Shoe Saga

I have weird legs and feet, and as a result I have a hard time buying shoes. I'm trying to replace my current shoes, and it's not easy. I'm going to write down everything I know about my feet, legs, and shoes I've run in, in the hopes that I'll figure out what to do.

1. I am bow-legged, more so on the right side.
2. I have pretty average arches, but I walk on the inside of my right foot (which I think is related to my bowed leg on that side) so the right arch seems flatter when I do a footprint test.
3. I have weirdly long middle toes that hurt a lot in some shoes.
4. I think I overpronate, but when people watch me run, they say my gait is neutral. This usually results in buying neutral shoes and they never feel supportive enough.
5. The idea of motion control shoes worries me because they always seem so heavy, and I'm not sure I need them.
6. I have huge big toe callouses, worse on the right foot.
7. I can stand heels-together, toes pointed way out (like ballet's first position) and bend my knees directly forward. It freaks people out.

I'm currently running in Brooks Ravennas. These have been pretty good and I've been injury-free since I started running in them. According to Brooks, they "provide just the right amount of support for mild pronation." I don't completely adore them and they haven't lasted very long, so I'm not sure I want to get another pair, but I might end up doing that if nothing else works.
Here are all the shoes I have tried in the last few years:

• I used to run in Asics 2100 series shoes. I liked them for a long time but then I got a pair that I didn't like, but I can't remember why. (Stability)
• A few years ago I replaced my Asics with a lighter weight pair, something in the GEL-1100 series. I thought it was weird to feel the road so much. I bought them because they were cheaper than the 2100 series. (Stability)
• The next pair of shoes I remember running in were Asics Nimbus. They were comfortable while I trained for my first 5k last year, but they gave me huge big toe callouses which hurt a lot. (Cushioned Neutral)
• Last summer I tried Asics Gel-Kayanos; they gave me bad toe blisters and I sent them back. (Stability)
• I also experimented with Newton Lady Isaacs, but injured my posterior tib tendon around the time I was wearing them and haven't worn them since. (Neutral)
• I bought Salomon Crossmax Neutral trail shoes, but they came up to high for my ankles. Thinking back on it, I was actually wearing these shoes the first time my posterior tib tendon hurt. I was on a long run and was trying to emulate the foot strike I had when wearing the Newtons. Maybe this was a bad idea. I took advantage of Zappos super liberal return policy with these, and got myself some non-running-shoes. (Neutral)
• I tried NB Trail Minimus last fall, but I only ran in them a few times, around the time I got injured. Haven't worn them for running since. (Minimal)
• I bought Brooks Pure Cadence at the end of last year. I loved the cushioning. I wore them once a week for 3 milers for a while, but then one day my posterior tib hurt so I've shelved them until after the marathon. (Not sure what to call these.)
• I ran in Brooks Trance 10s last fall while while I was recovering from my injury. They seemed okay at the time but the Ravennas ended up being my favorite of the two. The Trance seem really stiff in comparison, like I'm running with bricks on my feet. (Stability)
• I also tried Brooks Ghost; not supportive enough. (Neutral)

I decided today (why did this take me so long?) to check out the soles of my Ravennas. The right shoe is on the left in this picture (and vice versa). You can see the inside toe (in the middle of the picture) has really worn away from the right shoe. No wonder my feet are starting to get sore! According to this wikipedia page, that means I overpronate. (Unfortunately that wikipedia page also said I'm probably underpronating if I'm bow legged?!)


The inside left toe is also worn, just not as much. So I think that settles that. I need stability shoes. But do I need motion control shoes? I'm not sure. I don't think I can be "severely overpronating" if the people at the running store who watch me run say that my gait is neutral, right?

For the past week I've been obsessively shoe shopping, since my feet are starting to ache in my trusty Ravennas. I've used every shoe finder there is, and they all give me different results. I ordered 3 pair last week (Mizuno Enigma - too small, Mizuno Creative - ran in them today, lots of weird aches and pains, Brooks Glycerin - don't seem supportive enough). These are all neutral shoes, so I'm not surprised they didn't feel right.

After more research today, I've made a list of shoes to try on. These are all stability shoes:

• Brooks Adrenaline + Ravenna 3
• New Balance 860, 993, 1260, 1770
• Asics 2170 (I still have a soft spot for these, even though my last pair in this series wasn't great)
• Mizuno Nirvana + Inspire

I wish I knew how people figure out what shoes are right for them. Sometimes I order shoes from Road Runner Sports because they have this amazing return policy. The trouble is, you can't try them on. Same with Zappos, although they aren't obviously as knowledgeable about running shoes. Sometimes I buy from Marathon Sports, because a) it's a great local business and b) in theory they watch you run and help you figure out what to get. But I think I tend to give them confusing information so I don't always get the right shoes, and their return policy is not as liberal as the online stores. Sometimes I go to a big sporting goods box store so I can try on as many shoes as I want in peace and not take up valuable floor space in a smaller shop.

If you're still reading, you're my hero. Please tell me how you found your perfect shoes.

Week 5: 25 miles

After my great run on Saturday, I planned to do a couple of easy miles on Sunday, but that was not to be. Maple and I went to a museum on Sunday morning, and by the time we got home at 2pm, I was knackered. I decided it'd be nicer to rest and watch the Superbowl. And it was.

This week I did only the four runs that my training plan prescribed. Every other week (just by coincidence, not by design), I add a few miles to the plan, but on the other weeks I just stick to the four runs. Since the training is starting to ramp up, I think I might be doing more resting. We'll see. 

