This episode of the More Than Nine podcast features The Funny Runner, Brittany Charboneau. Brittany candidly discusses her difficult pregnancy, marked by severe nausea, depression, and unmet expectations and emphasizes the importance of normalizing the harder emotional realities of pregnancy, including prenatal depression, and allowing space for gratitude and struggle to coexist.
Podcast Transcript
Erika Wolf-Ferraco, Executive Director, Fetal Health Foundation: Hello everybody and welcome into the Fetal Health Foundation’s podcast, “More Than Nine: Real Talk on Life Before, Within and Beyond the Womb.” The goal here of our podcast is to talk about the entire arc of pregnancy and parenthood. So it’s not just about those nine months of being pregnant, it’s about everything from the time you decide that you might want to become a parent all the way until you become an empty nester.
Everything in between. The highs, the lows. We want to hold space for every part of the journey. And so that’s what we are here to talk about today. We have an amazing guest. But, before we get to her, I just wanted to say briefly. My name is Erika Wolf Ferraco. I’m the executive director here at the Fetal Health Foundation, and today we are joined by Lonnie Summers, one of our co-founders.
So Lonnie, take it away.
Lonnie Somers, Co-Founder, Fetal Health Foundation: All right, well, excited to be here with everybody today. My name is Lonnie Somers. I’m the founder and chair of the Fetal Health Foundation after going through our own journey with a fetal syndrome, almost 23 years ago with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome. And that successful outcome after having in-utero surgery to save our daughter’s lives led to us creating a foundation.
Very coincidentally we’re going to be talking with someone who is a professional athlete running and we created a run, that will be going into its 22nd year to raise money and awareness around fetal anomalies. and then that led to the creation of the Fetal Health Foundation. Deals with all things from healthy pregnancies all the way to fetal syndromes, to be the number one resource for families out there when they’re certainly experiencing a fetal anomaly or syndrome.
And I am so excited because I have one of my favorite people in the whole world on today, who does comedy a bit better than I do ’cause she’s professional at it and she does running better than I do ’cause she’s a professional athlete. Today, welcome on more than nine. We have the amazing Brittany she’s definitely redefining what it means for big goals on the trails on the stage.
And now most recently motherhood. She’s really known as the funny runner. And is a professional trail runner for the North Face, a comedian, and again, most recently a brand-new mom who we were just talking about who just loves it, loves it, loves it, love it. A little bit about Brittany’s background is she started running at 13 because it was a social thing to do, and for nearly 18 years, she called herself a pretty quote unquote average runner.
Then she won her first race, and the momentum never stopped. She has since represented team USA three times and built a career that blends elite performance with standup worthy humor and authenticity. Authenticity. That was easy for me to say, but now she’s navigating a whole new world, endurance like life as an athlete and mother from sleepless nights to finish lines.
Britanny brings the same mix of grit and laughter to every mile of this new journey. She joins us today to talk about training identity, creativity, and what it really means to be more than a runner. Or as one might put it more than funny, more than fast, and definitely more than nine. Brittany, welcome to our podcast.
Brittany, The Funny Runner: Thanks. I’m so happy to be here.
Lonnie: We are so excited to have you here and, wow. I mean, it’s been so awesome because I got to be there, I think, when you won the Colfax Marathon and see you blossom from a later timeframe in your professional career of running, to exactly what we talked about in your intro to becoming this professional athlete. That must have been quite a journey.
Brittany: Yeah. So, first of all, Lonnie, the feeling is so mutual. One of my favorite people you are, and Erika, great to get to meet you and chat as well. Yeah, I won the Colfax Marathon in 2017 and I was late twenties and I was running just as an average runner and that.
Colfax holds a special place in my heart because obviously it’s a hometown race. It was my first marathon I ever won. But it was the point in my running that I realized, oh, if I put just a little bit more dedicated time into training, maybe I can chase some big dreams and some big goals. And I went with it.
And here I am almost, you know, 10 years later and I have a. Professional career. I’m making a living, being a professional runner. So I have so many pinch-me moments that, really all it takes is that one moment of belief in yourself and Colfax is that for me. So I’m just lucky I had that as my trampoline into my professional career.
Lonnie: That’s awesome. I know this is taking things a little off track but one thing I’m very fascinated about being in the industry or the running sport for over 20 years is you’re one of the few people that I know that has turned professional athlete. But still keeps a sense and grounded sense of humor about it.
You change things like that. So talk a little bit about that. ’cause you do everything like your training runs, searching for coins. Also you touch on the fact, because I’m a Disney geek is you did something really cool at the Disney Marathon.
Brittany: Yeah, thank you. That means a lot that, that’s coming across because sometimes I’m like, I think people think I’m just, a big weirdo racing in costume and running and training in costume and picking up trash off the ground when I run.
But it’s really important to me to keep the fun and keep the joy in training and racing because. I didn’t for a while. So after I won Colfax, I quit my job and decided I was going to be a professional athlete and just did what I thought I saw on social media, which was, it’s intense. You have to dedicate your life and you have to make it, you have to be serious about it.
You have to take this seriously. And I did. And I took it way too seriously. So not fun. It was so not my jam. And I remember thinking early on that if I get who knows how much I was getting into my thirties and I was like, if I have, let’s say a decade to get to race at this level or get to train at this level, I don’t want to look back and wish I had more fun with it.
