Interview with Olympian Brenda Martinez + my BMart Camp Story

hi friends! today I’m bringing something exciting to y’all: an interview with Olympian and World Champion Runner Brenda Martinez, AND my storytime about her running camp in California! if you don’t know much about Brenda, I highly recommend following her on Instagram, at @bmartrun, and reading about the wonderful woman she is. I also want to preface this by saying that I am incredibly grateful and blessed to know Brenda, and what I’ve gained from her as a mentor and friend is absolutely priceless.

so how did I get to be a part of the 2019 BMart Camp?

in 2019, my mom had shared with me a runner that she had been following on Instagram, Brenda Martinez. since I was still relatively at the beginning of my running journey, I thought she was a great role model to follow. as Brenda is also a fellow Latina, who started with a humble background, I was eager to read more about her and how she became this renowned runner. in my mom and I’s following of Brenda, we discovered how she hosted a running camp, BMart Camp, in the summer for high schoolers across the country. entering seemed simple, I just had to write an essay about my passion for running that would wow Brenda. first, I didn’t even think I should apply because the chances would be so slim - but I did it, hoping for the best! after writing my essay and sharing my story, I waited for months before the winners would be announced, praying that I would be one of the 10-12 lucky girls that would get to make the trip to Big Bear Lake, California. on June 12th, my dreams came true and I saw my name on that coveted winners list. I was floored, but I couldn’t have been happier! a month later, I was flying out to California for an all expense paid week of my dreams…

what did you do at camp?

when all of 11 of us campers were picked up in our little bus, we began the journey up to Big Bear Lake. as a born and raised Florida girl, I forgot that we were legit traveling up a mountain. Big Bear was unlike anything that I’ve ever seen, with hills and valleys, lush greenery, and so much more. when we arrived at our home for the week, I was stunned again - it was literally this huge log cabin! Brenda was waiting to greet us, and it all became so surreal. she was so sweet, and I don’t know who was more excited, Brenda or us! we all ran inside, picking our rooms, getting comfortable, and getting to know one another. I couldn’t have asked for better fellow campers, and I will always have a special connection with them - we all keep in contact to this day! after a little while, Brenda called us out to the living room, saying how happy she was that we were there and how she was eager for us to start our week with her. I could tell right away that being a mentor and giving back to others meant so much to Brenda. being at camp was already amazing, but then we were surprised with gifts! New Balance is one of Brenda’s sponsors, and their partnership, they are generous to provide clothes, shoes, accessories, and more to Brenda’s campers. New Balance, along with Maurten, Polar Watches, and Roll Recovery blessed my fellow campers and I with so many cool things. everyday at camp was an adventure, as we went running around Big Bear, had group sessions about mindset, went hiking, kayaked, and even took this Florida girl for her first In and Out! throughout the whole fun time though, Brenda made her purpose clear - to mentor us to be better athletes and young women. I could go on and on about what we did, but every moment of it was perfect - I’ll let the photos speak for themselves at the bottom of this post :) overall, camp taught me so much, and I will forever have nothing but gratitude for that week and all of the opportunities that have come from it.

Interview with Brenda

now for the fun part! I took some time to catch up with Brenda and ask her some questions, hopefully y’all enjoy!

S: Of course, you and I met through BMart Camp, so I thought I’d start out with some questions about that.

◦ What is the most rewarding part of hosting BMart Camp?

B: The most rewarding part of camp is seeing the impact it can have on these young minds and the long lasting friendships that are made. It feels good knowing that I have the support and resources from my sponsors and the community willingness to continue to help our youth.

◦ How has your camp been able to grow over the years?

B: When I first started I really didn’t know anything or how to go about, but I did know I wanted to help. Coach Vigil came up with the idea and then gave me the courage to start somewhere. It started small like about 5 girls and it was a lot of trial and error. I learned a lot from my first year. From there I knew where I needed to improve and now it’s to the point where we we can host 12 student-athletes. We started welcoming national entries in 2018 and now we have evolved to where we can have a boys camp! We have come a long way.

◦ What is one of your favorite camp memories?

B: I don’t have one specific memory, but when I meet the girls for the first time it is overwhelming, but in a joyous way. Finally being able to put a face to the letters and the girls letting it sink in that camp is happening. The girls look like they are on cloud 9 and that puts a smile on my face.

S: Part of being an athlete, especially at your level, comes with a lot of eyes on you. Whether good or bad, the media puts a lot on display.

◦ How do you deal with the pressure of the media?

B: When it comes to the media or people’s opinions I try to come from a place of empathy. I understand that opinions are not facts and sometimes people can come from a bad place, maybe they think putting something negative out in the world helps, but really they are hurting themselves. I’m not preoccupied on how people view me because I have learned to love myself and I am my own priority.

◦ What is something about you that lots of people may not know? Like what do you like to do when you’re not running?

B: Most people don’t know that I went back to school after 9 years and got my Masters of Education degree in Educational, School and Counseling Psychology. I do plan to run professionally for as long as I can, then eventually coach at the collegiate level. I am still learning so much from Coach Vigil. Coach Vigil is world renowned and has had over 30 national championships when he coached at Adams State University and over 22 Olympians over his 50 years of coaching. More than anything he has become my life coach and I wish to keep learning from him and how I can make an impact in the lives of others on and off the track. I try to make habit of reading right before bed just to learn something new that might come in handy in the future.

S: I want to ask some questions about what’s coming next for you. The Olympics have gotten moved to this summer, so track and field trials are coming up soon.

◦ What events are you racing for?

B: This year I have made my main focus the 800 meters since I have been able to stay healthy especially when I’m doing speed work.

◦ Despite these changing times and uncertainty around the Olympics, what has been your greatest motivation in continuing to pursue your dreams?

B: My motivation was my family. I worried for my parents and I had to convince them to quit their jobs so they can stay safe while also was going through a hard time in life. I took it one day at a time and I learned to even embrace my bad days. I’ve always wanted to provide for my family and that sense of urgency kicked in for me. I started to realize I didn’t really have real problems and that I could still run but it was up to me if wanted it bad enough.

S: I have to end it on the age old question, what everyone wants to know…

◦ What is the best pre race food/meal?

B: I don’t ever change anything up when it comes to meals leading up to races. I keep it simple. Breakfast is always the same.

Breakfast:

-Oatmeal with strawberries, blueberries, half a banana, hot unsweetened almond milk, chia seeds, white chocolate chips, coconut shavings, pecans and a scoop of bulletproof’s collagen powder

-Silk’s vanilla yogurt with cinnamon and sliced almonds

-coffee with frothed unsweetened almond milk

Lunch: If I race in the evening I will have half a turkey sandwich on sourdough bread and side of fruit. It’s enough to fuel me until I race. If I race during the day then I will have a full sandwich after racing.

Dinner:

Pizza and wings! We always try to find a pizza place so we are able to catch up and hang out with family, coaches and friends. I love having these memories with the people I love and who doesn’t like pizza?

I hope you guys enjoyed today’s blog post! If you did, make sure to share about it on your social media and tag me, @sofiastrides! Check out my California photos below…