving all at the same time and I never want you to forget the loving part. Reading the truth is not always comfortable.  We need to understand our motives for things since that’s what drives us during a 45 min. cardio session whether we realize it or not.

It is rare for me to pose for a picture so this was a huge gem of a find on my hubby’s computer.  I had dubious motives back then, let me tell you.  Sad thing is I still own those shoes.  I very low maintenance.

Ok, I have blathered on long enough.  I’m not sure what series I am going through next but it will be a deep one because clearly I’m in that sort of mood.  Keep your hands in the ride until we come to a complete stop ladies.  This could get ugly.  Woop woop!

What?

Where are we going, you ask?

IT’S SUMMER TIME!!

Unlike last summer, this summer we are taking it off.  Why?  Because we are all about quality and not quantity. 

Every single one of us is up to our whazoo in projects and traveling and posting for us is becoming harder and harder.  Knowing this, it’s easier to cut this off before we get two weeks into the summer and there isn’t a post to be found with no explanation why.   So what does this mean for you?

Just like our last hiatus, if you are signed up on the blog, you will receive emails from me all summer long.  I have not sent any out for a while so you don’t have to sign up again.  You haven’t missed anything.  What’s sitting in my laptop now and going out in the next week or so is “Lean Going Leaner”.  It’s all about the pitfalls, what you need to know, how hard it is and answers to your questions.  That will take a week or two.  I will also cover a few other hot topics like Staying on Track–For Real.  If you have been eating clean for a while, you know that you can fall off the wagon for weeks at a time and not be able to get back on track and it can incredibly frustrating.  We’ll talk about what you can do to get around that and why it happens. 

We want to thank everyone who reads this blog all the time.  When we jumped into the blogging world we had no idea what to expect nor did we know what we were doing (ummm…and we still don’t!).  Almost two years later, our readership is up over 300% (WOW!) and our email list is up about 400%! We are blown away by your response to us.  Why?  Because we’re not your typical bloggers nor are we your typical company:

• We do not really advertise.  Yes, every so often we’ll tell you what’s coming, but we’re not all ‘in your face’ about it.
• You have no idea what we do.  And we’re kind of ok with that for now.  What you do know is that we love what we do.  We’re real.  And we know what we’re talking about.
• We are consistent.  We’re not a blog that showed up for 10 min and then disappeared.  We’ve been in this location and at Model Per4mance for 2 full years and I pray we have a few more left in us.
• We are low key.  What most of you do not realize (and why should you–read bullet #1) is that Jodiojo & Co. is a thriving company behind the scenes.  While all the world is shouting at you for your attention, we are quietly doing our thing one body at a time.  We will be a bit more flashy when we come back, but not by much.  I am so not the flashy type and I am deeply committed to our clients.  This means I am not trying to pull in a billion clients we cannot service just to say my numbers are up.  (I am SURE there is an internet marketer reading my blog right now CRINGEING over what I am saying.  I am supposed to tell you all kinds of things to make you *think* otherwise. *sigh*)  

So while we will miss you for the next 8 weeks or so, we are happy to take time off to renew our minds, relax and think about the next series or topic we’re going to talk about.  I will be honest with you and tell you that I do not know the format of Jodiojo when we return.  We have a bunch of ideas on the table and we are exploring them all.  If you have anything you would like to see, let us know!  We always want to know what you would like to have us chat about.

In the mean time, I have been doing a ton of consulting lately (funny how this happens) and I thought I would let you know what I do, what it entails and how much it costs.  If it is of interest to you, our contact info will be at the bottom of the post and you can get us at that email address.

I am always asked: “What am I doing wrong?”  “How could I do this better?”  “I want to be healthier, what do I change?”  “How do I take this to the next level” and so on.  Sometimes you just want to know that without having to invest in a full program.  You like what you’re doing and are not ready to change OR you cannot afford the commitment right now because it’s summer and that’s not in the budget OR you’re deciding whether I am serial killer masquerading as an internet guru who is going to run off with all your money so this is the safest way to check me out.  I understand the last one more than you can imagine.  But regardless your reason, what you are searching for is answers.  Things like:

• How much protein should I be getting?
• Am I doing enough?
• Am I doing too much?
• How many calories should I be eating?
• How do I go from lean to leaner?
• What supplements should I be taking?
• How do I incorporate running into my schedule?
• The weight is not coming off like it did before…why?  And how do I change that?
• How do I put my schedule for the week together?

