We had the good fortune of connecting with J’rai Hammonds and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi J’rai, how do you think about risk?
I believe that to “Get Up And GLO” is to wake up each day and be the best YOU! My life mantra is “BE your dreams and chase your goals”. Life is a constant cycle of decisions and taking risk. If you do not fail how will you know how to succeed? Throughout my life I have learned that each time I take risk and fail, I come back 10 times stronger! You should actually be excited when you fail because once you get over that, there is a beautiful victory on the other side. In business you MUST take risk in order to see great success. You have to put your pride aside and be open and willing to take risk. The next risk you take could change your life forever!!!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I aspire to motivate all walks of life through Get Up And GLO. Everyday that you wake up is a chance to become closer to your health and fitness goals. I enjoy making personable connections with my customers and clients and making fitness accessible to everyone. I started Get Up And GLO in the summer of 2014 in my garage in efforts to stay in shape to prepare for the rigorous dance training to pursue a BFA in dance. I live, breathe, and dream of movement to uplift and inspire which motivates my passion for my business.

When I was dancing as a Professional Division Scholarship Student at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York City, I tore my labrum in my hip. I was devastated and painfully finished the program and went back to UNCSA to finish my 3rd year of college. After weeks of physical therapy, I received MRI results and was told that I needed surgery to repair a large tear. The doctors were stunned at the musculature of my glutes! They said that my strength from my GLO workouts was the only reason I was able to dance with a tear that big without dislocating my hip. This injury gave me the time to become an ACE certified personal trainer, build my business, and also focus on the academic requirements in order to receive a BFA. While many people saw my injury as a set back, it was only a set up for my success!!!

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?
If my best friend was in the area we would go on a day trip to a beautiful mountain and go hiking! We would have a photoshoot once we got to the scenic view of the mountain. Then we would DEFINITELY go to get a vegan meal! I became pescatarian at 9yrs old and have been vegan for almost 6yrs now, so I am passionate about finding the best vegan restaurants. After we get food we would hopefully drive into a beautiful sunset and listen our favorite music!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Debbie Allen has been a huge inspiration to me. I had the honor of attending the Debbie Allen Dance Academy Summer Intensive Program in 2015 and I will never forget the encouraging words we exchanged. My favorite quote from her that I live by is “Failure: Is it a limitation? Bad timing? It’s a lot of things. It’s something you can’t be afraid of, because you’ll stop growing. The next step beyond failure could be your biggest success in life.”

Website: https://www.getupandglofitness.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getupandglofitness/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/getupandglofit

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GetUpAndGloFitness

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCucAuOmCTqCtjWyzk9lIlRA

Other: Email: Jrai@GetUpAndGloFitness.com

Image Credits
Skymatic Studios, Jsea’s Photography, Amaiya Simone

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