Back At It!

So it's official. I bought the shoes. FINALLY! I'm pretty damn excited. I've been drooling in anticipation for weeks/months at the thought of a trip to Fleet Feet to have a 20-30 minute personalized fit consultation with a sales associate. :-) Let's just say it was everything I thought it would be. I was really impressed with the guy who helped me. E and I were basically hovering at the front door waiting for the San Fran store to open at 10. I showed the guy my old Asics Cumulus' (embarassingly beat, grungy & falling apart) and then he measured my skinny pedos at size 7 while sitting & 7.5 while standing, which apparently is important? He watched me walk, and then came back with a pair of beautiful Mizuno Waveriders. Who ever thought I'd stray from Asics? Not I. They felt incredibly different from my good ole' standbyes, and I wasn't so sure. So after a good 45 minutes, several pairs Asics, Brooks, Saucony & Mizunos, and a quick jog around the block, I decided on the Waveriders. Gotta hand it to the guy for getting it right on the first try! The 30 day guarantee helped me make the decision too - because these shoes feel so different the unconditional return option helped me take a step outside the box and go with something completely new! New has to be better for my IT band, I presume.

I also received some encouraging news from another sales associate who suffered a 6 month stint of no running due to IT band tightness. He said the only thing that helped was a foam roller & regular massage. Good to know. Also good to hear he actually recovered, which apparently is really unusual? Anyway, I'm stoked.

I still might cancel my scheduled 1/2 marathon on October 17 because really, I'm not ready for it. It's hard to deal with because I've actually scheduled an entire 3 day weekend trip around it. I'll run tomorrow in my new zapatos, stretch the crap out of my ITB, use my new Salonpas heat patch-thingies and report back.

Peace.

In Jury

I've two miles on the training plan for today but I'm going to skip it because of my knee. The right one still feels pain today after a good arnica run-down last night before bed. I didn't ice it because the pain went away after my hot shower and a good stretch. But it has be worried.

Also, I keep touching muscles in my legs that I didn't know were there. My legs seem so ripped, and my arms are somehow ripped too! Like, this morning I was reaching down to pet the dog and my hand hit my shin on the way and touched a muscle - I thought for sure 'that can't be mine!'. Cool.

I'm still on the hunt for new running shoes - the ones I want are $104!!!!!! Holy Hell. Why do they have to be so much? I also need new hiking boots (probably). Secret: I did splurge and buy a green lightweight tank that I hope will be the perfect running top. I'm pretty excited. Combined with the waterbottle coming in the mail I am totally decked out! Now just need to get this knee into shape....

2 miles - the maintenance run

Yup, just that. A quick 2(.22) miles up and back on the road. Barely broke a sweat. Should have been 11:05, but ran a 10:something and a 8:something. GPS isn't always accurate in that dept though.

Feels good, although I'm not really slimming down like I feel I should be from all these calories burned. I think I've been eating pretty poorly - gluten, beer, excessive dairy (cheese). The excess fat isn't shedding off like it usually does.

Also, Erin talked me out of a new pair of running shoes. I've logged 100 miles since I started keeping track on Daily Mile, and the shoes are from July 2008. I wonder....