I will answer these questions for you and more in two phone calls:

Phone Call #1:  30 minutes in length

Initially I will send you a questionnaire for you to fill out.  Tell me as much about you and what you’re doing as possible.  Email it back to me and I will call you at the time we agree upon.  During that call I will drill you like a bolt to a beam and get the real truth.  Ok, not really–but it sounded compelling.  I will actually get the details that I need to help you out and I will also get to know what your true goals are–there’s always more than what’s written;).  Then, I need about a week depending on what you have going on because I am going to be VERY detailed in my answer to you.  This is not a general plan or canned phone call.

Phone Call #2: 60 to 90 minutes in length

This phone call will be your life spoken back to you in an orderly and optimized format.  You will have all your questions answered and then some, a detailed schedule that you may change and solid, implementable recommendations.  Typically the call is 60 min in length, but I pad the time by 30 minutes because I am a yapper so I allot for that and I don’t want you to feel like the clock is ticking.  If you have questions–this call is the time to ask them.

What I will not and cannot do in the phone calls is give you custom programming.  I can, however, give you a sample program of some type if you want one or feel that it will help you in any way.  I also cannot give medical advice, I am not a doctor.  But I can tell you what questions to ask your doctor or tell you what specialist can help you more than another based on past experience. 

I am offering this special for the summer only while we disappear off the blogging radar.  Quantity is limited and this will fill up fast because it already has and I have not even advertised it!  Hop on it while you can.

SUMMER SUMMIT CONSULTATION PACKAGE:  $100

If you are interested or have any questions, hit me at jodi@trans4mationstation.com and I will get right back to you with either the questionnaire or answer to your question about this service.  If you would like this with Heather, let me know when you email.  She has a different set of pricing but I will put you in touch with her and you can go from there. 

Thank you again for making this blog awesome!  We had no idea that it would go this far and it has…  Thank you!!  Have an awesome summer and we will see in you September!

I am telling you, I saw these guys this morning at the end of my street.

Today is another fabulous snowy day in New England.  And truth be told, I love it.  I really do…seriously.  You cannot deny how gorgeous it is the first day of snow fall.  Now, if it would only be 75 degrees tomorrow to melt it all right after it would be perfect.  *Sigh*  But alas, that’s not what happens so nothing is uglier than snow a week after the storm that is all black, yellow (use your imagination here) and sand filled. 

This is our second week in our new location and we already have a bunch of new readers…welcome!  Be sure to read all the way through to the end today because I have some things to explain to you about the ins and outs of this blog.

Having too much time on your hands can be dangerous.  Many a kitchen cabinet was emptied off of ‘too much time on your hands’.  Negative thoughts, unnecessary worries, wasteful activities and restlessness tend to mark your time when you have way too much time on your hands.  We all can think about the times in our life when felt really productive and we seemed to have the most amazing schedules and we somehow got everything done in one day: 8 loads of laundry, 2 workouts, solved the Mideast peace crisis, cured the common cold and so on.  Our schedule was jam packed but our diet was on point like a ballerina on stage, we never missed a workout, we didn’t have time to complain, it was just awesome.  Then we can think about times when we had a ton of time on our hands and we were late for every appointment, behind in reading our magazines and mail, disorganized, missing workouts and list goes on and on.  What happened?  When it was super busy we were wishing we had “time to get more done” or “time to catch our breath” and we were filled with visions of sugar plum fairies and clean garages with organized storage rooms.  Oh the beauty of it all!  Now we have extra time and we cannot even get up on time anymore.  This is the third day in a row we have slept through our alarm and it’s because we went to bed late but we’re not sure why because we didn’t get a thing accomplished! What the heck is going on?

Chaos Creates Order

Psycho schedules force us into discipline.  When nothing else will, having to be in New York at 10 am and Massachusetts at 5 pm will somehow make us hustle like a subway rider at rush hour.  We hunker down and get it done.  Suddenly we pack our food for the day, lay our clothes out the night before, map out our gym route, plan dinner ahead of time, make lists for lists, etc.  There is order within the madness and we have this wonderful sense of security that is hard to describe.  We realize that if we let one thing go our lives will be a stack of dominoes and the whole thing will be set off and no one wants that!  But we can only keep this going so long because it’s not just chaos that creates this order.  It’s chaos with a purpose.  A real purpose.  As many of you have found, you cannot create your own chaos and have it work for you.  Fake purpose (or goals) is as effective as a healthy snack replacing your favorite ice cream.  Really?  Come on now…carrots and hummus vs. mint chocolate chip ice cream?  Please.  I mean, you do it.  You have to.  But effective?  That’s a stretch.   So what happens?  Your purpose comes to pass:  the wedding date arrives, you graduate, you have the baby, you run the race and so on and your reason for organized chaos falls apart.  Now the chaos doesn’t make sense anymore.  You have no reason to do what you’re doing and furthermore, you have no *energy* to keep it going.  It’s exhausting trying to create your own chaos.  Suddenly you feel like you feel like you’re being asked to pretend you have someone with you at a fancy restaurant while you sit across from an empty chair at 7pm on a Friday night.  Silly.

