Our Models

Celebrating the use of 'real women' in our marketing is starting to feel a bit weird to us. We've had some lovely comments and compliments for the 5 women who did our most recent indoor photoshoot for our Resolution Collection. And don't get me wrong, we do enjoy a pat on the back, but we're also feeling mild dispair that this is still something worthy of comment. 

Please don't take this in a righteous way, or feel like you can't compliment these women, because after all we did choose them and they're beautiful (and volunteered to do the shoot, thanks super fans). I had a big epiphany last week that I'd like to share. I'm reading a great book called Think Like a Monk by Jay Shetty, and in he writes about some wisdom he learnt from one of his teachers;

"Plant trees under whose shade you will never sit"

And I had this thought. We're not doing this to be revoluntionary. We're doing this so our daughters don't ever have to question twice if they're 'slim enough' to wear what makes them happy. While I have no kids of my own, I'm fortunate to have a number of friends with very young daughters, and I thought, you know, I'm not doing this to try and change everyone's perception of beauty right now. That's just the biggest hurdle ever for one small company. But here's what I did realise...

I'm doing it so these kids never have to ask their Mum's why they don't look like the fitness models they see online or in stores. 

I'm doing this so that they don't feel like they have to look a certain way to feel accepted. 

I'm doing this so we can have courageous conversations about what's happening in the health and fitness industries, which is generally prolific for favouring one body shape over another at any given time. 

Having been at many, many, all women's events now, I often look around and see that maybe 5% of the women there look like those we're told to aspire to be like. That's not the majority and it's time we stopped pretending like it is. 

So again, for the people in the back. Zeenya is not doing this to be revolutionary, I'm doing it so our daughters don't have these thoughts even cross their minds. Will Zeenya still exist once they're old enough to wear it? Who knows. What I do know is that they will have seen their Mum's proud of their bodies, laughing and enjoying their lives while staying healthy and active, regardless of their shape or size. 

So those trees? I hope the shade is more than enough to cover us all. 



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