New Shoes

I've always thought it was weird how excited most women get over getting a new pair of shoes. I feel this way every day except for the three or so days a year that I get a new pair of running shoes. Today is one of those days.

I've logged a total of 330 miles on my current shoes since December 27th (a Christmas gift from my Mother-in-law). Several years ago I ran in a pair of shoes way too long and it led to a few injuries, so now I keep a very accurate log of how many miles I run in my shoes. I don't wear them for anything other than running, so it's fairly easy to keep track of. I have a reminder set on my training log at 300 miles...that's when I start trying to find time to head to Swag's and get a new pair.

I've got several issues with my feet, so not just any shoe will do. My feet are very flat and I overpronate, so I need a good stable shoe with a lot of arch support. A few years ago I found the Asics Gel-Foundation shoe and I've been in it ever sense.

Other than knowing that my feet and legs will like my new shoes (it's literally the same shoe I've been wearing for years, just a new pair), I like comparing the soles on the new vs. old. You can tell a lot by the wear on your soles.

Here's a picture of the soles on my shoes (the ones with 330 miles on them):

I've circled in yellow the area's the are showing the most wear. Good news is that it's the middle of the foot, indicating that I'm a midfoot striker. The heals didn't have much wear, so that tells me that I don't need to worry about being a heal striker...which can lead to injuries and really slows you down! Excessive heel wear would also be a very good indication that you may be engaging in overstriding, especially if you are not experiencing the same "uniform" wear in the midsection section of your shoe, that you are in the heel.

I also did a "tilt" test. This is done by placing your shoe on a table, or flat surface, and "eyeball" the tilt or "lean" of the shoe. If it is significantly leaning, or rolling inwards, you may find that you've worn them too long and it's no longer capable of absorbing the amount of stress, and impact, for which it was designed. My tilt test checked out fine, so for now, all appears well with how my foot is hitting the ground while running.

So happy new shoe day to me! I'll spend some time smelling them before my next run...that new shoe smell fades pretty fast when you are sweating on those long runs! 

TODAY'S WORKOUT:
Ran 6.43 miles in 50:38 (7:52 min/mile).
Just a little short run at a comfortable pace with a few good hills. I didn't want to push it right on the heals of the miniMarathon. I'll do a longer run this weekend.
Avg HR = 152
Max HR = 163
Followed-up the run with 45 minutes of weights (back, biceps, abs)