We will do all that we can NOT to become this in our later years… 

Not Just Any Goal

Let me save you some time and frustration.   Do not think, “What I need is a goal;  I’ll just set that, fix my schedule accordingly and be back to normal” because that’s not going to work.  If you have done this already you know what I am about to say which is because it’s not real enough to you.  It’s a fake purpose.  You thought it up off the cuff and there’s no heart in it.  No emotion.  You may have asked someone to help you pick a sport for you to try, you may have asked for info on races in your area and half heartedly picked one or you may have even booked a vacation and want to be in a bikini for it.  None of those are good enough to evoke chaos in your life that forces the type of discipline you desire.  On the surface they seem great but deep down in your marrow, they are not enough.  So what does it?  Conviction and/or shame.  No, I’m not about to get biblical on you but I am about school you in the art of psychology.

Conviction

You want it because you truly believe in it.  It’s what wakes you up in the morning.  It’s why you suffer with a grin on your face.  This describes the ladies on this blog.  If you tried to get any of them to abandon their drive for ‘looking good naked’ or working out in a week you would have an easier time going door to door in a nudist colony selling clothes.  These women are convicted.  They set goals to keep them motivated and slack off just like everyone else, but their idea of ‘letting it go’ and getting back on track is much more rigid than the majority of folk.  Most of you would want to slap them if you heard them say they need to get back in line.  How can they be like that?  Conviction.

Shame

This works but most of you have found it is not a way to stay motivated.  How does shame work?  ‘I need to lose weight to fit in my wedding dress’.  ‘I need to get ready to get on stage or I’ll make a fool of myself’.  ‘I need to fit into this dress for my high school reunion’.  So you can drum up enough conviction for a few months to avoid the shame of what would go down if you didn’t, but it’s not long lasting.  Once that goal is gone, so is the chaos in your life and you are left with a chasm that begins to create resentment, feelings of being lost and empty, a sense of failure.  Now your amazing goal smells; it’s like a wet towel left in the washer for a few days and there’s nothing you can do to get rid of the smell.   Now you’re in a scramble to get a new goal because that must be the reason for what you’re going through only it’s hard to manufacture your own shame.  What to do?  Learn how to set goals based on conviction instead of shame by tapping into what you truly believe in, not just what you think you believe in.

More to Come

Moving from our blog at ModelPer4mance to jodiojo meant that I had to give up my own personal space to yap so that my sisters had a place to share their knowledge, as well.  It made total sense because it opened us up to a wider audience and I love having my sisters with me.  They are so flipping AWESOME!  But now I need a place to yap because let’s face it, I’m a yapper.  So I have begun a series called Run for Your Buns that is going to walk you through goal setting, conviction vs. shame and how to avoid the pitfall, what your schedule would look like if a 5K was what you chose to make this happen and so on.  How can you get in on it?  Sign up at the right of this post in the pink box that says Go For It.  My next post is tomorrow and we are going head first into goal setting for the clean eating, workout loving, chaos needing women that we are.  This is not the same as the “healthy” sites that give you goal tips like keep moving and drink lots of water.  This is about making a hot body when you really just want to stop eating the left side of the cabinet or the only way you know how to do it is by beating yourself up or working out incessantly.  There has to be more to life than that.  And there is.  There’s healthy goals, healthy mind sets and balance.  Can I get an amen?

There really is more to life than hours and hours of cardio…

See you tomorrow via email!

Are you confused, yet?  No?  Well could you tell me what’s going on then?  Heehee…

For the past year, the ladies of Jodiojo have been blogging over at Model Per4mance.com.  Almost as soon as we opened that company our client base expanded well beyond athletes into everyday women, boyfriends and husbands of the everyday women and folks in search of a deeper meaning in themselves and their bodies.  Instead of turning them away, we opened up the doors to MP4 and began to see a greater need that we could fill with one message:  if you do the best you can do, for you, you will have the best results that you could ever have.  Let me say that a different way:  you will be amazed at how amazing you truly are when you begin to respect who you are and what you have to offer by maximizing it through THE best food for YOU, THE best workout for YOU and not for anyone else.  You become less concerned with what others are doing and start realizing that what you have is actually pretty hot and when you tap into that, you have some serious magic on your hands.  Suddenly you have the body you want.  Suddenly you are faster than you thought you could ever be.  Suddenly you can stick to your plan and you are actually making some gains.  When I say it’s awesome to watch and it’s a privilege to be a part of, I really mean it.

