Sunday, April 26, 2009

(Not so) Happy Feet.....

My tired feet after running today. So the scoop on the shoes was I ended up buying a pair of $50 Adidas running shoes. The store was actually good, and I knew it was time to start phasing out my trail runners (which are not really cushioned enough for road running). They checked my gait and said that I pronate (roll inwards) slightly (not by much). I learnt a lot about running shoes actually, like buying a 1/2 size larger than you usually get to let your feet swell, and the different kinds of stability. 

So with this "on foot" I went on my run yesterday. I didn't manage to get to the pool (caught up at work), so decided on a 4 mile run to make up for it. I felt great. I did a circuit around the valley and actually managed to run close to all of it (I only walked up the killer hill, which is maybe 500m or so). I really did feel good and the shoes were soooo comfy! 

Then today. Today was my 6 mile run. Not such a good experience. Really tight calves, had to stop to stretch way too many times. Then at mile 2, my right food went to sleep. Stopped, stretched, walked a while, started to run, one more mile and back to sleep it went. This went on once more too, then finally, after walking for ten minutes, I ran on and it didn't bother me again, but I am a little worried. My lower back is also killing me, but I have also been lugging around heavy bags of soil today (planted my container garden this morning - yay!), so that may be it.

So is it the new shoes or is it just me being out of shape (which I very much am!)? Can shoes really make that much of a difference, or was this coming no matter what? Tomorrow is a rest and stretch day, so at least I have a day to recover and hopefully stretch it out, but i'm wondering about going back to my old shoes on tuesday. Ug. 

I am definitely not a runner, but I do have to say, I have for the most part enjoyed this training so far, I can see me keeping up with it. Even today, with me wondering if my foot was going to fall off at any moment, I loved the view up the valley, it was a beautiful Hawaii day today. 

3 comments:

kmw said...

In my experience, the wrong shoe really can cause pains. The only way I know to confirm it is to see if the pattern is consistent with each run. Is your back only sore while running, or is it bothering you around the house right now? if it's bad enough, you could take a day or two off running till the pain's gone, then go out again in those shoes and see. If you're still not sure, take a run in your old shoes to compare. I personally loved Adidas running shoes but everyone's foot is different, and I've come to rely on Asics now for the last several years. If you decide it's the shoes, most stores will take them back even if you've run a few times. Hopefully it's not, as $50 is about as cheap as you can find a good running shoe, seems like they're all about $100 now. The way I know it's time for new shoes is simple: my knees begin to hurt on every run. usually takes several runs to remember that it's a likely cause, and when I put new ones on, it's gone. The worst thing a person can do is wear brand new shoes at their big race, so you are wise to work it out now.

DDdd said...

I don't have lots of running experience to share... more the out of shape ones. New shoes, old shoes, no shoes - after not exercising for a while and starting out with a 4 mile run on hills, my whole body would be killing me the next day! My best advice is to warm up a bit, get a good stretch in, and don't forget to stretch well at the end too! I wouldn't give up on the shoes just yet... but a comparison isn't a bad idea either. Good luck!

RGW said...

Thanks for the help! My back is mainly sore after the runs (I could feel it a little during yesterday, but not on my short 4 miler), but as i've been gardening it's hard to isolate if it's mainly the running, or mainly the gardening, I don't think either is helping! Today is a rest and stretch day, so i'm hoping it'll work it's way out and I can start clean on tuesday, just not sure whether to slip back into my old shoes or the new ones.

Good to know about the store - I have been wondering if I could do that! I was lucky to get a last years model pair for the cheap, so it would be good if they work out! I need to improve my stretching definitely, i'm a bit lax with that, but getting better!