Sparkly Runner is FIVE! {Giveaway Details Below!}

Yesterday, this blog turned five. As in five years old. As in HALF A DECADE!

What?!?

Way back when I first had the inclination to start a blog, I don't think I ever imagined how positively my life would be impacted by sharing my running adventures with the internet.

When I started writing in 2013, I was a relatively new runner on the verge of a huge life change. I had just moved two hours away from the only home I'd ever known to live with my boyfriend (now husband) and start a new job that was completely out of my comfort zone.

I was 100+ miles from home in a small town that didn't have a lot of folks my age. Besides Matthew and a few co-workers, I really didn't know anyone, let alone anyone in the running community.

So I started writing about running on this blog. Then I started some social media channels to connect with other runners. Pretty soon I was meeting up with strangers from the internet and agreeing to run races with them. I was making friends and meeting people and traveling and experiencing new races... because of this blog.

Suddenly, Matthew and I had an extended family of runners all over the world- all from this corner of the internet.

As I stand on the verge of another series of big life changes- home ownership, graduate school, new job- I can't help but reflect on how much this blog helped me five years ago and how I can't wait to see what the next five years as the "Sparkly Runner" holds.

Thank YOU for reading and running with me these last five years. I've loved every minute of sharing the road with you. Thank you for your support, comments, and community. You ROCK!

To celebrate Sparkly Runner's Fifth Blogiversary, I've teamed up with Altra Running who has generously donated a free pair of Altra Running Shoes to give away to one lucky reader!

That's right, ANY pair of Altra Running Shoes! Huge thank you to Altra for helping me celebrate!

To enter this awesome giveaway, comment on any/all of the following with which pair of Altras you'd want to try:

• Comment on this blog post
• Tweet about the giveaway (make sure you tag me @sparklyrunner and @AltraRunning!)
• Leave an instagram comment on the giveaway post on the @sparklyrunner account
• Comment on the Sparkly Runner facebook page on the giveaway post

One winner will be chosen at random- the more times you enter, the more chances you have to win. You can tweet every day for more entries!

The fine print:
This giveaway starts today and ends at 11:59 PM on Thursday, July 26th. The winner will be notified Friday, July 27th by direct message or email and will have 48 hours to respond with requested information (name, address, shoe style, color, and size). If the winner does not respond within 48 hours a new winner will be chosen. Winner will be selected at random from the comments/entries on the blog, instagram, facebook, and twitter.


Good luck! And again, thank you for reading!

Race Recap & Review: 2018 Pittsburgh Half Marathon

A few months ago, I ran my fifth Steel Challenge in Pittsburgh, PA. While I've participated in Pittsburgh Marathon Weekend several times before, there's just something about this race that keeps me coming back for more- and 2018 was no different!

Flat runner for a 13.1 mile tour of the steel city.

This year, somehow, I ran a nine minute course PR and my second-fastest half marathon ever crossing in 2:30:01. In 26 half marathons, I've only run two of them in less than 2:31. Only two!

So how did this happen??

I have no idea! Seriously!

You might remember that somehow I also ran a 10 mile PR in March, just a few weeks before Pittsburgh. Can't say it was training- wasn't doing much. Can't say it was speed work- wasn't doing any. Can't say it was strength training or a special diet- definitely wasn't doing this- ha!

So what was it?

The magic of Pittsburgh. 😍

Really- I'm convinced this race and this city are magical.

And this year just had an extra dose of magic.

As per usual, Matthew and I met up with our running ohana early on that Sunday morning and then walked to the corrals together. Matthew and I had already decided to run separately so I dropped him off in C corral and continued walking to D corral with our friend Gloria.

We are pretty cute for 6 am :-)

We had made it into the corral pretty early so we had time to kill. I wandered up to the 2:30 pace group and kinda sorta thought I would hang with them for as long as I could. The pacers told me they would be straight running (I almost always run/walk) so I already had a feeling that this wasn't going to work out. But, when the race finally started and our corral finally got up to the start line, I joined the group and tried to keep up.

While the start of the race was just fine, by mile one I knew I wouldn't be able to keep up with the group. And even though I'd gone in the corral, I had to go to the bathroom again; so shortly after the mile one sign I found a short port-o-potty line and spent about four minutes using the bathroom. By the time I rejoined the race, the pace group was long gone.

I put my headphones in, put my head down, and got to work chipping away at the miles. I soaked in all the sights around me, chatted with other runners (including Candi whom I met from instagram- I love the internet!), and slowly became aware of the fact that I was in PR territory.

My half marathon PR is 2:28:22 from the 2014 Shamrock Half Marathon. I know that to finish a half marathon in less than two hours and thirty minutes, each mile needs to be run at an 11:26 (or less) pace. And somehow, I was running the Pittsburgh Half Marathon with splits close to that target pace.

By mile six, I knew that a sub 2:30 half was actually possible. I stopped taking pictures and focused on getting to the finish line as quickly as I could. However, I did make a few very quick pit stops for a small cup of beer, a cupcake, and a jello shot from friends at mile 10. The people of Pittsburgh really know how to make a runner feel welcome!

Can you think of a better combo than cupcakes
and jello shots?

After the boost of seeing friends at mile 10, the next 3.1 miles flew by. I was still thinking I could get a sub-2:30 if I hustled that last mile. I summoned as much energy as I could, rounded the last corner, saw the finish line in the distance and sprinted as fast as one can after 13 miles, and finished in 2:30:01, just two seconds from a 2:29:59.

Check out that 10th anniversary bling.

