Back At It

Yesterday I decided to take advantage of my hubby getting home from his trip early in the day.  I packed my running stuff and brought it with me and decided to do my beloved Common Market run, which is where all the running madness began for me last year.  I attribute this running group with sparking a real running fire inside me and also kicking my social life in Charlotte into over drive.  The good old running group does a 4 mile loop and I used to go religiously all last summer and into fall until winter hit and I stopped going due to cold and darkness.  Then we got Clyde and that also hindered going since most of the time Greg is away and I need to go home and be a doggie mommy. 

When I left work, I headed to Run For Your Life first to pick up my race packet for a 5k I'm running in this weekend.  While there I decided to get fitted for new running shoes.  While I initially loved my Nike Zooms, lately I've been feeling like they are getting too worn and loose.  I don't want to do anything to compromise my knee and ability to run well, so I figured I'd see if there was another shoe better suited for my current running needs.  The sales associate did a lot to assess me and even had me run around the store and outside in some shoes to find the best pair.  She said I have a lot of pronation issues in my left foot, which may explain and/or add to my knee issues.  In the end we agreed that the Asics GT 2150's seem to fit me best.  They were by far the most comfortable and she said she could tell a real difference in my running with them on.  

When leaving the store, I asked if I would be ok to wear them on tonight's 4 mile run and she said to go for it, so I did! 

They felt amazing!

I ran with Kelly, who is usually a lot faster than me, but took it easy tonight.  We had a good run and chatted a bunch along the route.

It wasn't the easiest 4 miles I've done since I'm still getting back in to my running groove, but it went pretty well.

Back at the Common Market, I started with a post-run Gatorade, and later had a pear cider.  Mmmm, I love cider!

Greg decided to come meet me after the run and brought Clyde!

 Clyde was a hit as usual and enjoyed getting passed around to complete strangers.  He also snagged some bites of mine and Greg's grilled cheese sandwich and Guiness stew. 

I'm going to try to make it to the Common Market for some more runs this month.  It's always a good time and I really like the 4 mile loop we do.  I think it will be a good addition to my half marathon training.