As part of Expressing Motherhood’s continued interest in moms channeling their creativity I recently interviewed LA mom Lucie Murray. Lucie heads up Moms In MotionLA.
Jessica and myself participated in MIM for a few years and we loved it. The group meets up in Griffith park on Saturday mornings, sans children. 7:30-9:30AM. I started out only being able to jog for about, oh 10 minutes and ended up going for around 2 hours towards the end.
The new season just began, tomorrow will be the second time meeting. If you have any interest in going, go!
Lucie is an inspiring mom and a very passionate woman in regards to taking care of yourself. Here are some questions I asked her.
How did you become involved with MIM?
After I had my daughter I left my job at Caltech where I was a Development Officer and had to wear business suits, to be a stay-at-home-mom. I wasn’t content NOT working but I wanted something that would work for me and my family. I had my Personal Trainer Certification and had been training a few clients, mostly as a hobby, so I started teaching Stroller Strides in Burbank. It was great working with moms and babies but my daughter didn’t like hanging out in the stroller or sharing my attention. I heard about MIM through a friend who sent me the link. It seemed like the perfect way to be my own boss, encourage activity/fitness, share my passion for running, and meet other moms.
How old was your child when you became involved?
I started MIM in 2007, one week after Delilah turned 2.
Your creative outlet is running, correct me if I’m wrong, so how do you make it fit into your life?
You are right. Running is my passion and my creative outlet. I have learned that the most essential ingredients to fitting it in are consistency and friends. I have a set running schedule that I rarely veer from. I run at the crack of dawn during the week (6am usually), I have MIM on Saturdays. Sunday is my long run (unless I have an event). If I don’t stick to my schedule, the rest of life creeps in. It’s easy to find excuses NOT to run when there are demands from family, work, school/PTA, household, etc. I often struggle with getting out of bed at 5:20am but i know that if I don’t do it I will find many reasons not to go for my run and then I’ll feel rotten. I go early because that way no one can get in the way – the whole house is sleeping and therefore not “needing” me. My husband knows the drill and is really supportive. The other ingredient is friends. I have a friend who I run with most weekdays. Just knowing that she’s waiting for me at the park is enough to drag myself out of bed. Saturdays the MIMs get me there, and Sunday I have a list of people I text and call to recruit to run with me. It’s also nice knowing so many people who run in Griffith Park so we say hello and will even get in a few miles with each other. The importance of social element of running was made abundantly clear to me when, this summer, I had an injury and couldn’t run. I could spin, swim, and do weights but running and walking were out. That meant being indoors in the gym, doing rather solitary exercise. I was getting my workout but it didn’t take long to realize how much I missed my running and my friendships and being outdoors in the park. After 11 weeks I was able to get out and walk/run again and my first mile, with my dear friend, was such a joy.
How do you balance being a mother and MIM?
Ah yes, there’s that word “balance”, something I’m striving for in 2013. It’s hard to own a business and be a mom who likes to be there when the school bell rings. Often my life is out of balance and I work hard to reign it in. Smart Phones are a blessing and a curse. I love being able to connect with my clients, my team, my friends, etc at all hours, but sometimes it’s hard to find time to just disengage. I have to power down my phone to truly get away. The great news is the my daughter has known my MIM and running world for so long that it’s habit for her. She actually appreciates that I’m gone most weekend mornings so she can hang in her jammies and watch TV without her nagging mom telling her to turn off her favorite show. Then when I get home I’m in a good mood and we’re ready to go paint the town.
