When she's not completing company reports and releases, Ariela Ortiz '07 prepares for some of the most famous races in the world.
It's like a natural instinct for her to train for hours at a time - every morning, rain or shine. After those long runs, she gets ready for a daily commute to her conventional 9-to-5 at KKR, an asset management firm based in New York City.
"You have to be very disciplined," Ortiz said. "It doesn't matter if you don't really want to go outside; if it's on the training plan that you have to run that day - I have to go out there."
The discipline Ortiz has shown in her running regimen has been matched only by her dedication at every step of her academic and professional journey.
Before joining KKR as an accountant, Ortiz majored in accounting at the School of Management through the Educational Opportunity Program. She also befriended Vidalma Francisco '05, who acted as her mentor and guided her into a career path inspired by Ortiz's affinity for math and reasoning. During her sophomore year, Ortiz co-founded the Alpha Chapter of the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting (ALPFA).
Through ALPFA, Ortiz networked with professionals from the Big Four accounting firms - Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC - which gave her a crucial "kickstart." By her junior year, Ortiz connected with a recruiter who secured her a two-year internship at Deloitte.
Ortiz spent years there auditing and studying for her CPA exam. After successfully passing and gaining licensure as an accountant, her schedule opened up.
That's when a friend suggested they start running together - a sport Ortiz hadn't participated in since joining her high school track team. Ortiz signed up for the New York City Marathon in 2014.
The rest is history.
"It just kicked off from there, really," said Ortiz, who has now completed 15 marathons. "The bug really hit me. I just kept going."
A changed perspective
Ortiz is proud that the New York City Marathon, known as the world's largest with a course that extends across all five boroughs, was her first. It also proved the first she would complete out of the World Marathon Majors - a series of the six most popular and prestigious races in the world. She traveled to iconic cities like Berlin, Chicago and London, hoping to eventually join the thousands of other runners who had made it through all six finish lines.
Along the way, Ortiz picked up valuable tricks to endure in these grueling races, like properly carb-loading and how to recover from overuse injuries like stress fractures and knee pain. Mistakes are inevitable, but Ortiz recognizes the value of learning from them.
To aspiring marathon runners, her advice is simple: start slow.
"Work your way up. See how comfortable you are and then keep going - 10K, half marathon - because not everything comes easy," she said. "It's a marathon, not a sprint."
By 2023, Ortiz had already completed four of the six World Marathon Majors with only two remaining: Tokyo and Boston.
With the goal of running the next two consecutively in the spring, she trained all winter, braving the snow and cold with extra layers and a headlight. Adhering to an intensive training plan, Ortiz ran through her lunch breaks and during downtime in the evenings.
"You're always going to find an excuse to get out of training," Ortiz said, "but there's always a solution."
Six weeks after running the Tokyo Marathon in March, Ortiz was determined to keep up the momentum and finish strong. She insisted on finishing her final race in Boston, known as the "Marathon of Marathons" among enthusiasts due to its century-long history.
After years of relentless training, Ortiz finally achieved the qualifying time to compete in Boston this past spring.
She crossed that finish line, taking away an elusive Six Star Medal, as well as an accomplishment a decade in the making.
"It really changed my perspective on everything that I do in life," Ortiz said. "I love my training - I love running marathons. I love my job as well. I love my family. Just being able to provide the time to all three is very hard. That means being able to plan out everything, being able to say no to certain things, to prioritize the three things that I love the most."
