366. The Everyday Runner, Jen Correa

Ali on the Run Show

Ali Feller

Run, Health & Fitness, Women, Inspiration, Runner, Entrepreneur, Sports, Fitness, Health, Running

4.9 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 27 April 2021

⏱️ 77 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

“The water took everything, but we had ourselves and all of our communities and friends who made sure we had everything else.”

Welcome to the newest series on the Ali on the Run Show: The Everyday Runner. For the next four weeks, we’ll hear from runners who are just like you and me. Not professional athletes — these runners have jobs, families, and responsibilities beyond this sport we all love so much.

First up: Meet Jen Correa! Jen is a mom of two (plus two dogs!) from Staten Island, NY. She works in insurance, and we met through the running blog world in the early 2010s, when Jen was blogging at Mom’s Gotta Run. On this episode, Jen shares her running story, which started when her friend convinced her to run a Corporate Challenge race. She wasn’t an athlete growing up — “I have nightmares of gym class,” she says — but after her first race as an adult (and a pack-a-day smoker), she was hooked. Eventually, Jen gave up smoking, but she stuck with running, including marathons. In 2012, Jen and her family lost everything when Hurricane Sandy touched down in Staten Island. Their house was lifted off its foundation, and floated nearly a mile away. They had to start over, and on this episode, Jen, 46, talks about how, exactly, they did that. She shares her poignant takeaways from losing it all, and talks about the controversy surrounding the New York City Marathon’s cancellation at the time.

SPONSOR: Picky Bars — Visit pickybars.com/ontherun, where code ONTHERUN gets you 20% off. (Join the Picky Club and get an extra 20% off.

What you’ll get on this episode:

Reflecting back on the early 2010s, and what it was like being a part of the running community in New York City during that time (5:45)
Jen talks about her childhood, and about how she found running (9:00)
On adopting and owning the “runner” title (15:45)
On being a New Yorker on September 11, 2001 (18:30)
What Jen’s relationship with running was like during and after her pregnancies (20:00)
Jen talks about her family’s experience in the wake of Hurricane Sandy (31:30)
“When you’ve lost everything — except each other — what do you do?” (46:00)
What running — and finally running the New York City Marathon — was like after Hurricane Sandy (52:00)
What it was like running the 2016 New York City Marathon representing Staten Island as part of the Foot Locker Five Borough Challenge (1:01:30)

What we mention on this episode:

Michele Gonzalez on Episode 87 of the Ali on the Run Show

Michele Gonzalez on Episode 19 of the Ali on the Run Show

Follow Jen:

Instagram @jenjencorrea

Follow Ali:

Listen & Subscribe:

SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you’re enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

Transcript

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0:00.0	This episode of The Alley on the Run Show is brought to you by PickyBars.
0:03.8	Go to PickyBars.com slash on the run and use code on the run for 20% off your next order.
0:14.6	Welcome to The Alley on the Run Show. I'm your host Allie Feller and this is the
0:19.0	Everyday Runner series. For the next four weeks, I will be introducing you to runners just like
0:24.9	you and me. We're not professional runners. We have jobs, we have families, we have responsibilities
0:31.6	beyond our favorite hobby. This series has come by very popular demand and I hope you love
0:37.8	meeting the four runners that I'll be featuring here. First up, Jen Corea. I first met Jen nearly
0:44.4	a decade ago in New York City where we were both part of the booming running blogger scene.
0:50.7	She blogged at Moms Gotta Run and we met for the first time in real life in 2011 at Jackrabbit
0:56.3	Sports on the Upper East Side where I was hosting a fundraising event for the Crohn's and
1:00.7	Colitis Foundation. Jen is a mom of two. She works for New York Life and she lives in Staten
1:06.5	Island with her husband and their children. On this episode, she will share her running story,
1:11.7	like many of us. She started running as an adult. She was not the star of her high school track team
1:17.4	or the running back on the championship winning soccer team. I know, I know, I'm kidding, I know
1:22.4	running back is not a soccer position. I know that that's football. But Jen didn't play soccer or
1:27.7	football or run track. She started running as an adult because a friend convinced her to do it.
1:33.4	She ran a corporate challenge race in Manhattan and she was hooked. At the time, Jen was a
1:39.3	pack-a-day smoker and she jokes it was hard to find a light at the finish line. She did
1:44.7	eventually give up smoking but she stuck with running. Jen is a multiple-time marathoner and if
1:50.4	her name sounds familiar, that's because Jen was something of a running community spokesperson
1:55.5	back in 2012. Now if you say New York City marathon 2012 to any runner, they'll usually respond
2:03.1	with just one word. Sandy. That was the year that Hurricane Sandy ravaged the New York City area
	...

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