Striding the red carpet or sitting in the front rows of fashion shows, celebrities spark inspiration when it comes to finding a new hairstyle, a fresh way to tweak your makeup, or some tips on updating your wardrobe. But stars can offer inspiration that goes far beyond this. Consider the three women below who have used their celebrity platforms to champion lifelong fitness, volunteering, and building a sustainable business.
Gabby Reece: Fitness Icon
By the age of 12, Gabby Reece was six-feet tall. Her towering height made it impossible for her to do what every preteen wants to do – blend in rather than stick out. But as Reece has said, early on, she made the choice to develop a different relationship with her body, focusing not just on how it looked but how it felt and what it could do.
What Reece’s body could do, it turned out, was dominate on the pro beach volleyball court like no one else. She set records year after year. She went on to become a mother to three daughters, a best-selling author, podcast host, serial entrepreneur, and a fierce champion for women’s and children’s health. At 54, some eight years after having a total knee replacement, Reece believes in the resilience and adaptability of the human body. Her tip: for six weeks, commit to an aspect of wellness, Reece told AARP in a recent interview, whether that’s walking every day, doing resistance training weekly, or getting into bed earlier. The boost in well-being, she said, “will remind you just how adaptable your body is when you just stay the course.”
Jennifer Garner: Children’s Health Advocate
She reached the heights of Hollywood’s A-list playing action heroes and romantic comedy sweethearts. However, Jennifer Garner’s true superpower is using her celebrity to fight childhood poverty and support early childhood education. Since 2009, the 52-year-old mother of three has worked with Save the Children, the global humanitarian organization, first as an artist ambassador and then as a member of the board.
In her charitable roles, she has testified about childhood hunger in front of Congress and traveled to rural areas across the country. When devastating floods ravaged Eastern Kentucky, she left a film set and flew into the area to help with on-the-ground efforts to distribute food, water, and toys and shine a light on the work needed to reopen local schools and libraries. “I have a deal with myself,” Garner has said of showing up in disaster areas. “If I can go, I do.”
Jessica Alba: Sustainable Entrepreneur
Jessica Alba began her acting career when she was 13, and she was starring in a TV series just a few years later. Lots of child actors go on to have a troubled adulthood or fade into obscurity. Alba, however, took a different path. In 2011, in between juggling roles in box-office smash hits, Alba launched a wellness brand that offered toxin-free baby, household, and beauty products. Just days before Alba turned 40 in May 2021, the company went public and was valued at $1.4 billion.
“There were no expectations for me to be successful,” she said at the time. The mother of three says she has enjoyed breaking the mold, both as an actress who expanded Hollywood’s concept of the “girl next door” to include Latina women who are “strong willed and strong minded,” and as the founder and chief creative officer of a multimillion-dollar sustainable brand. As Alba moves into her mid-40s, she is embracing what she calls “the blessing of age” – the wisdom to trust your own journey and your own truth.
Whatever your idea of following your dream and finding purpose may be, it’s never too late to embark on that journey. Inspiration abounds. Women charting new paths are all around us – not just the well-known, but our friends and colleagues, neighbors and fellow volunteers. Don’t let everyday aches and pains get in the way of living your best and most vital life. Aspercreme offers a range of products that deliver fast, targeted pain relief so you can get on with your big, bold plans. And, whether you choose the no-mess lidocaine roll-on, a gel, cream, spray, or patch, all Aspercreme products are odor-free to provide lasting pain relief without that medicinal stink.
Don’t let pain get in the way of living life to the fullest. Purchase the Aspercreme® products that are right for you here.
Getty Images
