we know representation matters. so why is it still so hard to find in the fitness space?

It wasn’t until recently that I realized the extent of the damage a lack of representation has created in my own life.

I could wax poetic about how my childhood was filled with the desire to be Blake Lively or Taylor Swift — long-legged, blonde, blue-eyed. How the one movie star that I could semi-relate to was Lucy Liu… unless you counted the animated Mulan. But I won’t. That’s a story for another time.

The fitness space can be an incredibly powerful and inspiring thing, but it can also be deeply toxic and damaging. As instructors become Celebrity Lite thanks to Instagram, Peloton, and high-end boutique fitness studios, the words they say and the space they occupy become increasingly important.

Like the supplement industry, there is a lack of regulation in the fitness industry regarding the consistency of someone’s expertise — and even then you can’t quite regulate the actual words they’re saying.

As a yoga, boxing, and strength training instructor, I’ve worked to create an inclusive and safe space in my classes for anyone who comes in, because quite honestly, the safe spaces that instructors have created for me have been my haven during…