The be.come project
This week’s Muse is…the be.come project.
The be.come project is a body-neutral, self-loving approach to boutique fitness.
The founder of be.come, Bethany C Myers, is an American fitness and lifestyle entrepreneur, and is non-binary like myself. I absolutely love their accessible and inclusive approach to fitness, which is increasingly difficult to find in an image-obsessed world.
Movement has such a deep connection to, and is really necessary in helping us move through trauma. That’s why focusing on and carving out space in my life for physical activity is so important.
I was always physically active. I played three sports in high school. Reluctantly at first, but by the end of high school I was Varsity level volleyball player, a water polo goalie, and a competitive swimmer. Although I’ve always maintained some sort of physical activity throughout my life, it was never rooted in health so much as the desire to be “attractive.” I also used to consider my body solely something that got me where I needed to go, a hunk of meat I carried around. I wasn’t until the past couple of years that I’ve learned what it means to truly be in my body.
Witnessing so much social media awareness around body positivity, dismantling white supremacist views, and patriarchal beauty standards, has helped me to start breaking down what “attractive” to me even means. I decided to get honest with myself about my workout goals. Were they supporting these unhealthy ideals? Yes. Was I being influenced by a sick culture? Yes. Was I upholding beauty standards that are fundamentally against my own values? Yes.
I didn’t want to continue working out for the wrong reasons. I needed to find new reasons that aligned with my belief that people are inherently beautiful exactly as they are- that I am inherently beautiful exactly as I am.
Enter the be.come project.
A good friend sent me to their Instagram. The body-neutral language, the non-binary instructor, it being a grassroots movement- I was instantly pulled in. I was witnessing an LGBTQTAI+ activist starting a ‘let’s respect for our bodies’ fitness program.
Hello, sign me up!
After my first routine, I was hooked. The choreography is simple enough to get the hang of quickly, but complex enough that I noticed a big difference when I did the routine several times a week. I found my body moving through the routine with ease. I was feeling connected, engaged, and excited to work out. And I was having fun!
I now find myself obsessively waiting for the post-routine tutorial to come out every week.(a tutorial by Bethany with an in-depth look at the trickier poses from the routine is posted every week as a direct response to any questions that be.come clients submit via Instagram.) I am looking forward to my workouts. (I literally call them, “time to hang with Bethany.”) Not to mention I’ve gained a couple pounds of muscle, I’m able to hold onto my feet and stretch my hamstrings now, and the mood check-ins help me to stay mindful about my physical self and also remind me how much working out improves my mood and sense of well being.
I really appreciate how accessible Bethany aims to make the program, and how inclusive the language is throughout the routines and all throughout their community. It’s a beautiful thing to be a part of and witness.
You can learn more about be.come via the website below. And if you join and are digging it, let me know on insta: @SamGuilbeaux. I always love hearing about a good body neutral badass workout journey!
Muses and Musings blog content contains Sam Guilbeaux’s personal opinions and is not affiliated with any business or sponsorship. Any connection otherwise will be clearly noted.