I felt great all week. I wasn't excessively tired or fighting any MS symptoms. I experimented with some different shoes but I had some arch pain so I'm back in the Ravennas. I tried some other shoes on but I haven't found the next great thing yet.

Temps were steady: 33 to 36 degrees. Pace range was 9:26 to 10:16 on the long run (though I didn't stop the watch for a couple of stops, so pace was probably more like 10:10).

I promised to write something about my experiences with trail running. Last year, when Sean was getting excited about running trail ultras, I tried to follow suit. I did a bunch of runs in Callahan State Park, and I made a bunch of rookie mistakes. First, I tried to run too fast. It's rocky and rooty around here, and you need to have enough energy to pick your feet up. Way up. I fell countless times and lost four toenails. I was also trying to increase speed and mileage at the same time; a classic no-no. And thanks to an MS relapse about 6 years ago, my right foot isn't quite as responsive as my left, and especially when I get tired, it gets slow. On the trails it dragged a bit. After I injured my posterior tib (ankle) tendon in the fall, due in part to my stupid trail running experiment, I decided I just wasn't tough enough for trail running and swore it off. Road running is easier in some ways because the surface is predictable. Even if I get tired, I'm still really unlikely to trip on the road. And since I'm obsessed with being slow and with getting faster, the roads provide a much better platform for pace improvement (at least, right now).

Now that I'm in better shape (with a good 3-4 months of training between now and then), I see that my endurance is better and I could probably run better off-road. It would take longer for my right leg to get tired, and I think I could be less prideful about pace now and I wouldn't try to hold to 10:00 pace (which I consider slow on the road but really isn't too slow off-road). I think I could run 12:00 pace for 6-8 miles over tough terrain now. Maybe I'll try it again after the marathon, but for now I'm not doing anything that increases my chances of injury or lost toenails. I'm paranoid enough that marathon training will exacerbate my MS, so I definitely don't need anything else to worry about.

Here are the details for Week 5 (Jan 30 - Feb 5):

Monday: off

Tuesday: 3.5 miles

Wednesday: 6 miles 

Thursday: 3.5

Friday: off

Saturday: 12 miles (longest run to date!)

Sunday: off (chased misbehaving 6-year-old around a museum - does that count as cross training?)

Wow, I can't believe I've made it through five weeks of training already. I know the first part is easier than the latter parts, but I'm happy that I feel really good so far. No excessive soreness, no MS symptoms to speak of.  I remember when I was training for the half last fall, I was always so sore and could barely walk when I got up in the morning. I think I was just trying to do too much too soon for an old lady. Things are going much better this time around.

I just knocked on wood.

Almost done with Week 5

I had an amazing run this morning. For the first time I had the runner's high while I was running.

My goal was 12 miles @ 10:00 pace. I started out before sunrise; first time running with a headlamp. I ran the Boston course for about 4 miles before the sun came up, then I missed my turn and ran around a while before asking for directions.

At the 6 or 7 mile point, I ended up running alongside an older guy for about 10 minutes. We talked a bit and then parted ways when I headed back towards home. He was 62 and proud of being out on a 4-mile run. I hope I'm still out running at 62.

I had so much anxiety about this run. For the past two weeks I have been thinking "I have my longest run ever this weekend!" I finally realized the other day that almost every long run for the next 13 weeks will be the longest run I've ever done.

I listened to UltraRunner Podcast during my run today, and it's amazing how easy it feels to run 12 miles when you are listening to people talk about running 100-milers. This is my new training strategy.

After the run, I drank my Vega Recovery Accelerator and then some Vega Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer (which has just been renamed to Vega One Shake). Sean brought me some of the new Vega Endurance Gels from work last night, so I tried one of those on the run. My stomach was so screwy this morning that I only had about half the gel, but it was tasty. It's made with dates and I don't think it's too processed, because it was a little gritty, but not in a bad way. It tasted far better than those other gels. I like the idea of all this vegan science food for my training, but I prefer it to taste like something that might be found in nature. I'm really lucky because Sean works at Whole Foods so we get a discount on all this stuff. I also take Udo's Oil after my long runs and pace runs. I'm not sure I feel any different after taking it, but I like the idea of getting good oils in my diet.

I have the best luck with my stomach if I eat a piece of dry toast before a run (maybe two slices for a longer or harder run). I've experimented with dried fruit, banana-based smoothies, the Vega Optimizer, and a handful of other things, but I think dry toast is the best. Sometimes I will drink the Pre-Workout Energizer, but not really for the "energizing". That stuff makes me shit within five minutes. As someone who has struggled with stomach issues forever, I love it. But I don't use it every day.

Maple's ice skating class was after the run, then we went to the local running store to try on shoes and buy compression socks. I read Stephanie's glowing endorsement of CEP brand, and when I saw the hot pink socks, I had to have them. Here I am modeling them (with some help from Phoenix).

Maple asked for Indian food for lunch, so we went to Singh's and had an appetizer feast: samosa, pakora, aloo tikka, aloo paratha. There were a lot of potatoes involved. My stomach still wasn't up for much so I ate one of everything and brought the rest home for Sean.

This should be the topic of a post all its own, but I have been lucky to get back to my "MS denial" lately. I feel like a runner and not a patient. This is nice but I never forget how lucky I am to feel almost normal.

Maple just started blasting Kanye and I think this means she wants some attention. Week 5 officially ends tomorrow. I'm planning to add a few easy miles to the 25 I've done already.