We don’t get that back. And so that was my mission from some of my earlier races where I just was taking it so seriously to “I’m gonna do it my way and this is my career.” It’s my story. I get to do it my way. And my way is just fun and creativity. That’s what really keeps my soul alive.
So I’ve really tried to balance both and I do think that there is, I hope to be proof that you can accomplish big things. You can chase really big goals, but you can do it while enjoying yourself and having fun. And so that was one of my goals in 2022 when I won the Dopey Challenge at the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend, I was the first person to ever win the 5K, the 10K, the half marathon, and the full marathon, all dressed in costume.
That’s what I like to do. I like to do let’s, yeah, let’s go for the Olympic trials. Let’s, let’s win races. But if I can’t do it in full costume, ’cause North Face in my contract says I have to race in North Face gear, I can still theme it in my brain. I can still think about fun, creative things.
My playlist can be really fun and creative. My training can be fun and creative. ’cause if I’m spending this much time on. What I get to do, and I’m putting all these miles in. I don’t want them to suck. So I’m going to try to just channel creativity and joy into everything that I’m doing with it, because I really, genuinely love it so much that I gotta, protecting that is one of my biggest, goals in life.
Lonnie: Yeah. Well I think, you know, taking on the goofy challenge or the dopey challenge. Which is crazy ’cause it isn’t like you start with the marathon and work your way down. You work your way up. You do the 5K, the 10K, the half marathon, and the full marathon. So you’ve already run a whole bunch of miles and then you have a marathon.
You did it in costume. And I think not only, you know, you said you did one, all four of them in costume. First person ever do that. But I think weren’t you the first person to actually win all four events? First place.
Brittany: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yep. and the fun part about Disney is they start their races at 5:00 AM Eastern Time. So that’s, that’s another challenge in and of itself that I think we should add a bonus to.
Lonnie: Sure. Yeah. I think that’s remarkable that you do that because watching you on social media and stuff like that, you do always have these. If you can’t be in costume, you do the fun playlist.
You do costumes when you can, you do have fun with your running and you’re a really good athlete. So I love the fact that you are a serious athlete, but you don’t take yourself so seriously that you still try to have fun for it. I’m sure there were those struggle days for sure, but. Bringing the element your funny comedic side into that.
Brittany: And I think it refreshes people because I think it’s oh, if I’m training, I gotta be so serious and intense on this. But why? Just because that was the norm and what everybody expected. Why do you have to do that? Totally. And for me, my best results come when I’m super relaxed, when I am just in my flow state.
When I am approaching it like a work of art, it’s the same thing. It’s that same moment of flow and that’s what I crave in racing is getting to that moment of flow. Of course, there’s those hard, hard days, hard miles, you know, all of those hard things. There’s no denying that that’s part of it. And I do have my days that I struggle, but it’s so fun getting to.
I think differently about it and know that no matter what happens on the starting line, I already know I’m going to PR fun and I already know I’m going to out fun everybody out there and no one can take that away from me. And that’s something that I can control when all these other variables are out there out of my control.
So it’s really helped me and I think a lot of my best results are when I’m just out there playing, because I’m just loving what I’m getting to do. That’s fantastic.
Erika: Brittany, I had a question for you on that. Listening to you talk about wanting to have fun while you’re taking things seriously, I can’t help but draw the parallels between your running career and parenthood.
So, I’m just listening to this and I’m thinking: do you adopt this same kind of attitude toward raising Hugo, is he your work of art? There’s hard times and you take it seriously, but, do you do your best work when you’re relaxed and having fun as a parent?
Brittany: I think so. I mean, I’m only nine months into being a parent and I think our biggest goals, Justin, my husband and I, our biggest goals I think are to how do we just present Hugo with his own canvas. And how do we support whatever his fun is going to look like. Right now we’re guiding him, you do love costumes, right? But he may in a year or two be stop putting me in costume. I just wanna wear beige. And we’re here to support his idea of fun, which scares me if that’s what he wants.
The fun part’s actually coming a little bit easier than I thought. I think we hear about all of these stories about how hard parenting is and how, it’s the exact same of how hard marathoning is, but we don’t, I don’t think we get to hear as many stories about how much fun it is.
There’s so many fun parts about running and racing a marathon, and there are the hard moments with parenting so far. But man, this is so much more fun than I was expecting. And I’ve, because I have my marathon background, my brain is trained to pick up on the fun and to remember to find those fun moments that I’m feeling I’m constantly seeing those in everyday life with Hugo.
For example, he had a rough week last week, and wasn’t feeling well and we’re putting him to sleep and it’s “Come on dude. You’re so close to falling asleep. We know you’re so tired.” And then he’ll look up at you and he’ll just let a big, big fart rip and you’re “Oh my God, you’re amazing.”
This is hilarious. And then his favorite thing right now, same thing with me. you’re I know you’re so tired. And next thing I know, his little tiny fingers are just shoving the way up my nose. These little things that you’re this ridiculous. And again, I don’t want to look back on these early times with him and think, I wish I would’ve had more fun with him.
I’m luckily having my background with racing and training that I can easily swap over to parenting. And I’m not, I’m not naive to the fact that we’re nine months in. We haven’t even hit some of the hard times yet. But you lean on your team. Same way. I lean on my running team, I lean on my support team.
Justin and I lean on each other and our support team with parenting. And it takes a village to raise a runner. It takes a village to raise a human, but man, I’m having so much fun with it so far. And they use the parallel all the time of parenting as a marathon, not a sprint. Right?
