Thursday, May 22, 2008

Oh, thank Heaven

First run with the running skirt and I am in love! I mean it, I love this thing :) I feel covered and comfortable. You do get some odd looks, though. Some of them are clearly, "Is she really running in a skirt?" kind of looks, which I really don't care about because the people who are giving me those looks don't look like they have run a day in their life and thus probably don't know the obnoxiousness that is running in a pair of shorts that just don't feel right no matter what you do. The others, though, are a bit more bothersome and are more along the lines of, "Ooooh, she's running in a skirt...I wonder if I'll be able to see her underwear if I look hard enough?" I mean, honestly. Grow up, men. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's just that the warmer weather makes people a little more friendly and thus more likely to give you unexplained smiles (or are they leers?)...but I kind of doubt that that's the case. Regardless, I enjoyed the experience, a full two thumbs up, and a hearty wish that I had more pairs so that I could run like a girl more often!

The run itself was good but the conditions were pretty rough, with killer wind on the way back, which is, of course, the exact time when you want to be fighting a head wind. I guess this is what I get for running by the Hudson, although it really felt at times like I was just running in place. It was that bad.

I also conveniently forgot to put Body Glide on my upper arm and I once again have a welt from that stupid nike+ armband (I HATE THAT THING). And oddly, my feet are killing me. This is a problem I haven't really had before. All of a sudden, my shoes feel like they are tighter than usual, or something. I am getting chafing along the arch of my foot as well as on both of my pinkie toes. I am not tying my shoes tighter than I usually do, and I haven't laced them differently either. They are also not new shoes, nor are they old. I have been running in this model for a while and ran the half-marathon in my current pair (in addition to multiple training runs) without a problem. This also happened on Tuesday but since my run was shorter, it bothered me less, and at the time it really only affected my left foot. After this run, though, both of my feet hurt in the same places. Has anyone else had a problem like this come up out of nowhere? I'm wondering if it has something to do with the warmer weather causing my feet to swell or something...that's the only explanation I can think of, really. The pain really had an effect on my run. Around my fifth or sixth mile, it really started to set in (especially in my toes, which feel like they blistered or something--it is definitely a chafing issue and not something cramp-ish or anything like that) and I ended up taking a page out of Irish's book and dissociating as much as I could just to get through my seven miles without having to stop. I managed, but I wish my feet felt a little better (obvs).

Anyhoo, I got in a 7.11 mile run (see, that's where the post title comes from! Ha ha, I made an advertising-related joke!) which ain't too shabby.

Total mileage this week: 11.31

5 comments:

Karen said...

I agree....the running skirts are great! So comfortable! Since I am about 30 years older than you, I haven't worn mine during daylight runs yet. Once I get a little tanner-induced color on my legs and lose 10 pounds I might just venture out with it for a morning run. For now I'll stick with my compression shorts under sweat pants.

Anonymous said...

I am also having foot pains out of nowhere after my half marathon, someone told me that it could be plantar fasciitis, but I doubt thats your case since you have them in both feet.
Are you using running socks? All my blisters/chaffing issues went away when I started wearing them.

EmLit said...

These pains are more blister and chafing related, Alien. I do wear socks but I'm wondering if maybe they aren't wicking moisture the way they should, thereby creating more potential for uncomfortable rubbing? I don't know :( All I know is that walking was uncomfortable yesterday because of my blistered pinkie toes and I have two blisters on either of my arches.

Alissa said...

Sometimes my arches hurt from running on rocky roads (mmmm I'm suddenly craving ice cream!) but its more of a pain deep in the arch, not a blister issue. I'd definitely experiment with different types of socks. Glad to hear you like your running skirt. I hate the nike+ armbands too. In fact I haven't used an armband in over a year. I have a ton of different ways to carry the ipod. I think I might try to write a post on that this weekend. Your running skirt doesn't have a pocket?

*jen* said...

I want to try a running skirt so bad but I think I'd feel too self-conscious. I try to wear compression shorts most of the time because it seems like all other shorts ride up too much.

I haven't had foot pain like you describe but hope yours gets better soon.