Episode 45: Jen Benna on Engaging Struggle and Celebrating Life through 17 Years of Ultra Running
by Nikki Parnell — February 26, 2021
This week we talk with Jen Benna, a mother of two, a phenomenal runner and someone who has many inspiring stories and life experiences to share with us. Jen takes us through the evolution of her 17 year long ultra running journey and how running has intertwined with the different phases of her life. She’s run through motherhood, through stress, through family tragedy and grief, through times of giving too much to running and times of not giving it enough. She has come to a beautiful place of growth, faith, loving the process, engaging the struggle, believing in herself and letting go of imposter syndrome. She now embraces all the parts of her life that make her who she is and she runs from a strong sense of “why”.
As far as the mother running goes, Jen really thrived in the nursing eras of her running and she told us hilarious stories of pumping and running during long races. At a time when her friends were carving their shoes to run lighter, she was carving her breast pump to run lighter so she wouldn’t have to stop during races! She describes racing other moms in 100 milers (like Ashley Nordell from Episode 17) when their babies were little and the shared understanding between mothers of what it takes to get to a race and the celebration of our bodies giving us big efforts. She also tells a story of a 50 miler she raced and won a week after her daughter had been in the ICU for 12 days with pneumonia and they almost lost her. But her daughter was strong, she pulled through and Jen raced with a fire and gratitude, reveling in her daughter’s new lease on life (and yes, you’ll need a tissue for this part).
We get to hear the behind-the-scenes, labor-of-love story of when Jen and her husband, JB, made Unbreakable! If you haven’t watched this classic film about Western States and some of the big name runners in our sport, you’ll want to check it out (link below)! It’s so inspiring when people put all of their heart and soul into a passion project.
People like Jen really remind me that what we’re doing – as mothers continuing to pursue our running dreams and bumping up against struggle when life gets hard – is a supremely beautiful thing. Each time we’re able to show up and run, we are honoring the life we get to live, the lives we have created in our kids and the strength that sustains us. This episode is filled with golden nuggets to take with you in training and in life, so enjoy! Click the link below to listen or search “Run Hard Mom Hard” on your preferred podcast platform. Don’t forget to rate and review, subscribe, and share this one with your fellow mother runners!
A big thanks to our sponsor this week, Cadenshae! Cadenshae is a maternity activewear brand based out of New Zealand that makes medically endorsed maternity, postpartum and nursing apparel such as leggings, shorts, bras and tops! Check out their awesome products at cadenshae.com and use code RUNHARD15% for 15% off your purchase!
Show Notes:
Find Jen on Instagram
Jen’s Coach: David Roche
Watch Unbreakable on Youtube!
Jen’s favorite race: Zion 100
Jen’s Favorite meal: Sushi bowls or wraps consisting of sushi rice, salmon, cucumber, avocado, seaweed, and ponzu sauce.
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