Monday, December 16, 2013

reality check

Remember a long time ago how I said I was going to go to one of those cool running stores and have a legit shoe assessment/consultation and then buy REAL running shoes based on science and fit and not price and cuteness? I know. It was a long time ago-- September. Ancient history. Well, I like to accomplish things at a snail's pace, what can I say? (Actually, I can say that a lot has happened since mid-September and buying fancy running shoes somehow fell really low on- and then off- the list of things to do.) 

Gosh. Thinking about how ridiculous life has been since mid-September is actually really mind-blowing and awful. I just glanced back over the titles of my posts...from then til now...AND LET'S MOVE ON BEFORE I START BAWLING.

So!! On Saturday Matt and I were having a little 'continue the birthday fun and let Erika pick whatever she wants to do all day long' day (my favorite kind of day) and so I decided we would go to the running store and both have our feet/strides/styles assessed and get ourselves some new kicks.

WAIT! Back up. Relevant rabbit trail about what suddenly made new running shoes so important first:

Leggings, yall. Leggings. Leggings are so fun! So cute! So comfy! So easy!! I fully believe in and subscribe to all of those thoughts about leggings. But here's the truth about leggings-- I'm gonna be blunt. Leggings lie to you. Leggings tell you "go on, eat your fourth dessert of the night! I'll still feel great!" Leggings tell you that it's okay to eat your feelings for two months, to watch 18 episodes of Parks & Rec every night while you mindlessly munch on popcorn. Leggings don't bat an eye if you skip your morning workout...for three months. The leggings are still gonna fit. They'll welcome you every day, never breathing a comment about your slowly-but-steadily-expanding derriere. Leggings are an enabler. They're the friend you call when you just want to feel better about yourself. They're the worthless accountability partner who will never, ever call you on your crap. Leggings are awesome.

UNTIL YOU TRY TO PUT ON YOUR JEANS.

Jeans? Jeans keep you real. Jeans don't lie. Jeans say "hold up, sistah-- ain't NO WAY you can button me today! You tryin' to dump 5 gallons of ice cream in a 1 gallon bucket??! AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!!!!!" Jeans will remind you constantly, all day long, that no, maybe you should NOT have had two lunches plus extra dinner every day last week. Jeans will leave marks all over your body so that when you're disrobing, they're still silently mocking. Jeans make you feel bad about your awesome accomplishment of watching 9 episodes of Scandal in one afternoon. Jeans are that really blunt grandmother who calls it exactly like she sees it. Bless her heart...and my vaster-than-ever posterior. 

SO. Let's just say that post-failed-adoption-mourning and a steady wardrobe of leggings hasn't done my body any favors. My jeans called me out on it and I'm heeding their advice: step it up. Step up the exercise. Step away from the holiday-treat-filled-break-room at work. 

Which brings us back to the running shoes. It was time. Now that I'm 400 years old and I have a broken (but healing) back, shoes are more important than ever (???? I don't know, they seem correlated in my mind). So to the Athens Running Company store we went. We did the assessment and fitting thing and it was super fun. And then I tried on 80 pair of shoes and jogged around the store and totally looked like an idiot. But I probably wasn't the first one they'd seen, so I tried to get over it. And THEN-- miracle of miracles-- I picked new shoes and did NOT take the colors and overall cuteness into account.

I think I surprised us all. 

So I'm now the owner of these:
Yes, I wear a size 10. Large and in charge- that's me!
  They look kinda funny and the lacing part goes all curvy and I don't know why, but dangit-- I picked the ones that are scientifically proven to make me a way better runner and lose 10 pounds immediately!!!

Or that's what I thought, anyway. I mean-- when you pay three times as much as you've ever paid for tennis shoes before...your expectations go sky high. I had such visions for my first run!! It was going to be so easy!! So pain free!! I'd barely even know I was exerting any energy...after a period of time I'd glance down at my GPS and realize with shock that I'd gone 10 miles-- and barely feel winded!!! This was how it was supposed to go down.

Guess what?

Running still sucks, even with nice shoes. Bah. Life-- why so harsh?? 

I mean, I'm sure they are better. I will admit that at least my feet and shins weren't hurting as much as usual. But I could definitely tell I was running. I definitely still hated it. It was still freezing. I couldn't breathe. I felt every single inch of those 2.75 miles. I'm already making a list of excuses for why I don't want to go running again this afternoon. Also, since I'm wearing leggings today, I forget why it is I wanted to start running in the first place...

It was a harsh-lesson-learning weekend, I guess. Sorry to hit you with it on a Monday, but I felt like you deserved to know. Nice running shoes are...nice, I guess...but not as nice as leggings. THE END.

