Fast #MotherRunners We Love: Magdalena Boulet
Adventure in 2017: Magdelena Boulet and her climbing partner and coworker, Roxanne Vogel, on top of Ojos del Salado, the world’s highest active volcano.
Note #1: Since February is the month of L❤VE—and the Olympics—we are devoting our Mondays at Another Mother Runner to Fast #Motherrunners we L❤VE. Although their training miles and splits are vastly different than ours, their perspectives—fitting it in, wanting the best from and for themselves—mimic every busy, ambitious female runner out there.
Note #2: Want to hang with Magda—and Another Mother Runner? Join us at our Live Podcast Recording on Thursday, May 15 at GU HQ in San Francisco, when Magda will be a featured guest. Grab a (free) ticket here!
As a teenager, Magdalena Lewy Boulet, now 44, emigrated to the U.S. with her family from Poland, where she was a swimmer. While at University of California Berkeley, she switched to running and met Richie Boulet, one of the best milers in the country, whom she’d later marry. (In an eerie coincidence, she became a U.S. citizen on September 11, 2001, a ceremony that was cut short because of the day’s events.) She worked her way up from 5000 meters (college) to 10,000 meters (post-grad) to marathon wins in San Francisco and Pittsburgh in 2002, coached by the legendary Jack Daniels.
Magda took a bit of time off to have a son, Owen, in May 2005, before returning to the roads.
With Owen, now 12, in Zion National Park
She made perhaps her most indelible mark in the 2008 Olympic Marathon trials in Boston, when she led the field from the start, coming in second after Deena Kastor caught her in the last few miles. “It’s an American dream come true,” she told the San Francisco Chronicle. (Both of them suffered in the 2008 Olympics—Kastor broke her foot at mile 3; Boulet had banged up her knee and likewise dropped out.)
Magdalena waaaay in front of the pack (where are they?) in the 2008 Olympic Marathon Trials in Boston.
Then in 2015, Magda shifted into an even higher gear—ratcheting up the distance. She entered the storied Western States Endurance Run, a 100-mile race that includes 18,000 feet of ascent and 23,000 feet of descent (ouch). She finished in 19 hours and five minutes. And she won! (She DNF’d the following year and came in second in 2017.)
[Want to hang with Magda—and Another Mother Runner? Join us at our Live Podcast Recording on Thursday, May 15 at GU HQ in San Francisco. Grab a (free) ticket here!]Last month, the 44-year-old vice president of Innovation, Research and Development at GU Energy Labs summited the world’s highest volcano, on the border of Chile and Argentina, with a GU co-worker. It was both an adventure and a chance to be a lab rat for work, and it was hard. “I was brought down to my knees,” she told Trail Runner. “I didn’t think I’d ever have such a humbling experience in any athletic endeavor.”
Don’t you just love this combination of grit and humility?
Here are some fast facts from this #FastMotherRunner, in her own words:
Favorite non-running workout
When I was training for the Ojos Del Salado Volcano climb, I incorporated step-up workouts. Some of the workouts required me climbing 2,000 steps per workout!
Sponsorship philosophy:
It is very important to me that I align with each sponsor’s mission and vision [ed note: GU, Hoka One One, UltraAspire, and others]. It makes the partnership a lot more meaningful for both the athlete and the company, and at the end it creates better products for all of us and allows an athlete like me to purse my athletic dreams.
Training philosophy:
My training philosophy is to “train for life.” That means avoiding injury, eating real, whole, and nutrient-dense foods in my everyday diet. Beyond that, I love to do runs that make me happy. I tend to seek out beautiful places and sign up for races that challenge me. Being excited about my next goal or challenge is what keeps me going, and has kept me going for this long.
Pro tip: Train in beautiful environs for maximum mood-boosting benefits.
Funniest thing your kid ever said about your running:
My son Owen has a friend who is a swimmer, and I overheard them talking about his friend’s swim meet. The friend said one of the events he did was the “100 Free” and Owen was like “100 miles?” It was hilarious that when he heard 100 his mind went straight to miles, and not meters, like that was the normal thing to do.
Goals/Races for 2018:
In 2018, the biggest races currently on my calendar are the Marathon des Sables, which is a self supported, 150-mile stage race in the Sahara, and UTMB which is 105 mile race around Mont Blanc. I’m still figuring out all the other races, but I’ll fit everything around those two race.
Hardest part about the mother/runner balance?
The hardest thing is sometimes not seeing Owen very much during the day. Most days, I’m out the door to run or work out before he wakes up, and there are some evenings where he has class or other commitments, and I won’t see him until late. I struggle with this and often feel guilty for not being at home more.