Totally. Yeah. Yeah. And I think if you embrace it that way, then it’s what are we rushing? We don’t have to rush anything. Just be here in the moment with everything that’s going on. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Well you mentioned keeping the humor I think because of who you are and what you brought to running to make it.
Brittany: Yeah, I’m training hard, but I’m going to have fun with this. I think in parenting, it’s easy to get focused on, oh my gosh, I’m tired. I got this to do, my to-do list is a million miles long. And you miss those moments and probably the same way as an athlete, I’m training, I’m working really hard.
I did this race. It isn’t until much after you’re oh, that was fun. Oh, I wish I would’ve enjoyed that moment better than it was because I was so focused into. My training and I had to hit this pace instead of taking in the experience. And so you’re taking in the experience of motherhood and being a parent.
It’s not perfect all the time, that it just automatically wakes up. And little birds hanging around you every day. Doesn’t work that way.
Lonnie: But the fact that you’re bringing that I think is really cool. It made me remember a quick story on my side about the humor.
I remember when my daughters, they were, we went through everything. They were born early, they were in the NICU. Really super tiny. And I remember I had to change a diaper for the first time. I’m changing the diaper. Then one of my daughters has a bowel movement when that happens, it looks like a toothpaste tube of stuff coming out.
And, but it kept coming and I remember looking at the nurse being like, when does this stop? This tiny little thing is it’s just coming and coming and coming ’cause I gotta get a new diaper on anyway.
Lonnie: You have three really distinct things, being a comedian, being a runner, being a mom, they all take a lot of time and dedication.
Now I guess I’d love to talk about being pregnant. And how was that for you on those two aspects of running, what did you go into thinking that you were going to be doing versus reality on being a comedian and both being a runner?
Brittany: Yeah, good question. I, I feel like I am, we’re missing such a big chunk of this.
I have so much fun running and really am intentional about keeping that fun. And same with parenthood now that I’m a mom and I love it. Pregnancy was awful. I hated every second of it. And I won’t, even shy away from admitting that I thought, I knew it was going to be hard.
It was miserable for me. I was sick from the moment I got pregnant through, I had a C-section, I was puking on the C-section table. It was so much harder than I thought. I. It was actually really mentally challenging because I thought that, well, I’m the funny runner and I know how to have fun. I know how to get creative in bringing joy and finding joy and everything, and I was so miserable during pregnancy and so much was out of my control that it was really, really challenging for me to find anything creative and find the joy and I didn’t know. And it’s, it’s, it’s probably likened to someone who is training for their very first marathon and they’re like, I don’t quite know what that end outcome is going to be. Everyone says it’s worth it, but I’m so miserable right now.
That is it. and am I going to like this? And, so I think I had that going in. So pregnancy was nine months of a struggle for me. I had expectations that. Because I’d seen on social media that so many people, regular athletes and professional athletes run through their whole pregnancy.
And I was like, I’m going to run the whole time, even if it’s really slow and I’m going to keep up on that. And, it just got to be, first of all, I was so sick the whole time. I just was nauseous and vomiting all nine months that it, and I couldn’t keep anything down. I think the only things that I could eat were string cheese, grilled cheese, mac and cheese, just nothing that is conducive to running.
So finally at five months pregnant, I was like, this is not fun for me. I don’t want to slog through this. My job is to get faster and I’m every single day getting slower and it’s just not enjoyable. So I had to get creative on new ways of movement and I really embraced going for a walk that really scratched my running itch.
I could just be out walking and that was really helpful. And then that turned into hiking and then I felt really amazing that I was getting my big belly up. These hikes up the Manitou Incline and finding new ways of movement. So it was the least joyful time of my life and I was really struggling with fear of what’s it going to look like when I get back into it?
What’s, is this going to be everyone says being a parent is worth it. I know I’ll love my little human, but what’s that going to look like? So I felt mentally, for me, pregnancy was so many unknowns that it was really challenging for me to wrap my brain around. I didn’t have my outlet of running like I normally did.
My body was changing. That was a really big struggle for me, especially being active on social media and being a professional athlete. So there were so many elements of pregnancy that just weren’t fun. So maybe that’s why I’m having so much fun now is that I have running back, I have this little person that is the best thing in the whole world and he’s a blast. So, it was a journey.
Lonnie: Well, I thank you so much for being candid and open about that. Because I think that, you see all the glamorous stuff, you all that social media, pregnancy is, sure, it’ll be tough, but it’s going to be just wonderful experience and not everybody has a wonderful experience.
It is tough. I can’t even, obviously I, I can’t even imagine all that, not only all that stuff, but the, the mental health aspect of it because, was that. Struggle for you? Outside, I know the pregnancy was a struggle. Was it a struggle for you because, hey, I’m supposed to be funny and bring all these fun elements into it and I’m really suffering mental health. Did you fall into any depression?
Brittany: Big time. Yeah. Totally. And no one talks about, I don’t know if it’s partum prepartum, everyone talks about postpartum depression. And no one talks about depression that happens during pregnancy and that. Was so real for me. I had a lot of lows.
And there were days I just didn’t want to get off the couch. I was sleeping terribly, especially towards the end. Obviously for the reasons that you’re used to hearing, obviously you’re so uncomfortable. All of those elements. I got wicked carpal tunnel. The second I would lay down, my hands would go completely numb.
