Empowerment Through Every Stride: Kristen Doornbos Story

Kristen Doornbos got into running as a way of passing the time and taking control of her own health. As she grew in the sport over the years that followed, she discovered an empowerment through running that she could help others with. To do this she became a certified running coach. “I get to meet so many different people, and I love being able to figure out their specific strengths and write a plan that’s unique and can help them thrive,” she says.

Achieving a Sense of Autonomy 

Kristen started running about eight years ago after a recent move took her to a new city where she didn’t have many connections yet. “There was a lot of loneliness,” she says. “It was just a really weird season of going to work and coming home to an empty house and wondering what I was doing with myself.”

On top of that, she was dealing with some health issues that made her feel as if her body rebelled against her. Running was something positive she could do with her body, so she started passing the time on the treadmill of her apartment complex’s small gym. What started out as walking soon became running a half mile, then a mile, then two miles. 

She loved the sense of autonomy she got from running. “Running was a choice that I made for my body, and I think doing that day after day made me realize this was something I was taking ownership of,” she says. “My health and my body are things that are in my hands , to some extent. There’s obviously a lot we can’t control about our health, but I learned how to advocate for myself, how to form good habits, and how to enjoy life more.”

Becoming a Coach

Not long after she started running, Kristen decided to work with a run coach, which she describes as an “awesome experience” and taught her not only about training theory but also about respecting her body.

It’s part of the reason she sought out certification herself, so that she could help other find empowerment through running. She got certified through USA Track & Field, and in 2020, she added run coaching to her professional resume alongside her full-time work as a massage therapist. Among the clients she works with are adaptive athletes with chronic illnesses or disabilities, so she often finds herself tailoring programs to specifically meet their needs.

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Maintaining Good Mentality

Very rarely does Kristen ever have to help her clients overcome “I’m not a runner” mentality — instead, she often sees what she describes as “newbie runner enthusiasm.” Many people, she says, go into running too hard before they’re ready. She has to pull them back and encourage them to do a little bit less, focusing on a structure that will benefit them. 

But the training plan is only part of the job of encouraging runners who are just starting out. “There’s an emphasis placed on ‘Here’s your workouts, here’s what you have to do this week,’ but that’s really only like 25% of it,” she explains. “The other 75% is who are you? What makes you tick? Getting to learn those things about people is meaningful for me.” She’s currently open to anyone who needs 1:1 training — contact her through Instagram @runlikeakbos.

For her own part, Kristen continues to understand her own motivations — that sense of autonomy and that sense of enjoying life. Although she held back from racing during her first few years of running because of minor health problems, injuries, and stress fractures, she’s now completed half marathon and marathon distances. She expects to complete a farther distance at some point in the future, but for now, she’s focused on marathons. “I really love the marathon distance and don’t feel like I’m finished with it yet,” she says. “I’d like to see what I can still do with that.” Many people discover empowerment through running, Kristen is no different but this is her story. What is yours?

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