Perfect Running Shoes

Well, another week of training under the belt and I am so happy to report that I finally broke the 20-mile mark this weekend. Most training plans have you running during the week and working your way up to your long run on Sunday. I hate having the big run hanging over my head all weekend so I plan my long runs for Saturday and then I have the rest of the weekend to relax, recuperate and eat anything I want!:) I am feeling good and not sore at all, surprisingly.

I know that there is a 2nd grade elementary school class who is studying motion and friction and interested in how running might tie into those two topics so I thought that I would share with them some details of my training that might tie these together. I am a huge fan of Saucony shoes and I have honestly tried just about every brand and there isn’t another shoe out there that allows me to put my feet into a brand new pair of shoes and run 26.2 miles without a blister or care in the world. I know there are many runners who do suffer from blisters, lost toe nails, heel pain or arch pain and I guess I am just lucky or I found the right shoes. I will share a little trick for those people who do tend to get blisters: cover your feet in Vaseline then put on your socks and shoes. This will prevent friction in your socks and shoes as your feet sweat and move back and forth in your shoes. Another good tip is to wear real cotton socks as they absorb the moisture, which also cuts down on the friction and subsequent problems related to that after 3+ hours of running.

As far as clothing is concerned, I have a lot of little preferences depending on the weather, but one thing I always place at the top of the list is what can I wear that will make me feel good about getting out there and doing it. Since it has been cold, windy, rainy and sometimes snowing, I like to wear running pants and a windbreaker that wicks the wind and rain and keep me dry underneath. Imagine a ski pant without all that padding. If the weather is a bit better but still a bit chilly, I will wear a lycra pant that is warm because it hugs the body and a turtleneck and t-shirt with a sweatshirt over it until I warm up. And when the weather is fine, like it was this past weekend (almost 60 degrees!), I will wear shorts! You really have to layer your clothes when you are running in the winter to spring time as you just never know how you are going to feel until you go out and get going. So, as we are heading into the spring, I hope by the time the marathon starts, I will be able to wear shorts and maybe a long sleeve t-shirt and think about tulips, daphodils and lilies :)


Gotta go run…..