Digame: Argentine Trainer Camila Ramón is Bringing Latin Representation to Fitness

Bilingual Peloton Instructor and trainer Camila Ramón was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and moved to Miami when she was seven years old. She developed a love for athletics early in her life and danced both in college and professionally before working in international relations representing global businesses throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. In October 2020, she built and launched her own fitness app and a year later, she became Peloton’s first cycling instructor to teach classes in both Spanish and English. A year later, she began to teach on the tread and has become one of the most popular instructors known for her body positive messaging and use of Latin music. Her fanbase, known as the #MilaMafia, is an online community that’s grown with her popularity and established her reach and impact as a Latina in fitness. “I think that navigating the space of fitness as a Latina is very tricky because there’s so many distractions in our community. There’s so much pressure to always look a certain way and there’s not a lot of trainers that don’t,” she previously told HipLatina.

Which Latina(s) have had the greatest impact on your life and why?

My mom and my abuelas. As businesswomen and women who have had to reinvent themselves multiple times in their lives they have shown me that nothing is impossible and there is never a difficult moment where love can’t shine through.

If you could meet a Latina icon who is no longer alive, who would it be and why?

Frida Kahlo. I would love to sit with her and talk and talk and chismosear over cafecito. I feel like if she didn’t get bored of me it could be endless.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

You can choose levity.

Who was the first person to believe in your dreams/goals?

My parents. They’ve always believed in me and seeing their work ethic as immigrants in a new country still inspires me to this day.

How do you stay connected to your cultural roots?

I go back to Argentina as much as possible. I still have a lot of family out there and I am very grateful I get to visit them often. I call my abuela a lot. I follow Latine creatives that inspire me and people from my country that make me feel closer to home. And I say yes to every opportunity to have a media luna con dulce de leche, duh

What do you wish more people understood about what you do?

I know it looks like we don’t sweat but I promise we do haha.

What motivates you?

I am inspired regularly by my inner circle and the community of people who take my classes. I get so many messages every day from people who have chosen to be kinder to themselves, prioritize their health, fumigate their internal cucaracha (or negative dialogue), achieved an amazing goal, or have learned how to deal with their tia tóxica. The messages keep me going!

How did you end up on the professional path you’re on now?

I realized I had a terrible relationship with myself and my body image. I decided to focus on my healing and I realized I did not have a role model in the Latina fitness space to look up to. I wanted to be a resource for people who were going through something similar to what I had gone through. I created my own programs in Spanish, developed my own app, then decided to reach out to Peloton because it was a dream of mine and the rest is history!

What is your greatest professional achievement so far? Personal achievement?

Professional achievement is ongoing and it’s to bring Latin music and culture to the forefront of fitness with a focus on enjoyment rather than the aesthetic. Teaching a class with Feid in-studio was just the beginning for us! Personal achievement is being in a position to give back to my family.

What is a goal you have that you haven’t accomplished yet and what are you doing to get closer to accomplishing it?

I would love to partner with more Latin media and entertainment to talk about the joy of movement to feel good and shift the current aesthetics-based focus

What pop culture moment made you feel seen?

Watching Blue Beetle in theaters was absolutely iconic for me. The Latine references, the soundtrack, the storyline — it was such a joy to see the first Latino superhero on the big screen. Shoutout to Angel Manuel Soto!

How do you practice self care?

It revolves around something one of my girls told me “high performing people have high performance self-care routines”. I feel like I’ve found a groove for myself which involves me taking self-care time moreso when I need it rather than when it’s scheduled. Because I take care of myself in many other aspects regularly I feel like I have been able to sway less from my baseline. NEVER underestimate the power of sleep, hydration, therapy, and prioritizing gut health.

Quick Fire:

Shoutout an Instagram account that could use more love and tell us why you’re a fan:

Alex of @madebyalexnyc — I love her energy, her mission and her videos

Shoutout your favorite Latina owned business and why:

This is so hard there are so many good ones!! Viva La Bonita has such cute things and Reina Rebelde liners have been a whole mood!!

Digame is a monthly series featuring prominent Latinx leaders, activists, entrepreneurs, and public figures uplifting the community and making a difference.