Sisters in Shape: Making the Change One Step at a Time A Grassroots Approach to Black Women's Health and Fitness

by Kimberly J. Lau

The bad news: black women have some of the worst health statistics in America. African-American women have the highest death rates from heart disease of all ethnic groups (male and female). ¹ They are twice as likely to have diabetes and almost 35 percent more likely to die of breast cancer than white women.^{2, 1} 77 percent of black women are overweight, and almost 50 percent are obese.³ Unfortunately, these alarming statistics can't be attributed to any single cause; rather, socioeconomic factors, institutional biases, cultural beliefs, traditional diets and lack of exercise all contribute to black women's relatively poor health status.

The good news: Sisters in Shape (SIS)—a Philadelphia-based grassroots health and fitness organization working to empower black women to live healthier lives through fitness, nutrition, community and spirituality. A nonprofit membership organization that brings women together for special exercise classes (everything from Brazilian samba and kickboxing to stretching and yoga), cardio-funk aerobics, health information discussions, rap sessions and local events, SIS provides a supportive environment and community in which black women encourage one another to grow on physical, mental and spiritual levels. Its members range in age from their early 20s to their late 50s and have very diverse backgrounds and experiences with exercise. All, however, take ownership of the organization and work to motivate and challenge each other, and to bring other women into its fold.

A Community Presence

The story began in 1994 when three local fitness instructors—Melanie Marchand, Kathie Tillery and Carethia Thomas—started talking about the scarcity of African-American women in their classes, especially relative to the city's demographics. The three, all African-American themselves, realized this had nothing to do with their classes but instead simply reflected the fact that black women were exercising far less often than white women and other women of color. Though somewhat discouraged by their observations, they decided to put their collective knowledge about health and fitness to good use by raising awareness among black women about the advantages of living healthier lives.

Informally calling themselves Sisters in Shape, Marchand, Tillery and Thomas began participating in city festivals and annual events. Besides demonstrating aerobics routines and cardiovascular exercises, they also spoke with women in the crowds, mostly black, about healthy lifestyles that included fitness and exercise as a primary component. They became a regular presence at events like Unity Day, Fitness Fest and City of Hope fitness activities, as well as smaller health fairs held in nearby churches (including one sponsored by the Black Women's Health Project) and on a local radio show devoted to black women. Outside of these appearances, however, SIS didn't really exist as an organization. The turning point came in the early part of 1998. Marchand—who was working as a marketing executive—spent much of her limited spare time training clients one-on-one. Marisol Bello, a client as well as a writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, wanted to write an article about SIS, paying particular attention to the successes the group was having with black women. In "Shape Up, Sisters!" Bello outlined some dominant African-American cultural beliefs about food, diet and body and cited alarming health statistics like those above. ⁴ She also wrote about one woman's turnaround. Over the course of two years of working with Marchand, this middle-aged client altered her ways of eating (but didn't "diet" in the traditional sense), added more exercise to her life, and went from a size 16 to a size 8. The article closed with the SIS telephone number, and the phones began ringing almost immediately.

Marchand recognized this response as a phenomenal opportunity to share vital, possibly life-saving information with African-American women. She organized a black women's health and fitness symposium that would address health in its broadest sense—physical, mental and spiritual—as well as cultural barriers to exercise, fitness and good eating practices. When close to 300 women attended that first symposium (now an annual event with similar attendance figures), Marchand left corporate America and began one of the most impressive and dynamic grassroots health projects for black women imaginable.

Striking a Nerve

More than 100 women called Sisters in Shape the day of the Philadelphia Daily News article, which had clearly revealed an unmet need in the community. Marchand later recounted some of those calls: "These women, in their minds somewhere, not in the front but somewhere, wanted to do something about their health status but didn't know where to turn ... [T]he most intriguing part ... was how these women sounded when they called." One woman, for example, said: "I'm 300 pounds, I'm overweight, ¹ need help, please help me." Another, very excited: "I'm ready to make a change. I want a new me!"⁶

Changing the Culture

Since its first symposium almost five years ago, SIS—which is currently in the process of becoming incorporated as a 501 (c) 3—has had an enormous impact on black women's health and fitness in Philadelphia, a city recently awarded the dubious title of "Fattest City in America."⁵ SIS members have made major lifestyle changes not only for themselves but often for family members as well. For instance, as the primary cooks in their families, many have introduced new cooking techniques—baking instead of frying, using fresh herbs instead of salt, etc.—and new foods like turkey bacon, egg-white omelettes and whole-grain breads. They've made exercise a priority and they now act as missionaries for Sisters in Shape, doing demonstrations at local health fairs and talking with women in the crowds about "making the change, one step at a time.⁶

In addition, SIS members have made some drastic changes in their cultural beliefs and practices, tossing aside claims as to what "black men like" and privileging their inner bodies over their outer (and not worrying, for instance, about their hair if they sweat). Why is SIS so effective as grassroots health activism? Because its mission and its success are continually determined by its members, by the women who live healthier—quite possibly longer—lives because of their collective work. For more information, visit www. sistersinshape.com or call 215-829-1258.

Kimberly J. Lau, a member of the Network's Board of Directors, is an assistant professor of Gender Studies and English at the University of Utah. She has been involved with Sisters in Shape since their inception and is working with them to write a black women's guide to health and fitness. She is also writing an academic book about the organization focusing on the relationship between black women's health activism and spirituality.

References

1. American Heart Association. 2002. "Biostatistical Fast Sheet: African Americans and Cardiovascular Diseases."

2. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institute of Health. 2003. "Diabetes in African Americans.' http://www.mddk.nih.gov/health/diabetes/ pubs/afam/afam. htm

3. American Heart Association. 2003. "Women, Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics." http://wu >w. americanheart. org

4. Marisol Bello. March 20, 1998. "Shape up, sisters!" Philadelphia Daily News.

5. Keith Griffiths. January 2000. "The Fattest Cities in America, 2000." Men's Fitness: 74-84.

6. Melanie Marchand, personal interview, August 1998.