stupid shoes

Run 526: When new shoes go bad

Run 526
Average pace: 5:35/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 2:33 pm
Distance: 6.38 km
Time: 35:40
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 24-26ºC
Humidity: 40%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 155
Weight: 157.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 4094 km
Devices: Apple Watch, iPhone

Today I got new running shoes. They were on sale!

They made my left foot hurt so much I stopped my 10K run at 6.38 km. It didn’t help that the temperature went from 24-26ºC, either, but it was mostly the shoes.

I picked up a pair of Hoka One One Stinson ATRs, which provide a good amount of support and a more pronounced rocker motion than my Speedgoats. As a bonus, there was also no color-bleeding.

But problems emerged quickly. On the walk to the lake my left foot started to hurt. The new shoes were impressively defeating my orthotics, something no other shoes have done. I got to the lake and started out and even my first km was sluggish. After awhile the left foot began to hurt quite a bit more. The toes even began to feel numb. I thought maybe the orthotic had slipped forward somehow and the pronounced bulge was sitting directly under my toes instead of just behind them, where the toes connect to the foot. After the run I checked but the orthotic was right where it should have been. I planned on bailing on the run at the 6K mark, went a bit further, toyed with going to 7K, then just stopped, figuring running more would yield no useful results.

The only other good news is the repair work on the boardwalk scheduled to start today was nowhere to be seen, so I didn’t have to do some fancy detour to get around it.

But to add the proverbial insult to injury, while the left shoe didn’t hurt my foot as much on the way back, the right shoe started to squeak and pretty loudly at that. The squeaking of the last pair is what doomed them.

The Stinsons are going back to the store tomorrow. I’ll either get a different pair or put up with the Speedgoats a little longer. Squeaking is bad but it’s better than squeaking plus murdering my foot.

My overall pace was a dismal 5:35/km. Because I was getting the cursed shoes in the morning I didn’t run until the afternoon and it was warmer than expected, which was an unpleasant bonus. Also, a bug bite on my right calf itched for the entire run.

At least there were no cyclists.

Run 525: Unplanned 5K with fresh cut giant trees

Run 525
Average pace: 5:19/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 3:18 pm
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 26:50
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 23-24ºC
Humidity: 40%
Wind: moderate
BPM: 148
Weight: 157.2 pounds
Total distance to date: 4088 km
Devices: Apple Watch, iPhone

I traded in my new-but-not-worn Nike shorts today at the Nike store in Metrotown. Although these are the latest version of the shorts I currently wear, I had mistakenly bought a size medium and when I got home I found my other Nike shorts were size small. A return fixed that and when I got home I thought, “Hey, with my shiny new shorts and shiny new sleeveless t-shirt, I should go for a run just for the heck of it!”

And so I put on the new shorts and found them to be rather…snug. Snug as in they have somehow reduced the size of the small to really mean small and the medium size shorts I traded back without ever trying were probably the right size all along. Grr. I’m not sure what to do. Can I do a double return or will they accuse me of being an incurable shorts addict? What I might do is buy another pair in the medium size–but in a different color!–and see if they fit, then maybe think about trading in the small shorts for the original medium. This plan actually makes me sound like an incurable shorts addict, doesn’t it?

Hmm.

For the run I put on my old and stinky but fits-just-right shorts, with the new short, and headed off, undecided on whether to do a 5K or go for more. I opted for a 5K partway through and tried to adjust my pace accordingly. Although sunny, there was a good breeze and humidity was lower so I stayed fairly peppy and only had minor sweating throughout. Even my BPM was much lower, at only 148.

In the end my pace was 5:19/km, which is one of my better 5K runs this year. Not bad following up only a day after a 10K. I didn’t experience any issues and the trail was surprisingly not too busy, given the time and conditions.

The “trail repairs” next to the athletic fields was finished and my careful examination of the trail revealed…absolutely no changes I could see. But lo, at the ends of the trail were several freshly-hewn (and formerly honking big) trees, cut up and piled alongside the trail. I’m not sure if they were cut because they had become old and menacing or, being on the ends, if they were cut to better accommodate further work on the trail. In any case, they are now ex-trees.

