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This badass runner is using her body to crush weight stigma and shut down fat shamers.

Runner Mirna Valerio is no stranger to people who stop and stare at her.

Passersby often do a double-take when they see Valerio, a fat, African-American woman, running around the small, mostly white and very rural Rabun County, Georgia.

But the stares don't faze her; Valerio is too focused on her goals, which she documents on her blog, Fat Girl Running, to care about haters.


"People do look, and they say things," Valerio told Upworthy. "But I know what I have to do, and whatever my goal is for the day, I know I need to get it done, and so I go do it."

Valerio after one of her dozens of races. Her enthusiasm for the sport of running is infectious. All photos via Mirna Valerio, used with permission.

In a foot race, Valerio could probably outrun most of us. Easily.

She's been running consistently since 2008 — completing multiple 5ks, 10ks, half marathons, marathons, ultramarathons — and is currently training for the pièce de résistance of her running career thus far: the Javelina Jundred, a 100k race (that's just over 62 miles, people! SIXTY! TWO! MILES!).

She also happens to be "clinically obese" at 240 pounds. But that label means nothing because whatever, it takes serious physical and mental strength to run 62 freaking miles. Sixty! Two! Miles! To put that in perspective, 62 miles is the same distance you'd have to travel up from Earth if you wanted to go to outer space. Valerio does not mess around.

Valerio in the mountain snow; weather is never an excuse to miss a run!

Valerio's story has gotten attention recently for breaking down the stigma around fat athletes.

Her story took off after she was included in a Wall Street Journal article that led to a 12-page spread in the August 2015 edition of Runner's World.

While the reaction from the running community has been mostly positive, there have been naysayers who refuse to believe that someone who looks like Valerio could possibly be a good role model.

But it's Valerio's inspirational devil-may-care attitude toward her critics and her messages of body love and fitness accessibility for every body type and shape that has empowered people to challenge the negative stereotypes surrounding higher weight people and fitness.

Valerio, in motion, doing what she loves.

“One of the major reasons people don't want to go to the gym is that people are saying 'Oh, you need to go work out,'" Valerio says, explaining the the anxiety and double standard fat people face when they try to participate in athletic activities. "You feel as if you need to lose fifty pounds before you can show yourself at the gym or show up at a race because people do look twice and people do wonder why you're there."

But it's all just background noise to Valerio, and to her, none of that nonsense matters.

She claims her body as it is and loves it and its ability to carry her for miles.

She's not interested in running to lose weight; she's a runner because she loves running. She loves the views from the top of a mountain trail. She loves spending time talking to her friends, mile after mile. She loves seeing what her body can accomplish.

In short: She's a seriously badass athlete.

Mountain mud? No problem. Time to take a "shoefie."

“Having run for a couple of years now, I know the physical condition that I'm in, and I know what I can do. I know that I can get over whatever kind of hump that it is because I've done it and I know how it feels to get over it, and I'm always looking for that feeling."

Runner's high, indeed.

Valerio preaches the gospel of body love and health wherever she goes.

While she's one of a rare few, amazing people who've managed to dodge the "body shame bullet" in her personal life, she also knows that it's a pretty powerful force (usually in the form of judgment and fat shaming from others) that stops people from getting outside and being active, even when it's something they love to do.

Her advice? Do what you need and want to do in a way that feels good for your body. "You've gotta know yourself and what you are and who you are," she says.

We don't all fit into a one-size-fits all mold when it comes to fitness and health, and that's cool.

She also hikes! Is there anything this woman can't do?

“I really want people to feel good about their bodies," Valerio encourages. "Your body is spectacular and can do so many things — and you don't know half of the stuff that it can do!"

If you aren't an aspiring road runner like Valerio, don't fret! There are numerous other ways to embrace your desire to be active; everything from Fat Yoga (or Curvy Yoga) to dancing like Whitney Thore of TLC's "My Big Fat Fabulous Life" tobody positive swimming and any other ways to move that you can imagine. There are so many options, but what's important is that you find something that you enjoy doing and that feels good for your body, whatever shape or size it may be.

Find what you love and do you!

Identity

Celebrate International Women's Day with these stunning photos of female leaders changing the world

The portraits, taken by acclaimed photographer Nigel Barker, are part of CARE's "She Leads the World" campaign.

