She holds the record for the fastest iron-distance race by an American woman, set at Ironman Austria in 2011 with a time of 8:43:34.

[7] Ellis went on to college at Northwestern University to major in industrial engineering and then obtain a master's degree in marketing.

[5][6] Following college, Ellis moved to Colorado where she participated in half-marathon and marathon races while working full-time.

[2] It became apparent that Ellis was more suited for longer distance triathlon events versus shorter, Olympic style racing.

[9] On September 9, 2013, while training for the upcoming Ironman World Championship in October, Ellis broke her collarbone in a bike accident in Cozumel, Mexico.

[10] Ellis' condensed a four to six-month recovery plan into one month with the goal of competing in the October 12th race in Kona, Hawaii.

[17] In October 2016, prior to competing at the 2016 Ironman World Championship, Ellis announced this race would be her last as she would retire from the sport of triathlon as a competitor.