Because the clientele we service with this message is so diverse, there was no way we could have one website to represent all that we do.  It would be way too confusing.  So we decided to move the blog to one neutral location: here, jodiojo.com, but create a separate site for each of your needs. 

Jodiojo (pronounced Jodi-oh-joe) is a one stop reading location to meet us girls and find out more on how to lead a clean lifestyle in this less-than-clean world (have fun trying to find a clean starch fast outside of the house) while maintaining some semblance of sanity.  Since we have a one stop reading place, we kinda needed a one stop shopping place.  Isn’t that what we do as women?  We shop!  And smartly, I might add. 

www.jonesin4fitness.com

We will sell just about everything under the sun that relates to clean living:  nutrition talks as mp3’s and cds, training programs, topical mp3’s on health and wellness directly related to clean living, clothing and so on.  We will begin with it being an information warehouse and a place to pick up some great workouts but it will eventually expand its reach to clothing, accessories and so on for clean living lifestyle. 

This online store will be accessible to all the sites through a tab: store.  You won’t miss a thing regardless of what site you are on so do not worry about remembering any site names or URL’s.  If you come here every day, we’ll make sure you do not get lost.     

Excited?  We hope so because we are.  Serving you is our pleasure and we are here for you.  Here at Jodiojo it’s about you, the client, and not so much about us—although we will talk about us in an effort to help you out.

We have one more day of us rolling out the new companies of Jodiojo.  Tomorrow is a very special post for me and I invite you to come into my life and read one of the most personal posts I have ever written.  I am sure I will have more personal than this after this when I begin to blog on Body4Christ online, but up until now I have never really revealed much about myself publicly.  I will have to tomorrow and I ask that you pray for me as I venture into my heart and pour it out onto this blog.

If anything you have read this week has spurred some questions in your soul, hit us up at info@modelper4mance.com or Jodi@trans4mationstation.com.  Your choice, does not matter.  We challenge you this week to begin to see where you fit in to this world and what you are gravitating to.  If there is a need we are not answering, let us know.  We’ll see if it fits into our philosophy and how we might be able to incorporate it seamlessly.  We look forward to serving you, whether now or in the future.

Life has a funny way of happening. Just when you think you know what’s going on in the world, it all changes on you…

If you are popping over here for the first time from Model Per4mance, welcome, this is your new home. If you were already reading Jodiojo before Model Per4mance, hi, it’s good to see you again. It feels good to be back and even better to bring my closest friends with me.

I remember a time when I was a brand new trainer—straight from the world of group fitness—and I absolutely loved the craft. I was a full time engineer during the day and would leave my job to head right to the gym for the rest of the night to train clients and teach class. Eventually I ended up leaving my engineering position to become a full time trainer at night and a stay at home mommy by day. That time was magical. I could not learn enough, fast enough and it was awesome.

As time went on I ventured into nutrition and became a Nutrition Manager at a time when very few people were even thinking about mixing nutrition and personal training. It was still very taboo back then due to liability reasons, lack of adequate certifications and so on. It was a very different time. But it was an exciting time: the industry was booming, information was new and accurate, people really cared about the welfare of the client, there was a tradeshow around every corner to get the newest info out there and it was hot. Flash forward to today and you have a very different picture of the industry. Trust me when I say I am not going to sit here and go on and on about all of the things that are wrong with my true passion today–I honestly love it too much to do that. But I will say that it is not the same and I know that you notice it, too.

I am not sure if you are like me, but I am going to have to go out on a limb and think that you are pretty close and assume that you are bombarded day after day with this harsh world. In fact, traffic alone could beat you down for the day never mind coming in contact with folks at the grocery store who are in a hurry or the six o’clock news tragedies which bring us down even further. Then when we arrive home we have to face the mail, a demanding house of laundry, etc. and for some of us, little ones who need us to encourage and edify their lives. Oh, and can you hurry up and make dinner? By the end of the night we fall into bed wondering what in Heaven’s name we are doing and is this all that life has truly promised us? Really?

