15 Black Fitness and Health Pros in Philadelphia to Follow on Instagram

Ten black health and fitness professionals in Philadelphia follow on Instagram, including fitness instructors Alanna Gardner and Adriana Adelé. / Photo by Joanna Nowak Photography.

With protests and riots against the Black Lives Matter movement filling the streets of Philadelphia, one of the easiest ways to support the black community here is to invest in it intentionally. To help you recognize and spread the word about Philadelphia’s black wellness leaders, we’ve compiled a list of 15 fitness instructors and health pros you should follow on Instagram right now. (Consciously curating your social media feeds is certainly a small but worthwhile move.)

This is not a comprehensive list of all talented black instructors in the area, but the 15 below are using social media platforms to promote Philadelphia’s fitness and fitness, especially when it’s needed most. We inspire, challenge and empower the wellness community.

Adriana Adele

Philadelphia yoga instructor Adriana Adelé always encourages her followers to align their intentions with their actions, encouraging them to think critically about how the “what” communicates the “why” and “how” . She deliberately creates spaces for her community healing, offering virtual donation-based ‘breathe and rest’ restoratives such as her yoga and her Black womxn self-care workshops. As a bonus, her dog, Almond, often appears in her feed.

Alana Gardner

Alanna Gardner is not only a motivational SLT coach, she also serves as a marriage and family therapist. She also uses her platform to support other black health professionals in Philadelphia to build her stronger community. Gardner, for example, launched her Aalign with her Adelé (see above), a community for people to discuss, explore, and learn about what health is.

Brandi Nicole

Brandi Nicole, founder of Hike and Heal, is a local wellness leader who curates and leads healing circles, especially for underserved women. Focused on self-care and personal growth, her approach to wellness involves recognizing your needs and goals and shifting your perspective. Additionally, during the pandemic and anti-racism protests, she hosted several “Hopeful Hours” for community members to participate in tough but important conversations.

kobe ​​barkley

Cohbe Berkeley, co-founder of Vibes and Vinyasa, is the yoga inpo you need in your life right now. During quarantine, Berkley has been posting yoga challenges. This includes deep forward bends and handstands. You can play with practice. Recently, she shared a list of her black-owned wellness businesses in Philadelphia.

Gerald Manson

If you’re looking for fitness and general life motivation, check out Unite Fitness Coach Gerald Manson. Both his Instagram and his workouts his classes make you feel like you can conquer the world.

Atiyah Sineh

Atiya Sinae, a Philadelphia yoga and meditation teacher who teaches at Teranga Yoga, speaks out on her IG story, teaches classes on Zoom, and reposts positive messages to others. Her meditation classes are a welcome respite and her yoga-filled feed is a constant source of inspiration.

Joanna da Silva

Follow her yoga studio, Teranga Yoga, to speak to the entire Philly community about injustice, promote talented teachers (many of whom are black and of color), and provide information to access live streaming classes. You can expect from her studio. You can also expect a world full of fun jams to get you moving and joyful with her beats and hip hops and her yoga classes.

Briana Williamson

Solidcore coach Brianna Williamson has worked to spread positive fitness and wellness messages throughout the Philadelphia community. Recently, she has posted activist messages about the trauma going on in our city and country, Philadelphia in need. sharing a photo of a stunning workout with.

Keira Smalls

City Fit Girls co-founder Kiera Smalls began sharing her meditations publicly after the coronavirus pandemic hit. Since then, her Instagram has been filled with weekly themed Zen sessions, especially for Black people, such as affirmation, forgiveness, dealing with trauma, etc. Plus, she’s been doing this job for almost a decade. , Philadelphia Fitness has become a staple on her scene. She and her co-founder Takia her McClendon weekly newsletter has been sent to 4,000 women to address injustice and provide guidance and encouragement to readers for years. Plus, her feed includes some delicious-looking smoothies to step up her nutrition game.

Takia McLendon

Takia McClendon, co-founder of the aforementioned City Fit Girls, along with Kiera Smalls, has been making fitness and wellness accessible regardless of race, pace, size or gender at birth since 2012. Through FitRetreat, Strength Club and more. , and run club programming. For years, her McClendon, former store manager of the Philadelphia Runner, has used her platform to raise awareness and money in the underserved Philadelphia neighborhood to promote her running against people of color. Challenged lack of community support and actively influenced and educated local leadership. (You can see some of her correspondence in her Medium article: A Brief [and Incomplete] African American history. ) What’s more, seeing pictures of her nice and inspiring workouts around town makes me want to get out and move.

Lauren Leavell

As a personal trainer and small group fitness professional, I’ve seen Lauren Leavell approach fitness as much as her community and life itself. Her barre and her HIIT sessions will make your muscles quiver and her IG posts will make you laugh, reflect and want to help create a more inclusive world. She recently co-hosted a “Black Womxn Wellness” event and hangout in Philadelphia to provide her community with a safe and inclusive place.

Mike Watkins

Mike Watkins offers personal training and group fitness sessions specifically for people of color and LGBTQ+. His workouts are as focused on inclusivity and body positivity as his outlook on life. He’s also been open about his journey through stigma and injustice in the world of athletic training, reminding everyone to #StayFestive.

Shanina Diona

West Philly youth arts teacher embryo In an exhibition series, Shanina Diona focuses her art on reducing the stigma of mental health. Her IG posts and stories feature beautiful paintings (of course!), but also real stories about navigating mental health as a black woman and how to support her members in the most vulnerable communities. There is also a story.

toriyo fitness

Need I say more? Triyo Fitness — everyone’s favorite identical triplets — consists of brothers Malik, Ahmad and Khalil Jones. The three of her UPenn alumni have been leading virtual workouts on Triyo IG, but you can also expect some pretty killer dance moves.

Gregory Coachman

This boxing coach and Unite Fitness Instructor has always been an inspiration when it comes to workouts. Most recently, she hosted a session on “Unpacking Racism” and linked to informational anti-racism content on her Instagram Stories.

This story was updated on Thursday, June 4, 2020 at 9:12 AM

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