Feature Friday: Noelle Lovoi

Feature Friday: Noelle Lovoi

Noelle Lovoi's Story

"I had every excuse to not chase this dream, but something in me knew I needed to do this. I needed to show my boys that they can achieve their goals with hard work and determination."


My Name is Noelle (AKA RunningWithBubbas). I started getting serious about running after I had my first Bubba, Micah, about 5 years ago.

After I had my first son, I wanted to run with him! We started stroller running when he was around 5 months old. I loved that we could share this activity together while I was able to get fit and also find myself in the cloudy mess of being a new mom.

When I got pregnant with my second Bubba, Malachi, I was determined to continue running and have a fit pregnancy. I was blessed to be able to run up until the day I went into labor.

Now, figuring out how to find "me" again as a mom of two little ones, I started getting the overwhelming feeling I needed a goal, a BIG goal. I had previously ran 2 full marathons before I had my second son.

My first full marathon went horribly! I injured myself and was barely able to finish. I hobbled across the finish line with a time of 5:18 swearing I'd never run a full marathon again. I didn't hold to that long and soon signed up to run the same marathon again the next year.

I felt like I wanted to redeem myself. This time I trained better and was in better running shape. However, the unseasonably hot temperatures that year took a toll on me and I finished at 3:52, almost 20 slower than my goal. I was disappointed because I knew, based on my training, that I could run fast enough to get that BQ.

I attempted a 3rd full marathon 5 months postpartum, but didn't train well and due to uterine prolapse, I ended up DNF at the halfway point. So, the thought of trying AGAIN for that BQ felt a bit overwhelming and a bit impossible now that I had 2 little ones to watch over. Call me crazy, but I decided that was the goal I wanted to go for. I knew that I needed to try at least one more time.

To give some insight to what my training was like and to give you an idea of what us #motherrunners overcome to chase our dreams keep reading!

Pushing a stroller was a common sight when I trained to BQ my last marathon. Over half my training miles were ran pushing a double stroller. I had to plan each day around how I could get my run in, often times having to split up runs between the stroller and treadmill. It was winter when I started this training cycle. I was 9 months postpartum. My baby was teething and waking up multiple times a night (still does occasionally). I was sleep deprived and run ragged from my VERY active 4 year old.

I had every excuse to not chase this dream, but something in me knew I needed to do this. I needed to show my boys that they can achieve their goals with hard work and determination. I needed to show other moms that they can dream beyond just being mom. I needed to prove to myself that I could do this!

Toeing that start line this June, I was a ball of nerves, but I knew I had put in the work. ALL those stroller miles, all that treadmill time, and all those long runs when I wanted to give up, weren't done for nothing.

I reminded myself of all the folks in this amazing community that were virtually cheering me on and knew I could do it for them and for my boys. I managed to cross the finish at 3:33 almost 7 full minutes under my goal BQ time!

Finally earning that BQ after 3 failed attempts was something I never dreamed could happen, but if you believe in the impossible, the sky's the limit! So go get'm mommas!!!