Somewhere in all that mess of the day you find yourself wanting more for your health and your body. You’re not happy with the way it looks: it’s either out of shape from neglect/illness/medication, not what it used to be no matter what you try, heavier than you would like although you continue to try every diet/exercise program or right size but nothing is in the same place anymore. What’s your answer? This current industry which seems to have the quick fix for you or the latest scientific reason as to “why” you are not losing weight: you should be eating like a caveman, enjoying South Beach, running from starches, no wait—it’s dairy, sugar, gluten, fill-in-the-blank and for some us it’s everything I just listed?! They are shouting from every roof top and they are getting louder by the minute. Meanwhile, you’re getting a headache or heavier—or both. You are not sure which one to try or you are tired of trying them all because no matter what happens you don’t have the time to cook, track, pay attention, keep up with, follow, stay consistent with and so on. So the industry tries to answer that problem by making each diet plan/exercise plan either more extreme to beat you into shape faster (doing high intensity workouts 5 days/week for 3 months straight is not the answer) or more restrictive to make it easier for you to follow (limiting you to 3 out of the 4 food groups with a bunch of rules is a great way to set up some eating issues instead long term success). What really ends up happening is you just become a bucket of guilt because you can’t stay focused and you think everyone else can and how is everyone else getting it done and why can’t you get it done and is it my metabolism or I’m not working out hard enough or…is this sounding familiar?

Let me let you in on a secret: you don’t live in a vacuum. Honestly. You do not live independent of your surroundings and they are going to affect you much more than you give them credit for. You are also not a motor moron. You really do want to learn some truth out there without having to take a course in physiology 101 (I know it helps to understand why you do what you do, but can we at least make it fun?) from your local trainer but where in heaven’s name can you do that? Jeez! I thought you would never ask (and quite frankly, I couldn’t go on too much longer with the story, haha!)…

Welcome to JODIOJO and Company. We are a group of women dedicated to nutrition, training and lifestyle and not in the way that you are used to seeing it. Whenever you find a lifestyle site it is always something like ‘choose this more often’ or ‘walk instead of blah blah’ or very rudimentary tips that you have moved past years ago. And actually, even better example of what I mean is they are always in the form of “tips”. I love a good tip just as much as the next gal but when I have 10 tips and no cohesive way to put them together, what I really have is frustration about 2 weeks later when I can now only remember 3 of 10 tips I was just given. How about learning how to live life an effective way? A healthy way. A sustainable way. There is more to life than just choosing the right foods. There is choosing the right foods after a long day when you failed to plan ahead because your son told you the night before that he needed help with a project he just started and it was due the next day and he told you while you sitting in the middle of your daughter’s recital that was going until 8 pm and you, yourself, have to at least start laundry because you are down to your last pair of underwear and *gasp* (take in as much air as possible here)… have I made my point? How do you continue to get it done when life won’t let you and why do you not have the motivation to do so?

Journey with us as we find our voice here, introduce ourselves to you—5 very unique women with very different stories of how to get it done—and teach you a thing or two about health and fitness in the process.

Monday Heather
Tuesday Amy
Wednesday Seanna
Thursday Jodi
Friday Nicole

For the next four days I will tell you all about our passions through the companies all of us represent through Jodiojo:

www.ModelPer4mance.com
Thinking about a 5K, 10K or ½ marathon? Avid skier? Want the career and the recreational goal to keep you going? I will talk about this one tomorrow.

www.trans4mationstation.com (coming Jan 2011)
Want a body that looks good in or out of the jeans? If looking good naked is a thing that you desire, here’s your solution. I will tell you all about this on Wednesday.

www.jonesin4fitness.com (coming Mar 2011 or sooner)
Have you already reached your goal and just want to some fun workouts? Do you want to know how to fit it all in through hearing someone talk about it? Or maybe just learn some new stuff in the industry? This is our online store of workout packs, mp3’s, webinars and so on. More info and background on how this all fits together on Thursday.

www.Body4Christonline.com (blog coming Jan 2011, site Feb 2011)
I have so much to say on this one that I invite you to join me on Friday as to what this is going to be and what it’s all about. I cannot wait!

We invite you to get to know us here at Jodiojo and if you desire to work with us or learn more from us, the above sites are the way to do it. Over the next 3 months we will unveil all of our new endeavors and what we have been doing behind the scenes for over 5 months now. The blog will cover the same relevant topics and much more as now our scope has broadened and we have much more to focus on.

Thank you so much for making 2010 the best year a new company could ever ask for. Your support has meant everything to us. We know you will love the changes and additions that are coming. See you tomorrow (make sure you do not miss it) as I delve into the world of recreational sports. Bye for now!