Advice you’d give to your younger self:
Don’t be afraid to commit fully to your athletic goals, and go straight to the marathon! I spent a lot of time worrying about what would happen if I didn’t succeed, and also trying to be successful on the track running the 5K. I often wonder what would have happened if I’d started competing in marathons right after college. Failure is a part of leaning and a part of the road to success. I am tougher and wiser today because I gave myself permission to fail and learn.
Favorite finish line?
Probably Western States in 2015. It was one of the biggest wins of my ultra running career, and I got to hug and kiss my son at the finish right away!
Big win! Western States 100 AND a hug from her son!
How you motivate when you’re not motivated to go: (Are you ever NOT motivated?)
Sure, there are dark mornings where I’m not super motivated to leave the house. But I remind myself how good I will feel after running. And I remind myself how angry I feel when I’m not able to run.
Thing you L❤VE most about running:
The places it takes me, the people I meet, and the memories I make. I’m so lucky to have been able to run races all over the world where I discovered beautiful places, discovered new foods or ingredients, met fascinating people and learned new cultures. Running is also a very powerful tool in my life because it makes me happy, keeps me healthy which at the end of the day makes me a better mom, friend, wife and co-worker.
Want to hang with Magda—and Another Mother Runner? Join us at our Live Podcast Recording on Thursday, May 15 at GU HQ in San Francisco, where Magda will be a featured guest. Grab a (free) ticket here!
#298: Heart Health with a Cardiologist + Sudden Cardiac Arrest Survivor
It’s Heart Health Month, so Sarah and co-host Molly discuss how the topic relates to runners with Dr. Ann Marie Navar, a cardiologist and epidemiologist with Duke University School of Medicine. The trio immediately dives into the deep end, addressing whether long-distance running is good—or bad—for your ticker. The doctor tells how to reduce risk factors for heart attacks, which leads to an intriguing discussion about cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. Answering questions from BAMRs on the AMR Facebook page, Ann Marie explains what’s up with heart palpitations. During a talk about heart rate, the cardiologist offers up the reassuring gem of, “normal is variable.” Nutrition questions are interwoven throughout the convo, including advice about coconut oil. The good doc informs us high-intensity interval training (HIIT) might be better for your heart than previously thought, and she ends on an all-important message for mother runners. The Portland duo then welcome Marla Sewall, a Dallas mother of four who was brought back to life by her quick-acting husband after she suffered a sudden cardiac arrest. #Motherrunner Marla shares her harrowing story—and her amazing recovery (hint: It involves running a half-marathon a mere four months after her heart stopped for 15 minutes!).
The first guest joins the show at 14:45.
Here’s link to position paper about sudden cardiac death at races, plus how to find a CPR course in your area.
From Dr. Ann Marie Navar: I am participating in this podcast in my individual capacity, and my comments represent my personal views and opinions, not those of Duke University. Consider everything I say general information, not medical advice. If you have medical questions or concerns, talk to your personal doctor.
Through February 20, 2018, visit Casper.com/savings to receive $200 off your purchase of $2,000 or more. See Casper.com/terms for more details.
Five Sanity Saving Treadmill Workouts (+ An Instagram Contest!)
Despite how it may seem (hello, sunny 55-degree day in Denver today!), February—the longest, shortest month—still has a ways to go. As does the whole season of winter.
Which means that many of you are spending some time on the treadmill to avoid icy roads, wintry conditions or some combo therein.
To keep things (much more) interesting than the 23rd rerun of Law & Order, we are excited to serve up the following two items for you:
First up: A PDF of Five Sanity Saving Treadmill workouts.
Because we know the ‘mill can fill a bit repetitive at times. Mixing it up with intervals, strength, songs and other diversions can be lovely—and sometimes necessary. Try these treadmill workouts on your next indoor day.
Second up: An Instagram Contest
Winter weather means we’re seeing a lot more treadmill photos from our tribe. We love the captions as well: Some of you love it, some of you do what need to be done, and some of you dread it.
We’re going to host a fun Instagram contest with prizes that will help you pump up the jam on your next treadmill run. (Wait: did somebody say Aftershokz headphones?) make your treadmill run. Head over to our Instagram to check things out and let us know if you are on team #treadmill, #insteadmill, or #dreadmill.
Dry Martini: Spite and Daydreams
I don’t put much faith in rodent-based weather prediction but I remain bummed that the groundhog saw his (or her, I guess. It’s hard to tell.) shadow on Friday. Winter can stick it, y’all.
