So far I have participated in all of their virtual races thus far. Tackle the Miles was the last one I ran.
This month I participated in the St. Patrick's Day Virtual Race! I was so excited because I so wanted to wear some fun St. Patty's Day run gear! You know it's all about the outfit, right?!
I headed out for my run like any other day except I was dressed in St. Patty's Day gear AND I was running in a new pair of shoes. I love my Asics GT-2170's and they have been discontinued. As soon as I learned they were being discontinued I bought a couple of pairs. Well..sadly this is my last pair of my beloved shoes. Asics has updated the model to the GT-2000 but I've heard varied responses on whether they are comparable to my GT-2170's. So I am going to enjoy these shoes while they last.
I don't know about you but I HATE getting new shoes. It always takes me a few runs to break them in. I know they say you shouldn't have to break in a new pair of shoes (especially when it's the same model you wore previously) but I always do. New shoes are always tighter on my feet and I always have to retie them a thousand times to get the fit I like. I like my laces super loose when I run. I also feel like I run a little different when I get new shoes. I'm sure they are rearranging my gait a bit since the older shoes have worn down and my gait follows.
I also usually have some kind of weirdness that happens with new shoes. For instance, I've had my right foot go numb the first few runs in a new pair. I've felt like I was running heavier in another new pair. My hips were super sore after running in another new pair. These things always work themselves out after a few runs in the new pair of shoes but I still dread it.
So I wasn't really looking forward to this run because I knew it would probably feel awkward. I started running and could immediately feel the difference in the run. The new shoes felt great! I realized how bad my old shoes actually were! I looked down at my Garmin and saw that I was running pretty fast...I guess the new shoes were making me speedier too!
Around the halfway point of the run I started feeling a small stab of pain on the top of my right foot. Here we go. I kept running and prayed it would go away. It wasn't an enduring pain....just a stab every so often. So I ran through it.
I made it to the 5K mark, stopped, and looked down at my watch. 29:56! That's the fastest 5K I've ran in a long time! The new shoes helped me go fast!
The rest of the day my right foot felt weird. I waited to see what it felt like the next day...and it was fine. I analyzed it and decided that I had laced my shoes too tight. So the next run I did I loosened the laces and never felt that pain again. But of course now it's in my mind...and every run I focus on that foot hoping no pain arises. Ugh!
The St. Patrick's Day Virtual 5K was a speedy success...despite the achy foot! And don't you think the outfit is too cute??? ;-)
