Turia Pitt on motherhood and helping other busy, tired women run

Like any new mother, Turia Pitt is running on empty. But she’s still running — and now she’s taking fellow sleep-deprived parents along for the guilt-free ride.

Turia Pitt’s eldest son Hakavai may only be three, but he knows the truth about the tragic event that changed his mum’s life.

Adventurous like his mum and curious like his dad, the youngster is told the truth when he asks questions — and he isn’t scared or sad about what happened, Turia says, because it’s integrated into their lives as normally as possible.

“He might ask me about my fingers, and I’ll say ‘I was in a fire and I got burnt’, which is why I don’t have as many as you,” the 34-year-old tells Insider.

“Or he might say, ‘Mum, why are you moisturising?’ and I’ll say ‘because I have dry skin, because I got burnt’, and he would be like ‘oh, OK’.

“I just try to tell him as sincerely as possible.

“I don’t try and make up an alternative version, I just tell him the truth and have tried to incorporate it into our lives.

“By talking about it, I think he just understands.”

Turia Pitt was severely injured in a grass fire while running an ultra-marathon almost 10 years ago. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

This September marks a decade since Turia was caught in a grass fire while running a 100km ultra-marathon in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

She was choppered out of the remote desert barely alive, with severe burns to 65 per cent of her body. She lost seven fingers, spent six months in hospital having 200 medical procedures and was told she may never walk again, let alone run.

But she survived.

And every day since has defied each hurdle, one step at a time. She and fiance Michael Hoskin know she’s one of the lucky ones.

“It sounds bizarre, right, that I feel lucky that I was trapped in a catastrophic grass fire,” she says.

“But I feel happy that I got another chance and that I am alive and that I have gotten to experience motherhood.

“I think it’s amazing that I got to carry my kids in my belly and give birth to them, so those experiences make me feel really happy and really grateful.”

Becoming a mother to Hakavai and one-year-old Rahiti has changed Turia. It’s made her stronger. Kinder, and more empathetic. And, like all new parents – absolutely exhausted.

But today’s Turia is by far the version that she likes best, sleep-deprived and all.

“I feel like a lot of the time, to be honest, I’m tired or cranky or annoyed because Michael had left his shirt on the back of the chair even though I had specifically said to put it in the laundry,” she laughs.

“Sometimes I will be looking at Michael and think ‘Aw, I really love him, he is the man of my dreams,’ but other times – like he does this really annoying thing where he will open a second tub of yoghurt, even though there is already one open in the fridge – I don’t know why anyone would do that,” she laughs.

Turia Pitt and partner Michael Hoskin with their children Hakavai and Rahiti. Picture: Instagram

She’s not ruling out having more children, but will wait until their current two sleep through the night to convince Michael, the man she plans to marry as soon as they can fit it in.

And despite the seemingly everlasting exhaustion that comes with having a baby and a toddler, she still finds time to go for a run when she can, more to clear her mind, than anything.

That’s why she’s launched Run With Turia, a ‘no BS’ program to help busy, tired, non-running women do just that. And it’s working.

“I think when you are a mum, it is hard to prioritise yourself and you probably feel guilty for making time for yourself,” she says.

“When I ask Michael if he ever feels guilty for going for a surf or going for a dive, he is just like, ‘no, why would I feel guilty’ – he doesn’t even question it.

“Your biggest priority is always your family, and I understood what it was like to be having a really busy day, and to not to feel like you didn’t have time and be able to prioritise yourself, but I guess that’s why I started it.

“There were women who joined that have literally never been for a run in their life, who weren’t doing exercise consistently and over a 10-week period, we taught those women to run 5km and it was really amazing.

They said that they felt really empowered, they felt like they could do hard things, they felt like they could set other goals in other areas of their life and that whole process was really affirming.”

The mother of two says she loves being a mum. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Incredibly close to her own mother Celestine, Tahitian-born Turia will soon leave her, and the NSW south coast community of Ulladulla that has been her home since she was a little girl, to move to Far North Queensland where Michael has landed a job as a helicopter pilot.

“It is exciting and a new adventure,” she says, albeit nervously.

“But my whole family is where I live, so I am stressing about leaving my mum, but we will figure things out.

“I know it is going to be hard being without my family and friends and everything, but I also know that if I hate it and it’s shit, I can just come back.”

On September 2, Turia will reconnect with fellow victims of the fire for the 10-year anniversary. She says they are all still very close, and all have revisited the site, except for Turia.

“I just didn’t think it would help my recovery, but everyone heals in different ways,” she says.

Since the day that changed their lives forever, she’s not only brought herself back to life, she’s written three best-selling books, coached over 40,000 people in digital courses, shared a stage with Tony Robbins, competed in the Ironman World Championships, sailed a boat around French Polynesia and walked the Kokoda Track.

She’s modestly proud but shrugs it off, insisting that having a purpose has been key to getting up every day, because making a difference changes everything.

“I think for me during that time of the fire season, rather than being stressed about potentially being surrounded by flames, instead … I tried to shift my focus and started @spendwiththem, a campaign to help businesses from fire affected communities,” she says.

“We have to ask ourselves what contributions we can make today, or how can I be of service, or what’s one good thing I could do today, what cool thing could I do with my kids today.”

Healing trauma like Turia’s will be a lifelong process, but until then, it’s one foot in front of the other.

“It is OK to be annoyed by it and to be upset by it, and they are perfectly valid human emotions,” she says.

“We don’t have to put a positive spin on things all the time or try to perk ourselves up immediately – it is OK to feel like shit for a little bit, even though that is not necessarily the most comfortable space to sit in, it is OK for us.

“I don’t think I am at that point where I can say that I don’t need that help. So I will just keep getting up every day feeling annoyed and irritated and tired – and then I will go for a run and feel better and get on with the rest of my day,” she laughs.