I had the pleasure of meeting Hannah Chapman in the first grade. At the time, I lived in Ashburn, Virginia, and we had an instant bond — plus the cool fact that we share the same birthday. I moved from Ashburn after the fourth grade, but thankfully through the years we maintained our friendship. To top it off, it was pure fate that we both chose VCU for school, and our friendship is still as strong as it was when we were little. Now even with as long as I’ve known Hannah, I still realized how much there was to learn about her. I’m so proud to call her one of my friends and she’s a source of inspiration for me. She is a blogger, health/fitness enthusiast and president of Fit University’s chapter at VCU.
Name: Hannah Chapman
Age: 20
Year: Junior
Major(s): English and health science
Photo taken by Keyris Manzanares
What made you choose your major(s)?
Well, I primarily chose the health science major because my dream job is to be a dietician. Health science is the closest related program to get me into that field. I want to be a dietician because as a kid I was very, very chubby. Overweight for my age honestly, and it caused me to pick up a lot of unhealthy ways to diet. I want to help others through that, not wanting them to go through things I did. I want to show people how to balance and not enter into healthy eating and fitness in such an extreme, obsessive way. My English major however, I just have always had a love for writing, literature and reading. I had the best English teacher senior year, he literally taught me so much, mentored me and inspired me to write and do so much more. I didn’t choose to add on the major until last year, but I knew it was something I was meant to do.
Tell us about your blog! The process, the focus, what you hope to share within it:
Through all of my restrictions and unhealthy behavior in the past, I really got into clean eating through tons of food blogs. Which is a good and bad thing honestly. At first it was a way more obsessive, but then it taught me to find the more comprehensive, intuitive ones and that’s what’s shaping my direction now. Originally, I set my goal to have this blog created by the end of 2017 but one day I was reading a post that said “If you’ve ever wanted to start a blog, do it right now!” Clearly that was a sign, and I started it right then, over the summer. The blog is called realfoodmatters, my initial focus was going to be strictly food, recipes, just all things food. But, its turned out to be just more lifestyle. I’ve began to share more personal stories and things I’ve learned, not only my past but my passions as well. My posts have come from a place of inspiration in hopes to inspire those who read it.
Fit University, how’d you make that happen?
Well, I found Fit University through a friend I follow on Instagram. She writes for the blog and is involved at her school’s chapter. I applied to write for them and potentially bring it to VCU a long time ago, and it took them a whole year to get back with me and accept me. I was so nervous and didn’t even know if I wanted to or even had the time to do it anymore. But, I did, and I am so pleased with the turn out we’ve been getting early on. My initial thought when starting this club was to push others out of their comfort zone so that they can learn more about themselves. I want to share with others that there should be no rigid all or nothing plan. There should be a way to incorporate happiness and health, rather than pure obsession. I want to give people a chance to try a multitude of things, so that they can pick what they like and while having a sense of community and making some connections.
How do you balance everything?
Well, everything I do I enjoy. With all the things I’ve been through I’ve gotten to the point where I constantly think to myself, “why would I keep doing things I don’t enjoy?” I like to keep passion and desire in all things. I now know my boundaries and myself well enough to where I don’t do things if I don’t get any enjoyment out of it. Also, time management! It’s one of the best things I’ve learned since coming to college, but it’s all trial and error. I usually start my day at 6 a.m. and usually sleep around 10:30 p.m. if I can. But again, how I maneuver through my day is personal and not everyone is the same.
What’s your daily workout regime?
In the past, my workout routine was super rigid. I’m talking working out six days a week with lots of weights and cardio along with eating a certain amount of calories per day. I’ve definitely changed. I’ve fallen in love with power lifting. My friend told me that I should sign up for a competition, I competed and I’ve been in love with it ever since. I lift maybe three to four days a week with little to no cardio at all. I also love with yoga, I do that two to three days a week. Honestly, I’m just allowing myself to be more free with working out. Doing what I enjoy and when I want to do it. I love yoga, lifting, riding my bike around and dancing. I’m trying to allow myself to get back into ballet because that was my first love and will always be. But no strict regime since that was previously an unhealthy problem for me.
Who or what inspires you/who you are today?
My dad. He’s my inspiration and motivation. He has always been there for any crazy thing I’ve done and wanted to do, giving me constant encouragement and advice. He’s given me unconditional love in all that I do and is a constant source of support. Also, the “Real Life Id” blog is something that really impacted me. It’s basically what got me hooked on the intuitive way I feel about healthy living. Also, would it be bad to say that I inspire myself? That is truly my main goal that I finally feel like I’ve reached, inspiring myself while hoping to inspire others.
You mentioned that you are studying abroad! Where/what influenced your decision to do this and what do you hope to learn?
My initial desire came from a recent trip I took to Israel. I got to go for free, it’s birthright since I’m Jewish. I went for 10 days and it was literally the best experience. There was no feeling like it and it was almost impossible to put into words how amazing it was. I learned and grew so much and when I got back my immediate thought was “where next?” Getting outside of your everyday surroundings and immersing yourself in another culture makes you want to do that whenever possible. For my study abroad, I initially wanted to make my way back to Europe, but because of my major my options were pretty limited, so I winged it and picked Australia. It wasn’t my initial choice, but I know it’ll be so worth it. Also, it helps that it’s an English speaking country. I am ultimately doing this because right now I couldn’t love my life more in Richmond, I’m beyond comfortable, so I feel like I need to expand some more.
Food! You love it, I love it, we all love it. Tell us about your diet:
Well, I used to be vegetarian. I did that from the fourth grade until my freshman year of high school. I mostly did it because my brother was, so my house didn’t really have a lot of meat in our diets anyways. I also just wanted to be different. Like what kid is a vegetarian? Also, in my past I had numerous dieting habits because of how unsatisfied I was with my body. Some of those diets weren’t so healthy. Now that I have had many sources of inspiration, positive influences and have educated myself, I have no real strict diet. I eat what I want, when I want. I’ve learned to be less picky, and I try foods I never really thought I’d like. Now, for me personally, I still like to eat and shop healthy for the most part. I genuinely love health food stores like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods, seriously they can take all my money.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Ugh I’ll be 30, that’s insane. Career wise hopefully, I’ll have my undergraduate degree and a master’s in dietetics or my RDN. Hopefully I’ll be living my dream of working with people one on one, counseling them into a happy and healthy mindset. I want to live in Colorado, that’s where all of my extended family is. Getting my yoga certification would be cool and I also want some more tattoos! Lastly, on a more serious note, I hope I continue my intuitive lifestyle and constantly stay improving myself.
Photo taken by Madison Manske
Cover Photo taken by Hannah’s dad, Howard Chapman.