Jocelyn Rivas: Ambassador Spotlight
Meet STAMINAPRO Ambassador, Jocelyn Rivas! She is an incredible figure in the running community and has made her mark as a marathoner, an ultra-marathoner, and two time world record holder! In 2021, Jocelyn accomplished her 100-marathon quest, breaking the World Record for Youngest Latina to Run 100 Marathons and World Record for Youngest Woman.
The dedication and bright energy that Jocelyn brings continue to serve as an inspiration and shows us the transformative power of running and its ability to change lives.
Q: Tell us how your running journey started.
I started running back in 2013. It all started when I went out to the LA Marathon. I watched kids of all ages and saw adults that were in their 60s and 70s. Before then, I thought marathons were for only for people in their 30s or 40s.
Someone asked me, how come you’re not out there running too? And I thought, honestly, why am I not out there running? That stayed with me for a couple of months. Then I decided to join a program called Students Run LA, which helps you train for the marathon and that's how I started running. That was in September of 2013, so this year is when I’ll be celebrating 10 years.
Q: What impact has running had on you?
I get to express myself through running. When I started doing my 100 marathons, it was to inspire and to bring awareness and advocate. Now since I’ve started doing longer distances, I’ve really recognized that I love running. I just want to enjoy the sport itself. I don't need to go super fast; I just want to be able to continue running longer and see how far I can go.
Q: What advice would you give someone who wants to start running or participate in marathons?
The biggest thing is that it doesn't matter if no one else believes in you. The only thing that matters is that you believe in yourself and that you believe in your goal. I think believing in yourself can take you very far. Be confident in your dream and know that you’ll get there one way or another.
If you’re training for your first marathon, I’d also say train wisely. I would recommend you begin with a five-month or six-month training plan because it will give you the opportunity to start slowly and steady instead of piling miles instantly.
Lastly, just enjoy it. Enjoy the sport and enjoy yourself while you're doing it.
Q: You mentioned that you began your 100-marathon quest for the purpose of bringing awareness, can you tell me more about that?
I started my 100-marathon quest when Donald Trump announced that he was going to end DACA [Deferred Act for Childhood Arrivals]. At that time, we didn't know he was going to pause it, we thought it was going to end. I was tired of the situation, and I decided to do something about it. Running has such a big platform. Doing sports in general gives you a platform. I thought: I'm already a marathoner, I might as well do something hard and deliver a message with it.
So, when I started my quest, it was to advocate for Dreamers. I wanted to put a face to Dreamers and say: this is just one Dreamer out of thousands, this is just one Dreamer with one Dream. But by Marathon 30 it started getting harder. I was like man, I really love Dreamers, but I need a stronger reason to keep going.
That's when doing it for girls and women came in. Growing up, I never had someone that I could look up to in sports or in general. When it came to South Central LA, I didn't have anyone that I could look up to. So, I thought what better way than to do it for girls and women? That's what kept me going after Marathon 30.
Q: How has being a dreamer impacted your life and what you do?
Being a dreamer has impacted my life as a whole. It's not just being a dreamer, but it's also being an immigrant. I think that's a part of the story that makes me more of a fighter. When you're an immigrant, you know that things are not handed to you. You must work for it, and if by any chance you do get an opportunity here and there, you're very grateful for it and you make the most out of that one, single opportunity.
So, I think it has impacted a big aspect of life because I've learned to be grateful for the small things in life. I'm grateful just to be able to work. Sometimes you do have to work harder than some people, but in the end it’s all worth it.
Q: Is there an example or story that shows the impact or importance of what you're doing?
Back in June a year ago, I met 2 girls who were part of Students Run LA.
The way they spoke about me made me realize the impact I had. These young girls represented who I was in high school — it was a full circle moment when I met with them.
The way they looked up to me was the way I wish I was able to look up to someone. Because I feel like if I had been able to look up to someone at that age, I would aspire to be more than what I am right now.