And, yeah, I said I was going to avoid talking about running in ice and snow and cold. But you know what? It’s all I think about anymore, running-wise. I check the forecast hourly and try to figure out if a 30% chance of flurries is runnable (it is) or if 13 degrees is better to run in than 11 degrees (it is – but only psychologically). I frequently take a detour on my drive home from work to see if the outdoor track has a lane plowed. I’d drive past it in the morning but it’s too dang dark. I stalk the Instagram feeds of BAMRs who live in southern climates — I’m looking at you S. Hopkins — because those pictures give me a warm feeling inside, which is the only warm feeling I’ve had in weeks.
To add insult to my chilblains, I also have a cold. My beloved husband has taken to wearing earplugs to bed, lest my snoring and snuffling wakes him up. “You can’t help it,” he said, when I offered an apology for being an annoying bedfellow. A willingness to work around your partner’s phlegm, my friends, is how you stay married for 20+ years. You’ve got to keep the romance alive.
I am a pirate! Or I just had snow blowing directly into my eyeball….
Despite my cold and the cold, I was determined to get 13 miles in on Sunday. My standards for what is run-able have fallen so far that 28 degrees with a light snow is totally reasonable. Heavier snow was incoming but I was fairly certain I’d be home and warm before that happened.
Reader: I almost made it.
When the sidewalks are icy, I run up the road to our high school. Sometimes, I get lucky and I can use the track. Most of the time, I just run around the building itself because the parking lots and access driveways have been plowed. Footing is generally fine — except for Sunday morning, when the entire back half of my normal loop was a slushy, slippery mess that had an added bonus of also being a wind tunnel. Which, when coupled with my stufffy head, made for some slow miles.
Somewhere around mile four, my innate stubbornness kicked in. I knew, no matter what, I would cover 13 miles, if only to spite the weather and the germs. And, yes, I know the weather and germs couldn’t care less. Spite is seldom logical.
I might have pretended this was a mojito.
The snow started in earnest about ten miles in. I’d like to say that I had some great epiphany and made peace with the season and my place in it but I really just keep running. After three long miles, I made it home. I took a nice warm shower, did some desk work, and took a small nap. Given that is was Superbowl Sunday, I then ate my weight in ‘roni balls, a northwestern Pennsylvania football favorite we’ve imported to our New York kitchen. It was a pretty fine day, frankly.
The question you might be asking is, “Why did you need to run 13 miles?”
My answer is, “Because 14 miles would be silly.”
I kid. My answer actually is, “Because I’m running a half marathon in early March with a bunch of BAMRs who I don’t see enough and I want to be able to enjoy our time together after the race without feeling like I’ve been run over by a Zamboni.”
How forking lovely does this look?
The best part is that we picked a race in Florida, where the weather will be warmer and sunnier than where I am, no matter what freakish front blows through. I’d be lying if fantasies of beaches and palm trees didn’t help pull me through my Sunday long run. In February, we have to work with what we can muster, even if it is just spite and daydreams.
Anyone else plotting a race just to get away from the weather this time of year? And do people come north in the summer to do the same?
Fast #Motherrunners We Love: Stephanie Bruce
Stephanie winning the 2018 Rock n Roll Half in Arizona.
Since February is the month of L❤VE—and the Olympics—we are devoting our Mondays at Another Mother Runner to Top #Motherrunners we L❤VE. Although their training miles and splits are vastly different than ours, their perspectives—fitting it in, wanting the best from and for themselves—mimic every busy, ambitious female runner out there.
For many mother runners, Stephanie Rothstein Bruce (Instagram; Twitter) is a hero as much for her unflinching ownership of her post-partum belly as for her fast times.
How fast? Three weeks ago, on her 34th birthday, she outkicked her competitor in the last 400 yards to win the Rock & Roll Arizona Half-Marathon in 1:12:31 (that’s 5:31-per-mile pace if you need a reason to faint).
“A pleasant surprise,” she says. More like: Happy Birthday!
Last year was pretty fast too: Steph represented the U.S. in the World Cross-Country Championships in Uganda, set a 10,000-meter personal record of 31:59, and ran her first New York City Marathon, coming in 10th place in a time of 2:31:44.
But as the mother of two and co-founder of Picky Bars herself has noted, “my abs are what everyone wants to talk about.”
Steph gave birth to her boys 15 months apart—in June 2014 and September 2015. She is tiny; they were huge. They left their mark, as it were. She had a bad tear, her pelvic floor was wrecked, she pooped her pants when she ran, and she had pronounced diastasis rectus (DR), or what she has described, unflinchingly, as “a lot of loose skin. Stretch marks. Dimples. … A bit of a pouch where all that loose skin is hanging out over my waistband. It’s a hot mess.”
