Monthly Archives: December 2015


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Christmas Road Trip

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 4m easy 8:40/pace

Wednesday: 45min upper body + 2m cool down easy 9:30/pace

Since the weather was mild during Christmas I took a very long drive to Northwest Indiana and celebrated with family.

My first stop was to see my nephews & brother & sister-in-law. They all love LE and got to help celebrate her 1st birthday on Christmas Eve.

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Jaxon, Mason, Brant & LE

Not gonna lie, i tried her baked cookie. It was actually heavenly. Molasses & cinnamon with a sweet frosting. Yes, I taste LE’s treats, but in my defense she eats better and more natural/organic than I do.

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the boys sang Happy Birthday to her!

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me and Trish the dish

Christmas was exhausting but wonderful all at once. It gets overwhelming trying to be in so many places during a short amount of time, and plenty overwhelming when i’m around a ton of people. I was so drained most of the time, I only went running once on Christmas–but hey, at least the IT bands are feeling good and I got to run outside. Plus I figured it was a good time to take 4-5 days completely off from training as I like to do semi-annually.

Next I visited Elise & Kyle, opened a ton of gifts, drank a lot of wine and enjoyed ham & sweet potatoes and amazing cupcakes made by Elise. Don’t worry, i forgot to take pictures of everything so you don’t have cupcake pictures to be jealous of.

My final stop was spent with my favorite family, the Raycrofts. I’ll be heading to Colorado with these good people in May and I CAN’T WAIT.

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Kathy, Me & Pat

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Another big highlight of the trip was seeing Star Wars for the 2nd time in Imax 3D. I definitely prefer 2D movies, but i’ll watch the new Star Wars anyway I can.

As soon as we got back home we started watching Episode IV…

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Happy Holidays and have a great New Year!!! Next up is the annual 2015 recap & 2016 goals!

Last Week

Monday: 5 rounds– 5:00min Jacobs ladder, 10 pushups, 10 mountain climbers

Tuesday: 5m easy

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: Rest

Friday: 5.1m easy 9:00/pace

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: Rest

Total Miles: 10.1

How many Christmases do you attend? 


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A Close Call…

Running injuries SUCK. I feel like i’ve been talking about ITBS syndrome since last spring, but I wanted to give a detailed report on what happened to me recently and how I’m handling it this time around. I just hope this might help someone who is dealing with an injury. Just remember, you are NOT alone.

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I asked her to try and look sad with me…

A couple weeks ago on December 5th, i felt an all-too-familiar pain on the outside of my knees. I didn’t want to believe it, but the IT band pain was hinting at a return. Because I’ve already had ITBS, I know what that specific pain feels like and it was easy to make the decision to stop mid-run, go home, address the issue and try to sidestep a repeat injury.

Yes, I did stop 2.5 miles into a long run and turned around even though i wanted, craved and needed a long run. Deciding to do the smart thing and walk home was actually easy. The hard part was trudging that long distance home feeling defeated, frustrated and concerned about what I could have possibly done wrong.

Here are my tips and what I did this time around. I feel like I came really close to an injury again, and playing it smart paid off. Just 10 days after the initial IT band pain and i’m already on the comeback and ran pain free three times this week!

  1.  Stop running & start strengthening I’ve read from multiple sources that you cannot beat IT band pain by just taking time off of running. You have to strength train and get your glutes, hips, hamstrings, and lateral (side to side) movement in gear! (check out these exercises)
  2. Cross train if no pain Rowing & the stairmill have become my best friends for cardio when I can’t run. And they offer little to no impact on the joints which is crucial for ITBS. Try and stay away from machines that closely imitate running, i.e. the elliptical. And of course, stop if you feel pain!
  3. Stretch & Foam Roll Check out this video: IT Band Hell This gave me a TON of new ways to stretch and an interesting insight about NOT foam rolling directly on the IT Band.
  4. Avoid hills and downhill running when you begin your “test runs” Start on the treadmill. Boring yes, but you will thank yourself if you need to bail on a run and don’t have to cry in defeat on your walk back. Plus, on the treadmill you can go with little to no incline and no downhill running which aggravates this injury.
  5. Be grateful Your body is extremely good at giving signals when something is wrong. Don’t ignore it. Enjoy the time off, sleep in, and change up your exercise routine so you will be 100% happy and healthy for your comeback.

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Last Week 

Monday: 5 Rounds: 250m row, 20 thrusters 30#, 45 sec side plank each side + 2.2m walk

Tuesday: 20 min stairmill, 1 mile easy 9:15/pace (no pain!), 1 mile walk

Wednesday: 5 Rounds: 500m row, 10 walkout pushups, 12 hot salsa lunges, 15 hip hikes/each leg + 1 mile walk

Thursday: 3m easy 9:22/pace (no pain)

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: 5m easy 8:50/pace, 10min abs (no pain)

Total Miles: 9

I hope this is helpful–feel free to comment with any advice on how to handle injuries or what to do when you’re down for the count.


