“I remember a year and a half ago … I noticed I’d started gaining weight,” she laughs.
Salty laughs too. “Sorry,” she giggles, “but a lot of people can relate to that!”
Zoila Gomez smiles good-naturedly before she continues, pausing and fumbling a moment for the right words before she finds them. “I love myself. Being overweight or being bigger doesn’t bother me. But what I noticed was my change in mood, and I didn’t like that. I’m normally a very positive person, but I started feeling more pessimistic than optimistic, and I didn’t like that.”
“Just knowing you now, it’s hard to imagine you ever being like that,” Salty says, incredulous. It’s only been about twenty minutes since we met Zoila, but I can’t help feeling the same way. Zoila is a woman who bubbles over with happiness and positivity. Being near her is like finding a sunny patch on a chilly day; you turn your face toward the warmth and can’t help smiling.
She goes on to talk about having to size up in clothing. “I said ‘no thank you.’ I needed to start moving because … I needed to go and teach children about fitness and nutrition.” These are things you don’t expect to hear from a woman who was the 2008 USA Olympic Marathon Team Alternate. And we marvel at Zoila’s matter-of-fact smile in disbelief that someone so elite can be so very like us. Read more >>
When you’re at a group run or a race, there’s always that one group of people, the ones who just make you cringe and wonder where they went wrong in life. They compliment each other, make time to help one another, and they are always telling stories about how they get up crazy early to run, or how sometimes they skip a run all together just so they can be there for their families. They high-five each other and sometimes even hug each other after a run or race, even if it didn’t go well! This strange group of women can be seen smiling and laughing, and never seem to care who is the fastest of the group.
