“The relationship you have with yourself is the longest relationship you’ll ever have; make it a good one.” To say this episode with runner Dorothy Beal is special would be a total understatement. With more than 75,000 people following along with her day-to-day body positive insights on Instagram as @mileposts, it’s difficult for the Virginia-born RRCA and USATF-certified run coach to remember a time when the sport wasn’t a part of her everyday life.

In episode 82, the mother of three talks to me about the #hurdlemoment she went through during her junior year of college, where she realized that social anxiety and an affinity for drinking were contributing to weight gain and a negative self-image. After braving the scale and seeing a number that frightened her, she had a heart-to-heart with her parents who offered to help her get healthy and foot the bill on some essentials, like a nice pair of shoes and fees for a local road race. 

After that? In 2003 she ran her first marathon, and now at 44 total — the sport has forever changed her for the better. We talk about the moment she started blogging about her journey at mile-posts.com, the rise of @ihavearunnersbody and #irunthisbody, and how her community impacts her on the regular. Beal gets super honest about her toughest days, and offers up helpful advice for running newbies and veterans alike.

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