When I was coming up with the concept for cover photo, I knew I wanted someone who was an "everyday" woman. To me, this meant that she wasn't a fitness model for a living or even a personal trainer. I wanted someone who has just intertwined fitness into their lifestyle and also doesn't let anything get in the way of that, including health conditions. This passion to live our best lives no matter what is what I wanted to capture in a cover girl and feature. This month's cover girl, Kinya Harte, is a pretty dope woman. She's a big city, urbanista and career woman doing her thing. We talked to Kinya to learn about her and her health and fitness journey, which includes having thyroid disease.
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| Gone with the wind fabulous. Lunges on the stairs, anyone? |
AGrlCanMAC: Share a
fun/funny fact about yourself
Kinya Harte: IDK any!
AGCM: Tell us a little
about yourself
KH: I'm a 31-year-old
marketing and communications professional living in New York City. I live
a balance life between the digital and analog age and understand and appreciate
the value in both ways of life.
AGCM: Was fitness
always a part of your lifestyle? If not, when did you incorporate it into your
lifestyle?
KH: I've always been
active; but I wouldn't say that I fully understood or was aware of living fit
until college. As a kid, I would always be outside playing games with
other children, riding my bike, climbing trees and of the sort--that was just
the way of life for 80's babies. Video games were usually relegated to
rainy days. By middle school and high school I was active by way of
sports and I always looked forward to gym class. However, by the time I went to
college that changed. I was consumed by school work and socializing that
exercising regularly--and even eating well--just wasn't something I did.
After college I started exercising and changing my eating habits. I was
never overweight or out of shape, but I definitely started feeling better once
I became more active after college. My thyroid disease has also played a
part in becoming more fit.
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| Dips on a park bench for a good tricep workout. |
AGCM: What are your
favorite exercises, classes/programs, etc and why?
KH: I really enjoy fitness classes over working
out alone. My favorites are HIIT (high intensity interval training)
classes like boot camp and Insanity. It motivates me to workout with other
people. Also, the instructor sets the pace and I have to keep up with
it. Sometimes when I workout alone, I feel as though I'm not pushing
myself enough.
AGCM: Please talk
about your condition with your thyroid and your journey to address/heal it. How
has it affected you? How has it affected your health and ability to
workout/exercise?
KH: I have a very long history with thyroid disease
starting back when I was a child; however, I feel it hasn't really affected me
until my late 20's/early 30's. I'm hypothyroid as a result of taking
Radioactive Iodine to treat hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism is an
autoimmune disease that affects thyroid--which produces hormones that control
just about everything in your body from your metabolism to your emotions.
Being hypothyroid it is very hard for me to lose weight, difficult to maintain
weight and easy to gain. This condition has really steered me into living
a cleaner, healthier life that included cutting the amount of refined sugar and
dairy in my diet and increasing physical activity.
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| "We want to pump YOU up!" |
AGCM: Who are your top
three fitness inspirations
KH: Angela Bassett; Pilar
Sanders and Lita Lewis
AGCM: Because we are
more than just hot bodies and muscles, what are some of your favorite pastimes?KH: I love reading!
Reading is truly a great escape and has always been a great past-time of
mine. I also enjoy tapping into my creative side, whether it is through
art, decorating or designing websites--it's a great outlet.
Thank you, Kinya, for being this month's cover girl and giving a peek into your healthy and fitness life. To learn more about Kinya, visit KinyaHarte.com and follow her fun Instagram page @next_of_Kinya and to learn more about her thyroid condition and journey to healing, subscribe to her Youtube channel to watch her videos.
Milan is a New York City based, creative writer and the founder of AGrlCanMAC. She's a self proclaimed accessories junkie who's passionate about healthy living, adventure, books, crystals, the Law of Attraction and arts & crafts. AGrlCanMAC is a resource for women of color all over the world who want to look good, radiate good and feel good at the same damn time.
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