I knew this day would arrive eventually…

It’s time to retire my first pair of hot pink Nike Lunareclipse+2’s!  While I shouldn’t be too sad (since I have two identical new pairs in the closet in my spare bedroom), anything new requires a bit of adjustment.  These babies have been with me for a whole 516.2 miles according to the convenient shoe-tracker feature in the Nike+ online interface.

 

Since I had a work function to attend tonight and couldn’t go to the gym after work tonight, I wanted to sneak in a rare Tuesday morning run.  Nothing big, just 3.1 at a relaxed pace, but I promised myself that Wine & Dine was my last run on my old shoes so it was time to lace up the new pair this morning!

I should preface by saying how much I love these shoes!  I always try to bring a little fashion to fitness when I can and I just think this color is the ultimate statement (I like to dress a loudly as possible for my runs – does it make me look faster? I think so!).  It was love at first sight when I saw these on the Road Runner Sports website and couldn’t wait to get them on.  They felt amazing from the start and I have never looked back!

I am sure I will come to love identical pair number 2 just as much but they felt stiff and unfamiliar when I put them on this morning.  Soon enough, they will be molded to feet just like the old ones and I will once again become one with the shoes!  Do you ever feel sad retiring a favorite pair?

Running for Recovery

I have started to do some running-related reading and I gleaned an interesting point from the book The Art of Running Faster.  Author Julian Goater advocates building some “recovery runs” into your routine.  The intense competitor in me used to push me to make every run faster than the last regardless of all other factors.  Recovery runs, he explains, are an important part of training because they keep you hungry and wanting to run more.  These runs are intended leave you feeling fresher than you were before you started the run.  I decided to try one this morning.

Although it pained me to take more than 25 minutes to run my 3.1 but I tried to keep my effort moderate – harder than long run pace but not nearly a tempo run pace (for me right now, I decided that around 8:30 pace was comfortable).  I really enjoyed this time and freeing myself from the intense pressure to perform was also a nice change.  That will return for tomorrow’s tempo run but that’s another matter.

Possibly the best part of my run was meeting these forest friends:

A Totally Random Note to Close:

How huge were these shrimp at my work function tonight?! They had to be at least the length of my middle finger and were absolutely DELISH!

 

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How many miles do you wear your shoes before it’s time for a replacement pair?  Do you wear just one pair at a time or get a rotation going?

Do you fit recovery runs into your weekly plan?  Does the pressure to perform make you deviate from your plan to take a relaxing pace?