For many women, the razor is a daily ritual. But for Bekah Martinez, a familiar face from The Bachelor, shaving her legs hasn’t been part of her routine for seven years. This choice, she says, is deeply personal and rooted in a desire for self-acceptance and a better example for her children.
Bekah recently opened up on social media about a rude message she got. Someone messaged her saying, "Your face doesn’t match your hairy legs." The comment even mentioned her partner, Grayston Leonard, adding, "Gray must be disgusted."
Bekah, who is 30, took to Instagram to share her thoughts. She firmly stated that her body, her decision. She explained how these types of comments aren’t new to her, and how society’s views on body hair shaped her early life.
Bekah recalled how she secretly started using her mom’s razors in third grade. She even prayed for her body hair to disappear. Family, friends, and even teachers would gently tease her as her dark leg hair grew in. She said these remarks seemed harmless. But they constantly told her that her body hair was wrong.
She stopped shaving while pregnant with her first child. This was her daughter, Ruth. Bekah wanted Ruth, and any future children, to see that a woman’s body hair is completely normal. It’s not something to be ashamed of or to find disgusting. She wanted to show them that body hair on a woman isn’t masculine. "Because I am a woman. So my body hair is feminine," she wrote.
But this journey wasn’t just for her kids. It was also for herself. Bekah wanted to actively work through the self-disgust she felt about her natural body. She admits she still doesn’t always love her body hair. Sometimes, she feels people staring and feels a sense of shame. Yet, that feeling has much less power over her now than it used to.
The effort is worth it when her daughter Ruth points to her legs. Ruth will say, "Mom, my legs look like yours," without any shame at all.
What about her fiancé, Grayston Leonard? Bekah shared that Grayston went to a liberal arts college in Oregon. He has, she joked, "exclusively met many women without razors." This suggests he’s quite comfortable with her choice.
Bekah was a contestant on Season 22 of The Bachelor in 2018. She competed for Arie Luyendyk Jr.’s affection, finishing in fifth place. After the show, she found love with Grayston. They made their relationship official in July 2018. The happy couple got engaged in July 2022.
Bekah shared the news of their engagement with a joyful Instagram post. She captioned it simply, "YES 🥂♥️," along with photos of her and Grayston celebrating and showing off her engagement ring.