No, I am not a peeping Tom and I don’t want to come over and help you get dressed! But…

Would you mind wearing red for me today?

Ladies this post is for you. It’s for your health and it’s for your family’s health. What am I referring to?

AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION’S Blog Your Heart Out Campaign that I am a proud participant of. I will be blogging for the next 12 weeks (yes, I’m back and in full swing! Woohoo!) on behalf of Fitlosophy, the makers of Fitbook, and the AHA for their Go RED for Women campaign and their Better U fitness series.

To tell you I am excited doesn’t even scrape the surface.

Heart disease in my community (black women) is huge and underrated. I will be opening your eyes to things that you take for granted everyday and I will be pointing out how you can fool yourself into thinking you are healthy because you are “skinny” when in fact you are not even close.

I will be picking a day of the week to discuss this topic as well as the normal “look good naked” topics I usually cover for the rest of the week. How can you help me while I do this?

• Join the Go Red for Women movement
• WEAR RED TODAY! It’s National Wear Red day and I want you showing your true colors.
• Commit to any type of workout challenge for the next 12 weeks and follow the Better U program, too. I also encourage you to track your progress using a fitbook. It’s great to see how far you have come and this is the best way to do it.
• If you have a blog, Join us on February 12th to Blog Your Heart Out on that day and link to as many BYHO sites that you can.

Heart disease is no joke and it is taking approximately one woman every minute. That’s more than breast cancer and the top 4 women killers combined. WHOA! It’s time to do this. Hit the closet, find some RED and let’s get this done, ladies!

Woop woop!

One woman dies every minute of this disease.

It is the number one killer of women.

And it kills more women than the next 5 causes combined.

Whoa.

What am I referring to? Heart disease. And it is being brought to the forefront of attention this year by the American Heart Association’s Go Red Campaign. They are running a 12 week FREE Better U program to help spread the word about fitness and how it can help prevent this horrible disease.

Why do I want you to know?

For 2 reasons: This silent killer is taking women faster than you can say “go get a check up” and they chose me as one of their FitBloggers to represent them and Fitlosophy during this 12 week campaign. I will give you all the details this Friday when the program launches on all of the Fit Blogger’s sites (and I’ll link you to them all, too) but until then, spread the word to your moms and aunts and cousins that it is time to get healthy. Draw them to this blog this Friday for the launch of the program and together we help keep the ladies of your life alive and healthy.

Do not make the mistake of believing because you may not be heavy that you are not at risk. Check out the information I present this Friday and take the screening test that I will link you to because it is more than just weight that puts you at risk for heart disease.

I will let you know how heart disease has directly impacted my family and how it changed our lives, how you can join in this campaign with me and things you can expect over the next 12 weeks. There will be posts in between now and Friday but in the mean time, round up your family members and get them on board. It is time for us to make them as healthy as you are striving to be.

Next Post in Series

Well kinda.

You see this blog is my passion. It is my place of fun. A place where I get to hang out and do my thang and I don’t have to worry about life, my kids, the dishes and etc. I just sit down and start to talk about what’s going on in the world of looking good naked. But this means when something big comes along—not just busy-ness because I am always busy—this will take the hit. That time has come and has been the last two weeks—hence the one time per week posting. So let’s talk about that for a second.

When I say I am going underground, I mean that I will be doing two things:

Sending my posts out as blog blasts and
Putting my premium content in a blog blast

Blog blasts make your life easier because instead of visiting my blog everyday in hopes that I have posted, I send it straight to your inbox so you have it before anybody else does. You do not have to sign up for this but I highly recommend that you do because I will no longer post ‘series’ in my blog, I will only send them out as a blast. Now I know what you’re thinking and I’m going to stop you right there. This is not a ploy to get you to sign up to sell you stuff. I have nothing to sell on this blog, remember, it’s my personal haven. If you sign up (or you are already signed up b/c there are a lot of you who are) you will only receive quality content each and every post. If there is something that I am supporting, you will hear about it in the blast only AFTER I have done something for you first with content and it won’t be spammy. I think that is only fair. However, I am not set up to sell anything so no worries there and if and when I do, I’ll give you heads up.

