CLEVELAND, Ohio — It’s a new year and for a lot of people that means a new push toward health and fitness.
“I would lose a lot of weight and then gain a lot of weight,” says Black Girls Run! Cleveland Run Leader, Natalie Harper.
She started her most recent journey about four years ago weighing around 187 lbs, she’s now down to 122 lbs.
In the past, she was more concerned about how she looked, and the weight loss wouldn’t stick.
“I’m so much more motivated by wanting to be stronger, I’m motivated by wanting to attack the next goal, I’m motivated by wanting to encourage other women,” she says.
Harper completed her first run with BGR! about two and a half years ago which gave her more motivation.
“Black Girls Run! is open to anyone but I think the idea was just to encourage black women specifically because of a lot of the health issues we face overtime, the stressors that we face,” explains Harper.
According to the national organization’s website, there’s a huge misconception that black women don’t run. The group was created ‘in an effort to tackle the growing obesity epidemic in the African-American community and provide encouragement and resources to both new and veteran runners.’
“You could run, you could wobble, you could walk, you could jog, whatever you decide to do just to keep yourself moving,” says Black Girls Run! Cleveland Run leader, Marci Mason who started with the Cleveland chapter back in 2011.
“We’ve seen women with a lot of weight loss, taken off of their medications,” she says.
“Our motto is no woman left behind so even if you think ‘I can’t run, I can’t keep up with them,’ we make sure that we stay for everyone.”