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Meet Margaret Cresta – A Limitless Journey – Brendan Higgins

April 2, 2023/Brendan Higgins

By Brendan Higgins, contributing writer

She has helped countless people overcome obstacles in their lives. She removed the ceiling and broke down the walls in every direction in her own life. She is a born leader. Her enthusiasm is off the charts. Her smile is infectious. Her sincerity is obvious. She is a woman who wears many different hats. She is a successful personal trainer and nutrition consultant. She is an on air personality for Dirty Water TV. She is a real estate photographer. Her social media presence is constantly growing. She is the first ever female ring announcer for CES Boxing. Her name is Margaret Cresta, and she hasn’t even begun to hit her stride.

Cresta grew up in Revere, Massachusetts. She comes from a big Italian Irish family. Her parents, Michael and Jeanne, have five children. Cresta has two sisters, Bianca and Michelle. She also has two brothers, John and Michael. She graduated from Revere High School in 2010. From there, she attended UMass Boston.

She recalled, “I always wanted to be a manager.” Cresta shared a memory from her youth. She started to laugh and said, “When I was younger, I would put on an outfit and stand in front of a mirror. Then I would say, ‘I want to be a manager.’ I thought that was a really cool thing.”

She laughed for a few more seconds then continued. “I went to school for business. At the time, I was working at the Revere Hotel – Boston Common. It has always been a real hot spot. I started out as a server in the hotel restaurant, the Rebel’s Guild, and worked my way up to a supervisor. I also worked in the hotel. I was a trusted employee. I was able to take what I was learning in school, and apply it in real life at my job. Things like dealing with employees, dealing with people, as well as dealing with conflict and resolution. I have a degree in leadership and organizational change.” Cresta graduated from UMass Boston in 2015 with a Bachelor of Science degree.

As much as Cresta enjoyed her career, she had other dreams. She explained, “I always wanted to be an entrepreneur. I always wanted my own clothing brand. I wanted my own store. I didn’t know exactly what I wanted, but I knew there was something more. I was overextended at work, and it was no longer my passion.

After being there for years, my heart was no longer in it. I needed to start choosing between what I wanted, instead of accepting what was happening to me. There is a quote I use to this very day. No decision is a decision. It took a while to change some things in my life. One thing was leaving my job. It was a very big deal for me. I left on my own terms, but I didn’t have a concrete plan for what would come next.”

At the time, I was very interested in the nutrition side of food. How it can make you feel physically and mentally. In fact, I was fascinated by it. I would get comments about how skinny I was. I didn’t really see that as a compliment, like some people might. I wanted to be stronger. This was when I began working out and posting on my social media. It didn’t happen overnight. It took a long time to monetize through social media. I continued building my YouTube and Instagram platforms.”

Cresta shifted into high gear and began her journey into the fitness industry. She said, “I started at Planet Fitness in Revere. I was by myself, making mistakes, learning as I go. Then I moved to Latitude, which later became Boston Sports Club. Over time, I became a personal trainer. Then I created and released my first fitness program. It was a lot of years in the making. I started to think if I could make this a career, I would be so happy.”

As the old saying goes, be careful what you wish for, because that is exactly what happened next. Today, Cresta has hundreds of thousands of social media followers. She is an influencer. She is a content creator. Her focus continues to be on helping people. Cresta always wanted to be her own boss. That has also come to fruition.

As a content creator, Cresta has managed to open some doors leading to exciting new frontiers in her evolving career. She recently made her successful debut as the new ring announcer for CES Boxing. Generally speaking, this position has been heavily dominated by men across the entire sports landscape. Margaret Cresta rolled her eyes at that notion. She explained, “I did some work with another MMA promotion as a content creator. That was my first taste of combat sports. I had complete creative control. I was an on-camera reporter. That was in 2020.

Shortly after that I was at a Rhody Foodie event, and I met Ed Brady. During our conversation, he asked me to come to a big boxing event at the Cranston Stadium to do some interviews. I really had no idea what was going to happen that day. Well, I ended up interviewing Jimmy Burchfield. I was not expecting that at all. I have so much respect for Mr. Burchfield. This was a big deal for me. He was so kind. He gave me his card that day, and we stayed in touch. Fast forward to 2023, and he asked me if I could work with some fighters on improving their nutrition. So, I did. Then he offered me the opportunity to become the ring announcer for CES Boxing. At first, I was like, me? I was taken aback because I had never even thought about doing that. So that’s how it started.”

