RIDC Champion: Young & Active Philly

By Amy DiTommaso

An RIDC Champion is someone who is actively doing the work of the mission and vision of our organization and is a living example of the goals we have.

Our next champion is Young & Active Philly (YAP), a fitness group in Philadelphia. Founded right before the start of the pandemic, YAP is a group that has grown organically by bringing people together to move their bodies and build community. Through many activities such as running, tennis, and pickleball, as well community building such as day trips out of the city or grabbing coffee, YAP is finding that everything is better with friends! We chatted with founder and leader Sunny Goklani and learned about the highs and lows of starting your own community from scratch.

Running Industry Diversity Coalition (RIDC): Please tell us how and when YAP came to be.

Sunny Goklani (SG): I was an event/community organizer through my twenties, be it in school, college, or professional or social events in the city. Right when I turned thirty, COVID hit. Both together made me reflect on life and ponder if I was spending my time and energy right. I changed my habits to foster deeper relationships and get more active. I soon realized that the circle I knew wouldn’t carry over to my new habits. It was a difficult decision: to stay with where I was with people I knew, or start over again. I chose to start over. This change came with a hit of loneliness. I knew I couldn’t be the only one in this situation and people like me were maybe feeling the same thing and doing things on their own, without a venue to get together and do it together. I started a Facebook group and invited five friends that I knew. None of them were into running, but some came out. It was February 14, 2020, and we ran 5+ miles in the shape of the word LOVE. It was the longest run of my life by far—but I felt like I could go farther. I just had discovered the power of group running—of being with and making friends through running—and it got started from there.

RIDC: What do you find most inspiring about your group?

SG: The new version of themselves people end up discovering and the connections they make along the way. It’s inspiring to see how people can reinvent themselves by being active and having the feeling of belonging. It enables people to form healthy habits—not only without the fear of losing their social circle, but with hope of finding a new one. Knowing that they’re not judged but are welcome as and where they are inspires people to show up, to sign up for a race they have never ran, to do their personal best mileages, and to truly believe that staying active is fun. Along the way, people have found lifelong friends, life partners, or—at the least—running buddies.

RIDC: Where do you see successes and/or areas of improvement in the fitness industry when it comes to encouraging people to build community rather than simply perform? 

SG: YAP was, is, and will always be about building a welcoming and inclusive community. It’s an active and social community, but one that focuses on diversity, inclusion, and making this lifestyle choice a joyous one. If we see the fitness industry, whether it be gyms, studios, or other run groups, most are either for-profit or backed by brands that are for-profit. In such an environment, even if entities started off serving the people, they may get lost in what they truly stand for. I see three key areas of improvement for most entities—for them to be: 1) accessible, 2) intentional, and 3) inclusive. We have to make these spaces accessible and inviting (without fear/intimidation) to those who are new to the lifestyle, stay true to our intention (if it’s creating community, then everything has to be designed to reflect that), and inclusive inside and out (including making sure everyone feels like they belong, including first timers who don’t know anyone).

RIDC: It is clear that your group is about more than body movement.What hurdles, if any, have you had to overcome to help foster an inclusive group?

SG: While we have made our intention clear and are all for making fitness fun, there’s a challenge of how do we balance it with those who are just looking to run or have long-distance running goals. When we say to be inclusive, how do we not have them feel excluded? It’s also a challenge for our growth, as those looking for a community may often take a break or give up on running once they find friends through it. We try to overcome this by changing up our distances, themes, and times, so everyone hopefully finds a fit, and by having guest leaders (for example, every now and then have someone training for a marathon lead a long-distance run).

Then, there’s a deeper hurdle/challenge around when the group grows, how do we impart the values that we seek. Sometimes we have to, for example, intervene to make sure the vibe is inclusive and no one feels excluded. Maybe a hot take, but inclusion cannot be practiced without excluding (some practices/values at least). A laissez-faire attitude doesn’t by default result in an inclusive community.

RIDC: What way have you found best to grow your group organically? 

SG:Medium wise, Instagram. It’s where the most eyeballs are and engagement is these days. With that said, the most quality growth we see is by word of mouth. Instagram shows intent, but word of mouth communicates commitment and trust. Your friend will always be more trustworthy than a social media account you didn’t know existed till a minute ago. Best of both worlds? Where friends share our Instagram with their friends too :)

RIDC: Please share a joyful story/moment that highlights the work you are doing.

SG: What inspires me is to see people rediscovering themselves (their potential) and feeling empowered to make the connections they seek.

To the first point: YAP signed up last year as a team for Mayor’s Cup, a running group competition in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. We had a team of twenty runners who ran various distances from 5K to a half marathon. While most other running groups had seasoned runners who had run the race for years, nineteen out of twenty people in our group had never run the race before. Many ran their farthest distance and discovered how running races together can be fun. It’s days like those that underline why we do what we do.

To the second point: It’s so satisfying to see people new to the city/lifestyle finding lifelong friends, or even life partners in the process. Recently, we had a YAP engagement (couple who got engaged after meeting at YAP). Running wasn’t a lifestyle for either of them—they met a few times at YAP because they both thought we made running fun and social (great common identifier), and they hit it off. It’s satisfying to see our individual runs/events leaving a lasting mark on our society.

RIDC: What are you currently working on, or what upcoming events do you have? 

 SG: Our fall programming will cover the bucket list items that would be on people’s Philly bucket list and we’ll check them off by being active (running there, for example)! We have a tennis league that kicks off in a week (most active and social league in Philly!) and we have two runs a week (Sunday mornings and weekday evenings) scheduled that end up in fun activities/locations, including a couple collabs. Our Instagram is the best place to go as we make a post about every single event in addition to monthly calendars. It’s at @yap.philly! Please follow along and share with your Philly friends!

Know someone who is an RIDC Champion? Reach out to amy@runningdiversity.com and share them with us!