On the road again...

I just got back from my first run of the new year. It also was my first run ever in my Vibrams. I got them about a year ago and slowly started building my time in them by wearing them around the house and out and about. I wasn't sure if I wanted to run in them or not and even up until this morning, I still wasn't sure.

I was planning to hit a yoga class this afternoon, but the siren call of the sewing machine kept me firmly in my PJs sitting in my kitchen stitching away. Before I knew it, yoga wasn't going to happen.

Since it's been about nine months since I've run with any great consistency and with my plans of starting over with the C25K program, I figured today was as good a day as any to start. I went to grab my running shoes, and then remembered that they'd been rubbing some hot spots on one of my feet. FAIL.

My husband said "You're just going for a mile or so, why not use your VFFs?" Um, what? Wait, I had decided that I was using those for weight training, not running. Well, maybe....

So I did. My toes got cold. I can deal with that. I ran .2/walked .2/ran .2, etc....I also wore my Garmin just to see what my pace was. It averaged (when running) between 11 - 12 minute miles. I've *never* run that pace before. I could have kept going, but I didn't want to push it so I made myself stop every .2 miles. My last bit of running I maintained an 8:30 minute mile. And I wasn't sprinting. WTH???

So, either I don't know how to work my Garmin or my running has improved more than I realized. Maybe it's the shoes? Either way, today was a fantastic (although short) run (and pain free)!!

FREEDOM!!!!

I showed up to my physical therapy appt today and told them that I needed to wrap this shindig up. Our insurance coverage changed as of Jan 1 and it suddenly got a hell of a lot more expensive for me to hang out with them. They're nice guys and all, but I'd rather save that money for race fees, ya know?

I told them that my family wasn't going to miss any meals and I didn't want to bail out on them prematurely but that I truly felt that I could do all of my therapy either at home or the gym and that I was getting antsy to simply get on with my life.

I expected them to suggest we pare down to one visit a week and see how I feel. They simply told me, I was right and that I could go home and just let them know in a few weeks how I was feeling. What? Really? Sa-wheet!

So, I suddenly had a child free afternoon and no plans. What would you do? I went to the local running store, of course. I've mentioned before about shoes, and how I wanted a pair of Vibrams, but I'm still in a fair amount of pain on the bottom of my heel. There's a decent chance that I've got a nice hefty bruise deep in my heel pads and possibly into my bone. I need some cushioning under there until that heals, but I'm still skeptical of those ultra fancy shoes that do everything for you but clip your toenails.

Enter these:

The Brooks Green Silence. It's their version of a minimalist shoe. Similar to the Nike Frees. I didn't care for the Nikes, but these felt amazing when I tried them on. I didn't buy them, but I'm thinking I should have. I won't be running right away anyhow, but when I do I'm pretty sure I'll be sportin' these bad boys. I just wish they weren't so damn ugly!

Shoes...

Remember a while back, when I told you about how I gave up my fancy running shoes and went bought a cheap, generic pair of Saucony's at Big 5? My totally neutral shoes that I fell in love with? You don't? Ok, well go back and read that post. It's ok....I'll wait

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You're back? Great! That's some good readin' isn't it? Ok, so it's been several months and like all good running shoes, mine have started to break down a bit and it's time for new ones. No biggie, Big 5 runs sales all of the time and I know I can find mine fairly cheap again. End of story, right? WRONG!

My husband has recently picked up the book Born To Run. He keeps spitting all of these facts out to me and he's told me on more than one occasion that I ought to read the book. "You'll really enjoy it" he says. Great. He bought the book ~ so I can read it when he's done, right? WRONG! He bought it for his Kindle. I, on the other hand, do not own a Kindle. Oh, he hints that I'll own one around Christmas time, but for now I'm screwed. I've got the Kindle app on my iPhone. It'll be a miracle if I don't go blind trying to read on that thing. Between the size and fact that it's backlit (Kindle is not, it's got "e-ink") my eyes feel like they are crossing after just five minutes.

So, anyway...as you know from the way I eat, I'm pretty much a naturalist anyway, right? So, I guess it's no surprise to me that my feet did not like the fancy smancy shoes and wanted a more neutral shoe, right? So, then does it shock anyone that now I'm looking to take it a step further? I went and tried on the Nike Free shoes today. They were comfy, but I didn't love them. After talking to the sales rep (who is also an avid runner and an aquaintence of mine), she suggested that the Nike Frees may not be the right shoes for me. She watched me run and said I'm not a heel striker (big no no for anyone, terrible for someone with my knee issues) anyway, and that I have a very healthy mid foot strike so she recommended I go one step further and try.......these:

Unfortunately her store was out of them (like most of Western Washington) and no one will be getting them back in until February. I'll just be getting ready to start training for my half at that time, so I dont' want to start changing shoe types then. I made some calls and there happens to be ONE pair of these in my size in my whole county. I'm heading there tomorrow to try them on. Aren't they flippin' AWESOME?!

Oh, I'll also be picking up another pair of my comfy neutral shoes as the Vibrams won't work for long distances until after my feet get adjusted to them. Nearly everything I've read about them online indicates that almost everyone uses these for shorter distance runs to perfect their foot strike, but uses a neutral running shoe for longer distances for the cushioning. I'm just getting ready to start increasing my distance beyond 3 miles, so I plan to do exactly the same thing.

Oh, and these supposedly kick ass for weight lifting shoes. Can't wait to see the looks I get at the gym! I sure hope they fit tomorrow!