"If you don't make time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness."
-Unknown
The DTLR Baltimore truck pictured above is blocking a busy intersection in the Old Towne Mall area of East Baltimore, as runners begin their trek to the waters edge of the Inner Harbor.
On Tuesdays at 6pm, about 150 individuals gather (socially distanced of course) on the corner of E. Biddle Street in East Baltimore, a neighborhood now surrounded by vacant lots, boarded up houses and dug up streets.
There is no Planet Fitness or Whole Foods within 5 miles of the neighborhood. The playgrounds and outdoor playing fields are torn down, as the city prepares to rebuild the community with high cost housing.
Outside of the only functional house on the block is where runners from all over the city gather to participate in their weekly "Building Bodies and Bonds" run. The group is led by young men from the community that have an in depth understanding of the importance of physical movement on our bodies and minds.
The weekly run started with about 10 people and in less than 3 month has grown to over 100 participants, all ages and levels of fitness, including bicyclist.
This moment of fellowship is composed of a 5 mile run, through the neighborhoods of East Baltimore to Downtown Baltimore and back East.
At the end of the run, everyone gathers back outside of that lonely house on the vacant block, to partake in fresh fruits, healthy snack bars, cold hydration, a hot turkey burger and a cool-down. Yoga, meditation and business card exchanges take place as the evening winds down.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is extremely important to keep our bodies in tact. Fitness is not just about having the "ideal" body image, keeping you body right, keeping adequate blood flow and proper nutrition helps to fight off infection. We are motivating our people to eat right, move better and think clearer! We are DARING everyone to THRIVE!!