Ep 05: ‘You’re Too Fat’ and Other BS That Has No Place in Group Fitness
Listen on…
Have you ever felt pressured by the fitness industry to look a certain way? Unrealistic stereotypes of what a fitness professional should be - around body type, age, skin colour or physical ability - is something that many, if not most of us have struggled with. Today on the show we are talking to my good friend Vanessa Labort about her career, and her particular experience of working in an industry where body image is sadly often more important than the skills and talent you bring to the table.
This is a must listen episode for every instructor whether you have experienced this personally or not because we all have a responsibility as an industry to be more inclusive of diverse bodies - the more inclusive we are, the bigger opportunity we have to improve the lives of the people in our community!
Here’s a glance at this episode…
(2:15) Will discusses our responsibility as an industry to be more inclusive of diverse bodies. We all have responsibility as an industry to be more inclusive of diverse bodies...because the more inclusive we are, the less people feel excluded if they aren’t a certain shape, or age, or color and that should be our ultimate goal as fitness professionals, to improve the lives of our community by bringing as many people into fitness as we possibly can.
(7:23) Will asks Vanessa how she discovered fitness and how that became her future career.
(10:40) Vanessa was asked to train to teach Les Mills’ Body Pump.
(11:44) Vanessa talks about how she got selected to be on the Les Mills Australia Pacific training team.
(15:00) Will and Vanessa talk about when they first met at the Les Mills International Office right before the Body Attach 58 filming.
(15:30) Vanessa talks about the pressure to look a certain way, even at the height of her career.
(23:30) Will asks Vanessa about the 4th Les Mills DVD she filmed and she discusses being told that she was fat and was going to be taken off a track and positioned to hide her.
(27:26) Vanessa tells Will what she would have done differently looking back on the situation.
(34:40) Will asks Vanessa to talk about the future of the fitness industry and how COVID-19 as well as how the Black Lives Matter movement is affecting her.
(39:00) Will and Vanessa discuss the ways that discrimination manifested in her life and in the industry.
(46:50) Vanessa shares her take on Les Mills statement about the Black Lives Matter movement and if she ever felt there was a diversity problem at Les Mills.
(50:00) Will and Vanessa discuss the need for body diversity in the fitness industry as a whole.
(51:55) Will asks Vanessa to share brands and leaders that have inspired her approach to fitness and body diversity.
(61:00) It’s not enough to simply ensure that there’s a person of color represented in fitness. We also need to focus on bringing in different body types, ages and levels of physical ability into the stage. Will shares one thing you can do right now to implement this.
Links mentioned in this episode:
Will’s Facebook, Instagram and Email Address
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