New shoes, and hopefully a new start

Over the last month or two, I've noticed my shoes haven't been feeling right when I run. I wasn't sure if it was just me or something else. Last week, I had the opertunity on my Tuesday night run at Endurance House to run in a different pair of shoes. What a difference! They felt springy, like my feet weren't restricted, they didn't feel clunky or heavy. There was something there. So this week I made a trip back to talk with someone about them. After a lengthy conversation, it was agreed that perhaps as I've improved over the last year, that perhaps the shoes that I was running in weren't the ones that were right for me anymore. So I set up an appointment to come in, re-evaluate my running style and find what will work.

So during my evaluation, I first ran on the treadmill in my current shoes. We looked at the video and saw what was and was not happening with my feet. Then did the same with a pair like I wore the other week. There were slight improvements, but still something was off. They felt good, but, things looked over supported. So we tried a third pair. This third pair was a neutral shoe, less support, and resulted in less stiffness and more natural movement. My right foot looked great, but my left was still in need of some support. So we put some inserts into the third shoe and ran again. Big improvement. It felt like there was more spring in my run. I was really starting to push off on the balls of my feet. That was the combination that was needed. So I walked out with a great pair of Saucony Triumph 11 shoes and Superfeet carbon inserts.

Today I went on my first run with the new shoes. Wow! They felt even better than they did in the store two days ago. I started out from the house and took the hill into the village. The balance these put me in was incredible, I was able to power up the hill better than I had before. Once things leveled out, things felt smooth. The sound was different too. They didn't sound clunky on the road. like my old pair had. It felt like every time I pushed off, I was leaping forward. I felt like I could really relax my foot and body, and let the shoe do the work. On the way back, I had to go back down that first hill. I've always felt a little out of control going down hill, but this time was different. I felt like I was in control and didn't have to try and force myself to slow down. Then came our hill. I powered up, shifting my weight towards my toes, I could again, feel the power pushing off, and charged up the hill. It really was a great run.

I'll admit, since Boulder, I've kind of slacked off. A workout or run here and there, but nothing consistent. I'm going to change that, I need to change that. I have come so far in the last two years, that to just put everyday fitness on the back burner would be a mistake. Even though I am happy with where I am, any improvements that I can make will only be for the better. I'm happy floating around 190 and 195, if feels right. If I lose more weight, so be it, but that's not my goal. I want to improve on what I have worked so hard to achieve. I want to continue to shape and strengthen my mid section. There's a lot of power in the core, but that power can't be used if it's not taken care of or improved on. I'm not looking to gain the "six pack". But that area is weak and needs to be strengthened. And as it has in the past, when the core get stronger, so does my running.