Christine Mwangi, host of WGVU’s The Black Honest Truth, a podcast exploring the distinct experiences that African immigrants and African Americans have with blackness. With her medical and health background she finds expert voices to discuss health at home in isolation.
You're listening to shaping narratives, a collection of voices from West Michigan's communities of color brought to you by WGVU, NPR and PBS in West Michigan. In a partnership with the WK Kellogg foundation, the voice of today's podcast is Christine Mwangi. Host of WGVU’s the black, honest truth, a podcast exploring the distinct experiences that African immigrants and African Americans have with blackness.
A first generation transplant from Nairobi Kenya. Christine has degrees from both the U S and England, her medical and health background help her find expert voices to discuss health at home in isolation.
We have with us today Dave Jimenez, owner and operator of title boxing club, grand Rapids, national Academy of sports medicine, certified personal trainer and sports performance, nutrition specialist. Dave, thank you so much for joining us.
Absolutely. Thank you for having me, Christine.
Yeah. So tell us with so many fitness facilities to choose from. What can our listeners expect that title boxing club brings to the community as far as unique fitness options?
That's a great question. You know, I'll be the first person to tell you that there's a lot of great ways to exercise, to move your body, to train a lot of great options out there. I think what makes us unique in that space is our vision, um, as a fitness club and, and our vision is to create a community of people who pursue their goals with a fighter's mentality. And so, um, everything that we do is geared around that mentality of being a fighter and pursuing those goals, whether they're fitness or not like a fighter would, um, we, we use the heavy bag. We're a boxing club, but we don't actually fight each other or spar each other. It's fitness it's appropriate for everybody. Um, but it's that mentality. I think that really makes us unique and makes us stand apart.
Wow. That's amazing. Thank you for sharing that. So during this time of quarantine and social distancing, what are some tips you can give our listeners to maintain their physical health while working with let's say limited resources, finances, and even equipment?
Absolutely. I think the starting point. Is to either establish or reestablish your why your own personal, why, why is it important to you that you maintain or take another step towards your fitness? And, uh, you know, that's really important, uh, question it's really important for you to know the answer to that, because that's going to be, what, what drives you to keep going, even when you don't have the equipment, maybe you're used to using at the gym you went to, and now you're at home and doing the best you can. You got to have a strong and powerful why and a reminder of why it's important. I think that's the number one starting point. Um, I think the second thing that's important, I know this works really well for me. And is that, whatever, whatever you are doing to continue to pursue you are from home, let's say that you have any equipment at home at all.
Um, there, there are still things that you can do that you can, you can go outside and go for a walk. You know, you can, uh, I know with having internet access and having things like access to YouTube. There's so many free 30 minute workouts that you can look up that don't require any kind of equipment.
They're all body weight exercises. Um, Maybe you do have a stationary bike at home, or you have a treadmill or something like that, whatever you decide to do now that we're home. Um, my advice is to schedule your workouts for yourself on your own personal calendar to literally get them on your schedule, just like you would a doctor's appointment or something like that.
And then. As the week goes on, make those non-negotiable whether you feel like doing those workouts or not, they're on your schedule, do everything you can to get them done. And I think that's a great way to kind of take motivation out of the picture a little bit and incorporate more of what's needed, which is discipline.
Discipline is doing what you know, you need to do, whether you feel like it or not. So that's tip number two to me is that literally schedule your. Whether it's watching YouTube videos three times a week and doing a 30 minute workout or going for a walk or riding your bike or that pair of dumbbells that you had in your basement that are collecting dust, you know, and use it.
Get them on your schedule. Um, so that's tip number two. I think the third tip that I have, um, is that if your activity level has decreased, because maybe you don't have access, maybe you were going to a gym, maybe you don't have access to that anymore and now we’re home, a lot more, a little bit more sedentary than maybe we were before is to really take a look at.
