Meet Jocelyn Thomas | Entrepreneur/Wellness Coach/Personal Trainer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jocelyn Thomas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jocelyn, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
I am actually happy you guys asked this question because it is a topic that is near and dear to my heart nowadays. And that is largely because I have done such a poor job over the years exercising a healthy work life balance. I can admit that to myself now because I can have a better picture of what a healthy work life balance looks like for me. Balancing my professional and personal life became extremely important to me when I became a parent. If I’m being honest, it became prioritized even more when I became a single parent. I wear a lot of titles these days, but none of them hold more weight in my life than being a parent. My son Legend is by far the most important thing in the world to me. So, prioritizing my time with him is always at the top of my list. I will admit being a “boss” and being a single parent can be a lot at times. And there are those times I feel as though I could do a better job with parenting, because like everything else in my life, I can be a bit of a perfectionist. But at the end of the day, I do think I am doing a pretty good job at balancing both things simultaneously. Legend is what humanizes me, in the most beautiful way possible. So, when I’m taking time off from work to spend time with him, I am also taking the time to sit down and unplug. B.L.U.F (Bottom, Line, Upfront) – Work life balance will change with you as life changes for you. Be sure to give yourself grace as you navigate through your journey.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am Jocelyn Thomas, CEO and owner of LHNF, Legendary Health and Fitness. And let me be the first to tell you that every day is a great day to be legendary! I am a wellness coach, personal trainer, and master fitness trainer by trade. But most importantly I love helping others learn how to holistically love themselves. And I coach them to do so by exercising the 3 pillars of fitness; spiritual fitness, nutritional fitness, and of course physical fitness. I train with my legends (clients) a variety of ways; online, 1 on 1, and group settings. Whatever is the most convenient and the most comfortable method for them to achieve their goals. As far as expansions and collaborations, I am currently a brand ambassador for Mayweather Boxing + Fitness, one of the fastest growing fitness franchises in the United States, and Webe Life, an up-and-coming mental health and well-being app. What sets me apart from others? Accountability, extreme accountability is probably a more appropriate phrase. I contact my legends 2-3 times a day, but my keen social skills make it feel more like a conversation than a punishment. There aren’t too many trainers who are going to do that. Usually when you leave the workout session that’s it. But what I’ve discovered over the years is that most people need more of an accountability partner than a trainer. They usually know what they need to do, most just need a little push to help them do it. I provide that push multiple times throughout the day. What am I most proud of? My legends, of course! Seeing their lifestyle transformations is by far the most rewarding and humbling part of the job. Becoming the most legendary version of yourself is not easy and it takes a lot of hard work and dedication. So, to witness their continued success stories over the years truly impacts me just as much as it does them. What do I want readers to know about me? I am a real person, who really cares about people. I care about what you do to your body, what you put into your body, and how you feel about your body. That’s why I work so hard to help my legends stay accountable to themselves and their goals.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
For starters, all my friends know better than to come to visit me for a week, because I am not going to take that long of a break from work lol. So, this would be more of the best weekend ever. And trust me, I am a good time, so two or three days with me will be enough. A perfect day for me always starts off with a workout. Depending on whether it’s a weekday or a weekend day we can start off with a CHAMP class at Mayweather Boxing + Fitness (60-minute workout) or an hour-long bike ride on The Atlanta Beltline Eastside Trail. Health is wealth so we always must prioritize getting up and getting active! Now that we are up and energized it is time to get dressed and grab brunch at The Flying Biscuit Cafe. They have multiple locations throughout the city, but I normally visit the downtown location because of the convenience factor. I love the fact they offer both vegan and non-vegan dishes, that way my friends will not feel like I am trying to convert them lol. After brunch of course I want to take in a game because I am a huge sports fan. It depends on which season we are currently in to decide which sport we are taking in. Although, that is not too big of a concern because the city has a team for every professional sport: football, basketball, baseball, and soccer. My preference would be to attend a WNBA game, because like many others I am a huge advocate of women in sports. Also, the ladies of the Atlanta Dream have been balling out lately, and I am a huge fan. After the game I am heading to Ponce City Market to Bar Vegan to eat some delicious vegan food and partake in some tasty adult beverages. If you could not tell from one of my previous answers above, I am a huge Pinky Cole fan and I am going to support pretty much everything she does. One because all her business ideas are genius and two because I am a vegan. She has really put on for the vegan culture in recent years and gave us all cool vegan spots to hang out at. Day 2 I would rinse and repeat, maybe swapping out the WNBA game for an Atlanta Braves game and Bar Vegan out with Slutty Vegan.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
A book I’ve read recently is, “I hope you Fail”, by Pink Cole. What I like about this book the most is that it addresses one of the biggest taboos in both life and business, failure. There are many inspirational books out there that I have read and that have motivated me to be legendary. But what makes this book unique to me is that Pinky not only acknowledges the failures she has made throughout her life, but she also encourages her readers to fail. We live in such a culture of instant gratification and immediate success. We can sometimes forget that is not normal. I am grateful to Pinky for shining a light on the many complications, sacrifices, and failures that come along with the journey to success. Those things are what help define your character because we all must sometimes lose a little in order to be victorious in the end. And how you handle that journey will largely determine how you embrace the victory of accomplishing your goal. Because when you have really been through some things you tend to value the fruits of your labor more. The impact “I hope you Fail” has had on me is to be more vocal about my own failures. I have been told before that I make things look easy. So, it is important for me to let people know that the road is not always easy, but it is always worth it. Just work hard, keep the faith, and remember every day is always a great day to be legendary!

Website: www.legendaryhnf.com

Instagram: legendaryhealthandfitness

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/jocelyn-thomas1

Twitter: legendaryhnf

Facebook: legendaryhealthandfitness

Youtube: lifeofalegend

Other: podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/jocelyn-thomas2

Image Credits
Calvin Howard @mgimagesstudios – IG @MGimages – FB