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Zooma Run Love Challenge

Well, my Sunday run was not super successful after a week completely off, but i’m looking at it as a glass half full…as in half my legs (IT band specific) felt good. Much better than last week, but still not perfect so i’ll continue to cross train and lay off running until it’s 100%. At least this is a great time of year to back off and prep my body for spring running!

I have recently signed up for Zooma’s Virtual Run Love Challenge! Registration is open until January 11th for the 5k or 10k. I opted in for the 10k, hoping to have a good speed work session during Valentine’s Day weekend. You can register HERE. This is a great last minute Christmas idea for you and a friend since you don’t have to travel to race!

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I cannot wait to get this sweater!! My goal in life is to have all my clothing have something running related on it haha.

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Star Wars comes out this week so smile even though it’s Monday! (This picture is just because LE was being super cuddly yesterday..and I’m wearing my Empire Strikes Back shirt) File_000

Last Week

Monday: 30 min legs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: 2500m row, 100 DB walking lunges, 50 pushups w/DB Row, 100 butterfly situps

Thursday: 25min yoga

Friday: 20 min core

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: 3.4m easy 9:00/pace, 15 min hips

Total Miles: 3.4

Who has done a virtual run before? 

Also–who’s excited for Star Wars???


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Let’s Catch Up

Tuesday: 3m easy 9:20/pace, 10min Jacobs Ladder, 20min hips

Wednesday: 7m interval (1.5m warm up 10 x 400s @ 6:17/pace)

Okay! Gotta update you peeps on what’s been going on with the running side of She’s Going the Distance. I’m still coming off the high from my 1/2 PR and have not decided on what goals/races/distances I’d like to tackle in 2016. Any advice would be excellent. I’m thinking of a marathon, of course i’ll run a half or two..and possibly a Spartan Race (obstacle course).

I have been enjoying running lately: treadmill, outside, and in place. Ok not really in place, but you know what I mean. The weather has been mild and i’m not complaining. I hate/can’t run on snow or ice, so as long as the trails are clear i’m happy. However after sitting in a car for too many hours last weekend, my IT bands and hips are super tight, so i’m not increasing any mileage this week, just focusing on ye ol’ hip exercises to get my glutes fired up and ready for a new season.

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Speaking of recovery–I won a pair of TIUX Compression socks from Fly High Runner via Instagram.

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After wearing them for about a month i can say, they’re really comfortable, cozy, super cute and keep me warm in our cold gym. However, i can’t get over the fact that they just don’t have the same squeeze i get from my PRO Compression socks. At the beginning I thought I was being biased with my love for PRO Compression, but there was a big difference. I wore the TIUX socks on my flight back from Indianapolis and my ankles were swollen when I got to DC. I’ve never have that problem with my PRO’s.

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The socks are smartly labeled L & R. And yes, i’m watching Gossip Girl.

If you follow my Instagram you’ll know I’ve recently become part of Team Nuun!  And an athlete for the Honey Stinger Hive with Honey Stinger. Lauren @ The Foodie Runner introduced me to Honey Stinger Products when I couldn’t handle the thick consistency of GU any longer. I’ve been obsessed ever since because honey is delicious, natural & easy on my stomach. Plus Lauren is freaking fast, so I assume these will make me speedy!

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Does everyone have a drawer that looks like this?

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I also was recently sent Vanilla Herbalife24 Formula 1 Protein Powder to try out. I will give a detailed review as I try a few more recipes & see how my stomach handles it after workouts. So far I like it, it tastes great (kinda like birthday cake) & it dissolves easy. No chunks or gritty texture is a huge plus with protein powder.

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So what’s up with all you guys?

Try any new running products lately?


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Turkey Time

Monday: 35min total body

Thanksgiving was a blast this year! I had an easy ride to Ohio and got to meet up with Emmeline and her husband for dinner. But she’s a jerk…always feeding me beer and trying to talk me into doing an Ironman.

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Thanksgiving morning I ran 6 hilly miles on a beautiful clear day making room for all the food I forgot to take pictures of haha, oops. I think we had a little over 30 people on T-Day and it was amazing. A lot of catching up, laughing, wine, kids playing and everyone falling in love LE!

LE enjoyed the freedom of being off-leash and having a ton of space to play. She listened perfectly and was so easy to take care of. Plus, she just looked so majestic!

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Later, after most of us napped, we had a bonfire, corn hole, giant jenga, and more wine. It felt almost like a college party, but way more fun cause the company was awesome 🙂

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All the female relatives (minus my SIL Trish.. where are you trish??)

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Aunt Terri, Aunt Dena, Niece Peyton, Grandma Maley, Aunt Chicken, Me & LE

The next day we hit up Zoo Lights at the Columbus Zoo. It drizzled and was raining hard at the end, but everyone had a good time.

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I left for home Saturday morning and once I got LE bathed, she passed out in a blanket for an hour. She was beat. So was I. I still feel like i’m making up sleep!

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Last Week

Monday: 20min upper body, 3m easy 9:00/pace

Tuesday: 5.5m easy 8:20/pace

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: 6m hills 8:15/pace

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: 10.5m easy 9:00/pace

Total Miles: 25

The big question…are you ready for Christmas?