I spoke with CES president Jimmy Burchfield to get his thoughts on Cresta. He said, “At the Cranston Stadium show, I bonded with Margaret. I started following her career more closely. With her being a personal trainer, a nutritionist, and being so health conscious, it usually goes along well with combat sports. I had some fighters always struggling to make weight. She was very helpful with that. She helped some of my fighters achieve their goals.

On a daily basis I have male ring announcers from all over the world contacting me. They plead with me for an opportunity to become our ring announcer. They offer to do it for free. Everyone wants to be a part of CES. In following Margaret with all that she is doing, I passed on all of them, and I picked her. Still, I needed to see if she wanted to do this.

When I offered her the position, she was very surprised. I could also feel her enthusiasm over the phone. I let her know people would be watching her very closely. It’s not something where you can just pick up a microphone and get in the ring. You need to know how to accurately read a judge’s score card. You have to pronounce people’s names correctly. You have to satisfy the sponsors. There’s a lot that goes into this. I made sure she knew about all the challenges. I put some pressure on her to see how she would react. She told me she wasn’t afraid of challenges and then she backed up her words. She showed me right away she is a team player. She started going to boxing gyms. She was interviewing fighters. She started getting to know them. She developed relationships with the fighters. She started promoting our events on her platforms. She was immediately offering a lot more than just being a ring announcer. Her energy is different. She relates to athletes. She is always smiling. She has a presence about her. I think she will be one of the best ever.”

And just like that, Cresta became the new face of CES Boxing. On March 25^th, inside the Park Theatre, Cresta made her in-ring debut for CES in front of a sold out crowd. That is what you call baptism under fire. I asked Cresta to share her experience from that night. She said, “I’m proud to be a part of CES. There are plenty of things I’m already working on for the next show. I learned a lot that night that I can use moving forward. I feel happy about this opportunity and I’m ready to do it again.”

Sorry guys, but Cresta is not single. She is engaged to Brendan Griffin. I asked Cresta what Griffin means to her. She said, “When we met, we connected instantly. He has been through everything with me. He is literally the biggest support system I could ever ask for. He believes in me. He pays attention to everything. He always makes sure I have what I need. He is always pushing me to reach for bigger things. He is kind of like my manager. He helps me get out the door on busy days. He is the kind of guy who will start my car for me in the morning. He is always a step ahead. He really has my back.”

I also spoke to Griffin, and this is what he had to say about his fiancé. “She always stays true to who she is. She doesn’t let things bother her. She’s a good person. The sports world can be a little nasty. She sees things for what they are. She never has negative vibes. She keeps her foot on the gas, nonstop. She wants to be the best she can be. She is bold. She is enthusiastic. She is a go getter. She is always happy.”

***Enjoying some rare down time with Cora***

As for the future, Cresta has a busy schedule for 2023. She said, “I’m excited about any and all possibilities. I’m launching a new app called @sweatenrgy. I will be hosting some exciting live fitness events. I will also be at the Mohegan Sun Arena on April 22^nd for CES Boxing. In addition, I will be at the Park Theatre on May 20^th and August 19^th for the Rhode-Wars series.”

I asked Cresta who she admires in life. She immediately said, “My parents. My dad was always such a hard worker, and my mom was so selfless with my family. I would also have to say Brendan. I’ve never met anyone like him. I like people who come from humble beginnings.”

Margaret Cresta has a message for her supporters and social media followers. She offers this to anyone who might be struggling with anything in life. She said, “Whatever you want to do in life, don’t wait, take action. Do what you want to do. You can do anything you want.”

Margaret and Brendan live in Johnston, with their Rottweiler puppy, Cora. They are currently planning their wedding for later this year. You can follow her on Facebook and Instagram at @sovigor to keep up on all her latest news. You can also email Margaret directly to learn more about how she can help you create and achieve your goals at [email protected]. She is looking forward to hearing from you.

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