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Jennifer Freeman

Known best for her former role as Claire Kyle on the hit show My Wife and Kids, Jennifer Freeman has recently taken on an even more important role… motherhood.  Since the birth of daughter Isabella in 2009, Freeman has taken a new lease on life and is loving every minute of it!

While acting is not off the table by any means, Freeman now focuses more on helping others; young women in particular. She says her mission in life is to, “Empower women”, and she does so through her work with the non-profit organization Step up Women’s Network. This organization works to bridge communication gaps between professional woman and underserved teen girls through mentorship and networking. The organization and its volunteers strive to provide teen girls with real role models and connections for a better and brighter future. Freeman says that while empowering women has always been a goal of hers, it became much more important to her after the birth of her daughter. “I realized that it’s important to show young girls how to be strong and become empowered,” she says. “It’s really all about focusing on caring. In the end we all want to know that someone cares about us and what we are doing. This organization helps with that.”

In addition to bringing more clarity to her personal goals, Freeman says that Isabella has also brought an incomparable joy to her life. She says that she now sees the world differently and has learned through her daughter, how to be a better person. “She has enriched my life in so many ways,” Freeman says. “I don’t worry so much about what I am going to do because I know that no matter what happens, there will never be a greater achievement than having her.”

Jennifer & Isabella

Although I must agree that the birth of such a beautiful daughter is quite an achievement, the unbelievable physique that Jennifer has managed to maintain is quite impressive as well! While she does admit that she added 55 pounds to her 5’3” frame while pregnant, she says that getting the weight off was simply a matter of staying active, eating healthy and not freaking out. “I had a C-section with Isabella so I couldn’t workout for a while. I took three months off and just focused on eating healthy and walking with her,” she says. “When I was finally ready, I started working out two times a week, and then made it to three times and then eventually I made it to four times a week.” Unlike many stars, her workouts are of no particular regimen. Sometimes she heads to the gym, but often she prefers to walk, swim or hike outside. Her diet is simple as well because she really doesn’t have a specific plan that she follows. Even with the pressures of Hollywood and living in L.A. all around her, Freeman refuses to surrender to the insanity and feels that, “Living on a diet is no way to live”.  While Jennifer certainly does work to maintain a healthy weight, she has no intentions of getting super skinny or denying her cravings for Godiva chocolate. She says that her meals are about 70% vegetarian but only because that’s the food she prefers and feels better eating. She also refuses to step on or even own a scale. “Our bodies fluctuate so much from day to day. Depending on something I ate or the time of the month, I can fluctuate five or more pounds,” she claims. “That kind of stuff can really get into your head. I know my body so I prefer to just keep track of how I look. If I look in the mirror and I’m happy with what I see, I know that I’m at the weight that I should be.”

This healthy outlook on body image also branches out to Freeman’s outlook on life and finding balance in it. She says that avoiding the guilt and finding balance between work and family is a struggle for every mom. She believes in taking time for yourself, and feels that making yourself feel good (whether that’s working out, shopping or dinner with friends), is an important factor in being able to take care of others. She believes that mothers shouldn’t worry so much about the little things that they are forced to miss when trying to balance work and family life. She says, “In the grand scheme of things, those little things don’t really matter that much. When your children grow older they will understand that mommy was there for all of the important stuff, but that you were simply doing the best you could to provide for your family.” Freeman also believes that instead of worrying and stressing, moms should instead take a moment to really enjoy life. “Try to embrace the now,” she says. “We should enjoy these times with our children, because one day they’ll be all grown up and we’ll be wishing we could hold our little babies again.”

For more information on Jennifer Freeman or the Step Up Women’s Network, please visit http://www.jenniferfreeman.com/