A post dedicated to my free mane 👩🏾🦱
When I first started running, I mourned the hairstyles I sacrificed to this new lifestyle. Silk presses were getting sweat out. Knotless braids were too heavy. And sew-ins were sworn off long ago bc my leave-out was FRIED (It’s been 4 years and I’m still recovering).
How would I present myself? How would I feel beautiful? These questions genuinely left me rattled. But, I channeled the confidence of 2018 Beza (icon) who shaved her head and posted a poem about it on YouTube. “It’s just hair,” she reminded me, “we shaved our head to grow it out healthy and challenge our identity.” And that’s it. It’s just hair — not my identity. I had a promise to keep.
I learned to find beauty in what was naturally MINE. I let out my hair and ran free. Something I begged my mom to let me do at 5 years old, was now something I was doing for me as an adult.
Our identities aren’t rooted in our appearance, but how we present can communicate a lot of what we believe about ourselves. And what we believe about ourselves directly correlates to how much space we hold for others. I believe I’m beautiful as I am. I believe I’m resilient, I believe I am vulnerable and I believe I am free. So that’s what you see when I’m running with my curls blowing in the breeze ❤️🔥 and also, that’s who you can be when you’re hanging out with me (hopefully).
THANK YOU @los.vybes FOR THE BEAUTIFUL 1ST PIC.
Here’s to the un-aesthetic growth 🌱 the stretching, the shedding, and the rebirths that don’t always look pretty but shape me into who God is calling me to be. Thank You, God, for the messy seasons that reminded me perfection isn’t the goal — transformation is. This year, You turned me inward and taught me to love with more courage, more softness, and more of Your heart. I watched Your love move through community — and, even more powerfully, within me. Closing out this year with a heart that’s bigger, bolder, and rooted deeper in You. Thank You, Jesus 💐💕🙏🏾
Bike w/ me while I recap spectating the marathon at @runcim262 2025! 🎉
It was super fun to cheer on the marathoners and relate it to my own experience running a marathon. You always remember the spectators who gave you energy when you needed it the most, so it was an honor to do the same for the runners at CIM 🏅🏆
Sometimes the bravest thing you can do is be yourself. The fun is in seeing where that takes you. How would your life change in 2026 if you were brave enough to be you? I hope you find out. You’ve got this 💪🏽 Good luck.💐
Hi friends :) never thought I’d be applying for the #coolestjobonearth to run the @antarctica_marathon with @marathontours in 2026. Would love your support 🥹 let’s go places we could’ve never imagined, right?
For the glory of The One who created me 🙏🏾
Since accepting Christ, I’ve learned that the pain of a race is easier to bear than the pain of potential never realized. Grateful and blessed to believe in a God that meets us where we’re at and takes us places thought of only in our dreams. I believe in a God who robbed the grave…and also wanted me to PR. The glory and the power is His, I only had to step out on faith. Over and over again.
Thank you @taylersally_v for the beautiful photo 🥹
Running the @berkeleyhalf is so much more than a race for me. I was a girl who didn’t believe in herself. I thought grit, power and determination were born into you. But in the last two years, I’ve learned that they’re built. 💪🏽🏃♀️
I learned that the things I’ve passed through are actually hard lol. The growth I’m looking for is written into the challenges God placed in my head, and through Him, I’ve learned I’m so much stronger than I’ve allowed myself to be. I’ve learned to withstand more than what is normal. So the last two years have been about making space for what I find important: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). 💐💞
I’m so blessed that God let me choose running to find them. I’m so blessed for the friends I’ve made along the way. And I’m so blessed to be able to run this race with Adidas, but ultimately for God’s glory. 🏁🏆
And sometimes in life, we experience things so heavy that we can only lean on God for support.
I’m so grateful to believe in such an abundant and loving source of joy, peace, kindness and love.
2 Corinthians 12:9
Black girl running!!!!!! She is art!! She is beauty!! She is grace!!! She wins!!! Thank you Jesus!!! John 3:21!
A fellow runner found my photos in @cgomez collection from the race. Thank you for capturing this moment!!
Recounting last year’s race at @thesfmarathon in honor of the one upcoming this weekend!
I started running as a way to give God an opportunity to show up in my life. I had little faith that He would help me grow as a runner. Little did I know how much He would change me. Running became a way to relieve grief, process trauma, and accomplish my dream of running a marathon (if you’ve missed that part, I did!)
Your story will help someone.
Doing ANYTHING after experiencing grief or trauma can feel like moving through sludge. It seems so much easier to wait for life to end while you wait for things to get better. But things don’t magically get better, you make them better. Waiting to d*e is more painful in the long-term because then you aren’t doing anything you seriously want to do. Then the pain won.
Christ showed me that you can overcome pain for spiritual growth and running was the physical outlet I chose to do that. I didn’t know how much God would use it to grow my spirit as well.
I went from not trusting myself and the people I was around, to creating a community I fully believe in and finally feel a sense of belonging to. Thank you God for runners ❤️
If you’ve got an uphill battle in an area of your life right now, I want to say that you’re doing amazing by recognizing it and you’re doing CRAZY GOOD if you’re just making the teeniest of tiniest EFFORT in facing the problem. I’m proud of you and you should be proud of you too.
If you’ve made it this far…I wanna let you know that the second post is the verse of the day for the Bible app. That was the verse for EVERYONE that day…but it felt like it was just for me.
You’ve got this — seriously. I’m proud of you for showing up and pushing through. The only way out is through, and you’re doing the work. Life’s got a funny way of choosing us to handle things 👏🏽right now 👏🏽, but you’re rising to it. Keep going.