On the walk out a kid ahead of me defiantly walked through the detour while I obeyed the sign and took the Spruce Loop out. The kid emerged not far ahead of me on the other side, so whatever is in the blocked-off area is not a kid-eating monster. I wanted to ask him what they could possibly be working on that is taking so long but figured the reality would prove suitably mundane.

The other thing of note–and a squeaky note it is–are my shoes. While the color-bleeding of my Hoka Speedgoats is long past, the right shoe is squeaking so loudly I can hear it while running with music playing. It’s somewhat maddening. Getting new shoes, preferably before my next run, is now top priority.

Run 428: Now with color migration

Run 428
Average pace: 5:45/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Distance: 10.01 km
Time: 57:39
Weather: Suny and warm
Temp: 16-20ºC
Wind: light
BPM: 159
Stride: n/a
Weight: 164.1 pounds
Total distance to date: 3447
Device used: Apple Watch and iPhone 6

I had two concerns going into today’s run, one entirely cosmetic, the other a little more substantial.

The cosmetic one concerned my new shoes and the potential for “color migration.” The more significant concern was how my right leg would feel as it started feeling sore after last Tuesday’s run and has been a bit sore since.

There’s good news, iffy news and bad news.

Good news: I made it through the entire run and walk back. Although my pace was off last Sunday’s spectacularly fast average, at 5:45/km it was still better than previous runs despite the soreness. My more deliberate pace also meant a BPM on the lower side at 159.

Iffy news: The first few km the leg felt fine but starting aching during the 3-4 km stretch. I briefly thought of shortening the run to a 5K. I pressed on and somewhere around the 5-6K mark the endorphins kicked in and it didn’t feel too bad. It continued to not feel bad the rest of the way and I kept on at a steady pace through to the end. The soreness extends beyond the injury of last year, with what feels like multiple muscles affected. The good news is none of this comes anywhere close to the blowout that happened last August where I experienced very sharp pain that actively inhibited my ability to run altogether. It just aches like muscles that have been worked a bit harder than is ideal.

I’m hoping that by stretching and being careful not to push that the muscles will continue to slowly improve while I still run. I’ll take time off if I need to but I’m hoping that won’t be necessary.

Bad news: The new Speedgoats are a complete bust. Not only did the color bleed, it’s even worse than the first pair. My socks look like they’ve been tattooed or branded:

accidental sock tribute to Prince

On top of that, the right shoe was chafing against one of my toes, leaving the skin raw. It actually hurt more than my leg. At this point I would refuse another replacement pair. I’ll just put up with these until the bleeding stops (8 or 9 runs) and then get a different brand next time. This sort of quality control (“lol quality control??”) is not acceptable.

I got out fairly early, starting the run at 9:53 a.m. It was already 16ºC and went up to 20 by the end of the run. I actually felt sweat run down my face, not something I normally expect for the first day of May.

The trail was not overly crowded and I’d say there may have been slightly more runners than walkers. Apparently some event was taking place at the rowing pavilion or nearby as its parking lot was completely full. Whatever it was, all the people were squirreled away off the trail, which was okay by me.

I’m not sure what to expect on Tuesday’s run and haven’t decided if I’ll try the less familiar Langara trail or go back to the Brunette River trail, which is a gentler run.

A shorter zippier run

Average pace: 4:46/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 5.03 km
Weather: Sunny, some cloud
Temp: 18ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 363
Total distance to date: 2206 km

I was originally going to look for running shoes tonight and run tomorrow (Friday) but the weather was nice, the body was willing and so I went out anyway and did a 5K run on the Brunette River trail.

As is usually the case with shorter runs, my time was a good bit faster, with my average pace 4:46/km. As a bonus my left foot normally doesn’t start to really sing until the 5 km mark, so it only made its presence known just as I was wrapping up.

I drooped a little after the first 2 km–something that tends to happen more often than not so far this year–but recovered and improved my pace for the rest of the run.

There’s not much to add. It was quick, relatively comfortable and helped work off the guilt of eating an apple fritter. Mmm, apple fritter.

I still hate my shoes, though.