I snored. It was all these stupid things that I was like, these are so stupid, these things, and I can’t control anything. And I felt like I went through big, big phases of depression, especially the summer months. It was so hot. I hated summer. I just was angry at the weather.
I was angry at so many different things and it was challenging for me to have the juxtaposition of, “I really want this,” we wanted to get pregnant. We wanted to start a family with, “I hate how I feel this is all miserable.” So, I had to really lean into, thank goodness I have a therapist that I’ve already been working, that I had already been working with, and she was amazing.
So I really leaned into her. I leaned into other moms and stuff and it was helpful to hear oh, I’m feeling depressed too. Even though we’re doing amazing things and our body is growing this human, people tell us all the time too, but think about how amazing it is that you’re doing: your body’s growing this.
I would wake up every I would be like, I didn’t do anything today. I sat on the couch and I watched way too much Love Island, which makes me feel terrible about myself. And Justin would be like, but you grew a spleen today. And I was like, I get it. But you can’t see any progress. You don’t see it in the moment.
So I think normalizing that it’s okay to be low during pregnancy, I didn’t feel pretty, I felt huge and disgusting. I felt miserable. It’s all these things that were just a complete opposite to what I had been used to, that no one told me about until then, I started to talk to others and they were like, me too, me too.
And I was like, why aren’t we talking about that? Pregnancy can suck and it can be miserable even if you are stoked that you’re — and feel blessed that you’re having this amazing experience in your body is powerful and yes, but it’s also okay to have, it’s okay to have all the feelings. You don’t have to be the funny runner.
You can be the funny runner that is depressed, the funny runner that is miserable because her hands are numb and is happy, and thinks that’s amazing. Her body’s growing while still being unhappy with her body. So I think it’s okay to have all the emotions. That go along with this huge life shift.
Sure. I think finding the space in there for having every emotion is something that we really want people to understand because so often I think we’re. We assume we’re only allowed to feel gratitude. Yeah. Right? Yes. And yeah. that goes along with the pain sometimes or the discomfort or the depression or whatever it is, but. Making room for feeling all of these things.
Lonnie: That’s something that you probably experience, obviously during your pregnancy probably too, during running, I’m guessing.
Brittany: Mm-hmm. and then, as a parent, once the child is here. I wish that it’s all, glamor and, the, the flower crown in my hand on my belly, kind of Instagram photos and everything.
It’s not always those things. Right. We see these Instagram snapshots of people’s lives and we don’t see the B roll. That was a big piece. I put the B-roll on my Instagram, of all of the miserable moments because maybe is where the funny runner part came in, and that’s what was helpful when I was feeling so miserable, is to share.
I had my underwear on backwards all day and I had no idea. And not inside out backwards. I had this disgusting piece of white bread with a bratwurst on top and I cried that day because it tasted so good. It looked miserable. All those things that it is normal and I think.
My background in comedy, have sketch comedy and improv. Comedy of the biggest principles of improv comedy is “Yes, And” something to the table and you heighten it by adding and, and I think in that realm right there is yes, I’m grateful belly is poking out and I have an alien moving inside and I don’t like this feeling I think said, there’s space on stage for all of the characters and all the emotions that come with pregnancy, and I think giving yourself permission all get to be here.
Maybe they don’t get all to take center stage, but they all get to be here because it’s all part of what’s making this show. Mm-hmm.
Lonnie: Yeah, I love that. Also going, moving a little bit on from that. So jump around a little bit on some of the stuff too. But now you’ve gone through this and Hugo’s born, what was it like then trying to come back? Was there pressure on you from, to get back quickly? How was that struggle?
Brittany: I had a C-section. So the first six weeks I just got to be with him. And it was actually, that was great because there was zero pressure in my own brain of I’m not allowed to do anything, so I get to just be, let my body recover, get to just be with him.
And he was born the 1st of February, so it was a perfect time of year to just cozy up and be, so that was great. From a sponsorship perspective, North Face has been wildly supportive and they were like. “You can do anything at all this year if you want. You can just be a mom this year if you want.” There’s zero pressure on anything. They’ve just been along for the ride. And so that from a pressure standpoint has been taken off.
Where it’s come from has been in my own mind, immediate, I wanted to be back in, back in it right away. And I was starting, I did race a bit this year.
I just ran a 50K a couple weeks ago and it’s hard because your brain remembers how you felt and where what your body’s capable of, and your body’s not quite caught up yet. And so for me, I’ve shifted calling it, coming back to building up because I feel like if I’m coming back, I’m having to make up ground because of all this time I’ve missed versus this is new me, new career, I get to start fresh and so I’ve been phrasing it as building up.
So that way it’s almost I’m moving forward versus anything that has to do with the past. because that, for me, was where I was getting stuck, where I was like, but my splits are this. But I’m like, but I had a baby, and now I’m getting faster and faster. So it’s almost reversed from how it was going during pregnancy.
So it’s been long, it’s been longer than I thought. Trying to build, build up to what I’m know I’m capable of. So that’s been mentally a bit challenging. I’m super competitive as you can imagine. This is my job. I love being fast. I love winning races and having to navigate.
Now, I could go train my second run for the day, or I could take a nap because I’m exhausted. And so trying to navigate that is all new, figuring out what this whole new life looks like. So I don’t think it’s fair for me to compare coming back because my circumstances are completely different.