But I have been schooled to the ways of the blogosphere and have found out about bloggers who somehow troll the web and take content off of your site and push it as their own. I do not know the exact mechanism of this but it has to do with links and trackbacks and things that Google can trace and all kinds of wizardry like that that goes way over my head (honestly, gave me a headache when they tried to explain it to me). I do not want to stop giving out quality content so all programming is going to a blast only whereas my articles are open to the public. BTW, programming refers to series that I will do like ‘how to diet for vacations’ and ‘what to do to prepare for a reunion’ and etc. I also want to give back to those who have been with this blog for the short time it has been in existence. I truly appreciate your support (and wonderful emails) and cannot wait til you see all that I have in store for you for 2010.

Now as for what has been taking all my time… my site has finally launched. It is www.modelper4mance.com. It is a blog and website all in one and it is for athletes (from recreational to elite) who want to become more competitive in their sport through sound nutrition and training principles. Tell your friends and family to come check it out. We cover the athlete as a whole, not just their nutrition for their sport, so we talk about everything. There is so much we are going to cover there that it is crazy. There will be athlete spotlights, contests, health issue articles, training articles and etc. All info is presented in a funny, lighthearted way—you know, what you’re used to!—and will be presented 5 days a week on the blog. You are more than welcome to come hang out with us, just know that the focus is different than this blog so what is said there by me may not always translate the same as to what I say here. They’re not trying to look good naked.

Check it out and let me know what you think about it. I am looking for any and all feedback you may have (and thank you to so many of you who have shared your opinions thus far, as well) so feel free to email me at Jodi@modelper4mance.com and tell me what you’re thinking.

Lastly, Jodiojo is getting a bit of a facelift. Not sure of how much but she’ll be getting her ‘hair did’ soon.;) Might be minor changes or a whole theme change, not sure, but it’s time to raise the bar a bit on my baby. She’s a lovely blog, so I am going to give her some attention. Stay tuned while she’s under construction. It won’t be long, though, because she’s kinda hot as is.

So that’s it in a nutshell. Again, thank you for keeping up with my daily escapades and get ready for a content-filled 2010! Woop woop!:o)

Sorry, it’s the truth. 

I am in a torrid love affair and I do not know what to do about it.  Oh the injustice of it all!

Back in December of 2000, I made a bold decision for me and solid commitment to my children to become a stay at home mom.   One of the best decisions of I have ever made because it taught me so much about myself that I may have never known.  The first thing I learned is I can’t stay home with my children. Bwhahahaha!  Holy moly is that a lesson in patience and gratitude!  I will say I am glad I did it, but I won’t be opening a daycare any time soon! 

All kidding aside on that one, I am still at home with my children.  I never did fully return to the “office life” and I never will.  I love my cherubs.  But I do fear I am on some banned mommy list somewhere at a reading group or Gymboree somewhere. Haha!

The second thing that I learned is that I have a love and knack for gardening. Not a little bit of a love…a big love.  I love to grow my own vegetables.  If you have the space and just a wee bit of time, do it!  The first time you eat your own green beans or broccoli will be the last time you go to Shaw’s.  But life has a funny way of stealing your joys from you and you find yourself on the short end of the ‘hobby stick’.  Not any more, I am resurrecting my garden as I speak.

The best thing out of all of the things that I learned (and there is a slew of them) was that I love to cook.  I love to cook meals and I love to bake desserts.  I love the presentation aspect of it and I like to try new flavors.  I am not a spice type girl; in fact I am spice picky and will turn my nose up to a food if it even looks like it has curry on it.  No, I am more of a flavor kind of girl.  Stew tomatoes into a sauce to change the flavor.  Add caramelized onions to give something depth.  I will reach for a flavorful veggie before I will a pungent spice to add a little sumthin sumthin to a meal.  Try steaming white fish in a pan with orange and red peppers, sweet onions and grape tomatoes sliced thin on top.  Let me know how that tastes.  Add spices if you like but don’t be surprised if you do not need them.

For the past few years, though I have gotten away from my love and oh, how I missed it so! 

So then it happened.

I went to dinner with a friend about a week ago and got a meal that had a homemade mango salsa in it.  I almost died at the table.  And so began the affair…

I’ve tried to block it out of my mind.  Visit with other foods.  Explore other textures.  Nothing works.  I am in a full blown love affair with mango salsa right now.  My hubby has caught me with it twice.  He walked in the kitchen, I looked like a deer caught in a headlight, I denied everything, still had some on the corner of my mouth, he mumbled something about to the effect of when I love something I love it, made me feel like a crack addict in a back alley, but so what I don’t care.  I love it.  So now I’m on the hunt for a good recipe.  Who has one?

