New Shoes: Asics GT 2150 + pace run

Ordered these lovelies last week:.  They came only 2 days later.

I picked up the Asics GT 2150s for $55 - 15% off + free 2-day shipping from Running Warehouse.  I tried them on back in August when I went to Road Runner Sports for my gait analysis.  I ranked them as my number two shoe.  Turns out that 6 months later these are now an "older" model?  And therefore half price.  I'll take 'em!

I got a free reusable shopping bag with my order too.  Nice!  I could have also opted for some reduced price Running Warehouse brand socks, but I bought 6 new pairs in August so I'm set in that department.  I should have gotten them for hubs though.

 

The color is a little...neon...blue for me, and very white (that won't last!).  But I know I shouldn't pick a shoe based on looks alone.  And these were a style that worked well for my slight overpronation. 

I do like my current shoe, the Saucony ProGrid Omni 9, however it is heavy compared to my previous running shoe.  I really realized this when I wore my previous pair (New Balance 904TR) for a hike.  They felt so light on my feet in comparison.  It turns out my Sauconys are 11 ounces (including the Superfeet insole) each.  My old New Balances were 8.6 (Just went back and checked on my scale; I was way off) 7.7 ounces each.  You may think "Wow, 2.4 3.3 ounces isn't that much" but apparently it is.  My feet think it is.

The state of my current shoe:

(Am I the only one who catches the inside of my ankle with my other heel while I run??) 

281 miles later, they are still hanging in there, just not as white as when I first bought them.  I'm still using them for running, I'm not experiencing any pain or discomfort in them yet, I just wanted to be sure to have my replacements on hand for when it became time to switch.

Here's the rundown:

Current Saucony ProGrid Omni 9, size 6B w/Superfeet insole: 11 oz
New Asics GT 2150, size 6B: 9 oz
New Asics GT 2150, size 6B w/Superfeet insole: 9.7oz
Single Superfeet insole: 1.3 oz
(Based on the above, my math tells me the original Asics insole then weighs .6 oz)

So here's my question on the insoles.  I never had insoles before until this past August.  At Road Runner Sports, they were surprised I had not yet had an injury due to my mild pronation, and running without extra arch support in the form of insoles.

I have now used the insoles for 6 months, and continue to not have any injuries (knock on wood!).  Is running injury-free due to the insoles, or would I have been fine without them all along?

I am debating whether to continue use the insoles in the next pair of shoes.
Maybe I'll try some runs with and without the insoles when I switch to the new shoes.

Hmmm....

I will post on my new handheld water bottle after I have a chance to use it (tomorrow?)

And, if you want the code I used for 15% off your entire purchase at Running Warehouse, drop me an email at amandarunsoncoffee (at) gmail (dot) com and I will share.  I don't want to broadcast it and have the code shut down by Running Warehouse (not that I have soooo many people reading where that would happen, but still...)

Oh yeah -- and Friday's run.

It was 70F when I got home from work.  I didn't realize it was that warm because it was also pretty breezy.  I got to wear a short sleeve shirt and shorts!  And I did my 3 mile pace run.  Actually it became more of a 3.44 mile pace run, with 1 mi warm up and .46 mi cool down:

So my desired pace range for this run was 10:23-10:45.  I was within the range, but a little disappointed that it was toward the slower end.  I picked up my pace for my second pace mile- and was around 10:30 at .91 miles, but stopped to get a rock out of my sock.  That apparently cost me, resulting in a 10:44 lap.  So I tried to be just a little faster for the third pace mile and was.  Just to make sure it wasn't a fluke (and because I was still a ways from home) I continued at that pace for another .44 miles, comfortably.  Then I jogged/walked the rest of the way home (.46 miles).

Today was my rest day since I ran on my originally scheduled rest day (Friday was too nice NOT to!).  That's a good thing because today was back in the 40s and super windy (like, wind advisory-windy. Like, people's Christmas trees that are out at the curb and haven't been picked up yet getting blown into the street-windy).

Tomorrow (Sunday) will be my long run.
Hope everyone's having a good weekend!

PS,
I added the Daily Mile widget to my page.
Experimenting with syncing Garmin & Daily Mile.  It bugs me that it shows total mileage, because I used it for a little while last year -- then stopped using it until now, so it is inaccurate.  Then, when I connected my Garmin, it only uploaded since mid-January, not all the way back to the beginning of January.  Oh well.

Recap: Training Weeks 4 & 5

This is way over due, but I'm posting it anyway.

The plan for Week 4:

4  1/31-2/6

Spin  +abs

3.5 mi  easy

35 min   tempo

Boot   Camp

Rest

3 mi  pace

7 mi  long

What I actually did:

Monday Jan31: almost 1 hour of Spinning + 50 crunches + 90" plank
Tuesday Feb1: 3.32 mile easy run
Wednesday Feb2: 1 hour of Spinning w/other new instructor
Thursday Feb3: 7x400@5k pace split in two (3x400... + boot camp...4x400) = 3.61 miles
Friday Feb4: 2.45 mi easy run w/hubs
Saturday Feb5: Rest
Sunday Feb6: 8.87 mi long run


The plan for Week 5:

5  2/7-2/13

Spin  +abs

4 mi  easy

7 x 400   @5k pace

Boot   Camp

Rest

3 mi  pace

8 mi  long

What I actually did:

Monday Feb7: Spinning + ab stuff (200 crunches + 90" plank + 50 things w/5lb weights)
Tuesday Feb8: Off
Wednesday Feb9: Spinning + 35 min tempo run (3.24 mi)
Thursday Feb10: 3 mile pace run (4.31 mi)
Friday Feb11: Rest (aka drive to VT)  I did 100 crunches at our hotel because I'm a dork.
Saturday Feb12: Downhill Skiing ~6 hours
Sunday Feb13: Downhill Skiing <6 hours

I swapped the end of Week 5's training with the end of Week 6's training to allow for a weekend of skiing.

