New day, new shoes and a little AVON

Suuuuup! well after taking a couple days off to recover after too much running and too many days including 2 speed runs, i am feeling ready to get back out. body feels good. legs still work. and now i have happy feet with the addition of my new shoes. Layla stayed at the Nana's last night so Elizabeth, Marley and i ran over to Mishawaka and swapped out my Nimbus 10's for my new GT-2140's. Metro slid them on my feet and i instantly felt better about them. Again i think Metro but i think they are behind the curve that the Running Company has created. Of course i ended up with a small $10 credit that i chose to hang on to rather then spend it and use it later. i hopped on the treadmill at Metro and ran a short distance in the new kicks and felt very roomy in the toe box. heel was nice and snug. i wish that a size 15 was a lighter shoe but like i said....it's a 15. it's like asking for hot ice. not happening.

we then went over to the new Macri's and had dinner. We got there and we were a little concerned because we were the only people there but then we realized that it was 5:00 so that made a little more sense. by the time we left, there was 6 or 7 tables full. the best part was we were going to get bread sticks and cheese ($4) but instead decided to go with the recommendation of our waitress and had the pretzels ans cheese. that was good. Marley however gave quite the face and did not return to the pretzel and stuck with gold fish or "go feesh" as she calls them. It was nice just the three of us. it reminded me of starting our family with Layla. it's nice to be able to give a kid 100% of your attention when you are normally splitting it and trying to do something all at the same time. Food came out quickly and we settled in to eat. Elizabeth got her favorite, the Gyro and i got my Chicken Cordon Blue. it appeared the Gyro ($8) stayed the same but my CCB ($8) had been put on a crusty bun rather than in the bread form that was at the old location, i just don't remember what it was. it seemed larger than what i remember it being before. So we ate and then headed off to Target to get some essentials and headed home. We talked about Cold Stone Creamery but held strong and went home and had water. good stuff.

I did hop on the treadmill at home and logged a quick 2.2 miles which was a mix of running and walking in the new shoes. it wasn't my finest run but i just wanted to get a little into them and see if i discovered any trouble spot. with no trouble spots i tacked that run/walk more to a crosstrain than a run but i intend on getting out a couple times this weekend. this was a low training week and i have kind of goofed it up anyways so i might as well keep goofing it up. in my head i would like to do 3.25 Saturday, 4 Sunday and then 2 Monday would get me back on my schedule. Last month i logged 49.83 miles running, another 4 walking and 2 more cycling. i am kind of impressed with my mileage considering the weather we have had. i think that i am still sitting at that 20 lbs. weight drop which is again, fine. Elizabeth on the other hand is looking amazing. Everyday i feel very lucky to have her with me

Elizabeth is training for a 2 day, 39.3 mile walk with her sister in Chicago. the first day is a 26.2 (thats a full marathon) on the first day, then they get shoved into a tent to sleep that night and then another 13.1 (thats a half marathon) the second day. i am really proud of her. This is a charity fof Breat Cancer research through Avon. Everyone in the walk has to raise $1800 or more. I will give a link and feel free to sponser her with whatever you can.

http://www.avonwalk.org

or to make a donation and go right to her page.....

http://info.avonfoundation.org/site/TR/Walk2009/Chicago?px=4471666&pg=personal&fr_id=1780

thanks again.

2140-113-4.96-216-21-157= Cold Stone Creamery

Hello all. i called Metro and placed my order for my Asics GT-2140. the guy on the phone remembered me quickly and that was nice because i didn't get his name last time so i was worried that i was going to have to try to convince a second person about swapping out shoes. he asked me questions and seemed a little ashamed for misdiagnosing my running style. i should hear from them next week and then i will run over there and hopefully be done with this round of shoe buying. Last night was a training night. I took off out of work a bit early and started off through the subdivision. the first 60 yards was plowed very well, then the fluffy snow came closer and then i was running on it. well, call it running. it really takes it out of you. every push off is twice as hard and when you land, you have a make sure you don't slide away. once i got through the neighborhood and on to 113 it was clear. i ran up and down that and then did a half run and back through the nasty stuff one last time. i was to do 5 but all in all i did 4.96. i hopped on the scale after my shower and clothed was 217.5 lbs which is where i was before the holidays. this morning, in the buck, i was 216 lbs. at my heaviest, i think that i was 237, which at the time didn't seem bad but now i think about that being almost 240 and it amazes me. so i am considering myself at a 21 lbs. weight loss. i kind of remember liking being at 200 best, but i really have no intention of getting there. i am not so much looking at this running thing as a weight loss, but i will not say never. if i get there, i am fine with it. i just remember high school graduating at 157 lbs and looking sick so i still worry about being undersized. i miss Cold Stone Creamery. i think i just needed to hear myself say that.

