There are thousands of people working every day to change the face of health, fitness and happiness. While social media has launched the career of many self-proclaimed fitness gurus and trainers, you may be surprised that those making the biggest impact are Black women.
READ: 7 Personal Trainers Of Color To Follow On Instagram Right Now
When it comes to social reach, their professional credentials, trends they’ve set, products they’ve created and overall media coverage – among other things – these women are a cut above the rest.
Michelle Obama With almost 3 million Instagram followers, FLOTUS continues to spread her health and fitness initiative, Let’s Move!, to the world. In 2015, Obama kicked things up a notch inviting fans into the White House for “#GimmeFive FLOTUS Style,” a personal training session. Since then, she’s partnered with Ellen DeGeneres, Jimmy Fallon and more to highlight the fun side of living the fit life.
Jessamyn Stanley This body positive yogi became a social media sensation seemingly overnight, sharing awe-inspiring poses on her blog, Instagram, and by way of the EveryBody Yoga series. She’s also been featured in Cosmopolitan and the New York Times, and for good reason — her take on doing yoga as a full-figured woman is refreshingly relatable, honest and inspiring.
Misty Copeland – On top of becoming the first African-American principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre, (igniting an epic conversation about being body positivity in sports), Copeland recently became one of the world’s most recognized athletes when she landed coveted spots on Time’s list of 100 Most Influential People of 2015 and Barbara Walter’s carefully curated list of 10 Most Fascinating People of the year. Not to mention, the star ballerina is a spokeswoman for Under Armour, tearing down negative body images worldwide.
Oprah Winfrey This media mogul has over 33 million Twitter followers and countless other devotees. On top of providing a platform for other aspiring health and fitness influencers, the media maven is worth an estimated 3.1 billion thanks to O, The Oprah Magazine and the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). In case you missed it, last year, the lifestyle guru teamed up with Weight Watchers to launch the Beyond the Scale campaign, which takes the focus off calorie counting in favor of an all-around healthy lifestyle.
Jeanette Jenkins This Hollywood star trainer sits on top of a DVD empire, thanks to her rolodex of A-list clients, including Destiny’s Child alum Kelly Rowland, Alicia Keys and Pink. Top it off with 18 fitness and nutrition certifications and Jenkins is the real deal. When she’s not dishing out fitness tips or sculpting bodies, the highly sought out trainer lends her skills to publications like Shape, Self, and her very own blog where she highlights the importance of living a healthy lifestyle – inside and out.
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