Oh, by the way, did I ever mention that the abs class at my gym was moved to a different time, beginning mid-January?  It's not on Monday nights after spin, so that totally throws off my original schedule.  That's why I've been trying to do some kind of ab stuff on Monday nights at home.  Nowhere near 30 minutes of it, but whatever.  Luckily boot camp includes core work too.

And just for fun, half of this key lime tart ended up in my belly after dinner tonight:

Speed Work: 800s

I passed on spinning tonight due to my calf tightness still.  The thought of high resistance on the spin bike and digging my heels in…that’s exactly the position in which my calves are sore!  Running on the other hand, with something close to a mid-foot strike is not so bad. 

Also, it was on the verge of 50F and sunny out (!) when I got home from work, so that doesn’t hurt either.  I even busted out shorts for my run.  Craziness.

My training schedule is already all kinds of mixed up, but I’m not letting it bother me. 


Since I did a tempo run last week, I didn’t want to be boring by doing another tempo run this week.  I did some intervals instead.  Speed work according to my schedule would have been 8 x 400 at a 5k pace.  As I’ve mentioned before, I’m borrowing speed work and hills from Hal Higdon’s Advanced Half marathon plan.  The advanced plan has 800 and 1600 repeats, not just the 400 repeats that the intermediate plan has.

Based on the handy dandy McMillan running calculator, for a half marathon time of 2:16-2:20, my 10k pace would be 9:49-10:07, and my 5k pace would be 9:28-9:45.
 
My four 800s were at the following paces: 9:42, 9:47, 9:40, 9:37.  Awesome!  I had in my mind that I’d be happy with a 10:00 pace for these intervals, right in the middle of my 10k pace range, but I surprised myself and exceeded that.


I chose to rest for .25 miles/400m in between intervals.  This consisted of jogging for the first .05, slowing even more to a walk for .15, then jogging for the last .05 of the rest  interval before starting my next 10k pace interval. 

I’m also really happy with how quickly my heart rate recovered in between intervals (and the face that I didn’t break a HR of 180 until late in the 3rd interval).  This is definitely an improvement.  Yay for heart rate progress!



Also, a follow up from yesterday: The Dannon vanilla Greek yogurt. 

I had it for a morning snack/part of lunch today with fresh raspberries.  And it was fantastic! I gotta agree with Becky C, Dannon’s vanilla does top the others in my book… And it has real sugar, not aspartame (blech).  So – two thumbs up for Dannon’s vanilla Greek yogurt!

PS,
Be sure to check out Michelle's Nathan Sports Giveaway on her blog, Michelle Goes Running.

Souvenirs from VT

Just a couple things we brought back from Vermont...

1. Real maple syrup;
2. the closest thing to my lifelong goal of seeing a real live moose-- two moose mugs (seriously, no moose sightings in four visits to Vermont since 2002?);
3. and hubs appears to have come back to NJ with the flu! :-/


I stopped at the store on the way home from work to get him some things and happened across yet another new addition to the Greek yogurt section... Dannon!  5.3 ounces for $.99 at my local Wegmans.  Reader Becky C had mentioned recently that Dannon had their own version. See my recent profession of love for Greek Yogurt here.

I picked up a plain and a vanilla, both fat free - those were the only two varieties available.  Looking forward to trying them out!

The last thing I brought back from Vermont with me was sore calves!  My calves have been feeling a little stiff since I woke up Monday morning (morning after day 2 of skiing).  Not sure if it was from standing around in the lift lines, or using my muscles differently, or my ski boots fitting snugly around my jumbo calves, but regardless- yikes!  Yesterday and today I felt like an old man walking around.


The Old Man Shuffle: That's what I shall refer to my 3.79 mile easy run tonight.  I went slow, my goal was to just move.  I tried to stretch my calves throughout the day, and debated whether or not to do my easy run tonight.  Needing to stop at the grocery store on my way home from work delayed my plans to run while it was still light out.

It didn't help that I wanted to watch "Watson" on Jeopardy at 7pm.  I ended up going for my run after Jeopardy ended; it was still 32F out.  I wasn't sure if I'd make it the full 4 miles my training plan called for, but thought I should move anyway to loosen up my thunder-calves.  While I felt stiff at first (hence, Old Man Shuffle), I eventually warmed up along the way and my legs do feel better now.

I'm hoping my legs feel even better tomorrow, we've got some great warm weather coming to NJ in the next couple days and I can't wait to run outside in it!  If not, maybe it will be an excuse to use my Massage Envy gift certificate from Christmas...(Wait, why do I need an excuse? I don't know why I haven't used it yet).

65 on Friday!? I may have to rework which day is my rest day this week.  How can I not run on Friday??