While there was just a moment of disappointment from missing the sub-2:30, overall, I was absolutely elated that I had executed a race plan that worked and led to my second-fastest half marathon ever. In fact, my last mile was a 9:47! I can barely run a 9:47 on my best day!

After collecting my smiley cookie and other finisher foods at the end of the race, I walked over to the finisher's village to get my Steel Challenge medal and met up with Matthew.

Will run for smiley cookies.

Unfortunately, Matthew and I had to get right on the road so we weren't able to stick around after the race like we usually do. Instead, we celebrated our race victories on the PA turnpike with rest stop pizza on the way home. 😊

Mmmm, turnpike pizza. 

The Pittsburgh Marathon Weekend never disappoints. I am so grateful I've been able to have five years of memories and miles during this race weekend. If you are on the fence about putting this race on your calendar- don't hesitate! It's a phenomenal race weekend: well-organized, great runner swag, and challenging but fun courses.

Will we be back in 2019? Probably. I can't imagine where else we'd like to spend the first weekend of May! Besides on a cruise or in Disney World. 😉

Bridges for breakfast.

Thank you, Pittsburgh! 

Is there a race/race weekend you've done several times? What do you love about it?

Accountability Monday: 7/9/2018

Good evening!

Today I'm writing you from beautiful Indianapolis, Indiana where I am spending the next week at a conference for work.

While I'm enjoying the conference, it has been so hard to stay on track while away from home! I have very little control over what I'm eating (the conference provides meals) and the schedule is demanding so there isn't much time to work out. But I'm trying to make it work as much as humanly possible. I'm really looking forward to being back and home and in my regular routine.

Training
Monday: 2.26 mile run, 13:17 pace
Wednesday: 3.1 mile run, 12:37 pace
Saturday: 2.37 mile run, 12:41 pace
Sunday: 2.35 mile run, 12:46 pace

Total: 10.08 miles

Man, this summer heat and humidity is killing my pace! I've had to slow down considerably because of the summer weather. Sunday's run was HORRIBLE- the heat was so bad I ended up walking much of the last .75 mile. I am really not built for summer running. 😓

Y'all. This 👏 heat 👏 is 👏 no 👏 joke. In Indianapolis all week for work so I brilliantly decide to run at 4 PM today when it's like 90 effing degrees out. Swipe left to see what it looks like when you have to sit down mid-run because you can't hang in this heat. And then a beautiful picture of what was a beautiful day... just not for running. Anyone else minding this sweltering weather?! 🙋‍♀️😥🔥

A post shared by Sarah (@sparklyrunner) on Jul 8, 2018 at 7:43pm PDT

Best Run

Running on fourth of July is always a good time- even if it's not part of an official holiday race! While it was hot and humid and not the greatest running conditions, I still got to sparkle in my patriotic Sparkle Skirt so that's got to count for something. 😍

Bravo Moment

This morning at the hotel gym, I conquered one of my fears- working out in public in front of a mirror!  I don't always know what I'm doing when working out (besides running) so the fact that I grabbed some weights and made up a little cross-training/strength workout AND did it in front of other people is a huge accomplishment for me! And my muscles are sore tonight so I must have done ok for myself, right?

Quote of the Week

In the immortal words of my friend Dory, "just keep swimming!" Applicable to so many situations in life.

That's all for this week! Look for a recap of the Pittsburgh half soon!

Accountability Monday: 7/2/18

Good morning, friends!

With the summer heat reaching record highs this week, I hope you are all staying cool and hydrated wherever you are.

If you are training through the hot temperatures, here are a few tips to running safely in the heat:

• SLOW DOWN! Seriously, any time the temps are above 70 degrees, you should be slowing down by at least 30 seconds per mile. 
• Run in the coolest parts of the day- typically early morning or late evening. I'm particularly fond of running around 8:45 pm as I usually get to see some spectacular sunsets while enjoying the cooler weather.
• Stay hydrated. Drink lots of water (and/or beer!) before, throughout, and after your workout. I've been using my OrangeMud hydration vest on pretty much every run this summer. 

Ok, so back to last week's recap:

Training

Tuesday: 3.36 mile group run with Appalachia Running Company (ARC) and the Chambersburg Beer Runners, 11:02 overall pace

Saturday: 2.53 mile run, 11:58 overall pace

Tuesday's run was part of an Altra Running Demo at ARC so of course, I wanted to go to my second-ever group run and talk Altra with other runners. Typically, I do not participate in group runs. As a back-of-the-packer and run/walker, I usually find that at the smaller group runs in my rural area, there isn't anyone else there to run my pace and method with me. 

View from the back of the pack. And a tractor, because Pennsylvania.

But about a half mile in, I started chatting with another SparkleSkirt runner, Chrissy, and we ended up running the whole route together. We talked about runDisney, beer (she's a member of the Chambersburg Beer Runners), half marathons, and running as a back-of-the-packer. It was awesome!

After the run, Evan (the PA Altra rep) brought us some Troegs beer and ARC provided yummy snacks. We stood around and talked about ultra marathons, the newest Altra shoes, and swapped race stories. All in all, a pretty solid Tuesday night. 

The only thing better than running, talking about running. While drinking a beer. ;-)

Best Run

Tuesday's run, for all the reasons mentioned above, and because I was very happy with the 11:02 overall pace on a hilly route in humid weather.

Bravo Moment

Despite my current struggle with the scale, I've attended a Weight Watchers meeting the last three out of four weeks. Weekly weigh-ins are one of the keys to holding myself accountable and it's been great to get back into that routine; even if the results aren't always what I want. 

Quote of the Week

Presented without comment because I think it's that powerful. 

Have a great week! 

And happy early birthday, America! 🎇🗽🎆