Reclaiming Her Healthy Lifestyle Martha Returns to Running After Death of Her Son

“The hardest part of a run is putting your shoes on and getting out the door,” says Martha Saenz, Conviva Care Center* administrator in San Antonio. “Once you do that, you're good.”

Sometimes, reaching for your running shoes becomes a struggle—and is about more than just lacing up your sneakers. For Martha, putting her shoes on for a run went from a joyous activity to a source of guilt.

Shortly before turning 40, Martha actively chose to focus on improving her health. She began running for exercise, but quickly discovered it also provided an exhilarating source of joy and happiness.

“Every time I went out, it didn't matter how fast I was. The fresh air and being able to move—I just loved it,” said Martha.

That love of running and the joy it brought her helped Martha navigate her teenage son’s cancer diagnosis. She turned to running to give herself a break from the stress of Nick’s battle with chemotherapy and surgery.

Even when Nick’s cancer spread and he chose hospice care, running helped keep Martha grounded. That is, until the day he passed away.

“I had been sitting with Nick,” said Martha, “and I told him, ‘Nick, I'm going to go on the treadmill for about an hour. I'll be right back.’”

With less than a minute remaining in her run, Martha heard her sister call out. She finished her run and raced to Nick only to find that his breathing had stopped, and he was gone.

“I stopped running after Nick passed away because I felt overwhelmingly guilty for having been on the treadmill when he passed away,” said Martha. “Every time I tried to run, I just couldn't bring myself to do it.”

A health first inspiration

Motivation can be found in the most unexpected places. For Martha, the inspiration to begin running again popped up in her inbox one morning in January 2023.

For the year and a half that passed since Nick’s death, Martha had not been able to return to running. Each time she put on her running shoes waves of grief returned. Then Martha read how Bruce Broussard, Humana’s CEO, was making a choice in the new year to focus on goal setting, exercising and living with intention.

Martha knew she wanted to live with intention, to thrive and not just survive. She actively wants to live a healthy life for herself and for Nick’s memory. She wants to be an example of health and well-being for all those around her, including the patients she sees every day at the Conviva Care Center in San Antonio.

“My coworkers are definitely very supportive and excited for me,” said Martha. “I have all these people rooting for me and who are just so happy for me. That makes it easier for me to choose joy, too.”

Watch how Martha has been inspired to reclaim her healthy lifestyle and choose joy—a move she knows would make Nick proud.

*Conviva is a physician-led network dedicated to providing primary care to seniors. The Primary Care Organization of Humana Inc., which includes Conviva Care Center, serves more than 240,000 members from many different Medicare Advantage health plans, as well as some patients who have Original Medicare.