Running Shoes
Well….. In all honesty I wear running shoes and heels and lots more! What can I say, I love shoes!
Currently I have four pairs of running shoes in my closet. Two pairs of Asics Gel-Cumulus and two pairs of Brooks Pure Cadence.
My Asics!
My Brooks!
When I started becoming a more “serious” runner I was running in Nike’s. As my miles increased it became evident that the Nike’s I ran in were not right for me, so a stop at my local running me store landed me in a pair of Asics Gel-Cumulus 12. I ran in that model for well over a year before I became curious about running in a more minimalist shoe. That is when I took the plunge and bought a pair of Brooks Pure Cadence shoes. I loved how lightweight they were and how much more I could feel the surface I was running on compared to running in the Asics. However, I was too impatient to scale back my running and adjust to running in the Pure Cadence so eventually I stopped wearing them. BUT…. I have recently made the full transition to my Pure Cadence shoes and I just love them.
And although I love my Brooks shoes, that doesn’t stop me from ogling and lusting over other running shoes. The ones that have been piquing my interest lately are Newton running shoes. They are very different from other running shoes as they have more cushioning in the forefront of the shoe to help promote landing on the forefront of your foot as opposed to your heel. And they come in super awesome bright colors! I love a brightly colored running shoe. Who wants to blend in with the crowd?
Aren’t these awesome looking?
Check out this recent article from Runner’s World to learn more about the Newton running shoes!
So what’s stopping me from trying out a pair of Newton’s??? The hefty price tag. The ones pictured above are $155!
Have your tried out a pair of Newton running shoes? If so, what do you think? If not, what are your favorite pair of running shoes?
Half Marathon Training: Week 4
Last week was a tough week to get through because all three of us came down with some sort of sickness at different points throughout the week. But despite that, I still managed to complete all of my scheduled workouts! Phew!
Fitting in my workouts takes a little bit of creativity. I often take a bag of workout stuff with me to work so I can exercise after work and before picking Brennen up from daycare. I also squeeze in a short run when I drop Brennen off for his speech therapy appointment. Since most of my workouts begin away from my house, it is imperative that I remember to bring everything I need with me. Unfortunately, I have been forgetting some important workout items lately. Like my inhaler and my lock for the gym locker. To eliminate that from happening anymore, I created a ‘fitness basket’ to keep all my exercise necessities in one place.
In it I have my inhaler, Ipod & charger, ear buds, Ipod arm band, Garmin watch & charger, Road ID, active band headband, sunglasses, sunscreen and lock for the gym locker. Now I just put the basket in my bag with my shoes and workout clothes and I am good to go!
Speaking of shoes, on Saturday I stopped at my local Hansons Running store and picked up these beauties.
They are from the Brooks Pure Project Collection. I tried on 3 of the 4 pairs of shoes in the collection and decided on the Pure Cadence because of the extra cushioning they provided. So far I am very happy with them!
Here is what I have scheduled for week 4!
Sunday: 3.5 Mile Run
Monday: Insanity DVD
Tuesday: 3.5 Mile Run & Strength Training
Wednesday: 2 Mile Run
Thursday: 5 Mile Run
Friday: Stretch & Strengthen
Saturday: Rest Day
Have you purchased any new running gear lately? Tell me what you got and how you like it. I love to hear about new gear!
Half Marathon Training: Week 3
Overall week 2 of training went well, but I did have two small issues that I should mention. The first is that I have been extremely hungry lately. I am assuming it is because I am working out more than I am used to, but regrettably I have been eating food that is not so great for me. Namely sweets. Which I am sure in turn, is making me hungrier. So I am going to make healthier choices this week! The second area of concern is that my running shoes have been feeling uncomfortable. I have been running in the same size and same brand / style for over a year now, so this took me by surprise. If I run more than a couple of miles my shoes start to feel tight, especially on the top of my right foot. I have received a lot of great feedback about this problem from some of my Twitter friends. One of them has a great blog of his own about training for his first full marathon at the Las Vegas Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. You should check it out! Click here! The other is not currently a blogger but she is a great person to follow on Twitter, click here to do so! They both agreed that I may need to get my feet re-sized and even look into a different shoe. They both run in Brooks running shoes and coincidentally on October 1st, Brooks is releasing a new line of shoes called the PureProject Collection. These shoes have certainly been causing a lot of chatter in the running community and after reading a review of them by Katie from KatieRunsThis (click here to read her post), I see why. So on Saturday after work, I will be stopping at the Hanson Brooks running store to check them out for myself and I even if I don’t fall in love with the PureProject line, I am at least hoping to find THE perfect running show for me.
Here is what week 3 of training looks like for me!
Sunday: 3.5 Mile Run
Monday: Pilates & Stair Stepper
Tuesday: 3.5 Mile Run plus Strength Training
Wednesday: Rest Day!
Thursday: 2 Mile Run
Friday: 5 Mile Run
Saturday: Stretching & Strength Training
You probably have noticed that my mileage is increasing this week. During week 1 and week 2 of training I ran a total of 12 miles each week. This week I will be running a total of 14 miles!
How about you, is your mileage increasing this week also?
