36 September 5 • 2019
jn

Q: How did you decide to make your 
adult life in Metro Detroit?
AJ: I grew up in Metro Detroit and 
decided to stay here for two reasons. 
First, which is the most important to 
me, is that my family lives here. I am so 
grateful for my amazing family and could 
not imagine being away from them. 
Second, I decided to attend graduate 
school, and the program I was extremely 
interested in happened to be located in 
Metro Detroit. I almost moved away to 
Texas after undergrad, but I am so happy 
I decided to stay.

Q: You’
re the founder of The 360 
MindBody, a business that combines 
physical and mental health efforts to 
increase quality of life. What was the 
process of starting your own company 
like?
AJ: My two main passions in life are 
fitness and mental health. I knew that I 
wanted to combine the two of them and 
believe that the connection between the 
two is often overlooked. I have recently 
created a website and have been running 
events through the business to try and 
get the word out. The process of trying 
to start something new is always difficult, 
and this has not proven otherwise. It 
is very difficult to start a new business. 
It has started off very slow, but I have 
learned the importance of taking each 
day one at a time and focusing on the lit-
tle steps rather than just the end goal.

Q: You’
re also a personal trainer and 
group fitness instructor at Nafas 
Fitness in Royal Oak. What’
s your 
favorite part about working directly 
with clients, either one-on-one or in a 
group setting?

AJ: I absolutely love working as a 
trainer and group fitness instructor. Not 
only does it allow me to share my pas-
sion for fitness, but it also allows me to 
create connections with lots of different 
people. My favorite thing about being a 
trainer is the ability to be a cheerleader 
for someone that needs it. I have the 
ability to motivate and inspire so many 
people to become a better version of 
themselves. I also make sure that every-
one feels welcomed, accomplished and 
comfortable when working out with me.

Q: And if you weren’
t busy enough, 
you’
re also in graduate school for clini-
cal mental health counseling! Looking 
five years into the future, how would 
you like to see your schooling and pro-
fessional endeavors all come together?
AJ: My dream is to grow my own 
business: The 360 MindBody. This will 
be my own private practice. It will be 
a therapy center that not only provides 
mental health counseling, but also per-
sonal trainers, dietitians and meditation 
guides. I want to create a total health 
and wellness center where a person can 
come in and have a program tailored 
specifically to them and their goals. All 
the teams will work together to help the 
client achieve optimum wellness.

Q: Outside of work and school, how do 
you spend your free time? What’
s your 
ideal day off?
AJ: I am an extremely active person. 
I love to do anything outside or any-
thing that gets my heart pumping. I love 
exploring new places, hiking and biking. 
I am also very into boxing. I started box-
ing about seven years ago and fell in love 
with it. I try to box at least a couple times 

a week. On the less active side, I love 
going to anything live, whether that be a 
concert, comedy show or a sports game. 
I also love being able to just relax and 
watch a movie.

Q: What’
s your “happy place,
” and why 
is it so special? 
AJ: My happy place is Sanibel Island 
(Fla). Every year my family and I go 
down to Sanibel Island for winter break. 
I have been going there for over 20 years 
and cannot imagine my life without it. 
Everything down there makes me happy. 
It is a super small island and we have the 
ability to walk everywhere. We stay right 
on the beach and get to see the sunrise 
and sunset every day. It feels like my 
home away from home.

Q: What fictional place would you 
most like to travel to and why?
AJ: Wow, that is hard. I would have to 
say Hogwarts from Harry Potter. I went 
to Harry Potter World at Universal and 
had so much fun. There is something 
about Hogwarts that makes you smile, 
and it’
s so full of magic and adventure.

Q: How do you like to give back to the 
community/others?
AJ: I have always been one to think of 
others. It is important to me that people 
around me are happy, and I try to help in 
any way I can. I try to volunteer as often 
as I can and attend local fundraisers. I 
have run a lot of fundraiser events at my 
gyms to help raise money and awareness. 
We recently organized a Box Out Breast 
Cancer class.

Q: What’
s your favorite Jewish holiday 
and why? 

AJ: My favorite Jewish Holiday is 
Rosh Hashanah. When I think about 
my childhood, I remember that always 
being my favorite holiday. It was always 
such a happy occasion and it was a whole 
day I got to spend with my family. We 
would also always have a huge dinner all 
together, which I remember always had 
the best food. I am also pretty partial to 
the shofar.

Q: What accomplishment are you 
most proud of and why?
AJ: In undergrad, I studied abroad three 
times all on my own. I was very proud 
of myself for being able to do some-
thing so outside of my comfort zone. I 
knew no one on my trips and I was in a 
different country for each (Italy, Israel, 
Australia). Each one helped me grow, 
become more independent and gain 
self-confidence.

Q: Would you rather win an Olympic 
Medal (for what sport?), an Academy 
Award (in what category?) or Nobel 
Prize (in what)?
AJ: Olympic medal for sure. Probably 
in some type of individual sport like 
swimming or ice skating … not that I do 
any of those sports, hahaha.

Q: Best movie ever made, hands down?
AJ: For sure a Disney movie. It’
s a 
strong tie between Mulan and Lion King.

Q: How about a fun fact?
AJ: I have older siblings who are trip-
lets! ■

Read more at meetyouatthewell.org. Want to 
meet Abbie? Email Rabbi Dan Horwitz at dan@
meetyouatthewell.org for an introduction.

MARISA MEYERSON SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

Matchmaker, 
Matchmaker, 
Matchmaker
Matchmaker

NJP (Nice Jewish Person) 
Abbie Jankelovitz

Each month, The Well highlights an amazing (and eligible!) individual. The 
Well has agreed to share its Q & As with these amazing singles with the JN. 
This month, The Well has a conversation with NJP Abbie Jankelovitz.

moments

COURTESY OF THE WELL