So this is new platform, new canvas, and I’m just going to start adding paint to this one versus trying to paint the same thing I had. And that’s how I’ve had to try to wrap my brain around it because I found myself being not very compassionate to myself when I started running again because I felt I needed to show that I could get back into it and I think we also glamorize how quickly people get back into running and it’s I don’t feel it today, or my body feels different and it’s hard. So it’s been ongoing for sure. But I’m so happy to be running. That’s what I just keep coming back to is that I love running no matter what.
I love it. Yes, it’s my job, but man, I love it. And so I think my runs feel extra special because it’s my “me time.” It’s my, “this is a part of who I am and this is what I love to get to do.” So I’m almost coveting my runs a little bit more and remembering to make them, just something mentally special for me that day.
Lonnie: Well, I love the fact that you said building up. Building back as opposed to comeback. But building up, because that’s fantastic to go into that because you, I’ve noticed, certainly noticed and obviously I wasn’t pregnant, but getting older, things change in your body and some of the training stuff and the recovery stuff is so much different than it used to be.
Brittany: Totally. And you mentally feel like. “Am I ever gonna come back and be able to do the times I did beforehand?” Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. But everything’s a little bit different and training changes. And it’s hard because when I would train previously, it was heavy, this is what I gotta do.
I’ve got this structured thing, and I would see improvement. Now it’s because the body’s different, I can still improve, but it looks completely different. But mentally, it’s a different path that you’ve never been comfortable with or that you think of. I’m not, I do, I do another workout or do I take a nap?
Well, this time you take a nap. You used to do the second workout. Now you take a nap and you can still, you’re actually improving better completely than that. It’s hard mentally because you’re I am taking a nap and I’m somehow going to improve this psychosis of trying to believe that is hard.
Lonnie: Yes. A hundred percent. Yeah. I’ve been fortunate to have you as a good friend for so many years. And your husband Justin, who I love that you call him your husband, as opposed to husband can bring in that humor type of thing, because you went through such a difficult pregnancy that you didn’t love the pregnancy aspect of it, the depression was there, the struggle with the changes in stuff. And you talked about having this village to support you, but how was your relationship with family with Justin affected by that and how did you guys work through that? Because I’m sure that was really tough when you’re also trying to be a good partner, but struggling.
Brittany: Yeah. Yeah. That’s such a great question. And I couldn’t have made it through without him truly he just stepped up to the plate. I think he felt helpless because he was you’re doing this for us and we want this and I can’t relate, I can’t do anything. He would just do the things that he could to help, whether it was just simple things like bringing me up ice water at night. The poor guy lived in a freezing house for six months and I like it warm and he loves himself some ac but this was too much for him because I was a hot, sweaty mess for the last six months in winter. He’s like in this freezing house. He made it through that.
But we talked about this actually on a walk the other day together while Hugo was at daycare. We are really proud and I think it started during pregnancy. We’re really proud of how we’ve found a found a lane together. So because we are both really independent, we both have our own things, we both have our own creativity.
We kind of, were living in our little lanes, so we’re in our little Mario carts by ourselves. But I feel like pregnancy made us get into the same car and on the same highway, more frequently and where I was more hesitant to relinquish my car. I—shocker — I love to be in control.
I love to be in the driver’s seat. I had to get in the passenger seat and I had to just let him drive and I had to trust it. He really stepped into that because a lot of times, we joke that I’m the alpha of the relationship. But he got to step into that role. And now as a dad, he’s, we’re in the same car and we both get to swap driving positions and that really started during pregnancy because I had to let him help me.
And I had to say, I could do this, but it would actually be a lot easier if you would help me. And then once Hugo is here every night, he would bring up my breast pump stuff. Because we live in a tri-level, townhouse. And that was one thing that was just so helpful that he could do.
Because I was breastfeeding, he could bring up my pump stuff. And that was just one simple, little helpful thing that we’ve kind of, and we just had to work on. Communicating together. I had to let go of control. He had to take control. So, I do feel like that was a nice silver lining that came from pregnancy.
And I think he always tells other dads, don’t underestimate the things that you can do when you feel helpless, when the baby’s just relying on her during pregnancy and when it first arrives. But man, the dudes can be so helpful, on just the little things. And so that’s where I’m so grateful for that.
He really stepped up. I let him step up, and now it’s just carried into a smoother transition once Hugo got here, is we figure we learned how to navigate that during pregnancy and because my pregnancy was not fun.
Lonnie: Thank you for sharing all that. what we talked, we talked about running, obviously we talked about the pregnancy aspect.
I’m also fascinated by the fact that you do comedy and we talked about how you bring comedy and stuff like that, but. Where are you at with your comedy profession right now?
Brittany: “Professionally” is loose. I feel like I just called myself that. I feel like you can call yourself an artist and people just believe it and when you’re like, people are always hesitant to call themselves a runner. And you’re like, but you run, why are you not a runner? And I’m like, well, I tell jokes so, I’m a comedian. It’s taken a little bit of a backseat. When I first wanted to quit my job and I became the Funny Runner, I had the big dreams that I was going to simultaneously be in the Olympics and be on SNL.
And both are very challenging things and then turns out shocker, doing both at the same time are quite hard because comedy’s a late night thing and running is not. Running requires a lot of sleep. It took more of a backseat, and it evolved into less traditional comedy.
Whereas I used to be on stage all the time and I would teach improv and, perform my sketches, I’m really not on stage unless I’m doing speaking events or things like that. But I found ways to keep the comedy in my life. I’ve really enjoyed creative writing and I have a really weird Substack called Own Your Weird.
