On Line Dating... For Shoes.

It's finally time to break out the winter running gear, follow an actual training plan, and start looking ahead to the 2014 racing season!  Though I feel like I've been waiting for this for a WHILE, I did truly enjoy my rest time.  It was nice to know that I was really doing something positive for my body, and embrace that being healthy doesn't mean hammering out hard miles all year.

A couple weeks ago I picked up a new pair of shoes to break in before I had to start running consistently, and I hate to say it.... but they weren't quite right!  I have been in the Asics Nimbus for probably.... more than 3 years?  Once I found them I fell in love, felt at home with the smooth ride, all the cushioning, and not to sound like a girl... but the colors were AWESOME.  There was something about the toe box and mid-foot that was narrower than normal, and though I wanted to just get used to it, remembering the stress fracture I had on the top of my left foot in college reminded me that undue pressure on the top of my feet as I add miles is probably not a good idea. 


These are the beauties that, sadly, I only spent 20 miles with. :(

I tried a couple pairs of different shoes on down at Movin Shoes and left with a pair of Asics Cumulus to try for a run, but I'm already unsure because of a little heel slip I noticed as I jogged back to my car. 

Don't you  just hate it when this happens??  You develop a close relationship with the running shoes you always run in . You share private moments with your shoes, they become your training partners, and you grow to have part of your identity tied in with the shoes you always pair up with.  So now what do I do?  I feel like I lost a running buddy!  Of course when I got home I felt like I had to do some on-line research to find an appropriate shoe partner to look into.

As I used the Runner's World Shoe Finder tool, I couldn't help but feel like I was in the on-line dating world, but for shoes!  I had to enter my gender, my height, weight, arch height (which I felt was a little personal... :), miles per week, pronation pattern.  I have found a few options that I'm hoping to try if this current pair doesn't win me over.  Our first date run will be on Saturday, so we'll see how it goes.  The Cumulus has big shoes to fill.... maybe that's not the right phrase to use when you're literally talking about shoes... but anyway - we will see.  Like any smart girl, you shouldn't have very high expectations of a first date, whether it's with a male prospect or a shoe prospect. 

But as for my first training week, it went great!  I am trying two new things to help me be as consistent and well rounded with my training as possible.  The first thing is that I bought a dry erase board calendar that I have  hanging in my kitchen.  I wrote all my planned workouts for the month on there and color coded the different components - running, stretching, yoga, abs, drills, and cross training.  My theory is that if I see them every day, I'll be more likely to do them.  Plus I love crossing things off lists, so that's an added motivation.  I also am keeping a running log for the first time.  Hopefully with those to added pieces to my preparation for racing season it will keep me on the right track, and help me spot issues faster than if I wasn't documenting my progression. 

So now I'm back to my shoe screening process - I'm hopeful I'll find 'the one' within the week, but we all know there's lots of duds you have to try on before you find something you can commit 300 miles of foot time with.