If you are a salsa or chutney connoisseur, deposit the recipe below.  PLEASE.  As I seek counseling, help a sister out.  I am back to cooking (and I mean meal events) at least 3 times a week and will just thrive on your suggestions.  So throw them at me and everyone else for that matter.  Or if you have mastered the art of flavor, do share!  The old Jodi is dusting off the cob webs and heading back into the kitchen (btw I just got a new cooking set from my Amex points—those things are awesome!), apron and all!  I am going to try Michelle’s suggestion from “Are you feeling me?” this weekend so give me some more to try with it.

Every so often I will share some good ones that I stumble upon and let you know about them.  Right now I am thinking about experimenting with yummy post workout foods since I am about to start a performance series right after Menu Planning (which will finish this coming week).  I think it’ll be helpful.  Don’t you?

Bon Appetite Y’alls!

When I was of college age, I went to Northeastern University for “biomedical” engineering (they did not have an official program at the time) and I remember landing a big co-op job at 19 years of age managing QA for an FDA regulated  manufacturing floor.  I was in heaven.  This wasn’t an internship—it was a contract position.  I was ecstatic but I wasn’t satisfied.

When I was in my late twenties, I worked for a municipality and alongside two other amazing women, determined the sewer rates for all of Greater Boston.  The work we did covered more than 40 cities (including Boston) and was used as the anchor for calculating all household sewer rates.  We felt empowered as women and important to the state of Massachusetts but for me, I still lacked something on my resume.

When I hit my mid 30’s and no longer in engineering, I found myself heading up a group of extraordinary trainers whose “call to service” in the community seemed to come natural to them.  I had enough clients to fill a small commuter jet and I was a mommy.  I was getting closer to feeling accomplished but I never took the time to take stock in that.

Now I am almost 40 years of age, leaving a position that on the “outside” did not have much exposure for me but on the inside of the company had a tremendous amount of exposure… and I have been humbled.

I have been brought to my knees…and then eventually face down.

As fitness professionals, all we want to know is, “Is anybody out there?  Can you hear me?  Am I speaking loud enough?”  For the most part we never really know how much we truly affect others.    People will come and go in our lives and they will say thank you or better yet, refer someone to you (which by the way, is THE ultimate compliment you can give a fitness professional) but it is not a summation of efforts.  It comes as little waves of delight throughout a somewhat hectic day.  And although at the time it feels amazing, the overall impact of it seems to be lost in the shuffle. 

Well over this past weekend I got to truly find out how many people were “listening” and when I say it has turned me inside out, I want you to know that that is an understatement. 

I am leaving a position of 4 years as a Physique Transformation Engineer for a company truly dedicated to healthy training for women who want to compete in fitness-type competitions to enter the murky world of blogging.  Am I scared? OH HECK YEAH!  Am I used to challenges like this, though?  Yes.  I am.  (hanging my head in shame, lol) I think I thrive off of them in some sick way. (No, really?  Ya think? *sigh*)  But I am up to the challenge and meeting it head on like a champ (read “I hope they sound convinced because I am making this up as I go along” in between those lines, ha!)  And honestly, what’s truly fueling me is:

I have arrived.

I have hit “that” place every fitness professional wishes they could hit.

And I am humbled…because I never knew 1) that I could reach it and 2) that it felt this good.

If for some crazy reason I could never work again, I would be ok with that because I feel as rewarded as I could ever be.  I want to thank everyone who has reached out to me and not only said thank you for my time, but took time out of their busy schedules to tell me *exactly* how I have changed their lives.  If you do not know what that feels like, imagine lying in a spa with an endless supply of peanut butter and ice cream (that did not make you fat) getting a mani/pedi by sun kissed hotties in the Fiji Islands while making goo gobs of money with your international conglomerate funneling it into an offshore account with NO TAXES!  Holy moly that sounds amazing!  Focus.  I need focus.  But that’s how I feel!

I FEEL SO BLESSED!

So as I sign off as Jodi Jones and sign on again as Jodiojo, I say from the bottom of my heart:

THANK YOU! 

Thank you for trusting me, thank you for believing in me, thank you for telling me and more importantly:  thank you for meaning it!  Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.  I am going to get up off of the carpet now and take some of the fibers out of my nose (lol) and go back to putting the menu planning series together. 

Please stay tuned to the blog because there are so many things on the way:  pictures, videos, product reviews, give aways, surveys, more series and etc. 

I am really looking forward to my new adventure—no matter how scary it is—and hope that you will come along for the ride. 

Take care today, tomorrow and everyday because if you have not been fulfilled yet in your life, you are surely missing out!

WOOP WOOP!:o)