I’m working on a book behind the scenes that’s I think it’s funny. We’ll see where that goes. So it’s kind of evolving, but that’s a piece that I’ve kind of had to I feel like I’m in this identity shift right now where it’s like. I can be funny, do I have to be a comedian?
Can I just be funny and am I funny or do I just think I’m funny? Is this landing? I think there’s funny aspects of my life. One day I would like to get back on stage or things like that, but I think right now it’s just finding the funny in life, translating it, in a different way.
Maybe it’s written in via email versus this big grand thing on stage. Who knows? I’d work on a film project that involves running my characters, things like that. So, I’ve got a lot of ideas noodling in the pot, but we’ll see what cooks.
Lonnie: Yeah, well your persona has so much humor into it. I think that’s what the comedian thinks. So even though maybe you’re not doing the traditional standing up on stage and doing your sketch or doing improv, you’re bringing those elements and you’re sharing them in other outlets, including social media. because I follow you and I get to see some of the funny things that knowing you as I do, I can see you putting those humor type things into it, where most everyone, again, is being serious about it. Again, finding those funny moments and things so I love that. I think you’re still a professional comedian because most of us are hanging around, doing dad jokes, me being one of those. But you’re actually finding out these really funny things and you take these experiences and I think any good person that.
like pregnancy was miserable. I mean, just the [00:34:00] fact that you initially said I’m usually cold. Justin’s hot. During pregnancy, it was completely flip flop. Poor guy was, having to come in looking like, wearing parkas and gloves and mittens and I’m there sweating and fans on me and, goes outside when it’s five below to warm up, type of thing.
to find those type of funny things in, because people experience those things in the moment. It’s like, this is terrible. But they are funny when you look at how ridiculous those things. I love the fact that you bring. Again, that element of fun that we all kind of miss out and taking in the moments.
Brittany: Thank you. Thanks.
Lonnie: Yeah. being sensitive to time. What else? What else, Erika, what else haven’t I covered that we want to ask? I just wanted to ask Brittany if we could close out our interview with a lightning round. We’re not there yet, but, love that you said compassion because I think that there is, we place a lot of expectations on ourselves.
I wrote a blog post about this not that long ago. My first child is now 27 years old, and I still think back to when she was first born and all of these expectations. We didn’t have social media. So that was good and bad because I didn’t necessarily have these images that I was trying to live up to, but I had them all in my head.
So I had this understanding that, hey, motherhood isn’t, sleeping on the couch. When she’s sleeping in her crib. Motherhood is like whipping up the best dinner ever, so that when she’s awake she has something great to eat, she doesn’t care. It’s going to end up smeared all over her face anyway.
It could be, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It didn’t have to be some great roasted chicken or something. So how do you see storytelling like this in an honest and real way helping moms and people who maybe, haven’t yet become moms even. Like how is it changing sort of the landscape of parenting?
Brittany: Gosh, yeah. That’s such a great question. I think there are so many expectations I feel like they’re coming for me, they’re internal, we see things on social media, but I feel like I’ve got a lens on that. But then I also feel like I have certain expectations on things, on how we’re going to raise him or how he’s going to be.
And I don’t know, I think the more that we are sharing, honestly, but authentically, honestly. because then I also think there’s things that, sometimes I am putting, I’m saying things an amazing day with him, we had a blast, but he cried too, just so you know, he cried too, and we’re also adding in the, these pieces that are.
We’re trying to also show sometimes I feel bad talking about how much fun I’m having and he is an easier dude. He’s wildly active, the kid is nonstop. But I love it and I’m having a blast and sometimes I find myself trying to then be but also it’s really hard. And also I do get tired and I’m why am I doing that?
My true experience right now is this, and I have my hard days and I don’t think I also need to force sharing the struggle if it’s not really feeling like that right now. And so I think the more that we can share what’s really authentically happening to us and, who are we telling the story for?
Sometimes I’ve had to, there’s been times that I’ve almost posted on social media about him and I’ve realized that I’m doing it to brag about how advanced he is compared to what the norm is. And I won’t post it because I’m that’s not helpful for anybody. Or I’ll post it. But I don’t need to share his age because I don’t want other moms to think why isn’t my kid doing this at this age?
And I’m like, it doesn’t, and none of this matters and we all are going to walk at some point. We’re all going to learn to eat, we’re all going to learn all of these things, you know? So I’m just trying to be a little bit more mindful on that when it comes to running and, building back up.
I’m not sharing my miles per week. I’m not sharing my times because I don’t want other moms to. Compare. I just don’t want to feed into the comparison. I live in comparison land and, I don’t want to have to do that. So I think having compassion for yourself, reminding yourself, like, who are you telling this story for?
Is it for you? Is it for others? and is it for others? Is it coming from just I just want to share my happiness, I want to share my inspiration. I really don’t have the intent or, or am I about to post this from an insecure place? I need to re, I need to adjust that. because I don’t, it’s just all these extra things that we have to think about, now as parents.
And I think it can be positive too. I have almost like a rejuvenated relationship with my mom and my parents because I’m like, oh, this is hard. holy smokes. I really do believe that you were doing your best. At the end of the day, my whole life, I’ve felt completely loved. And if that’s the only thing that we can wa like that, like Hugo walks away from is like.
