Long run whining

I met up with the running club at a local park for my long run today. My running buddy Jo and I were planning on 18 miles, though I ended up at 17 because after two loops I was tired and done.

On the plus side, I didn't have any digestive issues today. Jo gave me a package of Shot Bloks and those seemed to agree with me very well. Goodbye Gu, hello Shot Bloks! I'll need to go buy some of those this week.

On the negative side, I had a crappy run today. The first loop was good. We went out a bit faster than we should have, but were feeling good. The second loop is where I fell apart. My legs felt fine (and the bunion isn't bothering me, woo hoo!) but my feet get so sore and my attitude just went to hell. I walked a lot of the second loop and I'm pretty disgusted with myself. I spent most of the time having a mental conversation with myself where I decided that I'm not going to run either one of these damn marathons. I'll thought, I'll do the 30K with Megan and Jo over Labor Day weekend and then I'm done. Half marathons only for the future.

Later Jo told me that crappy training runs mean good races and assured me I will be fine for the marathons. I'm going to see how the 30K goes. Right now I'm in a better mental place after soaking my feet in an ice bath, but who knows how I'll feel after the 30K. Maybe I'm not cut out to be a marathon runner. I don't know. My legs feel absolutely fine, my breathing was fine. It's just that my feet ache so much on long runs and I've tried several types of shoes and it's always the same. I am so grateful that the bunion isn't bothering me, but the aching makes it really less than fun to do these distances.

So for now, I haven't given up on doing Twin Cities and NYC but I'm sorta depressed about the whole thing. I decided I need a good hilly challenge to give me something worth whining about, so I just registered for the Crim 10 mile race that takes place next Saturday. I was planning a cut-back week with a 10-mile long run anyway, and the Crim will be a good way to do it because about 40 members of the running club will be there running so it will be fun. As fun as a hilly hilly hilly race can be, anyway. If nothing else, it will be good prep for the hilly hilly hilly 30K the following weekend. :)

Success

Ran 5.2 miles this morning and managed to stay on my feet the whole time. :) I'm going to call that a successful run!

Also, not even a hint of the ol' bunion bothering me. I was so busy trying to see if my swollen foot/ankle were feeling okay that I didn't even think about the bunion. Foot and ankle are fine, by the way. I have some swelling in my left foot and ankle which I think are from my tripping incident on Sunday.

Though now that I think about it, they were a little swollen on Saturday, too. Hmmm, I wonder if it's the new shoes. I sure hope not, because I don't want to trade one problem for another. We'll see how it goes.

Whining about the heat!

My zip code says I live in Michigan, but the temperature says I live in Hell. Okay, so that's pathetically whiny. I'm pretty glad these days that I converted myself into an early morning runner, because there's not much chance that I'd be able to motivate myself to head out after work into the blazing sun in 90+ degree heat. On days like this, I do understand why my friend Wendy embraces her treadmill. I admire the runners I saw on my way home this evening. They have tremendous dedication.

Did 4 1/4 miles again this morning and the miracle shoes were back to being miraculous. Bunion felt just fine. Wish there were some rhyme or reason to this, but I'll just be grateful for every pain-free run I have!

Hot, Hot, Hot

Captain Obvious here, pointing out that it is fricking hot today in the Detroit area and therefore this makes running more difficult. When the overnight low is 72, you know it's going to be a scorcher. Alas, I waited until 10am to start my run today because I wanted to sleep in and then be lazy. Well, I paid for it in sweat. Even my favorite hat couldn't keep the salty sweat from flooding into my eyes and stinging them.

But the important thing is that I ran anyway, instead of using the heat as an excuse to skip another day. I celebrated the 4th of July by taking the day off from running and eating all sorts of delicious and unhealthful foods. Found some vegetarian marshmallows so I had my first s'mores in 18 years and THEY WERE DELICIOUS! So worth every calorie. But today we're back to eating right and exercising.

Only ran 4 1/4 miles this morning, wearing the new miracle Saucony shoes. Only they weren't quite as miraculous today, since I was more aware of my bunion today than I was during my 10-miler on Saturday. Hmmm, what is the deal, feet? Why must you torture me so? Were my feet swollen because of the heat? Did my feet spread out yesterday because I was in delightful sandals all day instead of shoes? I don't know, but I did not approve of the bunion twinges this morning! We shall see how it goes tomorrow when I have another short run planned. Grrr!

New Shoes, part 2!

This morning I met David's cousin Shaina at a park and we did a 10 mile run. It was a fabulous run and I love running with Shaina.

I wore the new Sauconys again and I am feeling very encouraged. With my previous shoes, 10 miles would mean my bunion would be in agony. Today, though, things were great. I can't say I was completely unaware of my bunion's existence, but it was approximately a million times better than with my other shoes. Very, very happy! Let's hope this continues as I get into longer distances during marathon training.

Let the shoe experiments begin!

This morning I tried out my brand new Saucony Progrid Ride 2 shoes to see how they did with the ol' bunion of doom. Only ran 5 miles, so it's probably too early to get excited, but I'm feeling cautiously optimistic. Normally after 5 miles in the Adidas shoes, my bunion would be talking to me fairly loudly. But this morning, I was barely aware of it (other than the fact that I spent the whole run thinking "hey how is the bunion doing? Is my bunion going to start hurting soon? How about that bunion?").

Tomorrow will be a better test, as I plan to run 9-10 miles in the morning which is a distance that generally leaves my bunion feeling extremely tender and painful.

If anyone has any knowledge of good shoes for people with giant, gross bunions then I would love to hear about it!

New Shoes

I'm so excited because I have two new pairs of shoes arriving tomorrow. I have a honking huge bunion on my right foot. I will not provide photos because it is gross. Anyway, ever since Adidas changed the bunion area of my beloved Supernova Sequence shoes from mesh to leather, that darn bunion just kills me on runs of any decent distance because of the added pressure.

Sooo, I have two pairs of men's shoes arriving tomorrow from Amazon. They are both Saucony, two different models that I want to try out. I have an older pair of Sauconys that are no good for running anymore, but they are men's and therefore have a wider toe box and also have a mesh "bunion window" so they don't bug my bunion as much as the Adidas. They fit me well and I am really hopeful that at least one of these new shoes will work out well.

I don't expect to run totally pain free, but it would be nice if I didn't feel like chopping my toe off at the end of a half marathon. Especially considering I would like to run two marathons this fall! Wish me luck. :)

Good news and bad news

First, the bad news. My new shoes aren't the solution to my sore feet on long runs.

Second, the good news. My 15 mile run today was awesome. I felt great. I had sore feet for the last few miles but because I was expecting it, it seemed easier to take. I felt substantially better after 15 miles today than I did at the 15 mile mark last weekend. Also, I took an Aleve about 8 miles in and I think that helped, too. My legs didn't feel as sore so I believe that made the feet easier to handle.

I'm starting to feel like this marathon is going to be okay. Also, I know it helped to find out that my friend Wendy and her husband Ken plan to run the marathon alongside me and my running buddy Vicki. I knew Wendy and Ken were coming to run the marathon but didn't know they were going to stick with us. Wendy said that she wants to cross the finish line with me. They are so awesome! They're veteran marathoners and could finish much faster but they said they don't care about time. What a mental boost that will be to have them by my side! It's going to help me tremendously.

Life is good!