Breaking Barriers: Women Runners, Motherhood & Resilience — with author, MAGGIE MERTENS

Send us Fan MailIn this powerful season finale, I sit down with journalist and author Maggie Mertens (@maggiejmertens) to unpack the untold history—and future—of women in sport, running, and motherhood.Maggie is a Seattle-based writer whose work spans gender, athletics, and culture. Her book Better Faster Farther: How Running Changed Everything We Know About Women breaks down the myths that held women back for decades and highlights the stories that never made it into the headlines. After finishing her book, she returned to running at 37 and recently completed her first half marathon—proof that rewriting the narrative starts in our own lives, too.This episode dives deep into the real experiences of women who run, lift, train, and raise families while navigating outdated cultural beliefs about their bodies. From postpartum fitness to perimenopause realities, athletic identity shifts, and the mental health benefits of movement, Maggie brings clarity, honesty, and perspective we all need.We talk about: 🔹 Balancing motherhood and athletic identity 🔹 The biggest myths holding women in sport back 🔹 Why the victim mindset keeps women stuck—and how to shift it 🔹 Exercise, running, and mental health (especially in midlife) 🔹 Returning to fitness postpartum without the pressure or shameIf you’re a runner, athlete, postpartum or perimenopausal mom, or someone reclaiming your athletic identity, this is a must-listen conversation.Time Stamps1:00 Introduction5:15 how far back can we look?9:50 women who have been lost to history16:53 motherhood versus being an athlete19:42 race and the research24:09 women being treated as delicate29:50 societal pressures33:40 breaking barriers in the mile37:15 women’s marathon history40:57 coming back to running50:17 what’s next52:13 rapid fire questionsCONNECT WITH CARRIEIG: https://www.instagram.com/carriepagliano/Website: https://carriepagliano.comCONNECT WITH MAGGIE:IG: https://www.instagram.com/maggiejmertens/Website: https://maggiemertens.com/Substack: https://maggiemertens.substack.com/Book: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/maggie-mertens/better-faster-farther/9781643753355/The Active Mom Podcast — a real mom's guide to pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause & beyond, for active moms and the professionals who help them get there.Quick-hit conversations with moms, providers, and researchers... because you don't have a lot of free time (you're probably listening at 1.5x right now).Follow so you don't miss an episode. Rate & review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ — it's how the next mom searching for these answers actually finds them. Share it with the friend who needs it.Questions or topic requests? DM me 💌