Mirna Valerio on running ultramarathons and being an advocate for body positivity.
You may have seen Mirna Valerio in “The Mirnavator.” Her film, presented by REI, has millions of views on Facebook. It starts with her reading an angry letter from a guy who wrote to her while she was doing a 50K run. He called her a “fraud,” a “liar,” and said she is not only faking running ultramarathons, but she’s making a bad name for runners because she is overweight and doesn’t “look like a runner.” .
Well, Mirna can not only run, but she’s a true Force of Nature. She’s also a teacher, coach, diversity leader, trained opera singer, mom, wife, and recently added brand ambassador and author to her resume with her book, A Beautiful Work in Progress. A few years ago, when Mirna started doing longer runs, she started a site called Fat Girl Running. There weren’t a lot of people who looked like her on the trail, and she wanted to get more people outside running.
Mirna’s wild idea: To run ultramarathons and advocate for body positivity, showing others fitness comes in many sizes.
Listening to Mirna speak is inspiring. She has an incredible outlook on the world, she laughs easily, and she isn’t afraid to go deep. We talked about diving into the uncomfortable, dealing with haters, how to create opportunities for yourself and how you can be a runner no matter your size, shape or background.
Listen to this episode if:
- You want to start running.
- You are self-conscious about your body or fitness level.
- You need a dose of positivity.
- You want to break out of your comfort zone.
- You hate when people tell you that you can’t do something.