Half down, half to go.

10.53am CST; Monday August 3, 2009

So this past weekend, I ran longer than I ever have before. Somewhere between 12 and 14 miles... I think that it was closer to 14. And you know what??? It was actualy pretty painless. I wasn't completely out of energy at the end, wasn't hurting all over, and I wasn't even dead fatigued on Sunday. I felt a little bit of tightness in my calves at the end of the run, but that's pretty much be to expected.

Now for a little edu-buh-cation.

As hinted in a previous entry (last Saturday), the way legs align, and the way feet hit the ground during a running step is extremely important. Hence, serious training requires serious footwear. Buying the wrong footwear can seriously affect a runner's performance by misaligning joints, etc. Which leads to strange pains and aches, and can stop training dead in its tracks. Hence, purchasing the correct footwear is ultra-important. This means that being willing to shell out $100+ for a pair of shoes. But in the long run, given the impressive list of health benefits from running, and its relative low cost w/r/t other activities, $100+ is really a bargain.

So what am I getting at? Last time I was at home, a couple weeks into the Madison extravaganza, I bought a new pair of shoes. I thought they were perfect for my step and gait (Brooks Infiniti 2's). But a few weeks into their use, I started having some serious pain in my left knee (more on runner's knee in later entries).

The shoes and my cashew butter and banana sandwich. DTW, flight from home to Madi.

At the suggestion of a friend from last summer (Fr. José Pimentel, Dominican priest extraordinaire), I stepped into my older Asics Cumulus 10's. The pain magically disappeared.

But the shoes are really pretty close to being shot. So I took a trek to may well be the best running store ever (Movin Shoes, in Madison) and took a look at some kicks.

Boxes and boxes of shoes were opened and tested and rejected. And in the end, Brooks' Ghost was the winner.

The best part?

$64. Total. Movin' Shoes automatically takes 10% off the MSRP (just because they can... this is one reason why Movin' Shoes is the greatest running store ever). But this was last years' model, and there was a sale going on. $64. So amazing. I won't bore you all with how cool the Ghosts are, how light they are, and how they distinguish themselves from most of Brooks' models (which is already my favorite brand of running shoe... based on company philosphy, environmental measures, and yes... their marketing).

Pictures!

Metra sweet Metra: Chicago's private public transport.

A friend of mine.

Now you know what covers my feet when I'm running.

Next weekend... 15 miles. Sweet.

Playlist:

Sleeping at Last - Storyboards

Last.fm - Manchester Orchestra Radio