Congratulations to our Client of the Month in Somerville: Jess Romeo!
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What is your hometown? Birmingham, AL
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What brought you to DPT? I originally came 3 years ago when I was trying to get in shape for my wedding (and I did), but I stopped going after the wedding was over. This time I came back because I needed a change in my sedentary lifestyle, and knew these workouts and this community would give me the kickstart I needed to feel more energetic, confident, strong, and get the ball rolling on some weight loss. All of those things have come true!
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How long have you been training with us? A little over 4 months.
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What do you do in the “real world?” (job, family, pets, etc) . In the real world, I’m in school to become a psychiatric nurse practitioner, and I’m also a clinical social worker and part-time softball pitching coach. I’m married to another DPTer, Rachel Romeo, who is a rockstar neuroscience Ph.D candidate at Harvard/MIT. We live in Somerville with our two cats, Maya and Shea.
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What is one fun fact that most people don’t know about you? I took up acrylic painting about 5 years ago and started selling some of my work in the past year. I mostly do abstract cityscapes, and I haven’t found the time lately to paint much, but it’s fun! Definitely a great stress reliever.
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What is your favorite exercise and why? Hmmmm. Definitely strength-based things that involve some skill and good form. I think it’s a tie at the moment between trap bar dead lifts and kettlebell clean & press. They’re hard, but in such a good way.
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What is your biggest gym achievement so far? In the past few weeks, I’ve started to be able to lift heavier weights than I think I ever have, even when I was a college athlete. Being able to do that makes me feel like a superhero or something. It’s cool.
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What inspires and motivates you? Seeing myself and other DPTers be able to do things that we couldn’t do just a few months earlier.
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What would you say to someone who is thinking about joining or who has just joined DPT? Join. And if you just joined, stay. I’ve never been part of such a supportive community of trainers and fellow gym-goers. My 3x/week training sessions are a big part of my life now, and even though I haven’t reached end goals with regard to fat loss and all of those cosmetic things, I know that I’ll get there, and along the way, I’m feeling more confident and powerful in my own skin. That feeling is pretty priceless.