Turia Pitt on cultivating resilience, staying focused and rolling with the punches

‘I’m not going to sugarcoat it'

Here's how Turia Pitt handles the different seasons of life.

We all know that Turia Pitt – the bestselling author, athlete and mindset coach – is passionate about getting more of us out there running.

But what you may not know is, most days when Turia goes out for a run herself, she hates it. She wishes she was doing something totally different. So why does she keep on going?

In the lead-up to her appearance at the inaugural Viva Festival, we chat to the Aussie icon about what running can teach us about resilience, why it’s important that women – especially – carve our time for themselves, and what happiness means to her.  

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You teach busy women how to run via your online running group, Run With Turia. What have you learnt about yourself and life through running? 

Being able to run, and learning how to run again after my accident, has been my form of therapy. [In 2011, Pitt was caught in a grassfire while competing in an ultramarathon, suffering burns to 65 per cent of her body.] It’s a time of my day that’s just for me, a place where I get to prioritise my own needs above everyone else’s, especially as a mum. 

Running has brought me so much in my life. Even though on most days I don’t feel like running. There are moments I actually really hate it. I find it a hard slog and I want to go home and I wish I was doing something else. But then, once I’m over that halfway mark and every step I take is taking me closer to home, I savour in it. I’m proud of myself for doing it when I didn’t want to. 

When you do things that you find uncomfortable, that’s when we can really grow. 

Did you have this relationship with running before your accident?

Always. When I was stressed from exams at school, I’d go for a run. If I had a fight with my parents, I’d go for a run. When I was working as an engineer, if I had a bad day at work, I’d go for a run.

I feel really lucky actually that my parents taught me that you can use exercise – moving your body – as a way to manage your own emotional state. I probably wouldn’t have articulated it like that [back then], but I just knew that if I felt like sh*t, I’d go for a run and I’d feel better. 

I guess it makes sense then that after your accident you were like, “If I want to feel better, I’m going to start running again”. 

Yeah I guess so. I think that’s why I identify so much with the beginner’s mindset. If you’re already really fit, being able to run doesn’t seem that hard. But if you’re not someone who describes themselves as being fit or you haven’t run in a really long time or, like me, you’ve had an injury and you’re starting all over again, it can feel really unattainable.

I think it’s just about being consistent with it, if it’s something you want to get better at. And also knowing that not every day is going to be great. That was the same as my recovery. Not every day was awesome. I didn’t run 10 metres one day, then 20 metres the next and then 30 metres the day after that. It wasn’t linear like that at all. Some days were really good. Some days were really, really hard.

And so at the start, just acknowledge that some days might be good, some days you might feel strong, and other days you might feel like sh*t. But those when you don’t feel good are just as important, because if you still do the thing, even if you don’t crush it, you learn a lot about yourself.

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Spending time looking after yourself also reinforces the idea, “I’m worth taking the time to look after me”. 

Totally. That’s why it’s good. Because as women, we’ve been socialised to put everyone else’s needs above ours and to look after others and to make sure that everyone else in the room is doing okay, and then just get whatever little scrap, or whatever little morsel is left over. 

I think that when you flip that and you carve out that window of time for yourself – it can be going for a run, it can be doing a yoga session, it can just be making yourself eggs on toast, whatever it looks like – you are reinforcing to yourself that you are worthy. That your body deserves movement and fresh air and good food, and sunshine, and all of those things. 

When you start making time for yourself, it starts reinforcing those ideas. 

When people think of everything you’ve gone through – over 200 medical procedures after the accident and more since – the word “resilient” comes to mind. What advice do you have for cultivating resilience? 

I think resilience is hard to understand without putting it into practice. That’s why running is a really good tool. Finishing off a run, when you feel like going home – that’s a decision that demonstrates to yourself that you can keep persevering. You don’t have to be able to see the finish line, or have an idea of all of the steps ahead, you just need to focus on taking the next step. That goes for life as well. 

Turia and partner Michael. Image: Instagram/@turiapitt

You’re super busy running your own business, being mum to two boys, Hakavai, 6, and Rahiti, 3, and a partner to fiance Michael. How do you carve out time for yourself? 

You know what, it’s really f*cking hard. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. My house looks like a sh*t fight right now. Michael has been away for work for two weeks and I haven’t been able to move quite as often as I would like. 

If anyone can relate, don’t beat yourself up, because when you’re looking after young kids, sometimes just getting through the day with everyone in one piece is a win. It helps to acknowledge the season of life you’re in and go with it. I know that sounds a bit woo-woo but that’s the approach that I’ve taken. 

Other than running, what are your habits for staying mentally and physically strong? 

I’m an avid reader. I’ll read every night, even if it’s just one or two pages before I fall asleep. I go to bed by 8 or 8.30PM so that I get more hours of sleep. I’m also not drinking alcohol at the moment as my life is too chaotic with Michael away. 

I don’t want to be that wanker who’s like, “Don’t drink alcohol, it’s going to solve everything”, because it doesn’t. The challenges are still there – the kids who don’t want to put on their shoes are still there, the partner is still away – but it makes me feel like I’m able to process things easier with a clearer mind. 

You’ve touched so many lives in the last 10 years. What do you want to do in the next 10?

I feel pretty content with my life right now. I’ve got two really beautiful boys, I’ve got a really good relationship with my partner. We live in a really beautiful part of Australia. I get to do cool and interesting work. I also have another book in the pipeline about the mental load of motherhood and making space and time for yourself. 

But my focus for the past few years has been the kids and I’m happy for it to be the focus for the next couple of years as well. I do know that this time of intense motherhood doesn’t last forever. Maybe in a couple of years I’ll want to do something different but I’m pretty happy now.

RAPID FIRE ROUND

Currently listening to: The Sing 2 soundtrack

Dream holiday destination: A surf trip in Fiji

I can’t start my morning without: Coffee

I let off steam by: Running

My guilty pleasure: Tweezing my facial hair

Go-to podcast: Noble Blood

I’d kill to meet: Beyoncé

I’m currently reading: Fourth Wing

Favourite place to run: The beach

Turia Pitt joins 30+ global health and wellness experts speaking at the inaugural Viva Festival in Sydney, March 15–17, and Melbourne, March 22–24, 2024. Tickets at vivafestival.com.au

Originally published as Turia Pitt on cultivating resilience, staying focused and rolling with the punches