Briana Joy started creating content during the pandemic and has since built a vibrant online and in-person fitness community across the country.
With millions of followers on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram, Briana Joy found her love for fitness through dance. “I grew up dancing all my life,” Joy told Athlete News. “I home-studyed dance in high school because I was so interested in art.” She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance from Pace University and moved to New York City, where she used ClassPass to open a boutique studio. I started exploring.
“New York has so many classes and ways to stay in shape. I realized I didn’t want to be just a student. I wanted to be a teacher, too.”
After teaching at various studios, the pandemic was the catalyst for Brianna’s growth in the digital space. “My online community really took off during COVID-19,” Joy explained. “I started posting my workouts on TikTok, something I could do at home anytime, without any equipment. That’s when my online presence really took off.”
When Joy started posting workouts designed for people without access to a gym or equipment, her community began to grow rapidly. “A lot of people focused on training with weights or a Peloton bike, but not me,” she said. “I offered quiet cardio, Pilates arm workouts, dancer arm workouts, and more, all without equipment.”
After building a strong online presence, Joy founded City Girls Who Walk in 2022. It’s a walking group born out of her desire to connect with others while isolated during the pandemic. “Most of my friends had moved out of town and I felt alone,” Joy said. “So I posted on my platform, which by then had a million followers, and asked if anyone would like to walk down the West Side Highway with me. We could just grab a coffee and walk. Ta.”
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To my surprise, the response was overwhelming. City Girls Who Walk has grown into a community where women can connect, bond, and embrace the beauty around them. “We are now in over 200 cities,” Joy said. “We’re really working on integrating all the cities, and we have some big plans in the works.”
Joy’s fitness content initially focused on workouts without equipment, but her approach has evolved.
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“I still love training without equipment. It’s so easy and you can do it anytime, anywhere. But I’ve added more variations over time, including incorporating weights here and there,” she said.
Joy is currently pregnant, attracting a new audience of mothers and mothers-to-be. “Now that I’m pregnant, I’ve started posting more relatable content about the experience,” Briana explained. “I’m gaining a whole new audience and people appreciate the authenticity of what I’m sharing. After the baby is born, it’s going to be amazing. Balancing motherhood with… I’m sharing my journey to getting back in shape. It’s a whole new world to explore.”
Joye credits her online success to persistence and consistency. “I think the important thing is not to compare yourself to others,” she said. “There are a lot of influencers and people on TikTok now, but I always say, post every day and don’t worry about the number of views.In the beginning, my videos only got about 100 views. But I kept posting two or three times a day, and eventually things started to take off.
City Girls Who Walks takes place every Sunday at 12pm in cities across the country.
