Temporary shutdown

I was planning to do more training today than I got to. I had a run in my schedule, but I thought I could squeeze a swim and some weights in, too. Didn't quite work out.

Being on staycation, naturally, I'm waking up earlier than I ever do for work. I was up at 5:30, looking to maybe go for a run at six. At six, I checked the temperature: 15C. Thought I'd give it an hour to warm up. At seven: 14C.

I took off anyway, eager to try the water bottle that straps to my hand that my daughter gave me (almost unnoticeable, though the weight turns your hand palm down, and it's perfect for about a 45-60-minute run; wear it on your off hand if you're racing, so you can grab on-course refreshments with your good hand) and the compression sleeves I'd got for my calves. They're supposed to prevent shin splints, increase circulation, and help combat lactic acid build-up. They may, in fact, do all of these things; I definitely felt more comfortable in the calves.

It was also the firsts time I'd run with speed laces, and particularly with zero-friction loops. These loops screw into the eyelets of your shoes, and the speed laces -- which clinch with a spring-loaded plastic cylinder, rather than tying -- loop through. They're supposed to offer instant adjustability, even tension, etc. They screw into every second eyelet on the shoe.


I'd installed them a couple weeks ago on one of my pairs of Sauconies, but I'd never taken them for a run. I'd walked in them, and I have to confess they didn't feel that balanced, tension-wise. Hot spots on the tongue (which could be a symptom of malaria).

My run this morning confirmed: Not nearly enough support. The laces only cross the shoe three or four times; with the support demands my feet have, that's not nearly enough. The first 15 minutes were fine; after that, serious knee pain. In my bad knee. I tried a couple five-minute stretches afterward, but then shut it down.

On finishing, I immediately unscrewed the zero-friction fittings and replaced the laces with speed laces that fit through all the eyeholes of my shoes. I can feel the difference already. The shoe's as tightly locked as with regular laces. I also picked up a patellar tendon strap that goes under the knee, which ushered away the pain quite quickly. I'll probably have to get used to running with it on; the lacing issue may not have caused the problem so much as exposed it. We'll see.

So, rather than work out more, I watched Spain vs. Portugal in the World Cup. Probably the best game I've seen so far. Tomorrow's a swim day, so there's also the prospect of weights and whatever else the Y has to offer. Yoga, maybe.

PS: Re: The request for photos of me in the embarrassingly tight swim trunks ... not without my race bib on.