PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) – As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month here at 6abc, there’s an Afro-Latina entrepreneur who is using food and fitness to make Philadelphians healthier.
Benzii Diaz is the founder of Bodied Mealz on Wheelz, a grocery delivery service for low-income communities with dietary restrictions.
The 25-year-old is a child trafficking survivor and says she found healing by being good to her body.
“My program isn’t all about fitness,” says Diaz, “it’s my healing. It’s my trauma in it, and it’s who I am. I show this to my clients because they may be going through so much more than just being want to get in shape. They could also go through their own mental struggles. And like myself, having found the cure by being good to my body, I want to encourage that. “
“Bodied Mealz on Wheelz” combines personal training with a food delivery business that is strictly geared towards a gluten-free, vegan or food allergy-oriented diet.
Diaz knows that getting good, fresh food can be both difficult and unaffordable.
“I find in my community that they tend to change their diet, they just don’t have the money, the means of transport or the time to do it,” says Diaz. “That’s when I came in and said, ‘I’ll only be there for you.'”
Diaz keeps costs down by buying in bulk and working with local gardeners to offer cold pressed juices, meal prep, and groceries.
She runs free training courses every Saturday in the Roxborough neighborhood of Philadelphia.
Diaz is now trying to raise funds to buy her own van for deliveries and visits to further spread her “health is wealth” philosophy.
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