Hey buddy,

When you hear the words ‘safe space’, ‘inclusive’ or ‘anti-diet’ what comes to mind?
What does it actually mean, how do you know if you’ve found it or not?

Sometimes these words can be overused, or referred to as buzz words. I get that, but I disagree: I think that if you’re really meaning the shit you’re saying: they’re important. They aren’t just fluff or filling to hide behind, they are supposed to have meaning and impact. That’s not to say that they aren’t people misusing them or hiding but that’s not what we are here for today.

Let’s compare two scenerios:

Scenario #1:
You walk in, or join a class virtually. You’re greeted by someone who says “hey ladies!”. You’ve made it clear in the past your pronouns are they/them and are uncomfy with that terminology. They ask how you are. You’re having a difficult day and can’t get yourself to lie so you say “not great”. They reply some kind of mashup of ‘good vibes only’, ‘you should try yoga’ or some other spiritual bypassy phrase. In the class the teacher only praises bodies that are thin, and doing the pose/movement to ‘the fullest extent’. They instruct a squat and offer absolutely no alternative alignments “this way or the highway” approach. They say shit like “if you have the strength”.

Scenario #2
You join class, they say hi, and refer to you with the pronoun you’ve asked them to. When they hear you’re having a bad day they empathize, and hold space for you. You feel safe enough to tell them you are struggling, and ask questions when you need to. You don’t worry about what you’re wearing when you come, and you don’t feel like you have to pretend to be something you’re not. You don’t feel pressured to talk if you’re not wanting to. In class they offer a few options for the poses, without labelling any as “the right way”. They let you know you can rest, take different movements, or do your own thing a needed. They don’t look at you like a before, they look at you like a human, an equal.

I bet I don’t need to tell you which one is the safe, inclusive environment. But let’s go over some more specific about what a safe, anti-diet inclusive environment looks like. (We all know the more obvious one’s I’d hope, of not using derogatory language, or harassing/bullying so I won’t mention it below)
It looks like:

-asking, and providing pronouns
-using said pronouns, and non-gendered language
-not talking about diets, weight-loss, weight (#) (esp. in ‘pro’)
-not talking about details of trauma
-asking permission before any physical contact
-not using phrases like “if you have the strength”, or “just”
aka: non-hierarchical approach. No variation is better than others.
-understanding anatomy-each body will look different, each pose will look different
-not assuming we know someone’s experience in a pose
-asking for feedback & being open to it
-doing our own shit. It’s important to do our own work when working with others. This could look like therapy of some sort. It also should mean looking at our own internalized bias & privilege (resources on my website)
-& more

I’ve heard so many horror stories about yoga studios & gyms where someone was judged, spoken to horribly, or made to feel excluded. I have had enough of it. The Westernized Yoga & Fitness Industries need to change. Why not try and change it myself.

I started the Anti-Diet Workout (&yoga) Club after doing a poll on Instagram and seeing just how many people had dealt with these shit situations. I’d had the idea in the back of my head already. I wanted to create an offer that involved more community building & had some more space for fun, & accountability.

The doors open on September 9th for the next run of the ADWC. Since it’s beginning it’s sky-rocketed to my highest purchased offer by almost 3 times. It has a repeat sign up rate of 66%.
It’s a big deal, that was actually the reaction of one of my idol/mentors when I went through it with them. “this is big.”
And y’all know me, I struggle to toot my own horn on the best of days so believe, this is the shit. I love this offer, I love this budding community, it brings me so much fucking joy.

The doors are opening for a short period of time only, so make sure you mark it in your calendar and tell your bff. If you sign up in the first 3 days you get two free months of Move with Billie: On-Demand.

If you wanna learn more about it:
Read this
Listen to this
Sign up for this free workshop