As a platform, Instagram isn’t always the best thing for our mental health, so I try really hard to follow only people and brands that add some value to my life. The five inspiring women I’m sharing with you today are all very different humans, from very different backgrounds; some on the world stage and some local to Sydney (for now at least). I like each of them for different reasons, but they do all have one thing in common: they make me feel good about myself.

@becchambersfit
Bec has been real and raw and genuine on Instagram since way before it was cool. She’s strong, she’s fit, she is truly hilarious and she posts videos of herself dancing awkwardly on occasion (although not as often as she used to unfortunately). If you’ve ever felt like you’re not good enough/small enough/big enough/strong enough/’girly’ enough… any of those ‘enough’ statements, then you really need to be follow Bec. She’ll help you more than you’d imagine someone you’ve never met from Instagram possibly could.

@mistyonpointe
Oh man, Misty Copeland is just ridiculous. In 2015 she became the first African-American female principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre, a groundbreaking achievement given there have been hardly any African-American principal ballerinas at major companies. Her Insta is a mix of breathtakingly elegant dance photos and images that give a bit of a peek into her ‘regular’ life (if we can call it that).

@becklomas
Beck Jackson is only 23, but she seems to have the maturity of someone 10 years older. Honestly if I’d had 30% of her maturity at that age I’d have been pretty grateful. Beck struggles with skin issues and I love how open she is with that conversation; it’s really refreshing. She’s super fit, and you can expect a decent whack of bikini images in her feed with captions that are often quite thought-provoking and always very real.

@chrissyteigen
OK so Chrissy Teigen has 16.3 million followers and you’re quite possibly already one of them. If you’re not, you don’t know what you’re missing out on! Chrissy is freaking hilarious, and I love how unashamedly herself she is, even with so many eyes on her. She says all the things we like to think we’d say if we were famous (but probably wouldn’t be funny enough or brave enough to actually say them).

@becomingjuliet
Julia Hunt must be one of the most likeable humans on Instagram. She uses the platform to spread messages of inclusion and love, and to talk about her experiences with anxiety and clubfoot. She’s gorgeous, funny and incredibly sweet. Must be something in the genetics because Julia is the younger sister of Libby Babet (2017 Biggest Loser trainer,) who is one of the nicest humans I’ve come across in the fitness industry in Sydney. Julia also has a really cute dog and I appreciate that in a person.