Of course Black girls run!
There’s a huge misconception that black women don’t run. In 2009, Black Girls RUN! 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.
Our Goal
The goal of “Black Girls Run” is to encourage and motivate black women to practice a healthy lifestyle. We want to serve as a fitness resource for runners and gym rats alike, as well as provide tips and commentary on staying active and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. But we also want to start a movement to encourage ALL women to get off the couch and get active. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health,
- African American women have the highest rates of being overweight or obese compared to other groups in the U.S.
- About four out of five African American women are overweight or obese.
- In 2015, African Americans were 1.4 times as likely to be obese as non- Hispanic whites.
- In 2015, African American women were 60 percent more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white women.
- In 2011-2014, African American girls were 50% more likely to be overweight than non-Hispanic white girls.
We can make a lot of excuses as to why these numbers are the way they are, but excuses never solved an epidemic. So, we’re here to make a change, and we hope you are too. There’s a lot to talk about and a lot of calories to burn, so be sure to sign up for automatic alerts and join your local group.