Today we’d like to introduce you to Jai Murphy.
Jai, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
2105 I was over 700lbs and going through each day on autopilot. That Christmas I unexpectedly lost my cousin and a week later on New Year, I lost my best friend. I was depressed and trying to make it day-to-day. I was constantly in pain and was only able to do the bare minimum to care for my two children.
One week after my best friend passed away, I dropped my kids off at school and was on my way into the bank when I slipped and fell outside on the main street and could not get up. There were two fathers from the school that came to try and help me but I didn’t trust that they were strong enough to help me up off the ground. One of them asked me if I needed him to call EMS to help me and I knew in that moment I had to make a change.
I went to my friends’ family dojo and had a conversation with him and his mother, telling them I was ready to start personal training with him to take back control of my life. We started documenting my journey and all of the modifications that we had to make because of my weight and height (I am only 4’11). This was so important to me because I knew I was in for a long journey and there was no one showing a journey like mine from start to finish completely raw and transparent.
I knew there was a need for other women to see how they could make exercise fit their bodies. All of the modifiers in fitness videos (the people that usually stand to the side or back that show the alternative or modified version of an exercise) were still smaller people. How does that exercise really look on a 300, 400, 500-pound person? I started showing these examples on Instagram and YouTube. Before I knew it, my videos were going viral internationally.
As I progressed in my journey, women began consistently asking me for guidance. I felt the desire to obtain further education around health and wellness. I became a Nationally certified health and wellness coach. I have since managed to lose over 200lbs naturally and am still going.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It hasn’t been a smooth road. I never intended to make my life open to the public. But when I kept getting messages of women pouring their hearts out about how much seeing me the fight was helping restore their hope, I knew it was bigger than me and something I needed to do. When your business is contingent upon you staying consistent during one of the biggest fights of your life, it can be daunting. I also didn’t have a business background. For the past five years, I have immersed myself in all things business and fitness. There was definitely a learning curve. Being a mom of two, I spent many nights up until 4 am working on the business, making sure I was learning and creating the best resources possible and then getting up and getting the kids ready and hitting the gym by 8 am every day. Not looking like the typical face of fitness also has had its challenges. It’s taken lots of conversations and true honesty to break down some of the implicit biases our society has about what fit and healthy looks like and what a health educator should look like.
Please tell us more about your work. What else should we know?
Becoming Jai is a personal brand that was established to share my journey. Get Fit With Jai was born from Becoming Jai. Get Fit With Jai is the health and wellness coaching side of my business. My focus is providing education and support for woman who are 150 pounds or more overweight to help them learn how to make movement/exercise fit their body without the shame of diet culture and fat-phobia.
The Get Fit With Jai Members Vault is a monthly membership community that focuses on mindset, fitness, and lifestyle. We have monthly trainings with a mindset expert, a nutritional expert who is also a mental health professional, and weekly modified workout plans created by myself and my other friends in the industry. I have also become a certified Group X chair fitness instructor.
In January of 2020, we had our first live event called Dear Skinny Friend Live. This show tackles the unspoken and spoken biases found in society surrounding women who live in larger bodies by creating a platform for a candid conversation. We wanted to connect with the community looking to dispel the myths that keep all women stuck and unseen, even our skinny friends. We created a space for all women, no matter their size, to be seen, heard, and empowered without having to justify their existence. When the women leave the event we want them to walk away with more than just new friendships, but also with an understanding of how we are more alike than different.
I think what sets us apart is that we are giving a raw uncut look at what it means to be fat and still concerned with movement and health. And understanding that the relationship does not have to embody weight loss or shame, but instead feeling good about the life you are living and doing so without restrictions and limitations. I believe every woman has the right to build her own version of what strong means to her. I am beyond proud to be a brand that promotes size inclusivity and self-love in an industry that usually tells us we have to look a certain way to have any type of valuable opinion or voice.
This November I released my first publication ‘Jumpstart Guide To Healthy Living’. It’s available via digital download on my website. My upcoming book ‘Build Your Strong’ is slated to be released in late January. And Dear Skinny Friend Live will be making a return in Spring 2021 as a virtual event with even more exciting additions.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
That’s a tough question, it’s like asking a parent to choose their favorite child. One of the most recent moments that brings me great joy would have to be the campaign I just finished with a size-inclusive athletic wear line called Superfit Hero. To be a part of bringing athletic wear to women who are XL-7XL that fits, feels good, and looks good was such a fulfilling moment.
Pricing:
- Get Fit With Jai’s Members Vault $27/month
- Dear Skinny Friend Live 2021 Virtual event tickets starting at $20
- Get Fit With Jai Digital Resource Library starting at $5.99
Contact Info:
- Website: getfitwithjai.com dearskinnyfriendlive.com becomingjai.com
- Email: jai@becomingjai.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/becomingjai
- Facebook: facebook.com/groups/getfitwithjai/
Image Credit:
Microphone photo image credit Julia Shakti Dear Skinny Friend Live 2020
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