24 comments:

  1. Poop. Now I kind of want to get rid of all the jeans in my wardrobe and go sit on the couch and watch something. Instead I should probably get new shoes since I'm pretty sure mine were new in the last millennium :) Or I should stock up on more leggings!

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  2. I have those shoes! (In a 10 as well) and I really like them. They were my work shoes. When you are on your feet for a 14+ hour shift you NEED good shoes. By no means do I feel like I'm walking on clouds all day but at least my feet/shins/back don't make me pay for it on my day off. Yay for good shoes, leggings, and not feeling like the only girl wearing that size. For the record, I wear a 9.5 in regular shoes, which somehow makes me feel better about myself.

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  3. We were just talking about this! Ha!!!! I love how you can turn anything into a blog post. That is mad skillz chicka. Stretchy pants or not, you rock!

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  4. Love the shoes!! I don't run. Or let's be real, I hardly workout. But IF I did I would TOTALLY get these beauties!

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  5. My Brooks are a size 11. Big feeties unite!! I wish I could have gotten purple ones. Mine are a magenta color. Happy trails!

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  6. I think you'll definitely notice a difference over time! I wish the amount of money spent correlated to automatic awesome running skills!

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  7. Haha! Well, if it makes you feel any better, way back when my feet were fitted for scientific, aerodynamic, physical fitness, my shoes were almost all white, and not in the cool, hip way, but in the geriatric kind of way… it could be worse. Hope your shoes help with form and function if not desire and endurance, but if not, the leggings will always be there!

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  8. This is amazing! I feel the pain...and my jeans have not fit as well the past few months, either...ohh well...
    Hope your Christmas season is really blessed and full of grace and some redemption of the past year. I know I am looking forward to 2013 being over and new things for 2014. Blessings to you and Matt!

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  9. Ha! "But I could definitely tell I was running."

    Been there...

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  10. They would totally sell more with a 10 pound in a night guarantee. They should get on that.

    And yes, leggings are everyones best friend

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  11. Have to comment because I was laughing at your jeans vs leggings observations. . . . PREACH it sister!
    Jeans . . . yup they tell it like it -is-

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  12. truer words regarding leggings have never been spoken.

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  13. Not that I am a runner by any means, (like it was a big deal to jog on the treadmill without holding on, baby steps I tell myself), however, I have ridiculously flat feet and a good pair of tennis shoes along with my orthotics (because that doesn't make me sound like a 90 year old woman!) might be the final touch I need.

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  14. I did the whole gait analysis/expensive running shoe thing before the races I did this summer and it was super worth it. No it did not make running easy, but it helped a lot with my shin splints so I could actually run with less pain!! Hope you feel a difference! And if not, at least you have the boost of feelings like a "real" runner

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  15. This post reminds me of a story a girl I worked with in college told me. Apparently her freshman year she wore nothing but Soffe shorts until November. And then her jeans wouldn't come up past her thighs when it got cold. She was freakishly skinny and cute so I laughed at her on the inside. Mean, I know. I have a freakishly shaped body, so it's usually just safer for me to wear jeans all the time. It covers up the crazy.

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  16. Down with pants! Leggings 4eva!!!

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  17. Love those shoes!!! I'm believing you will begin to love it ;)

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  18. So true! Yoga pants and legging lie. Now remember how many miles you put on those puppies :) I got my "real" running shoes 5 years ago and I still wear them even though they're past their prime. Time for a rotation or alignment or just maybe a new pair.

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  19. I love everything single thing about this post! I have as well fed my sorrows with every food I see and all is well until I put on a pair of non-stretchy jeans ggrrrr. I thought about getting back on a diet but what crazy person would do such a thing at Christmas time (you are excluded here, I only mean myself). So I am just continuing with the leggings and cute stretchy colored pants until it's time for the traditional New Years diet!!

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  20. Ugh. I hate jeans. But I love your new cute sneaks!! :)

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  21. You should turn this analogy into an online personality quiz - "Which pant(s) type are you?" I would probably be a pair of jeans because I am usually the one who tells you like it is rather than tries to make you feel better... lame, but true.

    Cute new shoes!

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  22. Wow! I just felt a massive wave of guilt with my recent legging obsession. They lie to me! You are so right. I HATE the jeans and never thought of the marks they leave on my bod as a reminder!! Wow. I need to get myself some inspiring shoes ;)

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  23. Haha, so much truth about leggings v jeans. But thank goodness jeans now come with some stretch, right? I tried on some really old jeans the other day with zero stretch and I about died.

    Keep up the running!! I love it - although it did take a few years to get there. Want to do the Atlanta half with me in march?!

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