Dallas South News Wire
I can’t work out because I don’t want to mess up my hair.
The majority of women have felt like this at some point; and for some, it keeps them from living an active lifestyle. However, there is a solution – SportyAfros.com. Established in 2010, founders Whitney Patterson and Alexandria Williams are two triathletes who started Sporty Afros after constantly being asked how they maintained their curly/coily hair while sticking to a consistent workout routine. Sporty Afros is the first site to connect the dots between hair care, exercise and nutrition.
In a recent article published the New York Times, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina M. Benjamin stated, “often times you get women saying, ‘I can’t exercise today because I don’t want to sweat my hair back or get my hair wet…when you’re starting to exercise, you look for reasons not to, and sometimes the hair is one of those reasons… I hate to use the word ‘excuse,’ but that’s one of them.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control, 80% of African-American women are overweight. “We started this blog to show black women how to how to care for their hair while living an active lifestyle,” Whitney explains. “We recognize that obesity is a growing epidemic, especially in the black community. Our focus is to help women overcome the barriers that keep them from being active. It’s also important to us to share our personal experiences because it could help others no matter where they are in their fitness journey.”
Sporty Afros features nutrition tips, healthy recipes, hair-care advice and workout routines, all written by Whitney and Alexandria. Readers can also follow the founders’ triathlon training, progress and obstacles.
“Whitney and I share the same overall goals, maintaining healthy bodies and healthy hair,” Alexandria says. “Whitney started on her natural hair journey right when I started with triathlons. Somehow the two milestone decisions in our lives crossed over.”
Sporty Afros is the only blog of its kind ¬dedicated to workout/triathlon training, nutrition and all of the latest hair-care trends and tools for ”sistas who work out.”
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