A Missed Tempo

I knew it before I got into my car yesterday to go to the gym, but being the stubborn person that I am, I insisted on giving it a go anyway. After all, you never really know until you try.

At 6:20 PM, I climbed on to the treadmill and started the warm up. That feeling was all over me, but I persisted. By the end of the one mile warm up, I was at 6.6 MPH, so I eased into the 6.9 MPH the tempo run. Focused on form, which was entirely absent just twenty four hours ago, I mentally checked off the list of items that made me an inefficient runner. I concentrated on symmetrical cadence starting with the foot strike, then the roll / midstance, and finally the propulsion. I have a tendency to favor my hip flexors over my obliques, so I spot checked that my sides were in fact contracted just a bit after the midstance.

Just after a third of a mile at tempo, I was exhausted. Not a single part of me was enjoying the ride, and I felt far more fatigued than what my heart rate suggested. It felt like I was working at 88%, when my heart rate did not exceed 83%, and actually dropped down to 80% at a few measures. I called it quits by the end of the first mile at tempo, and brought the whole thing down to a walk. I was on the treadmill for a total of 20 minutes.

Not wanting to waste the trip to the gym, I decided to hit up George’s program. It normally takes me about an hour to finish the stability and core work, but it took about an hour and a half yesterday even skipping the one footed push-ups. It really should have been a recovery day, but I couldn’t figure out a way to maneuver this week’s schedule to make that work. I guess one missed work out wouldn’t have been terrible, and it might have garnered better performances for all other successive work outs this week. But no, I was too stubborn to see that yesterday.

To perk myself up, I decided to go out to buy a pair of running shoes. It’s just about time to retire my current active pair to the treadmill, and get something new for the roads. I would normally go to the running store, and hop on their treadmill to try out whatever they recommended in stock. Since it was late, and I’ve enjoyed my Asics Gel Kayano VII thoroughly (though I liked darker blue ones from the fall of 2006 way more than the pinkish orange ones from the winter of 2006), I went over to Dick’s to pick up a replacement pair. That was such a good move. I had a $10 coupon, and the Kayano’s, which are normally in the area of $130 and $145, were on sale for $80. After paying $70 at check out for the shoes, I really didn’t feel so bad about the tempo run.

I’ve also been meaning to have a different pair of shoes. It’s been almost a year with the Kayano’s, so I was thinking it is also about time to change it up a bit. This is just for the sake of strengthening different parts of the foot, and assorted other tiny muscles and parts. This is another way to help improve overall efficiency. So I went online and found out that Runner’s World Editor’s Pick for overpronators (such as yours truly) is the Asics Gel 1120. I opened a new window and looked them up at Dick’s, and low and behold, the 1120s, which goes for $90 or so, were on sale for $63 with free shipping and handling. Considering that I would normally pay $130 or so for a single pair, I thought it wasn’t entirely unjustifiable to pick up a second pair. The total amount I spent on both pairs is still within the vicinity of how much I would have spent on just one pair, and with that reasoning, I clicked and purchased.

A review comparing the two stability shoes is now pending.