Mom won 62-mile ultramarathon while breastfeeding her baby — she had started 30 minutes later than everyone else

Winning a marathon despite facing different challenges and setbacks is no easy feat. Especially when one is also a 6-month postpartum mom and has to breastfeed her baby at all intervals. But one woman named Stephanie Case–who goes by @theultrarunnergirl on Instagram–managed to do just that, which was completely unexpected for her. Case had thought she was going in just for a warm-up and had several runners ahead of her when she started running.

"I went into the @ultratrailsnowdonia 100 km this past weekend with no expectations, being just 6 months out from having little Pepper and 3 years after my last race due to recurrent miscarriages and IVF failures," the mom wrote in her Instagram post. She felt that it was supposed to be her "warm up" for "Hardrock." Case pointed out that her goals were to enjoy herself and to ensure her daughter was fed at the aid stations. She no longer had a ranking in the race because of the 3-year gap, so she started in the last wave, 30 minutes after the leaders. "Sure, I had hundreds of runners in front of me, but I could go at my own pace in blissful ignorance of my placing."

Case, a human rights lawyer and film producer, felt that the race was like riding a bike and every kilometer reminded her that she had not lost anything in the 3 years she wasn't competing. "In fact, I have gained way more joy and strength from this sport as a mom than I ever did before." It was hard for Case to leave her daughter, Pepper, at the aid stations, but she wanted to show her and herself how awesome "mom runners" can be. "Being 30 minutes back meant that the race organizers needed to check the chip time. I WON?" She encouraged moms, new moms and pregnant women to keep setting new goals for themselves. Also, she had a lot of questions about her and her baby's health, and her coach, Megan Roche (@drmeganroche), helped her work through all of it.

Case also acknowledged, "I'm lucky to be physically okay after childbirth (with a lot of pelvic floor work!). Others aren't so lucky. And let's be real, when I started dry heaving, I lost all bladder control at 95 km." She pointed out that there is "no comeback" after childbirth, but there is always "the next phase," and it'll be "right" for the mom when it comes. Many people congratulated her on her achievements in the comments. @karenjameson2728 wrote, "Zoom in on the legs and forearms and look at all the cuts and bruises…and she’s just calmly nursing her baby. Major kudos, from a mother of 3, a trail runner and a lactation counselor! You rock!"

@yankeepankyruns shared, "I breastfed my son through a 100 miler 8 months postpartum, and the milk supply issue was a big concern for me too. It's hard because there's not a lot of information out there, and my son wasn't keen on taking a bottle, so I was super worried about how it would affect my milk. I spoke to my lactation consultant, and she thought the supply would dip during the effort and rebound afterward and that was exactly my experience. It is an incredible achievement, and I'm so pleased to see this being talked about more widely. Congratulations and a huge good luck for Hardrock!" @scrambledd_legs remarked, "What an incredible story of strength and determination. I'm so inspired going into my first ultra on Saturday since having my 3rd baby last year."

You can follow Stephanie Case (@theultrarunnergirl) on Instagram for more lifestyle content.