Maybe I, maybe I fell down too many times, or maybe they let me drink bath water too much or whatever. he’s doing great and we love him and that’s what we want him to know is we’re here, we’re present. We love you, we support you and whoever you are. even if it’s khaki beige and you’re an introvert, that’s fine.
We’ll learn to deal with that. Here’s also my biggest fear too, there’s always the stereotype of the football player who wants to be in the stage, in the high school musical and wants to be on stage. My biggest fear is that Hugo’s gonna be sneaking going to football practice, and I’m like, no, you want to be on Broadway you want.
Just sing. You want to dance, you want to be in costume. And he’s like, mom, I just want to fit in. I just want to be a football player. So that’s my biggest fear. But if he came to us and wanted to play football, he’d have to convince me. But, it’s just, it’s all messy.
None of this is perfect. It’s messy. It’s supposed to be messy. That’s some of the best art comes from being messy. So, sure. Just leading into it and that’s just the best part about being a parent, truly is it’s a reminder life is supposed to be messy.
Lonnie: Yep. I love that. I love it. Well, the expectation type of thing, my expectation and also a quick side, quick tangent on this too, is, so my wife Michelle grew up playing a lot of sports. So theater was never anything like that.
Those were the kids she beat up. Not really, but And stuff. So both of my daughters gravitate towards performance. They have their degrees in performance art and stuff. And I remember Michelle was so much out of her element, like, oh my gosh, I gotta be a theater mom. I don’t know how to be a theater mom.
Like, I’m at this, I’m at a play. When’s halftime? There is no halftime. It’s an intermission. The funny something sport came on and she actually called it When’s intermission. So we’ve, she’s been converted somewhat over, but I have to do my daughter’s hair. I have to do their makeup. Like, these are things that I never thought I’d have.
But going back to the expectation thing, and how this also ties into fetal health because we want everyone to have good, healthy pregnancies, but it’s hard. There are hard times. There are some people that love being pregnant and they’re gonna love every minute of it. And I’ve heard people I was pregnant nine times and I love being pregnant more than I like not being pregnant.
And that’s great for them But I think you know that, and I don’t know if they’re exception to the norm, but pregnancy’s hard. There’s a lot of stuff we went through and talked about that you shared very openly and we appreciate and I think setting expectations. ’cause with fetal health, when the one thing that you said, when you talk about Hugo is well maybe he’s advanced in this and maybe he’s not in some stuff.
So I don’t post these things necessarily out there ’cause I don’t want comparison. When, a lot of times medically, when you have, a baby or baby’s born early, doctors to do this thing. They call it the adjusted age. Yeah. And they do the adjusted age, well, yes, they’re, they’re a month old, but their adjusted age is two weeks because of the prematurity and where they’re at.
So they try to do this thing comparing thing. what I loved about we had a wonderful pediatrician and he threw that out the window and I loved it because it was we’re not gonna have expectations about where they should be or adjusted. They are who they are, and maybe they were born early and maybe there’ll be some things they’re a little slow on, or maybe there’s some things to be fast on, but we’re not gonna set that preconceived notion.
And I see that all the time medically, and I know there’s medical reasons that it’s put out there, but I wish that, and if anyone’s listening to this, and if you ever, if you have, you’re in it or you ever have a baby and they’re early and they do this adjusted thing, don’t get hung up on that.
Just love your baby, do the best you can and expose ’em things. ’cause I also think it sets limitations totally on your children of well, okay, they’re, they’re a month and a half and this is, this program’s for a month and a half year old, but really they’re adjusted for, you know, a month. So I probably shouldn’t give, expose ’em to this yet.
Why? You know, if you’re, we did the same thing with our daughters and reading books unless it was something that, it really risqué or inappropriate for them to read. But we never set limits of oh, can’t read beyond a fourth-grade level or you can’t do this.
if you can read it and understand it, go for it. We never put those limitations on them. I think I love that. And I, that makes me they’re who they are, from utero. Hugo is who he is and his personality is still growing and developing every day, but his. That kid who he is.
I call him our little monkey. because he was a lunatic in the womb. He was nonstop everything. And that’s how he is. And it’s awesome. And I think if my parents had set boundaries on who I am as a person, I wouldn’t be who I am today. They’ve, they just Yes. And did me in terms of I wanna go, go be a runner and I want to wear glitter and I want to do all of this.
And they’re like, okay, if it makes you happy, you’re not hurting anybody. Yes. So I think that’s our, that’s what we want. And we just listened to ’em and they, somebody said during pregnancy that your kids choose you. and they help you grow. And that’s what we’re here for also is we trust that he picked us and he’s going to help us grow, and it’s vice versa.
We’re going to help him grow. And, I think that that’s the cool part about this, family dynamic that we just all unique. It’s all fun. And if your parents, if you don’t love and support your kids, who’s as much as a parent who’s going to, that’s your job, so.
Mm-hmm. It’s just lovely. Oh, that’s wonderful.
Erika: So Brittany, can we wrap up with a quick lightning round here? I just have four questions, just one after another. Okay. Yes, please.
Erika: Miles or diapers, which have you logged more of lately?
Brittany: Oh my god. Diapers. Okay. Really fast. Here’s a fun thing.
Here’s how to make things fun. So, we have a bank account for Hugo. every time since he was born. we put a diaper on him and he immediately poops out of it and we have to change it immediately, he gets five bucks in his account. So that way it makes it oh my God, I literally just changed.
