PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — There is a full spectrum of things that motivate people to run in this weekend’s Pittsburgh Marathon races.
For Emily Hensel of Mars, that motivation is her 22-month-old son Henry. Just nine months after Henry was born, she won a 10-mile race in Disney World in 2023.
“It felt amazing, I was so elated, I couldn’t really believe it,” she said.
For many new moms, it’s something that seems improbable, as it was for her. She had Henry via a cesarean section. When she finally got back to running, she said it was like starting from scratch.
“I have never felt so sore,” she said
But she kept running, realizing she was faster than she was before her pregnancy. She decided she’d start to compete competitively.
A year after she won the Disney race, she won the race in Disney 10-miler again. Now, she’s preparing to run in the Pittsburgh Half Marathon.
She says her message for other new moms is to listen to their bodies.