On a rainy Saturday morning in early March, a group of 60 women crowded outside Blue Ribbon Sports in Santa Monica. Preparing for the Los Angeles Marathon. Conditions weren't ideal, but the running mommies still met at 6:30 for their last serious training session before the big race.
Raquel Roman and Jo Anna Mixpe Ray arrived early and planted a black and white nylon Running Mamis flag outside the shoe store. They check out the route while hugging spandex-clad runners as if they were attending a family event. What started in Boyle Heights in 2018 as a safe place for mothers to run with their babies without the threat of meowing cats or cracked sidewalks has become a growing community.
Roman and Ray founded Running Mamis with Raquel Zamora and Monica Perez shortly after becoming mothers for the first time. The idea came to me while I was on a local run with my baby in a stroller. Frustrated by the lack of “mommy and me” spaces and safe running trails on the East Side, the foursome, first-time mothers, decided to start their own running group. Ten runners gathered for the first meetup held at Los Angeles State Historic Park.
“This space is my saving grace,” said Ray, 47, who started running in college.
“Through the pandemic and personal challenges, it's become our lifeline. We see each other and embrace without judgement. About childbirth, postpartum depression, challenges we're having with our partners and work. We talk about it. It helps us process and move forward. We're so lucky that our kids think it's normal.”
Since then, Running Mamis has grown to about 70 members and is now the official running club of Nike LA. The Mami people identify primarily as Chicana and Latinx, an intergenerational people ranging from age 18 to age 66. Grandmothers, nieces, Tia, friends and colleagues also participate in this activity. It's an inclusive space that welcomes all distances, levels, and paces.
“When you're racing, you have a lot of time to look around and you don't see a lot of women of color,” said Roman, 43, who lives in Huntington Park. “They're coming into the race with different body types, a variety of body types, and they're all on the starting line. That's what I'm really proud of.”
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Many Running Mommies live in Boyle Heights and southeastern Los Angeles County, but some come from as far as Ventura and San Diego to attend twice-monthly gatherings at Los Angeles State Historic Park, Griffith Park, and the Rose Bowl. Masu. During the training season, they meet weekly. They are stay-at-home moms, educators, organizers, lawyers, artists, chefs, therapists, social workers, and restaurant workers. Some people run 1 mile, others 20 miles.
Running Mamis is a close-knit group that prioritizes community over competition. They go trick-or-treating with their kids on Halloween, run through the streets of East LA during Latino History Month, and take yoga and self-defense classes on Mother's Day. Some of the children who were in strollers when Running Momis started are now grown and participating in local kids runs. Roman and Ray sometimes bring in professional trainers and running coaches to teach the runners about form, nutrition, and how to run according to their menstrual cycles. Moms are reminded to clip their toenails and make sure their shoes fit properly with a thumb-width between the big toe and the front of the shoe.
Before each run, Running Mommies sit in a circle to check in and set their running intentions. Generally he runs 2-3 miles, but when training for a marathon, he may run distances as high as 20 miles. The real story begins when the run begins. Friendships are born on these paths.
Running Moms provides an opportunity for Latinx mothers to come together and share stories about the struggles of motherhood. Postpartum depression is more common among Latina women than white women, according to a study published last year. Journal of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
“Mothers are at risk of losing themselves because they have so much to give and so little time for themselves,” said Adriana T. Alvarez, a Los Angeles-based psychotherapist. “Running lifts your mood and helps you maintain the physical strength you need for motherhood. By focusing on your breathing meditatively, you can help mothers stay present. To our children, mothers are strong. , we send the message that we are in charge of ourselves and that separate time is a priority.”
2023 survey by adidas We found that 92% of women are worried about their safety when running alone, and half fear being physically attacked. More than a third of women said they had experienced physical or verbal harassment, such as sexist comments or being followed.
According to crime statistics, this type of attack is rare, but when a woman runs away, it's very alarming. Just last month, Georgia nursing student dies While jogging around campus. There have been at least nine known cases in the past 10 years. Women attacked and killed by strangers while running.
Laura Lara, who lives in Bell Gardens, said, “I feel safe when I run with the Mamis.'' She started carrying pepper spray when riding on the Rio Hondo bike path after an attack on a woman in the area. She is being followed by men in cars and pedestrians running by.
Lara, an avid marathon runner, said running calms her mind and helps her overcome life's challenges. Lara, who was on a mission to continue running after becoming pregnant, found out about the running mamis through his friends, but was unable to participate due to social anxiety. Fed up with her marathon training alone, she met with them for the first time in 2022. She found that running with a group improved her endurance and gave her the motivation she needed to keep running. Having someone in front of you and behind you makes it easier to run long distances.
“Running in the community is very motivating,” said Reyna Rodriguez, who teaches Chicano and women's studies at California State University, Los Angeles and has a 9-year-old son. She lives in Azusa and wakes up at 5 a.m. to run with the Mamis.
“It’s a sacrifice to get up early on Saturdays, but I do it because it’s so much fun,” she said. “Everyone is so supportive and waiting for everyone to finish. We're not doing it at a specific time or pace. We're doing it for the experience.”
Curiel is a fourth generation Xicana who was born in East LA and raised in Monterey Park and South San Gabriel. She has written for LA Taco, Latina Magazine, LAist, KCET, Alta, Huffington Post, and was a senior editor at Remezcla and SíTV.