You may remember the viral post-baby-belly photo she put on Instagram in 2016.It gained her much more widespread attention than her race times.
Steph sought help from Celeste Goodson, a physical therapist who specializes in helping post-partum women rebuild inner and outer core strength with a program called ReCORE (which Steph describes here).
[[Hear Steph talk about returning to Running Postpartum on the AMR Podcast.]]
“The culture I’m around, everyone has a six-pack,” says Steph, who runs for the Northern Arizona Elite Team in Flagstaff. “I run a TON, that’s why I’m thin, but I still have a loose belly. I’m still a real woman in a runner’s body.”
More importantly, Steph wants women who struggle with post-partum body issues to know they are not alone.
“Do you think someone’s going to laugh at you ? If they do, they’re an a**hole.”
See? That’s why we L❤VE her. Here are more Steph fun facts.
Favorite non-running workout
[Much laughter.] “I don’t do anything else! I took one Barre class, and it kicked my ass.”About that post-baby body
“You don’t have to ask permission to run in a sports bra and shorts if you want to. I hope women see me and say, ‘Oh, yeah, I have that stomach, too.’”
Training Philosophy
“My coach Ben Rosario has us do a lot of strength-based training: miles and volume. I’m not someone who responds to doing shorter, faster intervals. I do long sustained runs, tempo runs, and mile repeats with short rest. We do strength work two to four times a week with heavy weights. Like dead lifts and front squats with 40- to 80-lb weights. That has really contributed a lot to my staying injury-free and healthy.”
Funniest thing your kid ever said about your running?
“Are you going to win?” [writer note: I’m not sure that’s funny if you indeed may ACTUALLY win.]
Funny kid, part 2
“When I was going out at 8 pm to meet some friends, Riley asked, ‘Mommy going running?’ And I was like, ‘Nooooo. I’m going out for a glass of wine!’”
Red wine or white?
“White.”
Big Race on 2018 Calendar
The London Marathon, in April.
Advice you’d give to your younger self
“It takes time. Everything: training, getting to the next level, accepting where you are in life. I am more confident as a 34-year-old than I was as a 25-year-old. You no longer care what people who are not influential in your life think of you. People are either on my team, on my side, or they’re not. Not everyone has to love you.”
Favorite finish line?
“New York City Marathon. I was born in Manhattan. They have kids’ races the day before the marathon, and Riley was 3, old enough to do the 400. I ran it with him, and he crossed the same finish line that I would run the next day.”
Stars: They’re just like us! They take selfies at Target!
How you motivate when you’re not motivated to run:
“I’m super weird. I’m intrinsically motivated by running. I love it so much. I sat out for 2.5 years for babies. Whenever I feel like I’m going to complain, I think, ‘You get to run right now, so be thankful for that.’”
Thing you L❤VE most about running:
“In life, you don’t get to choose what gets thrown at you. You don’t get to choose where you suffer. I love that you can choose how much you suffer in running and racing.”
Okay, but what do you say to runners who don’t want to suffer?
“It’s your time. Whether you’re a mom or you work 90 hours a week, running is your time to go after whatever motivates you. If it’s just getting out of the house, it’s your time to think. It makes you better at whatever you do. I’m 100% a better mom when I’m home because I get that time and space to train. Just having something in your life that is special like running gives your life balance and perspective.”
[[Hear Steph talk about returning to Running Postpartum on the AMR Podcast.]]
#297: Bunk to 5K: Unique Running Program for Women Inmates
Sarah is joined in studio for a special conversation with Trisha Swanson, founder of Reason to Run, a training program designed to encourage and support both new and experienced runners who are incarcerated at the Oregon state women’s correctional prison, plus Mimi Clinton, a mother runner who was in the program in 2016. Trisha and Mimi detail the 8-week Bunk to 5K program that has inmates circling a 0.1-mile loop in the prison yard—or doing burpees on indoor days. Mimi describes what it was like to always have people—including prison guards–watching her run her first steps. She talks about how she found strength in the community of women in the program—and continues to experience the positive effects of the running community since her release. Marvel as Mimi describes in vivid detail her “glorious” first post-prison run. Tear up along with Mimi when she admits, “it takes someone else to believe in you to remind you that what we tell ourselves isn’t true.” The trio agree on the barrier-breaking power of running and the activity’s ability to provide a few moments of peace from a chaotic setting.
Dimity + Sarah catch up in the intro, talking about fur-babies + their human kiddos. Laugh along with their Roman numerals debate. Here’s the promised Eventbrite link for the podcast recording at GU Energy Labs HQ on the Ides of March (aka March 15). At 26:18, Dim drops off and the conversation with the guests begins.
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