Got a fair amount of sleep last night so I felt good on the run (later than usual). My ankle felt fine during the run but afterwards it hurt. I vowed to never wear another pair of VERY crappy sneakers. Now that I’m working at a running store and realizing the importance of having adequate cushioning I think I’m noticing the effects on my feet/body more and more (or maybe it’s a mental thing that I’m inventing yet it is still manifesting itself physically?) Either way, the cushioning on my shoes that I’ve run in for over 3 years and thousands of miles is pretty shot to the point where I can’t even walk around in them because it hurts my ankles (the shoes are ‘supportive’ shoes which means that they have a medial post for arch support. This medial post – a.k.a. the grey foam in the inner arch of the midsole- is firmer than all the surrounding white foam. Over time, the cushion, which acts like a sponge, doesn’t bounce back as well after it compresses during runs. Because the cushions are different densities (grey=firmer and white=less firm), as soon as I put the shoes on, I can feel my ankles being situated at an angle, which is actually painful! Right now, I’m only running in one pair (Mizuno Inspires) which I love – they’re lightweight and have a firm feel (I don’t like soft cushiony shoes). Before, I was alternating between a few pairs, all of which (except the Mizunos) were at least 2 or 3 years old, have virtually NO cushion left, and were completely worn away on thee sole to the point of my toe was nearly through to the pavement… bad I know. Looks like I’ll be taking advantage of my running store discount and treating my feet a little better! Day off today…I don’t like having days off. When/if I start working a second job that’ll change. Workaholic! Maybe I’ll even be able to join a gym…will see how September expenses look when they’re all tallied.
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