Welcome to The Mother Runners
I’m Whitney Heins, the founder of The Mother Runners, a VDOT-O2 certified running coach, 2:56 marathoner, freelance writer, a former award-winning TV news journalist…and most importantly, a mom of two beautiful, crazy kids. I’ve been featured in Runner’s World, The Huffington Post, US News and World Report, and more. I’m thrilled to share all I learn with you so you can be your best selves on and off the roads. After all, running makes us better mothers, and vice versa.
Running is such an individual sport but when you become a mother, it can require a whole team of people and major schedule finessing to help you get out the door. It can require countless times of crying babies being pulled off you and pre-pre-dawn wake-ups to ensure it happens before the day’s craziness sets in.
At The Mother Runners, you’ll find information for all things at the intersection of running and motherhood brought to you by my personal experiences and research, and conversations with other Mother Runners and experts.
The Passionate Runner Podcast
I have the pure pleasure of hosting a podcast ABOUT RUNNING for RunnerClick called The Passionate Runner podcast. On the podcast, I speak with experts and running pros to share insider knowledge and inspiration so you can run your best and BE your best in the time that you have.
The Blog
The Latest
This week I had a 40-minute tempo run. To be completely transparent, tempos are my least favorite kind of workout. I knew I needed a …
Runners are always trying to gain a competitive edge—especially marathoners. And a major way to do that is with fueling—tinkering with how many carbohydrates you …
Ah, we are here again. Another round of a COVID variant that’s getting people sick everywhere. The athletes I coach seem to be a good …
What is supercompensation in running? Is this the next thing to be superified—super storms, super strains, super moon… No, supercompensation training theory has been around …
The other day I was at a playdate for my daughter and her friends when one of the moms said to me, “how do I …
A lot has been learned in just the past few years about what exercise is safe for pregnant women—and how much. For the longest time, …
Motherhood Running
A lot has been learned in just the past few years about what exercise is safe for pregnant women—and how much. For the longest time, …
I have a secret to tell you—something that happens to me on the regular. I get completely blocked and lose all creativity when it comes …
UPDATED July 19, 2022: This week one of my athletes shared that she learned she had low iron and a ferritin level of two. TWO. …
Running while pregnant is possible! And many pregnant runners do it with a secret weapon—a belly band for runners.
A belly band (also called a maternity …
It can seem like the worst thing in the world: getting your period on race day. And many female runners will ask themselves: should I …
You can do a sit-up pregnant. NO! You can’t! It’s dangerous!…You can do a plank. NO! Stop! You’ll hurt the baby! There is so much …
Run Training
This week I had a 40-minute tempo run. To be completely transparent, tempos are my least favorite kind of workout. I knew I needed a …
Runners are always trying to gain a competitive edge—especially marathoners. And a major way to do that is with fueling—tinkering with how many carbohydrates you …
Ah, we are here again. Another round of a COVID variant that’s getting people sick everywhere. The athletes I coach seem to be a good …
What is supercompensation in running? Is this the next thing to be superified—super storms, super strains, super moon… No, supercompensation training theory has been around …
The other day I was at a playdate for my daughter and her friends when one of the moms said to me, “how do I …
A lot has been learned in just the past few years about what exercise is safe for pregnant women—and how much. For the longest time, …
Weather-Related Running Tips
UPDATED July 7, 2022: Don’t worry if you are riding this struggle bus this summer. It is HARD but running in heat will pay off …
It should be simple. If you run in the heat, drink more water. But figuring out how much to drink and when while running in …
We all know it—the first day that spring decides to give us a preview and we can’t wait to run—only to feel totally heavy and …
When it comes to running in the rain, there are two schools of thought: don’t fight it and get totally soaked (and get cold and …
The weather is starting to transition to warmer temperatures as the flowers begin to bud and grass green. ‘Tis the time to start dreaming of …
Runners are like the mail delivery people: no type of weather deters us. We run in cold, hot, rain, snow, sleet, wind, ice. You name …
Motivation
The biggest obstacle to completing 26.2 is hitting the wall in the marathon. So many runners have beautiful and perfect training cycles that are completely …
UPDATED April 22, 2022: I wrote this post a year ago, and now I’m revisiting it. Why? Because I’ve had to take so many breaks over …
Life as a mother runner is BUSY. If there is anything we have in common, it’s that we are time-poor. This means we must be …
Runners are like the mail delivery people: no type of weather deters us. We run in cold, hot, rain, snow, sleet, wind, ice. You name …
One of the main goals of running is to run longer without stopping. People stop running for many reasons: we are low on energy. Our …
At some point in most runners’ lives, even if they don’t live up North, they’ll be faced with running in the snow. And, wonder, how …
Gear
This is a true story that happened TODAY. My husband hurt his back and neck yesterday. He could barely walk when I saw him this …
Running while pregnant is possible! And many pregnant runners do it with a secret weapon—a belly band for runners.
A belly band (also called a maternity …
Most runners know that the way to recover is to increase blood flow. Practically every recovery tool has this aim—including compression therapy.
And now there are …
The other day I had a stack of boxes at my door so big, that neighbors helped to move them so we could enter the …
UPDATED May 21, 2022: Massage guns for runners are all the rage these days. But are massage guns worth the money? Can massage guns really …
There is a magical recovery tool that can help you warm-up for your run, recover faster from your run, and prevent injuries. It’s called a …
Most Popular
A lot has been learned in just the past few years about what exercise is safe for pregnant women—and how much. For the longest time, …
It can seem like the worst thing in the world: getting your period on race day. And many female runners will ask themselves: should I …
The other day I had a stack of boxes at my door so big, that neighbors helped to move them so we could enter the …
UPDATED May 21, 2022: Massage guns for runners are all the rage these days. But are massage guns worth the money? Can massage guns really …
Oh, the treadmill. Runners have a love/hate relationship with the thing. But the truth is, whether you are escaping the suffocating sweltering heat, the slippery …
As a journalist and an athlete, I like answers. And with COVID-19, there aren’t a lot of clear ones. I found this to be true …
Mother Runner of the Month
“The world would be a better place if there were more KCs in it.”
Those are the words used to describe December’s Mother Runner of the …
Meet our November Mother Runner of the Month Donna Villavicencio, and she will change your life.
As the owner/trainer of a women’s owned gym, triathlon coach, …
Allie O’Rourke of Petaluma, California is our October Mother Runner of the Month! And, she is, the best I can tell, one of those mother …
Mother runners, meet your September Mother Runner of the Month (& GRANDmother Runner of the Month) Leslie Barrenal of Santiago, Chile. Leslie has 3 kids, …
Kerri Maess, our August Mother Runner of the Month, started running about 9 years ago with her brother who weighed in at over 300 pounds and …
It’s safe to say July’s Mother Runner of the Month, Laura Filla, has found her passion: The St. Louis mom has run through her most …