FOLLOWERS FOR FITNESS TIPS J unior kinesiology major Anna Bangs knew the importance of staying in shape. In high school, she was involved in basketball, softball and track. When she began college, she realized that between hours doing countless hours of homework behind a computer screen and going abroad, she had gained the unwanted "freshman 15." She planned to get back into shape by starting an lnstagram profile documenting her journey to a healthier lifestyle. As she learned more about diet and exercise, she realized she wanted to pursue this as a career. She began posting tips about workout routines for her online followers. She formed groups online, as well as a workout group that students and locals could participate in weekly. She also gave personal fitness advice to individual followers through Kik, a personal smartphone messenger. She received a lot of feedback from both men and women looking to receive more information on living a healthy lifestyle. "I hope that I can start another one of these groups, regardless of where I move after graduation," Bangs said. "There is nothing more inspirational than forming a support group and accomplishing fitness goals together." Bangs' lnstagram profile had more than 12,000 followers who were inspired daily by the progress she made in her fitness journey, and the success of people who participated in her fitness group in White County. Her lnstagram profile included pictures of her 138 I People After creating an lnstagram account to track her fitness goals, junior Anna Bangs gains more than 12,000 followers demonstrating various workout stances, as well as pictures of healthy food and recipes. According to junior Vivi Vitalone, a participant in Bangs' workout group, Bangs' follower count soared to more than a thousand shortly after she began posting about her journey to health. Bangs' workout group, which she created the third week of school, met twice weekly in various locations on campus. The group included students as well as lnstagram followers from Little Rock to Judsonia. Bangs led the group in bodyweight exercises, showing participants workouts they could do on their own time to maximize their progress. "Anna has helped me so much because she inspires me to have that motivation to challenge myself," Vitalone said. "She does this workout class for us, not for herself. She has such an incredible heart for inspiring us by being given encouragement to reach our goals." A friend of Bangs', senior Courtney Stillwell, said Anna's drive and intentionality extended to activities such as schoolwork, friendships, and social club participation. Bangs said the most rewarding aspect of everything she did was the progress she saw in both the group participants and lnstagram followers. "I stress so heavily to forget the scale and forget other people because God gave you one body," Bangs said. "Our body is the one thing that is completely ours, and we can shape it and mold it how we would like to with the right diet and exercise." Jessica Head
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