After weaving through the L.A. neighborhoods of Boyle Heights, Little Tokyo, downtown and Chinatown during an early Saturday morning practice run, members of Running Mamis began to trickle into L.A. State Historic Park, gathering at the finish line to wait for others.
Runners gave each other high fives and laughed as they shared sweaty hugs. For some, it was their final run before tackling a 26.2-mile race at the Los Angeles Marathon this Sunday.
While completing marathons is an athletic triumph, it’s not the end goal of Running Mamis. Founded in Boyle Heights in 2018, the running club offers a space for mothers, daughters, sisters and tías across Los Angeles to celebrate womanhood, build community and address the unique challenges women face in the running world.
“This is kind of my little pow-wow to get to be with the mujeres and develop friendships as I go through motherhood because it gets lonely,” said Yobana Cordero, who was raised in Boyle Heights but now drives from her home in Santa Clarita to run alongside other women.
For the full-time mother of two, running with Running Mamis doesn’t just give her goals to meet, it helps her grow beyond her identity as a mother.
“As you become a mom, you prioritize your husband, you prioritize your kids, but I forgot about myself. So this was an opportunity for me to kind of get in touch with me, a different woman,” Cordero said.
Cordero is among the 80 members of Running Mamis participating in this year’s L.A. Marathon. Ranging in age from 24 to 65, this is the largest group the team has fielded in the three years they’ve competed in the event.
In preparation, Running Mamis organized a series of runs, combining speed work, recovery sessions and long-distance runs up to 20 miles. Those not running the marathon often line the sidelines, cheering on their fellow members.
That kind of support is at the heart of the group’s mission, says Jo Anna Mixpe Ley, a Roosevelt High School teacher who co-founded Running Mamis with Raquel Roman, executive director of community nonprofit Proyecto Pastoral, and two other mothers.
While women-focused running groups have recently sprouted around the L.A. region, Ley believes Running Mamis is unique. Originally formed to support mothers pushing strollers who were often sidelined in races, the group expanded to include all women– regardless of age, experience or body size.
The club also provides practical solutions for the challenges women face in running, from managing cramps with the right electrolytes to navigating runs while breastfeeding.
“I’m so proud of all the women. It takes a lot. It takes so much to be able to train for a marathon,” said Ley. “[They’re] inspiring future generations of [their] children, sobrinas, sobrinos, partners and community.”
For Lauren Garcia, a Huntington Park resident, running her first L.A. Marathon comes with a mix of emotions.
“It’s intimidating, scary, nerve-wracking, but also empowering and motivational and emotional,” Garcia said. The 40-year-old mother is inspired by the strength of her 7-year-old daughter who lives with a rare genetic disorder. She said she started running a year and a half ago, initially just two miles a day. Gradually she increased her mileage.
“I’m like, if I can run 12 miles a week, I can run a half marathon. And then with all these women they’re like, ‘Yeah, you could totally do it.’ The community really did help motivate me and push me to sign up for a marathon,” Garcia said.
That sense of community extends beyond the women who train together multiple times a week. While running on the streets can sometimes feel unsafe, Garcia said the group is often cheered on by community members when they run around Boyle Heights or East L.A., where Garcia grew up.
“You see abuelitas on the street cheering you on. You hear the street vendors say, ‘Buenos dias, pasenle.’ It’s like they’re letting you be yourself. And you’re showing them, ‘Hey, us women can run too,’ ” Garcia said.
For Eloisa Cortes, 49, this year’s L.A. Marathon will be her seventh and final race.
Despite not being a mother, Cortes was welcomed into Running Mamis with open arms, she said. That gesture of community support was enough to keep her coming back.
“They really embrace you,” Cortes said, proudly wearing a gold necklace with a “26.2” pendant, the standard mileage of a marathon. “The space they offer is safe. It’s okay to be slow. It’s okay to be fast. It’s okay to be in the middle. And they respect that. And that’s big. That’s really big.”