Cool new stuff from Saucony

So I decided to try out the Hurricanes, and I have officially made the switch from the Omnis to the Hurricanes. I didn’t like the way the Progrid Hurricane 11 looked, so I went with last year’s model. Unfortunately, the new change to the shoe where it holds your heel in place is not included in this version of the shoe. I am anxiously awaiting the release of the 12 because I’m hoping that it is more aesthetically pleasing and contains the new heel feature. As you can tell from my blog, I like Saucony.

The shirts were on sale. I promise that they are two different styles. They look similar in the picture, but in real life are quite different. One of the shirts is protected with a rating of 50 spf. The other allows significantly more breathing. Oddly enough, if it were real sunny and hot, I would prefer to wear the shirt that didn’t have the sun protection.

Both shirts are very comfortable and fit well. I like the way they look and they feel great. Couldn’t ask more from a sale. Probably need to go grab a couple more pairs of shorts, but I will need shoes quickly because I am only running on one pair at this time. It is an economic depression.

Stretching at Off ‘N Running

Last evening I went to the stretching clinic at Off ‘N Running that the folks from Fitness Together had. It was informative, and I was introduced to the benefits of the theracane. It is a scary device, yet it made so many parts of your body feel so good.

The smaller the surface space, the more acute the benefit of the massaging action. As compared to the foam roller, which I don’t like at all, the theracane was a welcome relief. We also worked with a roller stick. This seemed to really help on the calves and shins.

They will be having a running specific cross training demonstration next week at 7:15. This time it will be at Fitness Together. Sounds like fun, but I won’t be able to be there because I will be in the middle of a flight.

I would recommend the investment in the theracane…It’s only like 30 dollars.

Need Advice

Well, I’m getting ready to take a step into the 21^st century with regard to training. I would like to acquire a training aide with gps, heart rate monitor and calorie computation features. I have narrowed my search to Suunto and Garmin. I’m trying to decide between the Suunto t6c and the Garmin 405CX.

Considering the cost of these devices, I would like to get some actual user feedback. I’m especially interested as to whether you would pay the money again for the device. Do they have any recurring problems when actually used? What effect did it have on your training.

Personally, I think it would be a great help, not necessarily for the information I receive, but it would be a whole new set of numbers to play with in my head while I run (See Treadmills). Did you have any unexpected benefits with your device?

Let me know what you all think.

Importance of Running Shoes

I first started training for a marathon in 2001. After September 11^th, I found myself running in the New York Health & Racquet  Club a lot. It was a 6am brain child of mine. If something sounds like a good idea at 6am, it has to be a good idea. Well, I could run 4 miles in 32 minutes no problem, but every time I tried to increase my distance, my feet would start to feel numb.

With my personality, I figured I would just keep running through this. As my distances increased to around 10k, it became unbearable and soon thereafter I lost interest.

Speed up to January 2008, when I again decided to run a marathon, I had the same problem. Once I got myself in good enough shape to run any distance, my foot issues loomed its ugly head. I was very discouraged. After speaking to a number of people, I visited a shoe store with some real professionals.

I began to explain my problem, and he interrupted me (which made me angry). He asked, “Did you play hockey or ski?” Stunned, I replied “both.”

He immediately stated, “your shoes are two sizes too small. I can see your toes putting pressure on the front of them.” Ridiculous, I say, I have been wearing the same size 8 shoes since 7^th grade and my feet have never grown. Well, it is true that I had wore the same size 8s, but apparently my feet grew sometime after I started wearing them. I was a size 10. No matter how many times I stood on that damn scale, I was a size 10. I was amazed. I never had my shoes measured since the 7^th grade.

Apparently, this is a common problem with people who partake in sports where you want a tight boot. You want the skates to fit very snugly for optimal performance. The same is not true of running or every day shoes.

I bought a pair of size 10 shoes, and all though I have made slight alterations to the type of shoe I wear since then, it has made all the difference in the world. When I ran my half marathon, I could not believe that I never once thought about my feet. Oh, they were sore when I was done, but the tingling and intense pain was never an issue.

Take the time to get your running shoes sized every so often. If you work in a running store, size everyone’s shoes. It will be worth the 5 minutes.

Running Shoes

Currently, I am wearing the Saucony Omni 7. It’s my fourth pair of these shoes. The models have changed, but I have been consistently happy with these shoes. I had visited 3 shoe stores, and been through numerous evaluations from running on a treadmill to walking for evaluation. These shoes were recommended to me by a store that is no longer in business, but I have been quite happy with the results.

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