Okay this post might offend some people but lately this has been on my mind and I have to get it off my chest.
I have been blogging for over 3 years and I always struggle with one certain thing…where are my Latina Health and Fitness bloggers?
We all know the blogging community is very into cliques (Even if some of you don’t want to admit it) and I have to be honest… I read some of the NYC blogs and realize that I have NOTHING in common with some of these ladies besides the fact that we are into fitness and like to blog.
I notice this SAME exact issue when I attend races or other fitness related events…I always feel like a minority. I participate in many races in NYC and the majority of the people are Caucasian. The African American ladies even have their own Running Group which is “Black Girls Run” Which is AMAZING! I love this camaraderie! I know we live in a world where we shouldn’t see “color” but I would really love to see ladies from my culture out there too! It has come to the point that when I come across another Hispanic woman, who enjoys to run or practices yoga, I get giddy inside.
I started to look at statistics and came across this information:
Heart disease is the #1 killer of Latinas in the United States. Thirty-four percent of Mexican-American women have cardiovascular disease. Together with stroke, heart disease accounts for a third of all deaths among Latinas — cancer, the second-leading cause of death, accounts for about a fifth.
Latinas also have high rates of some factors that increase the risk of developing heart disease, such as diabetes, overweight and obesity, and physical inactivity
Nearly two of every three Latinas are overweight or obese, increasing the risk not only of heart disease but also a host of other conditions, including stroke, gallbladder disease, arthritis, and some cancers. If you're overweight or obese, even a small weight loss will help to lower your heart disease risk. At the very least, try not to gain more weight.
Nearly 60 percent of Latinas are physically inactive — they do no spare-time physical activity. Regular physical activity lowers your risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, overweight and obesity, and diabetes.
These numbers are not a huge surprise to me because I see this first hand. I then googled “latina runners” “hispanic running groups” and didn’t come across one site! I am just frustrated and needed to vent.
Whenever I meet another Hispanic I always seem to ask “where are you from?” (and vice versa)…we have pride in our culture and use it as a way to bond with the other person…
Shoot I might start my own running group…
(sorry if this post is all over the place)
Namaste…
