A comprehensive guide to an ethical post-pandemic glow up

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Life

Everyone's obsessed with the post-pandemic glow up. No one wants to leave the house for the first time looking like the slugs we became during our year of collective grief, boredom, and Dorito binges. But that extra 10 pounds isn't all we gained during the COVID-19 crisis. We also gained more insight into the magnitude of social injustices we face and the ways that our own actions contribute to structural systems of oppression. Here are some ways to glow up that center your values so that you return to the world a more beautiful person — inside and out.

Go to a queer online gym

Fun fact: I am a bonafide fitness professional and yet the gym is one of the most triggering places for me to go. Not only do I feel ogled by cis-het men, but I am constantly being misgendered. The Queer Gym is an online gym that is run by and for queer and TGNC folks and right now they are having a Homebody Challenge that aims to get you in shape for re-entering the world. If emerging from quarantine with a hot bod is your goal, you can do it with “Anti-fascist fight club,” and “Hardcore homo” classes. Allies and advocates are welcome.

Address your biases

I think we all feel like we need to get our shit together right now, and it’s crucial that we move forward with our goals and ambitions without supporting systems of oppression. Ruth King is a meditation teacher, author of Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism From The Inside Out, and a life coach who helps people develop racial self-awareness so that they can redefine what success means to them and figure out what roles they want to play in the social world using the tools of mindfulness. She works with clients one-on-one, but you can also take her Mindful of Race Training or listen to some of her inspiring talks if you want to make dismantling white supremacy part of your spiritual practice and your daily life.

Take an herbalism class for and by BIPOC

This pandemic has a lot of us feeling less than healthy, and while looking good is fun, feeling good is even better. Glowing up could mean feeling more vital and also reclaiming your connection to the earth as an act of resistance. Herbalism is an ancient approach to health that uses plants as medicine. It’s been growing in popularity, but it’s also largely been co-opted by white folks. Hood Herbalism offers a three-month course to help BIPOC in basic herbalism and medicine making. This course is to support BIPOC communities and is not open to others.

Get an anti-capitalist financial advisor

The pandemic has shone a harsh light on the cruelties of capitalism. We all want to feel financially stable, and a lot of us want to find that stability without being dicks about it. Hadassah Damien is an anti-capitalist financial advisor who can help you with everything from making a budget to filing your taxes to learning how to invest. You can work with her one-on-one, be part of a group money coaching program, listen to her podcast, and she also has a ton of inexpensive resources on her site to help you get your numbers right.