Oh how I love Aly Raisman… as a gymnast fan, business woman and most importantly, as a mother. I have adored watching her on the mat and the balance beam but am most happy watching her outside of the Olympic arena.
It’s not always easy to find someone that is a true and unyielding role model for our kids, especially our girls. This girl in her twenties has every characteristic I want my children to look up to and then some.
Here is why Aly Raisman is the bad ass role model our kids need right now. I’m sure you can add to the list.
image via US Magazine
15 Reasons Aly Raisman Is The Bad A$$ Role Model Our Kids Need
1. She didn’t just compete in the Olympics once. Oh no, she went AND WON twice.
2. That’s almost unheard of in gymnastics. She’s one of only two American’s ever to get back to back team gold gymnastic medals.
3. And she was team captain both times. She’s a leader.
image via Maxim
4. She is an ambassador for UNICEF Kid Power, an initiative that helps promotes physical activity in school-aged kids.
5. She led the charge to take down someone who has been abusing children for at least 30 years.
6. She stood in front of her abuser (and the whole world, really) and spoke her mind.
7. “But I am here to tell you that I will not rest until every last trace of your influence on this sport has been destroyed like the cancer it is.”
8. And now that Larry Nassar is in jail she’s still going.
9. Now she’s going after United States Olympic Committee for repeatedly not listening to complaints.
10. She has given courage to so many and is fighting for the ones that will come after her.
11. She’s only 23.
12. She has been insecure about her body like all the rest of us, but loves herself and embraces her body.
13. “I think imperfection is beauty. Insead of being insecure about my muscles, I’ve learned to love them.”
14. She’s joined Aerie’s “role models” campaign raising money for charity.
image via Aerie
15. She is gorgeous. The kind of gorgeous you want your children to be: natural beauty that radiates from the inside and isn’t made from layers of foundation and heavy eye makeup.
From the bottom of my heart, Aly, thank you for being the role model my little girl so desperately needs. I know carrying that weight isn’t easy. Thank you.
Liz is a just a mom trying to keep it real about how little she sleeps, how often she gets puked on and how much she loves them. You can find her here every day writing about real-mom moments.
She is a ass because she does not watch her kids right and she beats them up will hard.