Conversations with Jessica Manning

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Manning

Hi Jessica , thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve been a personal trainer for 24 years. I was never naturally athletic as a kid. Actually, I was self-conscious and awkward. I remember having terrible, punitive gym teachers. So I had my mind shut off toward physical activity as a protective mechanism.

But when I started experimenting with exercise in my teens — driven first by aesthetics because I decided that I wanted to make more of my ONE LIFE — I was blown away at how liberating and empowering it was to FEEL healthy and strong.

I became a personal trainer in my late teens, because I knew if I had felt cast out from fitness but deserved to feel strong, there were millions out there who felt and deserved the same. Fitness needed to have warmth and approachability, in order to actually HELP people.

I have been busy getting others strong and healthy, and furthering my education ever since. I’ve been running my own business since 2010, and have been certified since 2001. This past year I began studying ELDOA (fascial and spinal health) and functional nutrition – how all of the full body systems interconnect. My business has always been focused on whole health, but it’s really rooting into the ground that fitness is only one piece of the puzzle in getting people into their best bodies, and their best lives. The human body is endlessly fascinating, the most impressive, and there is always more to learn.

I train clients in my backyard gym in North Redondo, under the butterflies and hummingbirds. I see several clients virtually all over North America (although global is certainly welcome). Virtual clients quickly learn just how much exercise you can fit into 30 minutes! My clients leave each session with no stone unturned, every muscle worked and heart pumping in the best way.

I have an app called JM Health that will be ready in the next month, which has on-demand workouts, dozens of whole health focused recipes, and lifestyle tips like nervous system help, and lympathic system support.

I’ve also begun taking clients for functional nutrition counselling, which is fine-tuning lifestyle habits and nutrition in order to restore function to the full body systems. To heal from chronic illness, by discovering the root cause of the problems. We’re having great success so far, and it’s the most satisfying work I’ve ever done.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
While connecting with people has never really been a struggle for me, other elements of running a business have been. I’m overwhelmed easily by tech, keeping up with quickly changing times, and trying to remember to engage on all the platforms and keep them all up to date. I’ve had many fumbles with the business side, from taxes errors, to having my website hacked multiple times, to most recently using accounting software that tripled all of my expenses for a year. I am frequently struggling with tech. Haha.

But nothing really worth complaining about. All of it has taught me to sometimes let the small stuff go. Because the big stuff has been nothing short of wonderful, and I imagine there is always a trade off for that equilibrium. I consider myself very lucky to do this work, in this way.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I think what keeps my clients working with me for years are a few things.

A) I take a really dynamic approach. My approach really varies from client-to-client, and from day-to-day. I consider that a functional approach, one that considers all parts of what the client needs as it changes. This makes the workouts approachable, without a pressure that won’t feel right, and therefore we see great consistency and great success.

B) I have a very keen eye for proper biomechanics. Over the years I’ve learned so many sneaky tricks the body will do to keep a compensation pattern in practice. If one muscle is stronger than another in a particular pattern, the body compensates the form, and the client can get stuck in a system that can eventually lead to chronic injuries. I’m very good at spotting these compensation patterns, and correcting them – so that we get the right muscles firing in the right patterns. For example, neck flxors compensating for deep core, upper trapezius compensating for lats…

C) I’m very proud of how I connect with and relate to my clients. I’m proud of how comfortable they feel when they see me. I’m proud that I’m a safe space for them, that they feel supported psychologically as well as physically as we work on improving their whole lives.

I think my experience, my deep connectivity to this work and my endless thirst for more education is what sets me apart from others.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I love that LA is full of contrast, and full of diversity. I love that it can be grandiose, and that it can be full of challenge and struggle. And that there is beautiful art woven through all of those features. That it’s on this majestic, natural environmental backdrop. That people from all walks come here, full of guts. Full of ideas, discipline and courage.

While it’s hard to pick something I like the least about it, I would say the polarization and the arguments. Just like any place, really. The voices I hear that are constantly criticizing the difficult task of managing such a place. I think we all need to give each other a little more grace. While LA demonstrates such strong unity, such as in the case of the wildfire crisis this year, there is still a lot of antagonism, and many inhabitants looking for someone to blame for any and all imperfections. But as mentioned, this is certainly not specific to LA.

Pricing:

• $80/30 minute session
• $105/45 minute session
• $150/program design session
• $199/functional nutrition counselling initial meeting

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jessicamanning.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicam.health
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/JessicaManningPT

Image Credits
Guillermo Garcia

May Truong