Update 2

Stopped at The Running Company with my uncle Ron. I am much more impressed with this company. its not that i don't like Metro, but i don't think they are set up for big feet and now that i have been to another store, i feel like i got better attention. RunCo. had me put on a 15 Pegasus (very neutral) and run on a treadmill and videotaped me. then after a minute of running, i got to watch my steps in slow motion. i got a very different analysis rather than looking at the bottom of my old shoes. so he brought out 2 more pairs of shoes and i ran in those and i really like the Asics GT-2140. didn't like the color but there are options. so i really knew that i wasn't buying but told the guy helping me that i was just starting to look and he got it that i wasn't buying but i still asked him a couple questions and he still brought out 2 more pairs for me to try. i wished that i didn't have this in store credit to use at Metro because i am much happier with how in depth they were at the Running Company, but it is what it is. Maybe the next time i will buy from them. Sometime next week i will call and ask them to order my new shoes and when they are in, i will go swap shoes. that's all for now.

Update............

i called Metro and i can come back in and they will get me what i want. i will be headed south this weekend so i hope maybe my uncle can take me to some running stores and i will see if i can find something i like better and then go back to Metro and they can order it for me.

hmmmmmm............

Well i ran (on the treadmill) for the first time in my new shoes. Didn't like them. the spot of concern above the pinky toe is still my spot of concern. i don't feel like this is something that is going to "break in". i did 2.5 miles on the treadmill and it doesn't rub, it just feels like with all that extra stitching right there it holds my toes and won't let me move around like i prefer. the rest of the shoe i really like. a lot. but i think that i will be making a phone call to see what my options are. Today is 100 days from the Indy mini. still very excited. i will need to do a little research to figure out a running course for the week after next when i am at Rob's. last time i was there i just ran around the circle that is like .9 miles 3 times. i was bored out of my mind. i felt like Clark W. Griswold stuck in Europe. Look kids, Big Ben, Parliament! But i have time. The run last night felt fairly good for being on the treadmill. maybe i am getting used to it. Who knows. Maybe it was because i was so focused on my toes. i know the ugly pair of Brooks will still be at the store. i am wondering if i wouldn't be better going to Indy one of the next 2 weekends and trying on stuff down there and then when i come back up, have Metro bring something in for me. First i will call. then i will figure something wonderful out. nice thing is, that worst case scenario, i still like my Nimbus 8's and could always use them should i not find something in time to get them broken in. i will spellcheck real quick and be on my way. Later.

first long run in training....

Hello all, Elizabeth was out of town this weekend but i managed to ditch the kids for a bit and run over to Metro to try out the new shoes and buy something. the lady that was helping me last week was not there but a young girl helped me out and i tried on the Asics. not to shabby. i have the Nimbus 8 and these were the Nimbus 10. it was different. not in a bad way, just different. it's hard to not compare to an already broken in shoe especially when it has the same name. the other shoe was the Brooks Dyad 5. my only problem with the shoe, and i know I'm not supposed to say it, was how ugly it was. seriously ugly. i guess it is built up for heavier runners and yes, that would be me but for today, i just couldn't do it so i bought the Asics. i figure that i will do a little walking in them but i guess my only complaint is that i wish i could have tried more pairs out. i know that if i didn't wear a 15, there would be more options but i know that they know what they are doing so i have to trust them.

Sunday was my long training day. on Wednesday i did manage to get 3 miles in on the treadmill. it was long and miserable but i got it in the log book. fun or no fun, it's entered either way. Sunday i went out and got 6.4 miles in. OUTSIDE!!! it was a little brisk but you warm up and get in a groove and forget about everything. i left myself an out in my route so if i felt crappy or cold after 3 i could head home and just do 4 total but i felt really good so i got a full 6 running and the .4 was from the walking warm up and cool down. Tonight i have to get 2 miles in and i think that i might do that on the treadmill in the new shoes. as much as i don't like it, at least i can run in squeaky new shoes.

i am looking forward to the next couple weekends. this weekend the my household is heading south to Nobletucky for my nephews birthday party. Layla loves those cousins. Marley loves destroying any kind of railroad track or anything that you took 6.7 hours setting up. it will be fun to talk with my uncle too, because he is running the mini marathon also and plus they have a treadmill with.......HEADROOM!!!!!!! then the next weekend i am heading down again for a solo weekend with the boys. Rob and hopefully Grant too. not sure of the details yet but I'm working on cooking up something fun.

I keep thinking that soon i will be saying, "hey good news! i am in a band again" but at this point not much is cooking. Jeff has put up a Craigslist ad and we have gotten responses. i wish it was from closer people. Valpo to Michigan and down to Plymouth. some good sounding prospects. i guess the drive is on them, it just makes it that much harder though. oh well. maybe soon. we'll see.

Well, that should be it for now. Ta ta