Trying out the Newtons
I still feel like crap, but dammit, I wanted to try out my new shoes yesterday. So I headed out to the Domain for a very, very easy run. You’re meant to ease into forefoot running because it uses different muscles than a traditional heel strike. I did three intervals of 5 minutes running followed by 5 minutes walking, and I concentrated hard on my form. The “actuator lugs” are a little weird at first. (I was reminded of those special shoes people use to increase their vertical leap.) I tried to lean forward a bit, to increase my cadence, and to run lightly as if I was barefoot. The Newtons really do make you more aware of and connected to the ground surface. I don’t think I was using more effort than I usually do, but my speed graph shows I was going a fair bit faster than my usual plodding speed. Here’s the cheesy bit: I actually felt like I was RUNNING. Yeah, I’ve said for years that running isn’t about speed, but the truth of it is that when I’m on the road, I never feel as effortless and athletic as the people that pass me. But by avoiding heel striking, suddenly I felt like a fleet-footed Olympian… for a few seconds. I figured out pretty quickly why they said to start off easy. My lower legs got TIRED. The last of my intervals was a big drop-off from the first as I struggled to maintain proper form while my calves and ankles were aching. With every step, I could feel the force of impact being absorbed through the muscles in my bent legs rather than shooting up into my back. (My usual lower back pain? Didn’t bother me a bit.) Today I’ve got some soreness in my lower legs on up through the lower part of my thighs, but I expected that. I checked out the bottom of my Newtons and was gratified to see some wear on the actuator lugs. It looks like I was landing in the right spot! (There’s a tiny bit of wear on the outside of each heel, but I think that was probably from walking since I tend to do that in all my shoes.) I’ll probably alternate shoes/styles for the next few weeks. I wonder if I’ll be strong-enough to use forefoot running in the half-marathon? I’ve still got just over three weeks to go…