Nothing motivates me more than a challenge. I ran my second ultramarathon in April of 2019 and it left me injured and discouraged as I struggled so much physically and mentally though the training. As I battled a nagging and terrible soreness in my left hip, my chiropractor suggested I attend Formula’s Flex class. I was hooked!

As I started to improve, I reached out to Ann to help me with a training plan for my next ultra, a 40 miler on gravel roads in Tennessee. She suggested to add in a Wednesday morning Equilibrium class and wrote a plan. I braved an icy drive to my first Equilibrium Class, early in the dark morning from over the mountain. I soon found myself looking forward to waking up at 4:30am for that class. It was hard but fun and encouraging.

The combo of the training plan and the classes did wonders for my running performance. My long run pace improved by over one minute per mile faster. Hilly routes that used to fill me with dread became easier and more manageable. Running friends commented on my pace and my improving performance. I’ll never be fast but I certainly got faster and stronger.

When my ultra got canceled due to COVID-19, I decided I still wanted to do the 40 miles. I completed it on a hilly mountain road in Albemarle county and felt great the entire time. For the first time I actually had fun while running a long distance. My hip had healed up during my training and outside of the normal soreness during the race, I felt really good. I had a blast and consider it one of the best days of this year.

The training plan was perfect, I never felt like I overdid it and it focused on real quality miles. Not piling on miles for the sake of volume, it taught me smart training. The strength training was instrumental in healing my injuries and making me stronger. I didn’t have to give up running to heal, I learned how to manage my hip and strengthen the weaknesses necessary for the healing. I saw a difference in my body and the way I ran. It just felt better.

My confidence increased as did my love of running. I’m so proud to be part of the Formula family. I’m proud of how far I’ve come. The coaches at Formula have a real love for what they do and they are committed to helping us become the best version of ourselves.

Kristin has discovered that running long can actually be fun and feel good!