Advertisement

• Home
• Where to run
  Running courses Hotel running maps GPS tracks Running calendars Running challenges
• Sections
  Running articles Running Top 10 Running in cold weather Running in hot weather Running with your dog Safety for runners Running nutrition Running shoes Running news True running stories Running fiction Running software Running books Running illustrations Running history Products reviews Hiking articles
• Humor
  Funny articles The Perfect Bunion Skewed Running Running cartoons Running jokes Funny videoclips
• Community
  Running in different cultures Running communities Worldwide Runners Disaster Response Team
• Wiki
  Running Wiki Disclaimer for user-generated content
• About
  Customer service Subscribe Job opportunities Join our network
• More...

Mom wins an ultramarathon while breast pumping

ENGLAND — A mum has run a 62-mile (100km) ultramarathon while breast pumping - and won. Sophie Carter, 43, didn't want her eight-month-old son to go without breast milk while she took part in the race last month, so she decided to express milk for him while running. It took the mum-of-five just nine hours, 50 minutes and 25 seconds to complete the "Race to the Stones" from Lewknor to Avebury, UK, and she crossed the finish line in first place.

"When I was running pregnant, I felt like my body was being nourished and fed well because it was growing the baby," Carter, who has been running marathons since 2005, said.

"Running while breastfeeding felt harder, ironically, because I was giving my resources to feed my baby. I had to drink a lot more and be more conscious of hydrating.

"With a new baby, you're getting a lot less sleep because you're up at night feeding, and that made it harder too."

Carter used the hands-free Elvie Pump to express while she ran, and says it didn't get in the way of her run like a manual pump would have. She then handed the milk to her partner at intervals during the race.

"I did originally think that I wouldn't be able to run the race while breastfeeding – that it was too far. If I'd had to stop and feed, I wasn't sure how it was going to work," she adds.

"Then I saw the pump and I was like, 'Oh, that looks great.' It just attaches and you press a button and it does its thing. I think it maybe affected my speed a bit, just with having the pump on and passing the milk over."

Carter, who lives in Oxford, adds that on the day of the race, she managed to get into the right headspace and that it ‘helped' knowing that her baby would still be getting milk.

"I knew that I was fit and I had trained for the event, but you kind of still doubt yourself thinking, 'Oh, well, I don't know what's gonna happen'," she says.

"I fed Teddy with my breast at the finish line as well. It's just amazing what your body can do."

Carter has shared her experience with a researcher in a bid to help other people - and show that it won't hinder anyone breastfeeding from running long distances if they want to.

"I haven't had any criticism for running while expressing. Everyone has just been like, 'Wow, that's amazing. I don't know how you did it'," she says.

"I contacted a professor doing research in the area, as it's quite important for women to know what is and isn't possible. I've shown that even if you want to go out and do just a 5K or a half marathon, you're not going to be hindered whatsoever if you've got a baby to feed or you're pregnant.".

Credits - This true article, "Mum wins 62-mile ultramarathon while breast pumping" by Laura Hampson, was published on "AOL Lifestyle".

True running stories - A growing collection of incredible, bizarre, and unusual stories from the world of running. Prepared to be shocked at what we uncover when it comes to strange news, first-hand accounts, headlines, and reports from running around the world.