On shoes

I bought a new pair of shoes last week. Two really... well, actually three, but that doesn't matter. What matters is that I bought a pair of shoes for about $20 (discounted from $99 to $69 to $49 and again, what a steal!) and, more importantly, that these shoes don't fit like most of the shoes I normally wear.

What I'm trying to say is that after wearing these shoes for less than 24 hours I had significant foot, shin, calf, and knee pain because these shoes were new and different and because my legs had not been able to adequately adjust to them. Since I've felt this before, specifically due to marathon training, I knew what was happening and knew both what to expect and how to handle the problem. Left unsolved, this would likely have resulted in some sort of lower leg injury. To treat my legs all I had to do was stop wearing the shoes. All this is to say that you, dear reader and runner, are likely to experience this same event in the next 18 months and that some reading ahead (and hopefully helpful advice through discussion) may prevent the occurrence--or at least ignorance of events that leads to overwhelming fear--should you have a similar lower leg injury.

So learn from the links on shoes, ask around (to us or your local running store expert), and learn on your own since an abundance of opinions generally accompanies an abundance of minds.

My general thoughts are these: the way a shoe feels on your foot is often a good indication what the shoe is doing to your foot, stronger legs make for less-injured legs, less shoe makes for stronger legs (though unlike Tigger, I won't fully follow the barefoot man's advice), more pairs of shoes means less chance that your shoes go bad and cause injury, $90 is about as much as a pair of shoes should cost. Of course there's more to finding the right shoe that what I say here just as there's more to understanding what I've learned about shoes and my feet than what I say here.

And eventually my feet will become accustomed to my new shoes. Good thing, too, because they're good looking.

everyone will have these kind of runs every now and then

so today at 8 pm, i was dead tired. I didnt get great sleep the night before, and my total walking for the day was somewhere around 50 blocks or more. I was hungry. My friends were going to a movie, and others were hanging out eating. The temperature was 2 degrees outside... granted thats celsius, but its still too cold.. plus it was dark outside, and it was friday... but i had to get my run in. Every fiber of my being wanted to stay inside and rest, but somehow i managed to get to the closet, where i proceeded to put on the running shoes and get on the running attire. Every one of us will have times like this... its definitely not easy, but the more u decide to get in the run, the more easy it will be to make the disciplined decision next time.

Training Logs

Running, especially long-distance running, is a quite simple sport. That's probably obvious by looking at it. You don't need much more than your own body, a decent pair of shoes, and some cold water. Most of us have these already. Something else you'll need to succeed will be a distinct goal, accountability, and persistence. We've got these as well, though each will need to be honed if we want to get the most from our training. One tool that aids these is the running log. To many, running is not so much a competition with others as it is a competition with oneself. [Jason may find comfort in this during the many months preceding his team's loss.] A running log is a good way to keep track with what you're trying to achieve and what you've already achieved. It's also a good way to look back and see what did and didn't work. Most importantly it's a good way (when shared) to keep up the accountability with your training partners.

We've had a few suggestions for training logs, and I'm open to all ideas, but I'll throw out here a few things I'd like some feedback on. Here are four online logs we can try. Some of these I've used and some I haven't. Some feed through RSS and may be able to feed directly into our blog (how cool would that be?) and others are simple to share with others who want to view your progress. While I keep researching our options, check these out and tell us what you think.

Cool Running
Nike
Road Runner Sports
Running Journal

Additions:
running-log.com
the running log
athleticore
runnerslog

Mrs. Denisons v Mrs. Stranges

Okay, okay. I'm in.

Mrs. Denison challenged me, on behalf of the Mrs. Denisons and women everywhere. So how could I say no? The only reasonable thing to do was to say okay and go buy a jogging stroller. Which is what we did. And then we used said stroller despite Noel's general dissatisfaction with it to embark on a walk/jog through the blazing neighborhood.

It's hot here, ladies.

But not as hot as it's going to feel when the Mrs. Stranges squash the Mrs. Denisons at Houston 2009.

While I don't know about Scott's suggestion below

I do think that getting in shape and planning to run a marathon is natural. At least more natural than giving blood. I've wanted to put up useful information and where I look I can seldom find much information about how to get in shape. There's tons available concerning how to train once you've achieved a certain level of fitness--a level at which few of us currently find ourselves--but not so much about how to get there. Maybe these Mayo Clinic articles will be useful.

Aerobic exercise: What 30 minutes a day can do
Fitness programs: 5 steps to getting started
Fitting in fitness: Finding time for physical activity
Fitness training: 4 elements of a rounded routine
Exercise: 7 benefits of regular physical activity
Fitness programs: 6 steps to guide your selection
Barriers to fitness: Overcoming common problems

and since we've got fans of the Cooper Aerobics Center here...

Walk for Life—A 12-Week Program for Beginners
Dr. Cooper's Aerobics Point System
For A Great Workout, Just Add Water
Running 101: Pacing is the key to improving your time
Winter Workouts

training suggestion

this would be a wise way to start your training:
click here, then when the page opens up, click on the bottom link on the tabs to the left

Service Request

To: all users herewith and posthaste, &tc &tc
From: the MSC
Re: an official message with much hot air and foaming at the mouth

Commence to start the message:

All service requests relevant to this blog and its comments shall be henceforth posted at the following broken link here. After clicking on the page and finding a little bit of something which might otherwise be called nothing, please drink a cup of coffee at your own expense and wait for further helps. Odd series of unclear instructions may never be posted, nor will anyone read any attempted correspondence about such matters. Upon completion of the lack of form, you should expect a response from our sysdmin, miler mstrange, in zero days. To express your satisfaction with his administrative customer service, you may plan to pummel him at the finish line of this supposed "marathon" unless, as requested, the Mr. Denison suggests some better way to disregard your needs.

Thank you for your time.