Meet Ayumi

We were lucky to catch up with Ayumi recently and have shared our conversation below.

Ayumi, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

As a child of two first generation immigrants, I get my work ethic from my mom and dad. Growing up, we owned a Japanese restaurant where my dad was the sushi chef, and my mom was the hostess, and handled the accounting. My dad worked six days a week for 12-14 hour shifts. My mom worked when we were in school, and was home as much as she could be when we weren’t. When we lost the restaurant during the recession in the early 2000’s, my mom went on to work three jobs – one at JFK Airport in Duty Free, one as a cashier at a Japanese grocery store, and one as a hostess at a Japanese restaurant. My dad was in and out of work struggling with language barriers and some health challenges. They weren’t able to meet my teachers or coaches, they didn’t have the opportunity to go to many of our games or meets, but they showed us through their actions that they loved us. Through their constant sweat and tears, through their hours of grueling physical labor, through their persistent dedication to keep a roof over our heads, food in our stomachs, and clothes on our backs. If one job doesn’t pay the bills then get a second; if two jobs don’t pay the bills then get a third. It was from them that I learned to be resourceful, to work hard, and if an opportunity isn’t presented then to seek it out.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am one of the founders of Pace of the East, a once a month walking group at Urban District Market (UDM) in Charlotte, NC founded by an all Asian female team. Our team includes Sông Ánh Thị Nguyễn (President of the Running Industry Diversity Coalition and Vice President of Product at Feetures), Nhi Vu (Creative, Mental Health Advocate, & Swimmer turned Runner), and Jenny Chomphalphakdy (Laotian American public servant and runner in Charlotte, NC).
Pace of the East is a warm and welcoming space for anyone looking to move, connect, and build community. Whether you’re new to exercise, recovering from a morning run, or just want to enjoy a casual stroll, we invite you to join us. Our goal is to encourage more Asian American folks and allies to engage in fitness, while creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels comfortable. After our walks, we gather to share a meal from local vendors—because food is a universal way to build bonds across cultures. No pressure to stick around, but if people have the time, just chill in good company and great conversations. UDM is also a very family friendly space, with indoor and outdoor play areas for kids. We have some awesome walks lined up: April 12th, Special Collab with Mural Tours 704; May 17th, Special Collab with Japan Fest for our AAPI Month celebration!
Come as you are, walk at your own pace, and connect with others in a space that values movement, inclusivity, and community.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Phew! This is a tough question. The three qualities I’d say most impacted my journey are:
1. Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable – meaning to never let fear stop me from doing what I want to do. What if I fail or get hurt? Do it anyway! It was and still is uncomfortable starting/leading your own walking group. What if no one shows up? Do it anyway, keep showing up because you believe in its purpose.
Advice: Expand your comfort zone in every facet of life. Run paces that are uncomfortable, apply for and take roles that are uncomfortable, enter intimate relationships and have uncomfortable conversations that allow you to speak openly and honestly, say you’re sorry when you’re wrong and apologies are deserved, forgive the unforgivable because it’s good for you. The list goes on and on. I think people will find that in doing so, their comfort zone expands further and further, allowing them to really enjoy and enrich their lives.

2. Being resourceful – I spoke about this earlier because I learned to be resourceful from my parents. If the world isn’t providing what you need then create it.
Advice: Don’t sit and wait for opportunities. If there’s something you need, figure out how to get it when you need it. For example, Sông Ánh and I noticed there weren’t many Asian Americans in the Charlotte Running community in spite of there being a very large AAPI population in Charlotte. We started the walking group because we thought it’d be more accessible. We found a GREAT Asian-owned Asian food hall with plenty of free parking and space to gather that easily connected us to a free Greenway. We found a great opportunity to be in community, while supporting our local community.

3. Nothing you do will make EVERYONE happy or like you, so make sure what YOU DO makes you happy and like you.
Advice: Be OK with people not liking you. I’m not trying to be harsh with myself about this, but it’s true. As an Asian female, I’ve been expected to be quiet, timid, and subservient. I used to keep my head down, stay quiet, and work hard because I was told I would be recognized for my hard work, but it rarely, if ever, happened. That frustration and anger caused me to become more vocal because at the end of the day, it was my fault for not speaking up. Then, all of a sudden I was too pushy with my ideas, thoughts or opinions. Some people really didn’t like it in spite of me watching people of other races and/or genders do the same and get very different responses. I am at a point in my life where more people don’t like me than ever before, but I’m the happiest I’ve ever been. And the people who do like me are by my side, and bring so much joy to my life.

ALL of these are easier said than done. It’s not gonna feel great all of the time when you realize someone doesn’t like you. It requires a conversation with yourself, but it’s good to remind yourself that we’re not meant for everyone. ALL of these are difficult for a reason, but taking them on truly helped me grow as a person.

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

We’re a very new group and our team has very busy schedules, so we only meet once a month. It’s taking time for our group to grow, but I will say, it’s been awesome to see some folks become regulars in just the 5 meetups we’ve had thus far. Our current obstacle is having people return to our walks after their first visits. What can we do to get them to return? What is it our group is missing? Sông Ánh and I are full time working moms with very young kids, so with our busy schedules, it’s been difficult to plan. We’re forever thankful to Jenny and Nhi joining the team helping us find groups to collaborate with, and plan future walks to make them more engaging. They’ve done an incredible job so far having planned our upcoming collab with Mural Tours 704 and CLT Asian Eats to list a few. Our next challenge is figuring out alternative activities for us to do when the summer heat hits, and we welcome ideas and other organizations to reach out to us if they’re willing to provide a cooler space for us to meet up.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Pace of the East, jennychomp, supernovu, songanhh, coachnagano
• Other: Email: paceoftheeast@gmail.com

Image Credits

Michael Cooke (IG: cltnativeagain) / CLTnativeagain@gmail.com