The Wellness Files: Julie Schechter ● from lawyer to fitness entrepreneur

The Wellness Files //  a wellness-focused interview series featuring the badass ladies that inspire me.

I’m Julie Schechter, and I’m the founder and CEO of fitBallet.

I’ve been a dancer since I was a child, but then made a 180-degree turn to attend Harvard Law School and practice litigation at a corporate firm. I left the firm in 2014 to found fitBallet in New York City, where we have group fitness classes and offer personal training.

Our classes are a mixture of ballet and high-intensity interval training, and no dance experience is necessary. Our mission is to create a fitness community that focuses on accomplishment and strength, where women focus less on losing weight and more on building stable, thriving bodies and minds.

 

▶︎ You have a super interesting background — from dancer to lawyer back to your roots of dance. What inspired you to leave the corporate world and create fitBallet?

The practice of law wasn’t for me, and I knew that almost from the beginning.

I’m much happier when I’m able to create, to put something tangible in the world that’s going to affect someone’s life positively. I started training friends on the side while I was at the law firm, and it was that element of creation that was giving me something to look forward to. I knew I wanted to leave, but was debating about when, and how much to save first, and all these other considerations…and then I had an experience that sealed the deal.

A friend, a former dancer who had dealt with postpartum depression, told me that the workouts were changing the way she saw her body. She’d always been thin and classically beautiful, but her body had been a battleground for her, somewhere she was stuck and never happy. Focusing on strength in the fitBallet workouts made the difference, she said. Where other fitness regimes had focused on becoming smaller, thinner, less of a physical person…a goal for which the logical extension is anorexia…succeeding at a fitBallet workout meant building measurable strength that she could carry over into other parts of her life. “I could carry all three of my kids out of the house in a fire,” she told me, “and all of a sudden, my body felt completely worthwhile again.” That was basically all I needed to hear to quit my job and start doing fitBallet full-time.

 

▶︎ How has your law degree come into play as an entrepreneur and business owner?

It’s mostly just made me less fearful. One of the hurdles to starting a business is the hassle of putting together incorporation documents, setting up payroll systems…all those things with so many details that you feel like you might make a zillion dollar mistake. When you’ve spent years up to your eyeballs in legal minutiae, you feel more comfortable putting on that hat and knowing you can sit down and figure it out, whatever “it” is.

▶︎ What advice do you have for someone looking to break into the fitness industry whether as an instructor or creating their own brand?

I think it has to be about what you bring to the table that’s different than what’s already out there. Not in the sense of having a gimmick, but in how your contribution is going to give a client something they can’t get next door.

Sometimes that’s the workout itself, if you’re creating something totally new. But it could also be an attitude, or a culture you’re creating. Every single person on earth needs to move their body, but you’re talking about an infinite range of desires, comfort levels, abilities, etc. Finding something about yourself that is truly unique goes an enormously long way toward helping you find an audience.

 

▶︎ Where does your motivation to lead a healthy life come from?

Balance. The ability to be a whole person–someone with an active mind and a thriving body–was really emphasized in my home as a kid, and I’ve always loved that. I feel off-kilter if I go too long without working out or eating well, like I’m not really myself. The sensation of putting my hand back on the ballet barre or eating that first bite of green vegetables is re-centering…there’s a physical feeling of calm that accompanies going back to health.

 

▶︎ What’s your go-to spot for a healthy meal or snack in NYC?

It’s expensive, but Hu Kitchen is the mecca of healthy eating. Everything is paleo. I don’t adhere to that diet all the time, but it’s extremely easy to get a clean meal made up of whole foods when you’re eating in a paleo environment. I love being able to walk in and order whatever sounds good at the moment, knowing they’ve already done the work of making sure everything that’s available is healthy.

 

▶︎ What’s your proudest fitness moment?

Every single time I finish a workout. No matter how much you work out, or how highly you prioritize your health, there are always a million other things competing for your attention. That moment when the cool-down of a workout starts is when my conscious brain flickers back on, and I think, “Oh, I actually followed through on this today. That was pretty badass.” It’s a high that never fails.

 

▶︎ What work out, if any, are you currently obsessed with?

Well, I hear fitBallet is pretty cool! 🙂 The tough part is that I live in LA, where we’re working on getting classes off the ground, so I’m only able to take class when I’m in NYC. Thankfully, we have an ebook that contains 3 months worth of workouts, so I do those at home. If I’m in the mood for a group class, I head to ballet at Dance Arts Academy or a workout at Uplift Studios (I love their emphasis on empowerment…such a great vibe there).

▶︎ When you’re tight on time but want a healthy, homemade dinner, what do you make?

Eggs and greens. I think I could power my whole life on eggs…they’re such a cheap, versatile source of protein. I try to always have frozen greens on hand, and I throw those in the skillet and crack a few eggs on top. Bonus points if I have time to roast some sweet potatoes, but then I have to physically be kept away from them because I will eat. them. all.

 

▶︎ What’s the last great book you read?

Sweetbitter, by Stephanie Danler. I held out for awhile, because the premise seemed so overdone: girl moves to New York from a hick town and discovers love, lust, and who she truly is through working at a restaurant. But then I picked it up in an airport and the writing was so fantastic that it just enveloped me. I tore through it in 2 days.

 

▶︎ What beauty products do you swear by?

I’m pretty low-key when it comes to beauty. If I have eyeliner, concealer and chapstick, I’m good to go. I am a devotee of the Coconut Body Butter from Trader Joe’s, though. It’s four dollars, lasts forever and smells amazing…it’s an emergency when I run out.

 

▶︎ What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

“No one else knows what they’re doing either.” My dad told me that when I was first starting the business and feeling like I had no idea what was going on…it’s so hard sometimes to not feel like a fraud when you’re doing something for the first time. But he was right. What I was bringing to the equation was enthusiasm and a desire to do good, and that’s basically all you need. Everything else, you can pick up along the way.

▶︎ What’s one piece of advice you would give someone new to fitness + wellness?

Start slow, and focus on the wins…that’s what will keep you coming back, and you want to keep coming back. I think people often dive off a cliff, wanting to take as much punishment as possible at first, and then they’re sore and exhausted and the whole thing grinds to a halt before it even truly begins. The emotional aspect of fitness is so often overlooked. You have to feel like you’re succeeding in order to have the energy to keep going back to the mat (or the barre…whatever). If you start small, and give yourself a win, that empowers you to create a habit.

 

LIGHTNING ROUND!

Barre or Yoga? Yoga

Spin class or run? Run.

AM or PM workout? AM, for sure.

Smoothie or juice? Neither, honestly, I’d rather eat a meal than drink one.

Group fitness or solo workout? Definitely group fitness! Even before I started fitBallet, class workouts were my favorite. There’s something about having the energy of all the other people around you, the music, the general vibe that puts you on the side of “I can do this!” instead of “Ugh, how much more?” I like the accountability.

 

▶︎ Where I can find you on social media and where can I learn more about fitBallet?

fitBallet website // www.fitballet.org

instagram // @_fit_ballet

facebook // fitballet