Columbia Fashion Week traded the runway for a workout mat this week as fitness met fashion at Fit Columbia.

Community members and fashion enthusiasts gathered for a high-energy, Beyoncé-inspired dance class that blended movement, music and style.

The annual Fashion x Fitness event was an uplifting celebration of body positivity and wellness.

Fitness instructor James Patrick led the class with choreography that had attendees dancing, laughing and sweating in sync.

“Columbia Fashion Week attracts a plethora of people, and I wanted to be able to appeal to the audience, not just a specific amount of people,” Patrick said. “I hope that the feeling that they cultivated in this class is something that sticks with them.”

Among the participants was Armanis Pollard, dancing front and center and dressed to match the event’s chromatic theme in a gold metallic dress.

“I love fitness, and I love fashion, and Columbia is doing something with both, so I was like, let me come out and support,” Pollard said. “I’m excited for the choreo. I want to dance.”

Darian Ginyard, chief marketing officer for Columbia Fashion Week, which holds catwalk shows and showcases local designers, said the event is more than a fun fusion — it’s a message about redefining health and beauty within the fashion community.

“Fashion x Fitness has been in existence for about five years, and the hardest thing when it comes to Columbia is finding spaces” for events, he said. “But what we do have are great partnerships and a great community.”

He said the initiative is about reshaping the way people view wellness.

“The fashion industry has negative connotations on what it looks like to be healthy, and this isn’t about that,” Ginyard said. “This is about getting healthy in a positive way.”