The Pittsburgh Half Marathon

So over the weekend I ran my second half marathon ever right here in the city that I love so much. This was my first go-around with the Pittsburgh half marathon & I am really happy to say that I had a GREAT experience. I might be a little biased since I was born & raised here,  but this was one of the most fun, energetic races I've ever run in my life with (hands down) the best spectators.

I decided to run for charity & the charity I chose was Steel City Greyhounds. I'm sure most of you know by now that I'm the proud owner of an Italian Greyhound myself (Luna) & my aunt actually adopted a retired racer (Ice) from Steel City a few years ago. They promote the adoption of retired racing greyhounds & they ensure they go to fantastic, loving homes. 

They're a fantastic organization run by fantastic people & I was really quite proud to represent them and their beautiful dogs.

They also hooked their charity runners up with some awesome gear & a handful of racers were on hand at the expo to work the crowd. I made sure to wear my SCG shirt to the expo & (obviously) had to stop and say hi to some 40 mph couch potatoes. Roger (black & white dog above) was my favorite even though he was more interested in holding his mom's hands than taking a picture with me! 

The expo was great, too. It was really crowded, but there were a ton of vendors there & I ended up finding some really sweet Pittsburgh gear to run in on Sunday. Swag bags were nice, too. I was pretty into the Red Bull Red edition that was in there. I'm usually not a fan of energy drinks but that thing actually tasted really good.

My ensemble on Sunday consisted of a shirt and shorts from Fresh Factory which is located here in Pittsburgh. The "Yinz Run Like Jagoffs" shirt is pretty much my favorite shirt of all time now. I freaking love anything that has to do with Pittsburgh quirks. I also wore my Boston Strong BIC Band which I ordered online a few weeks ago when they were released. They're $12 & 100% of the proceeds are donated to the One Fund. You can purchase them here. I've always loved BIC Bands, so this was a no-brainer for me.

The course of this race was really great until the very end. Running through the west end & the south side were probably my favorites. My family & boyfriend were in the west end, and the south side was just so much fun. There were people handing out gummy worms & the signs there were cracking me up. I hope people who come out and support runners know how much they are GENUINELY appreciated. I high fived everyone with their hand out and I made sure to smile at people that made eye contact with me. Even the guy who was simply saying "WELCOME TO THE WEST END" and giving everyone a thumbs up made me happy. It was an awesome, awesome atmosphere & it just further proves the point that Pittsburghers are awesome people.

Running over the bridges was totally awesome, too. It's just a really unique experience overall that I think only Pittsburgh can offer.

The last 3 miles of the race, however, were a total and absolute buzzkill. Apparently the course has changed over the years & a hill was added in the last stretch of the half. While it doesn't look like a super steep slope, it's a gradual incline that goes on for far, far too long. The rest of the course is relatively flat (a few slopes), but nothing quite like the end. A young man actually died at mile 12 this year, and many are saying that course elevation may have played a role. It makes me so sad to know that something like that happened at what was supposed to be such a celebration. I hope that race organizers consider making a change next year.

Jim (my boyfriend) made me a pretty amazing sign that said "Run Like Luna" (my italian greyhound) and he even drew an adorable little cartoon of her at the bottom. It brought a huge smile to my face at mile 8 :) 

I was very happy with my time (2:08) & I managed to shave about 20 minutes off of my half marathon PR since I ran my first back in November in Disney! Clearly my next goal is to finish under 2 - but I was absolutely happy with finishing so much faster than my first attempt at 13.1. I also have to say that I owe a lot of credit to Spider Tech Kineseology tape which I used on my knee & thigh. I had a strained muscle in my thigh from dance & my knee is always anti-social during my long distance runs. I experienced VERY little pain & I was absolutely shocked at how well this product worked. 

You can see my bionic blue leg in this mirror shot. If you have generic pain, I really recommend checking out their X Spiders ($30 for a 20 pack or $4 for a 2 pack) which are really versatile and can be put pretty much anywhere you're experiencing pain. Their pre-cut strips are also great for people like myself who can't just take a roll of kineseology tape and magically know how to apply it. I'm sure there are directions and stuff, but this was 4:30 in the morning & aint nobody got time for that. I managed to strap up my whole leg in like 5 minutes & I was good to go all day. So THANK YOU Spider Tech. You literally saved my ass.

Also, here is a link to the pre-cut upper knee tape I used. If you get knee pain while running, I would definitely recommend checking it out. I was a total non-believer in this stuff but I can now swear by the fact that it does work.

So thank you to Pittsburgh, Pittsburgers, Fresh Factory, Steel City Greyhounds, BIC Bands, Spider Tech, Jim, my family members, & all of the fantastic runners that made their way through the 'burgh on Sunday for making this one of the most memorable races ever. I truly had the time of my life.

Keep Running,

Kelli

Local Runs, a Milestone, & Nuun

I have a love/hate relationship with running 5k's & such in my immediate neighborhoods. While I truly appreciate the fact that I can wake up 15 minutes before the race and still have time to chill beforehand - I don't know how much I love seeing A LOT of people I know.

Mainly because I spend .73 seconds getting ready for races that start prior to 8:30am. That + people you haven't seen since high school = don't mind me stretching behind this tree off in the distance hoping that you don't see me looking a hot mess at 7:45am.

But I digress.

I ran the annual 5k in Carnegie, PA on Sunday that benefits the police department there. It's the town that's right next to mine, so it was nice to support a local cause. I did look for photographic evidence of my existence at the race, but the photographer took pictures of 16 random people coming across the finish, dogs, and everyone who won the 50/50 raffle.

Another thing I love about small community runs is the improvisation that needs to occur in order to fit in 3.1 miles. Start line in the parking lot everyone running the race parked in? Sure why not. As you can see by the picture, there was a pretty nice turn out & the crowd extended even farther out to the right, as well. I think they managed to raise close to $15,000 for the department - so that's nice.

For a smaller run, this was very well organized I must say. I think this was their 6th year doing this, so they have it down pretty good. They also had a crap load of 50/50 prizes (none of which me, my aunt, or my uncle won..) & the vibe was good overall. Very supportive & friendly despite my attempts to be anti-social.

This also happened during the race.. so that's pretty awesome.

I ended up finishing 7th in the age category of Women 18-29 which had 49 runners, and 73rd out of 479 overall. I actually had my best 5k time of 2013 during this race which was 25:36, 8:15/mile. Good stuff.

Before my runs I have been drinking water with Nuun tablets, as well. I feel like this time of year, hydration really becomes a problem with me because of the heat. I haven't had any issues since implementing this strategy, so I'm going to stick with it as it continues to heat up. If you're unfamiliar with Nuun, they're tablets that turn your water into an electrolyte drink that caters to high-intensity activities because the type of electrolyte blend used absorbs quickly. If you have issues staying hydrated during your runs - I'd absolutely recommend checking them out.

They come in little tubes of 12 tablets and they're available in like a billion different flavors. I am personally a fan of the banana because it kind of makes your water taste like banana runts. I must say that Nuun certainly does add a pop of flavor, so definitely check them out if you're looking for a nice alternative to paying $3 for a bottle of Gatorade. You can get a 4 pack of tubes (that's 48 tablets) for $22 through their website. Please stay safe & hydrated as the weather gets warmer, friends :)

Pittsburgh half marathon in t-minus two days! Pretty excited :) 

Keep Running,

Kelli