P.M.S

I ran the Denver Rock and Roll Marathon in October. I was sore for three days and had a runners "high" for a about a week. 

Now............ I feel lost

I hit "the wall" about mile 18 and I didn't run nearly as well as I thought I would.  I feel slightly embarrassed about my time, I really thought I would have finished in the four hour mark.  I know that I should feel great about finishing A MARATHON, but honestly I feel like I didn't do as well as I could.

Why the fog? Why the lack of drive? Why the lack of interest?


It is simple....P.M.S other wise known as Post Marathon Syndrome. 



It is time to "re-focus" my running lens.  Time to take a second look at what I want to do and where I want to go.  I am training for the half in December, but I just don't have the drive I had when I trained for the marathon.  Maybe it is knowing that I CAN run that far.  For me setting the goal to run the marathon was knowing that 26 miles was something I hadn't done and I wanted to know IF I could do it.  Now that I know that I can do it, I feel like there is no challenge.

Finding the "why" in running has been a little hard for me.  I will say that recently I have started to help a fellow runner learn how to run.  Teaching her what I know and what I have learned has helped me re-focus my passion.  I never lost the love of running, but I have lost the drive.  Helping Chris and seeing her reach her potential is rewarding.  I am starting to see her grow as a runner and I see that she really wants to learn.  So I really want to help her. 

Chris, we all start somewhere and we all learn sometime, I am happy that I can see you grow.  At the same token thank you for unknowingly that you are helping me out of my P.M.S.

How about you, have you ever experienced P.M.S?

How did you get out of your funk?

New shoes will make all the difference

I told myself that I would set out to buy myself a new pair of shoes once I finished my Marathon, as a reward to myself for all my hard work.
I tend to overpronate and have low arches.  This causes me to wear out sides of my shoes. The pair of shoes that I have are worn in well and with quite a few miles on them.  This has triggered a wicked case of plantar faciitis on my right foot.  I don't think I was properly fitted for these shoes, so I am very eager to get a new pair.

I spent some time reading about different brands and what uses have to say about these.  My last few pairs have been Nike+ shoes that have a chip insert in the inside of the shoe.  With the new design of the shoes I don't really like they way they are built.  Nike moved the post on the shoe and the cradle of the shoes is much heaver then the way they used to be.
Some things that I considered when I decided to get new shoes.

• Shoes with more meat on the sole, I want to get more than 250 miles out of a pair of shoes.
• The shoes should be lighter, on those long runs ever ounce counts
• There needs to be more cushion, the ones I have a bit of rubber on them and do not respond well
• The toe box needs be bigger, I have been hitting to top of my last shoes bruising my toe nails
• Arch support, the ones I have are too high and rub

The cost of a pair shoes is not a factor in my decision making process.  These are my feet and you can not put a price on running pain free.   Think of feet as the foundation to your house.  When you have a weak foundation it causes other problems down the road.

I went down to Boulder Running Company with two pair of shoes in mind.  The Brooks Adrealine GTS 11 and the Brooks Ghost 4. 

Well, what did I go with?  Neither! 

I went Brooks Glycerin 9.  Aren't these just the sexiest thing you have seen? I am in love with them.  I have already put 10 miles on them and they feel great, There was no "breaking" in time and they are light.  I am very happy with my new buy.