Nadia: Overcoming
Nadia is a Senior at Bell High School and one of the nearly 2,500 SRLA students who will be running the LA Marathon on March 19th. Nadia’s time in SRLA was not without challenges, but during her 6 years in the program she learned how to overcome them and ultimately grow into the powerful young woman and leader she is today. Today we are celebrating International Women’s Day by sharing her story…
Nadia began her SRLA journey when she was in middle school! As a seventh grader she ran with the team at MSA 8 Bell. Nadia was inspired to join SRLA by her family, particularly her father. “Taking my dads legacy motivated me to run SRLA, to be just like him. To set an example to my younger cousins to never give up and keep moving forward.”
Nadia’s time in SRLA was not always easy, “After dealing with anxiety and various spine problems, I almost lost my ability to run. This became my toughest challenge since I had to take a year off from SRLA for my own mental and physical health.”
But Nadia was able to use the strength she had developed during her marathon training and the support of her teammates to overcome those challenges. “Thankfully one day I was able to get back up and work hard for my sport. I was able to join back the cross country, track, and SRLA team. Until this day, I struggle with the same problems but I push hard though every day because if I’ve done 5 marathons, I can do anything.“
Nadia came back stronger than ever. She accomplished goals and celebrated along the way. Nadia recalls her favorite memory of her time in SRLA: “Finishing my 3rd marathon on National woman day and becoming the first woman in my family to break my families personal record. Making my dad proud. Taking his legacy in running and seeing him proud of me has been beautiful.”
Her teammates have been a huge part of Nadia’s journey. Together they have built connections that will last a lifetime. Nadia says her team is one thing in SRLA that brings her great joy. “Spending each run with them makes it not tiring and getting to share laughs and memories makes everything worth it. These are going to be the memories that bring me joy in my next chapter in life.”
The coaches at MSA 8 Bell and Bell High School gave Nadia the opportunity and support that she needed to reach her goals. “I’d like to share a thank you to my middle school coach (Coach Cervantez from MSA8) and my current Coach, Sanchez, from Bell Senior High. They’re the people that pushed me throughout the years and I want to thank them for giving me this opportunity in my life.”
Nadia is truly proud of what she has accomplished as a part of SRLA and hopes that she can share her journey to inspire others who might be facing their own challenges. “I hope my story can inspire others who are also dealing with mental/physical problems. That’s been a goal of mine because my story is almost finished and I really want it to be out there. Especially as a young woman, I just want to inspire the younger generation to always keep moving forward no matter how bad life brings you down.”