Running 2013: Week Five

Saturday morning, I went out and bought myself a new pair of running shoes, retiring my previous pair after close to 1,800 miles.

That afternoon, with the temperature around 20 degrees (F), a steady snow coming down, and light wind, I put in this weekend’s first 3.5-mile loop. It was more work than I expected: Even with the trail shoes’ gripping tread, the snow was deep and/or packed enough for a little slipping – kind of like running through soft sand – which made for a little extra work. I also expect there’s going to be an adjustment period: I can definitely feel the more solid sole at work, but I also realized that for the first time in several years, I’m running on fully-supportive shoes again, which I can feel in my calves and ankles.

I had a decent enough first mile, but I felt really hammered during two and three. I was sitting on a 9:03 pace when I reached the end of our street, and it took a full-bore effort to knock off a few seconds over those last couple tenths of a mile.

I did the same loop on Sunday. About the same temperature and wind, but no new snow, so I got a much better feel for the new shoes on pavement. Miles two and three felt much more even, so rather than a hard charge at the very end, I worked on gradually speeding up over the last three-quarters of a mile.

And here’s the mileage total, thirty four days into 2013:

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