Rock N Roll

Over the weekend I ran my second half marathon! Aly and I went to the expo on Friday to pick up our bibs and check out all the different vendors! We ended up spending way too much time there and getting a ton of free stuff: ...tshirts, water bottles, sunglasses, samples, etc...

Then Sunday rolled around and I had no idea how this race was going to go! Last half, I had Kami and her dad to help pace and just keep me going in general. This year, I was running alone. Since I was pretty nervous I decided to not worry about keeping the 9minute/mile pace but just run comfortably and finish. So the race started and I got to the first mile at 9:04, the second mile-9:01, third mile-9:00...what the heck!!! 

I was so surprised that I was comfortably and consistently keeping a good pace I decided I had to stick with it. There were plenty of times where I was struggling but tried not to think about it... There were lively crowds at just the right places which definitely helps keep you going. I look forward to all of the water/ Gatorade stops, which I did not utilize nearly as much my first half marathon and I also took some Gu, which was my first time using those as well. I was surprised how good the vanilla tasted :) I basically I wanted to use this run to try everything and anything to see what helped keep me going and if there was anything that slowed me down for the full.

While thinking about the full in October, I realized while crossing the finish line...I'll have to double what I just ran. . . I knew this before, but having that in my head as I crossed the finish line is a lot different then just sitting on my couch thinking in my head "yea, I can totally train for 26.2 miles and it'll be so fun!"!! I'm hoping the 13 miles seems like a piece of cake soon considering I have to run it again this Saturday as part of training. The more you put in the easier, right?  

Overall, I was and still am really pleased with the outcome of the race. I can't imagine how I will feel after a full marathon!!! I ended the day with a soccer game at Wrigley Field : Italy vs. Poland and then Burger Fest and quickly passed out in bed after all of that!