When you're in South Central LA — it’s not that you’re limited — but you only know what you see. Because they saw me, they knew that they could run 100 marathons.
Seeing the impact I made was crazy. I’d never seen it in that way. For me, I run because I enjoy it, but people see it as an inspiration. They were talking about how they wanted to reach a certain number of marathons and they wanted to run in school.
Now, a year later one of them was accepted into UCLA. It just puts it into perspective that the impact you make can be really big and you really can help other people, especially young people, to see that they can also accomplish what they want.
Q: You broke 2 World Records. Take us back to the 100-miler you ran tell us more about that experience.
It was Florida, so it was very humid. I kept putting sunscreen on, fixing my feet, but the mistake I made was that I didn't apply more body glide or creams to my feet. At some point, all of that humidity became a big blister, and it wasn't a small one, it was a big one that covered half of my foot.
I was still running with it because I was determined to finish and then it popped. It was bad — I couldn't even walk on it and I was barely on mile 56 at the time. I thought, is this it, is this really the most I’ll get to? I couldn’t believe it. I knew my body was fine, I was hydrated, I was fueled, everything was good. I knew I could keep going, but my foot was stopping me. After that I walked the next 3 - 5 miles.
I was upset, but I kept going just running and walking, running and walking. Then I got to the 100th mile and, wait, where's the finish line? Since it was a new course, they had added nine more miles. I thought, are you kidding me?
I was mad, but at the end I just kept moving forward and I made it. After finishing the 100 and reflecting on it, I realized it was harder for me to give up. It was harder for me to say, I’m done.
Q: What's the one thing you'd like people to know about you that they may not already know?
I'm vegan, I’m a public speaker, and I've ran a 340-mile relay race [The Speed Project] from LA to Las Vegas. Because it was split by a team over 2 days it wasn't so bad, but you did have to push yourself more on the speed because you were trying to get there faster.
I was all patched up with STAMINAPRO! I needed it so bad because I was pushing my body with the speed, but it was fun. I enjoyed it!
Q: What are your go-to songs on your running playlist?
Whatever It Takes by Imagine Dragons and Creo En Mi by Natalia Jimenez.
Q: What's the number one thing on your bucket list you're hoping to accomplish?
Number one reason why I continue running right now and why I want to go longer distances is because I want to get to Badwater 135.
Badwater 135 is in California — it’s considered one of the toughest in the world.
That's my not my end goal, but I do hope to get there one day. I have to run three 100 milers to qualify for it, so I still need to do 2 more. I'm hoping to do another one this year, and if I get lucky, maybe I'll do 2, but I feel like that's pushing it.
Q: How did you discover STAMINAPRO and why has it continued to be a part of your routine?
I discovered STAMINAPRO when Molly Siedel posted about it on her story. At that time, I was running my 100 marathons and I was around marathon 70. I was really struggling with recovery because I was running every weekend, every Saturday or Sunday I was doing a marathon. My body was getting very fatigued and not enough recovery was being done.
So, when I saw Molly’s story I said, say less! When I got the package, I was dealing with shin splints at the time so that’s where I wore them. In just 2 - 3 minutes, the pain was gone. I thought, is this magic? This was back in 2021 and I would call it a magical patch.
It just kept helping. The recovery was quicker, the pain was gone. I was able to run more. Being honest here, since I was chasing a quest, it didn't matter how my body was feeling, I still had to continue going. So even if I was injured, I would still run the marathons; even if I was feeling this pain, I was still running.
When I got on STAMINAPRO, I could run it, I knew I could finish it, and I could also enjoy the race. So that's the reason I kept using it at the time.
Now, I keep doing bigger challenges, so it’s even more of a reason to keep using the patches. I really love STAMINAPRO. The patches work, they’re amazing, and I really wish more people would try them because I feel like lots of the issues they deal with could be helped with just a patch.
Check out Jocelyn on her Instagram!
