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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Illinois State chapter.

When I started getting into health and fitness a little over a year ago, I had no idea what I was doing. I was clueless about so many things: what to do in the gym, what to wear, how to start eating healthier and so on. The gym can be a scary place for a lot of beginners like myself at the time; I was looking for help anywhere I could find it. That’s where I found the fitness community on social media and realized how truly helpful it can be.

@LibbyChristensen

Libby Christensen was one of the first influencers I found on Instagram and she quickly became one of my favorite accounts to get workout and outfit ideas from. At the time I found her page, she was in college while also pursuing social media as her career. She’s now a Gymshark Athlete and sponsored by Alani Nutrition and works with numerous different athletic wear brands that she promotes on her social media! She has a very bubbly and fun personality which definitely drew me to her accounts. Her videos give great step-by-step instructions on how to perform certain exercises which helps take away some of the anxiety you may have about how to perform them yourself. Libby has over 332 thousand Instagram followers and also posts hauls, workout videos and vlogs on her YouTube channel.

@Taylorolsenfit

Taylor Olsen is an influencer I found recently through TikTok and I immediately fell for her account because of how she goes about sharing her fitness advice. She promotes the phrase “Stop Trying to Shrink” on her platforms which made me gain so much respect for her due to how mentally draining exercise can be for some people if you’re doing it for the wrong reasons. Her workout videos are very informative, and overall she just has a very fun vibe. She also shares healthy meal ideas which are super helpful. (A lot of them are also plant-based!) Taylor also has a podcast called The F Word Podcast with another popular influencer @SamTaylor_Fitness, where they share “no BS fitness advice to help you reach your goals.”

@erin.killeen

Erin Killeen is another influencer that I originally found through TikTok from her inspirational fitness videos that have gathered her millions of likes and over 920 thousand followers. If you’re looking for seriously intense workout advice, this is the girl to go to. She posts full exercise routines which are easy to follow but definitely aren’t for the faint of heart. She’s most widely known for her viral TikTok videos that show clips of her in the gym with popular inspirational sounds to encourage others to work hard. Erin has had an amazing fitness transformation which she has shared through her social media and now inspires others to keep pushing through no matter how hard it may be sometimes.

Social media can be a great place to get helpful advice in many different areas, especially fitness-related content. With the array of different ways to share posts today like through Instagram and TikTok, it’s never been more convenient to get help in these ways. I definitely can attribute a lot of what I’ve learned in the gym to these specific influencers but also the many other creators that are also out there just trying to help people like me who didn’t know where to start.

Carley Stone

Illinois State '22

Hi! My name is Carley and I'm a senior at Illinois State majoring in Journalism with a minor in Sociology. In my free time I love working out, hanging out with friends and family and shopping! I also love writing and I am so excited to be a part of Her Campus :) follow my ig! @carleystone_