"Fat Girl Running" Blogger Mirna Valerio Redefines What It Means to "Look" Fit
If you look at any sportswear ad or fitness magazine, you tend to see the same slender and toned images over and over again. We live in a society where being skinny is often associated with being healthy. If a person is fat it is automatically assumed that they're unhealthy.
Mirna Valerio defies the stereotype. She is happy, fit, and weighs 250 lbs. As an active runner who is extremely passionate about the sport, she logs 25 miles a week, and if training for a race, 35 miles a week. She also leads three mile group trail runs, is a wife, mom, teacher, cross-country coach, classically trained singer, and an inspiration for runners of all sizes.
“Serious running and being seriously fat just don't go together in people's minds,"Mirna says in an interview with Runner's World, "If I didn't run, I wouldn't draw notice. I'd just be one more obese black woman. And if I were thin, I'd just be one more number at the starting line. But I run a lot, and I'm still fat. Some people can't get their heads around that. They don't think I'm for real, that I've earned the right to call myself a runner. They don't say it out loud; you learn to read it in their eyes."
The 39-year-old has a popular blog that she started in 2011 called Fat Girl Running, in which she writes about her love for the sport, gives tips to motivate other runners, calls out her naysayers that don't believe that someone her size can be happy and fit. She doesn't allow her critics who try to body shame her bring her down. She is a positive and powerful force who uses her platform to encourage others who do not look like the stereotypical norm of what a runner "should look like."
On her blog, she recently clapped back at her critics who feel that her message and her media coverage somehow “promotes obesity." She writes:
“I promote body positivity, fitness, body love. Self-love, body awareness. Human love, human awareness. When I'm out there doing the damn thing, that is the height of my love. Love is not always easy, but love is love. Really, there is enough for everyone, even people who are fat/obese/bigboned/fluffy/chubby/lovehandley/thick/round/pearshaped/appleshaped/heavy.
We know we don't have these so called aspirational bodies, but dammit--I LOVE MY BODY FOR EVERYTHING IT IS and COULD BE. I ASPIRE to whatever my body ASPIRES. My body/our bodies IS/ARE ASPIRATIONAL.
I am making a pledge to myself of love, respect and honor for the sacred space that my body is. It is MY temple. Not yours."
Be who you're, not worried about what it looks like to be a runner, and run because you know it's good for you."
Mirna discovered her love for running in high school and she continued her exercise habits into her adult years, but eventually stopped due to being a mom, wife, and having a busy work schedule that left her little time or energy to exercise.
It was not until 2008 when she received a terrifying wakeup call where she thought she was having a heart attack. In an interview with People, she said, "I was having pains in my chest and was hyperventilating. I had my son in the car and I was very scared. It was a traumatic experience."
Luckily, it was just an anxiety attack, not a heart attack. However, doctors informed her that she had high blood pressure and inflammation. Her cardiologist warned her that if did not make a lifestyle change, she would not live long enough to see her son grow up.
Ever since then she began running and has never stopped. She also has incorporated healthy eating habits. She has lost 40 pounds and no longer suffers from inflammation or high blood pressure. She embraces who she is, accepts her body, and she is happy.
“I know how hard it is for some people to accept me. People have a preconceived idea about the way a fat person is supposed to act. A fat person is supposed to be depressed and lethargic and slow-moving. A fat person is supposed to be diabetic and asthmatic and engage in a lot of self-destructive behavior. I don't act that way or look that way, and so, once they get to know me, people stop seeing me as a fat person."
Mirna is an inspiring women, and she is definitely breaking the stereotype of what it looks like to be a runner and to be fit.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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ItGirl In Motion: Paige Shari Addison Shows Us Why She's The Hostess With The Mostess
Paige Shari Addison is the epitome of an ItGirl, which is why she is one of 100 ladies on xoNecole's inaugural ItGirl 100 list in partnership with Hyundai. Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, Paige started her journey as a host in high school by hosting parties. Since then, she has made a career in hosting, from parties to big-name events, and she launched Strictly RNB, a platform for new artists and R&B lovers. Paige reflects on her creative path in the limited video series "ItGirl in Motion."
“My first curated event at Criminal Records was incredible. It was all for up-and-coming artists,” she says. “I needed a platform for us as a collective to be able to give ourselves the platform instead of asking for it, instead of looking for it. I was like, I want to make sure I let people get this experience that I would give as a performer but enjoy the experience with them. It was a dream come true.”
The Atlanta native also has her own line of acai bowls called Soulfull Bowls. She started it during the pandemic after events and parties shut down. But it was her love for eating acai bowls and the reactions others had to them that made her want to make it her next business move. Being open to creating new ventures in the midst of uncertainty is a bold move and one of the reasons why Paige has the “it” factor.
“Being an ItGirl means you’re just authentic. There’s an air to us. We have confidence that exudes from the way we speak, the way we put our lip gloss on, the way we walk, the way we talk. I show up as myself everytime I walk into a room. I’m hospitable, I make sure everybody’s good,” she says.
Get to know more about the hostess with the mostess in the video above.
See our ItGirl 100 list in full here. Click through the gallery below for some BTS moments of Paige and our partnership with Hyundai.
Director: Mikkoh @mikkoh
Production company: @polly___studio
Producer/AD: Samuel Cho @choboi90
Producer/Tech: Paul Nguyen @paul__winn
DP: Cristian Bernal @cristianbernal
Editor: @30inthemorning
2nd Cam: Paul Nguyen
1st AC: AJ Paug @ajpaug Gaffer: Dennis Albert @dennisalbert_
Audio Mixer: Victor Chavez @vic_the__
PA: Rick Carreno @ispeakrick
PA: Tiffany Do @tivani.doee
BTS Photo: Prime @theartofprime
Car Detail: @sud_studs @slugglobal
Creative Director @hellobosco
Team Lead @kevgumbo3000
Project Manager @zakk_jullot
Creative Producer @iamkingsheyla
Designers @miacolemxn @noelspiva
@xoNecole
Director, Integrated Marketing @_vang
Campaign Manager @kingchachiii
Talent Lead @kaylawalker
Feature image by Prime/ @theartof prime