Your nutrition and the nutrition side of things, and to really pay attention to what you're putting in your body and how your body reacts and responds to what you put in. And I also think this is a great opportunity for people. If you've been thinking about trying something new. Because this has to be fun too. It has to be interesting, you know, pursuing a life of fitness and health. Maybe you've heard of, you know, I have a friend that swears by tracking calories on my fitness pal app and you've never done it. Well, maybe this is an opportunity to give that a try or maybe you've been considering doing the really popular diet nowadays is Keto. Maybe, you know, or it could be anything, but. This could be an opportunity for you to maybe try something new and have something fun and just explore. But, um, I think those three things are really good as far as just remember your why, um, your appointment schedule your workouts, just like you would an appointment, stick to them, and they really take a closer look at your nutrition and what you put in your body.
Wow. Thank you. I really, really appreciated the tip about scheduling workouts because I personally just try to fit it in where I can get it in as I think most people do. But that, I mean, that works when we're engaged during regular working times and, you know, in non pandemic conditions because you know, our everyday schedule and routine changes.
Almost on a day to day for some people, but certainly when you're stuck at home and you're quarantined, um, this is a perfect time to schedule it because certainly some of us are still working from home, but most of us really are struggling with the routine, the new normal and fitting things in and making sure we get them done.
So I really appreciated that tip. Thank you.
Thank you.
So as a trainer, what would you say has been your biggest challenge trying to maintain the engagement of your clients during this pandemic? What is title boxing club doing to keep our community engaged and motivated, as you said, to keep their fitness goals in front of them and going.
Absolutely. And that's been a big, big part of what we've been doing now is trying to figure out a way to keep our community. And you mentioned that right at the very beginning, so much of this community, that's why people have gym memberships and club memberships. You know, a lot of us do we have the ability to train on our own, maybe work out at home, but there's nothing like being among your friends and other people to keep you motivated trainers.
Um, so the way we've been, uh, continuing to, to. To foster that community is we've switched over to Facebook live workouts. And it's a, we have a private Facebook group for our members and, um, three times a week I've been doing, um, a live workout, actually do the workout either. I don't just tell them what to do.
I actually do it with them. Um, and so we've had a great response for that. We were able to do these workouts without any equipment required, so we don't have to have our. Are our boxing gloves and our heavy bag available. Some people do, but most people don't have access to that. So we just do shadow boxing.
We do calisthenics, we warm up, we do a lot of core exercise. And so that's really what we've been doing going forward as far as. You know, I through it three times a week, just getting everybody together, live online to, to stay in that fighting spirit and that fighters mentality.
Wow. Thank you so much.Yeah, I've been seeing a lot of, um, a huge uptick let's say of, um, engagement online. And so if people want to get engaged with title boxing club in this way, how can they further connect with your company, um, online, um, Or perhaps on a social media. So what are your social media platforms? What are ways that people can contact you during this time? Should they wish to join title boxing club during this time and plug into some of these virtual workouts?
Sure. Great question. We're very active on social media. I know there's a lot of options with social media these days, but, um, Facebook of course, uh, title boxing club, grand Rapids. Um, you can find us on Facebook there.
We're very active there. Um, also Instagram, um, she's also title boxing club, grand Rapids. Um, so that's a great way. If you are familiar with those platforms and to send us over a private message on their war message, it's an easy way to do that. You could also email us at grandrapids@titleboxingclub.com. So it's grandrapids@titleboxingclub.com And then finally, um, we do also have, uh, we're still able to access our text messages, even though we're not at the club 616-272-4992 is a way that if you wanted to text us with any question, um, and just kind of get the ball rolling, put your toe in the water from there to find out more about what we're all about.That's a great way to do it.
Thank you very much. Dave Jimenez with Title Box and Club Grand Rapids.
Thank you. Christine.
Shaping Narratives is a collection of voices from West Michigan's communities of color is brought to you in partnership with the wk Kellogg Foundation, a partner with communities where children come first. Want to hear more Shaping Narratives episodes download and subscribe at WGVU dot org or wherever you get your podcasts. Please rate and subscribe if you get a chance, it helps us to know you're listening. Shaping Narratives is produced by WGVU PBS and NPR in West Michigan through the facilities of the Meijer public broadcast center in the service of Grand Valley State University. Matt Gruppen processed all the audio, Joe Bielecki edits each episode, Vance Orr designed our graphics and manages our Web presence, Phil Lanes is our director of content. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the hosts and their guests and do not necessarily reflect those of WGVU or Grand Valley State University.
