As an actor, there are often specific demands about how I need to look for roles I bring to life. That has to do with the look of the character that the director has in mind. In other cases, when I do not get the part, I suspect there are other physical considerations that have ruled me out. Alas, that is not a problem I can solve, but as an older broad, regardless of my roles in life, my physical well-being is a priority. As the saying goes — movement is medicine.
Christina Rondeau is a local gal who is building something far more intentional when it comes to this topic: a transformation rooted in truth, sweat, and self-awareness. The fifth-degree black belt and founder of Rondeau’s Kickboxing & Fitness has spent almost four decades helping a lot of women get stronger physically. But her newest adventure isn’t just about fitness — it’s about reclaiming power during one of the often misunderstood phases of a woman’s life.
If you try to put her in a specific category, good luck with that. She’s a multi-passionate pursuer of many things: professional fighter, author, entrepreneur, life and business consultant, and now a reality show producer. Yet every pursuit she goes after shares a common thread: transformation through experience.
“Kickboxing has been my full circle,” Christina says. What began almost four decades ago as a traditional training gym evolved into something far more intentional and multi-faceted. At one time she trained fighters for the ring. Along the way she wrote multiple fitness books and later penned her personal story, Blessings from Being Bullied, which explores the childhood experiences that led her to martial arts.
Now, that life story is moving toward the screen.
After an introduction at a Women in Film & Video New England monthly meetup, Christina had a conversation with director Tai Bacani who was so inspired, she wrote Southpaw, a film based loosely on Rondeau’s journey. In a full-circle moment, Rondeau plays a seasoned coach guiding a young fighter while navigating her own evolution and personal growth.
These days, she is navigating a different life experience. It all began, like it does for many of us women, with a moment of some confusion that leads to curiosity.
“Menopause found me,” she says very directly.
Despite a lifetime of elite fitness, she began noticing all kinds of changes: brain fog, fatigue, and an uncomfortable sense that her body no longer felt like it once did. At the same time, women walking into her gym were voicing the exact same questions.
“I thought, okay — it’s time to learn everything I can about this,” she says.
What she discovered both frustrated and motivated her. Many women are being dismissed, misdiagnosed, or simply told to tolerate symptoms. Instead of accepting that malarkey, Christina did what she often does: she built a system to deal with the challenge.
The result is the Menopause Fitness Journey, a six-week immersive program designed specifically for women navigating perimenopause and menopause. But calling it a fitness program really doesn’t fully capture what actually goes on.
“It’s not just workouts,” Rondeau emphasizes. “It’s understanding your hormones, shifting your mindset, accountability, emotional support, and community. We train smarter — not harder.”
Each group she leads is intentionally small — just six to eight women — allowing for deep connection to form. Participants receive weekly education, strength training, breathwork, and holistic wellness experiences ranging from functional medicine guidance to meditation and energy work.
Her philosophy is simple but firm: mind, body, soul — all of it is connected.
The program wraps up with a very special activity: a red-carpet celebration. The women walk the carpet dressed to the nines, honoring all their efforts. It’s emotional. It’s theatrical. And it’s deeply intentional.
“They need to be seen and celebrated,” she says.
That visibility theme runs through everything Christina is building — including a reality-style show currently in final editing. The production follows six women through the program’s highs, lows, and breakthroughs, with a community screening anticipated as early as April. I had the pleasure of being part of the filming as a little bit of a troublemaker at one of the sessions, because you know every reality show has to have one!
The goal of the show isn’t just entertaining television. It’s a cultural disruption.
“Half the population goes through menopause, and we barely talk about it,” she says. “That has to change.”
Rhode Island has already begun shifting that conversation. In June 2025, our state became the first in the nation to mandate workplace accommodations for menopause. The legislation expressly requires employers to provide workplace accommodations for applicants and employees experiencing menopause and related medical conditions. It is a much-welcomed sign that the long-quiet conversation is finally getting some amplification.
Christina wants to build on that by providing access to all the tools and resources to help that journey be a bit more focused and impactful.
“I want midlife women to be seen as powerful and not be invisible,” she says. “Strong — not small.”
She wants menopause discussed openly in homes, workplaces, and even schools. She wants families to understand how to support the women in their lives who are navigating it. Most of all, she wants the narrative to change for the women themselves.
In her world, transformation isn’t just a word. It’s a way of life — life doesn’t end at midlife. For many women, it could very well be an exciting new beginning.To learn more about Christina and her Menopause Fitness Journey, visit RKBLive.com. Follow Dennise on IG @TheAdventurebroad.