‘Creativity flows when you lean into what lights you up’

Lorraine Russell, 43, is a PT and founder of Noire Fit Fest

‘Having studied at design school and worked in fashion, I’ve long identified as a creative person; someone who embraces different ways of thinking – and getting stuff done. It was a mindset that enabled me to pivot careers, notably when I became a personal trainer in 2018. More significantly, it allowed me to embark on a project that had been bubbling away inside me since my early teens: a fitness festival for Black women. Ever since the early 1990s, when my mum dragged 13-year-old me along to aerobics classes in an old-school Peckham gym, I’ve understood how powerful getting a group of Black women together to move their bodies can be. I remember watching these women working their way through a jungle-soundtracked aerobics class that felt more like a rave. There was no air conditioning in the gym, so the walls glistened with sweat; the energy was magnetic. The longer I worked in the fitness industry the more I realised that while the health and wellness scene in London and beyond had become lucrative and glossy, it was lacking a space where women who looked like me could sweat, laugh and create a powerful energy. It wasn’t just me; fellow fitness professionals voiced frustration about often being the only Black or brown faces at fitness events. After conversations about representation reached an apex in June 2020, Noire Fit Fest was born – first as an online-only event before returning in digital and in-person forms in 2021. Each time there were challenging workouts led by energised instructors to music from dancehall, house and soca. We’ll be back in 2022 and I’m determined to broaden our reach internationally. It took work to get it off the ground. I wasn’t a PR or marketing expert and had to teach myself to design promo materials via late-night Youtube tutorials. But I was powered by my purpose: my creative spark and passion fuelling my productivity. Creativity doesn’t just happen for me; I sustain it by blocking out an hour every day to do something for me, be that lifting weights or meditating. If you don’t think of yourself as creative, I challenge you to reflect on what you’re passionate about – and then actively prioritise your own needs. Lay the grounds for creativity to flourish and who knows what you might do.’ noirefitfest.com @noirefitfest