Images provided by CARE

Kadiatu (left), Zainab (right)

True

Women are breaking down barriers every day. They are transforming the world into a more equitable place with every scientific discovery, athletic feat, social justice reform, artistic endeavor, leadership role, and community outreach project.

And while these breakthroughs are happening all the time, International Women’s Day (Mar 8) is when we can all take time to acknowledge the collective progress, and celebrate how “She Leads the World.

This year, CARE, a leading global humanitarian organization dedicated to empowering women and girls, is celebrating International Women’s Day through the power of portraiture. CARE partnered with high-profile photographer Nigel Barker, best known for his work on “America’s Next Top Model,” to capture breathtaking images of seven remarkable women who have prevailed over countless obstacles to become leaders within their communities.

“Mabinty, Isatu, Adama, and Kadiatu represent so many women around the world overcoming incredible obstacles to lead their communities,” said Michelle Nunn, President and CEO of CARE USA.

Barker’s bold portraits, as part of CARE’s “She Leads The World” campaign, not only elevate each woman’s story, but also shine a spotlight on how CARE programs helped them get to where they are today.

About the women:

Mabinty

international womens day, care.org

Mabinty is a businesswoman and a member of a CARE savings circle along with a group of other women. She buys and sells groundnuts, rice, and fuel. She and her husband have created such a successful enterprise that Mabinty volunteers her time as a teacher in the local school. She was the first woman to teach there, prompting a second woman to do so. Her fellow teachers and students look up to Mabinty as the leader and educator she is.

Kadiatu

international womens day, care.org

Kadiatu supports herself through a small business selling food. She also volunteers at a health clinic in the neighboring village where she is a nursing student. She tests for malaria, works with infants, and joins her fellow staff in dancing and singing with the women who visit the clinic. She aspires to become a full-time nurse so she can treat and cure people. Today, she leads by example and with ambition.

Isatu

international womens day, care.org

When Isatu was three months pregnant, her husband left her, seeking his fortune in the gold mines. Now Isatu makes her own way, buying and selling food to support her four children. It is a struggle, but Isatu is determined to be a part of her community and a provider for her kids. A single mother of four is nothing if not a leader.

Zainab

international womens day, care.org

Zainab is the Nurse in Charge at the Maternal Child Health Outpost in her community. She is the only nurse in the surrounding area, and so she is responsible for the pre-natal health of the community’s mothers-to-be and for the safe delivery of their babies. In a country with one of the world’s worst maternal death rates, Zainab has not lost a single mother. The community rallies around Zainab and the work she does. She describes the women who visit the clinic as sisters. That feeling is clearly mutual.

Adama

international womens day, care.org

Adama is something few women are - a kehkeh driver. A kehkeh is a three-wheeled motorcycle taxi, known elsewhere as a tuktuk. Working in the Kissy neighborhood of Freetown, Adama is the primary breadwinner for her family, including her son. She keeps her riders safe in other ways, too, by selling condoms. With HIV threatening to increase its spread, this is a vital service to the community.

Ya Yaebo

international womens day, care.org

“Ya” is a term of respect for older, accomplished women. Ya Yaebo has earned that title as head of her local farmers group. But there is much more than that. She started as a Village Savings and Loan Association member and began putting money into her business. There is the groundnut farm, her team buys and sells rice, and own their own oil processing machine. They even supply seeds to the Ministry of Agriculture. She has used her success to the benefit of people in need in her community and is a vocal advocate for educating girls, not having gone beyond grade seven herself.

On Monday, March 4, CARE will host an exhibition of photography in New York City featuring these portraits, kicking off the multi-day “She Leads the World Campaign.

Learn more, view the portraits, and join CARE’s International Women's Day "She Leads the World" celebration at CARE.org/sheleads.


Health

Over or under? Surprisingly, there actually is a 'correct' way to hang a toilet paper roll.

Let's settle this silly-but-surprisingly-heated debate once and for all.

Elya/Wikimedia Commons

Should you hang the toilet paper roll over or under?



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Humans have debated things large and small over the millennia, from the democracy to breastfeeding in public to how often people ought to wash their sheets.

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The "over or under" question has plagued marriages and casual acquaintances alike for over 100 years, with both sides convinced they have the soundest reasoning for putting their toilet paper loose end out or loose end under. Some people feel so strongly about right vs. wrong TP hanging that they will even flip the roll over when they go to the bathroom in the homes of strangers.

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