You five bucks buddy. and if he has a blowout right away, that’s 20 bucks. So hopefully we don’t have a lot of those. Yeah. but that way we make it, fun for when you’re middle of the nights and he you keep having to change all the diapers.
You’re like, all right buddy, that’s more money in your account. I love that. I think Draft Kings needs a new idea here. There you go. Oh yeah. [00:45:00] You can, make some, make some additional money. bet on the blowouts are gonna happen. How many blowouts today, this week and stuff. Yeah. I mean, bet on everything else.
Why not? Why not? That’s true. All right.
Erika: What’s the favorite snack that you steal from your toddler stash?
Brittany: Oh. we share a lot of mac and cheese still. We shared a lot when I was pregnant and we eat a lot of mac and cheese together. Awesome.
Lonnie: One thing that kind of reminds me of Yeah.
so one of my daughters does nannying and she just loves those babies and there are these little puffed. Things that are for babies and she loves those. Yeah. So we have them for her now too. My 22-year-old is eating actually the baby food, the pouches are actually good running fuel and a pinch.
If I’m outta gels, I’ll just grab a couple of those because they’re just carbs. So, sometimes I’ll snag those from him.
Erika: Yeah. I used to eat the jars of banana. I love the pureed banana in a jar. Yeah. I used to get those in college. Sometimes I would just see ’em and yeah.
Brittany: No shame if you get a hankering for one after today’s conversation.
Our, our meals today after this is going to be oh, I got some carrots. All ground and macaroni and cheese.
Erika: All right, so what is your parenting motto right now?
Brittany: What is our parenting motto… I think is how we start every single day. “Good morning, Monkey.” and I feel that’s just our vibe, our motto in the sense of just start our day with energy. We’re going to see where it takes us and going to do our best. We’re just going to start the day well, and we’ll just see what, see what happens from there.
Erika: And the last one, what is one thing that motherhood taught you that running couldn’t?
Brittany: Oh, I’m so much stronger than I thought. I’m so much stronger than I thought. I thought I was so mentally strong, getting through pregnancy, getting through all of that. they talk about mom’s strength in terms of, You think that physically, but you’re yes, but mentally, I’m oh man, give me any race because nothing compares to what I went through.
Pregnancy, labor, early childhood, all of that. There I thought I out on my mental strength and I wasn’t even, I didn’t even know what I had so. Yeah. Moms are, I, my, my mantra this whole training season and for all the moms I coach is Mama Bears can do hard shit. and so that’s been my go-to of everything.
Moms are so much stronger than I ever imagined. And dads too, of course parents are. but man, women are amazing. Awesome. Yeah, no, I, I agree. As dads we try to do what we can to support and, and stuff like that, but we did not go through anything near what you guys do.
And then the maternal instincts, the maternal caring and stuff like that is, is such at a higher magnitude. Truly. Yeah, for sure. Sometimes I like to, sometimes I like to poke Hugo’s belly button and say We were once [00:48:00] one,
even, I don’t know how long that’ll last before he is like, mom, stop. Hey, wait, I foresee the, the, I foresee in the future of you having Him dressing when or six and he’s going to his Halloween school party and you’re gonna be dressed up as the mom with the attached and billPort to him as the baby.
I thought you were going to say that would be your guys’ costume to run together. That’d be so funny. Poor guy. Oh, he’s like, who did I pick? Why did I pick these people? Right. Or, or he’s going to have to have a sense of humor.
Erika: Brittany, do you want to go ahead and share with everyone, your socials, your website, all that stuff so that people can stay connected to you, continue to learn from you, laugh with you, and all those great things.
Brittany: Yeah, come to my party. I’m active on social media, on just Instagram. funny runner 26.2, my website, which has all of my info on my speaking, my coaching, all of that is just the funny runner.com. what I also have my Substack, which is for old ladies like me who didn’t know what a Substack was. It’s just a new fancy way of, email newsletter, it’s called Own Your Weird.
And you can find that on my Instagram bio. It’s on my website. but that’s where I try to now that I’m getting less busy end of coaching season, I try to send out weekly things that are just, I think are just weird and wonderful. and it, there’s no rules on that. It’s, just a, hopefully just a little bit of joy in your inbox is kind of my goal with that.
But, yeah, hope to follow along, connect all the things. I’m really grateful to get to chat with you guys today and share all the weird and wonderful of pregnancy and being a mom.
Lonnie: So, Brittany, we love you. Thank you so much for joining us sharing, I mean, really sharing some of the challenges and the, the not so fun aspects and being really open and honest about that and your journey.
And, I look forward to watching through everything that you do, Hugo develop and, and you and Justin as parents develop. And, it really is as Erika said, it’s like a marathon. I think it’s the ultimate ultra marathon. It’s, it’s the true doctor ultra that, doesn’t ever change.
You’re going to have your good moments and bad moments and you always think about, oh, it’ll be easier when this age. No, it just changes. What the challenges are with parenting and there’s no rule book out there. You wish there was the user guide, there’s no user guide. You just kind of hope that the next day they’re breathing.
Brittany: Yeah. That’s a win. Mm-hmm. I got ’em that far. yeah. That’s great. Well, thank you guys. You’re amazing and thanks for everything that Fetal Health Health Foundation does. I think it’s really important to have out in the world.
Erika: Thank you so much, Brittany. It has been wonderful to talk with you today. If anyone wants to like and share this episode, please do, and we look forward to seeing you next time on More Than Nine.
