Fitness in Color

Welcome back family! This week I am joined by Jamaican born and Uniondale, NY raised Gavin Smith.  Educator • Agitator • Activist • Runner.  He's an ambassador for Lululemon, Vice Principal at Fenway High School, and always championing life. 

Join us as we discuss how he left what no longer served him and actively steps into his greatness every day through fitness.  You won’t want to miss how he is navigating predominately White spaces to reallocate resources and give back to the community! 

In this episode you can expect to hear: 

• The mental health effects of a kid from a lower-middle-class family in an EXTREMELY wealthy school system.

• How ONE decision changed Gavin’s life trajectory • How parting from your past can be the most fruitful decision

• What it looks like when people highlight talents within YOU that you don’ see in yourself 

• Gavin’s role in restructuring a traditional school system Connect with us: 

 @fitnessincolor_ 

@sidbap 

@gav0h 

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Every day you have a choice. Choose wisely. “Roxbury is the Black Mecca of Boston and it is an honor to get to run past such rich Blackness everyday” - Gavin

Sidney Baptista Is Working to Normalize Running in the Black Community

Share/Post/Tweet and tag:

@sidbap

@fitnessincolor_

On today’s episode we are using a different format. I originally planned to host Claudia Thompson to talk about her experiences as a Black woman running in and around Boston. 

As we did a pre-interview for an episode, I realized that I wanted to listen and learn without interjecting myself into the conversation. And so I felt that this episode should about Black women having this discussion while the rest of us listen. 

I invited my friends and Co-founders of TrailblazeHers Run Co, Lizzy Rock, Frances Ramirez, and Abeo Christa to join Claudia on this episode to talk about their experiences. 

TrailblazHers Run Co. is an organization that is committed to building and nurturing the diversity in sisterhood. They host monthly meet-ups called Self Care Sunday's and an annual Bra Run used to empower women of all shapes and sizes to feel comfortable in their bodies while running in a sports bra. 

Claudia is the president of Claudia Connects, a personal and professional training, development, and networking events company. She is a dancer, runner, and all-around fitness enthusiast.

I hope you enjoy the episode

On this episode, I had the pleasure of hosting Ngozi Musa, a Speaker, Writer, Women's Empowerment Advocate, and Athlete. From a young age, Women in sport had been a large focus and source of enjoyment and empowerment for Ngozi. After being an athlete for 13 years and attending two all-girls high schools, Ngozi's mission is to inspire and empower women of all ages to recognize the power of their voice, their mind, and their story.

Ngozi is an Ivy League Champion, 3X Academic All-American, and former Harvard University Track and Field Captain. She is also the founder and CEO of Aesthetics and Athletics, LLC a podcast and platform to inspire and empower the athlete in every woman.

On this episode, I had the pleasure of hosting Ashley Mitchell who is a fitness instructor in Boston. Formally working for Orange Theory, Soul Cycle, and more recently Barry’s Boot Camp.

We dive in and discuss:

• Ashley’s childhood growing up in New Jersey
• Her journey to becoming a fitness instructor and her experiences in the fitness industry
• Her first experience with inequity and how that led to her discovering her activism, and
• Ashley's work with city youth through her nonprofit organization, The Courage Campaign 

On this episode, I have the honor of hosting #1 New York Times Bestselling Author and America’s leading scholar on Anti-racism research, Dr. Ibram X. Kendi.

We dive in on topics ranging from how Dr. Kendi balances his health and well-being in the midst of becoming one of the most influential people in America, the accessibility of running and fitness in communities of color, and on how brands and running organizations can contribute to diversifying and growing the sport of running in communities of color. 

The grand jury news of Breonna Taylor’s case broke just as our call was scheduled to start and so our time was cut short. We didn’t get to all of my questions or get a chance to expand upon his thoughts and ideas, but his responses about the importance of policy change and brands reassessing their standards are powerful and worth unpacking.

Please visit www.morethanarun.org to register for our Virtual 5K and to help us meet our fundraising goal!

-Dominique Burton, Co-Founder and Chief Experience Officer at RUNGRL

-Aliese Lash, Captain of PIONEERS Run Crew

-Jarick Walker, Formally Nike Running

Welcome to the Fitness in Color Podcast. I'm your host Sid Baptista.

Join me on this journey to amplify black voices as we follow and highlight the experiences of People of Color in the Wellness and Fitness industry.

I interview leaders and entrepreneurs who tell inspiring stories of their journeys to where they are today and break down the steps for how the next generation can follow.

Alongside my guests, I dissect the inequities that the industry reflects and perpetuates while discovering how to tackle the issues of access, diversity, inclusivity, and intersectionality.

We are launching the first season in just a few weeks.

Please subscribe and follow our channel on Spotify, Apple Podcast, or whichever platform you use to listen to your favorite podcasts.