In a world that constantly tells us how we should look, fat-friendly communities are a real breath of fresh air. These are spaces where the body stops being a problem to be corrected and becomes something to be embraced with pride.
In these communities people don’t need to justify themselves, they can just simply be themselves, feeling heard, respected, allowed to share experiences, stories and resources without feeling ashamed or constantly judged.
These spaces can be both online and offline, despite the fact that online they can reach more people by overcoming geographical boundaries. But at the same, time offline spaces offer concrete places of support where people can feel safe, where their body is truly seen, where participation is encouraged without shame, transforming isolation into genuine connections and relationships.
For this reason we wanted to share with you a few communities online and offline, inviting all of you who are reading this website, to please write to us to let us know about other initiatives or communities that can contribute to a more inclusive society.
The Mila Movement Community
We have already talked about the Mila Movement App, but here we wanted to tell you a little more about the community that has been created thanks to this app.
With this app, women, but not only them, found a safe space where where they can share their journey, sharing their joy and satisfaction but also their struggles or difficulties, without getting judged or stigmatized.
On Mila Movement Instagram account they often share the comment of the community members made on their Facebook Group, showing how it really is a shared journey, not a solitary one, where people celebrate all of each other’s achievements, both big and small, because an achievement is always an achievement.
The BPFA: Body Positive Fitness Alliance1
The Body Positive Fitness Alliance (BPFA) is an inclusive fitness community and educational hub dedicated to the transformation of the fitness world so as to make it welcome and celebrate every body, regardless of shape, size, ability, or physical activity background.
At its core, BPFA has eight key pillars that promote a vision of fitness that is accessible, joyful, empowering, and respectful for everybody. These core values are respectively:
- Accessibility
- Approachability
- Enjoyment
- Community
- Full health
- Body positivity
- Growth
BPFA’s mission is in fact to redefine fitness by offering spaces where people of all sizes and abilities can feel supported and confident, not judged or excluded, both offline and online, through courses, tools, educational resources, and online communities like their Facebook group, talking to both professionals and common people that want to have an healthier relationship with sport. This supportive network allows people to learn, grow, share experiences, while also encouraging each other.
Portland’s All Bodies Strong Gym2
Another awesome initiative we wanted to share with you is the opening in Portland, Oregon, of the All Bodies Strong Gym, a size-inclusive gym explicitly designed to welcome every body, especially people who have often felt unwelcome or unsafe in traditional fitness spaces.
It was founded in 2023 by competitive powerlifters Christina Malone and Will Lay, starting from their own experiences as plus-size athletes that had to work out in spaces that were not conceived for larger bodies. For this reason the spaces of the gym are intentionally designed to fit a wide range of bodies and abilities, with the machines and the equipment that have high capacity and adjustable features, to accommodate larger body types allowing members to move comfortably without feeling disappointed.
All Bodies Strong Gym rejects the toxic gym culture: there’s no diet talk, no pressure to lose weight or shrink, and no mirrors are positioned to provoke self-critique: it’s just a space to celebrate every body.
Beyond the exercise part, the gym fosters a community space that hosts classes but also events, offering an emotional and ideological support—helping people build strength inside and out and cultivate a healthier, more loving relationship with their own bodies.
What makes this gym unique is its fat-positive and body-liberating philosophy, that rather than focusing on weight loss, it emphasizes movement, strength, fun, and self-acceptance in every detail, even in the organisation of the gym spaces.
- To learn more about this Community, please check their website at the link: Body Positive Fitness Alliance. ↩︎
- To explore their philosophy, please check their gym website at the link: All Bodies Strong. ↩︎
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