How Bout Those New Shoes

Over the past week we've met several more team members as well as heard from some of our holiday travelers.

Now it's my turn as I'm off to Boston this evening for a few days to celebrate passing into the New Year (woooooo party). My ratty old running shoes are long gone and my new pair is taking up valuable carry on luggage space.



I'm hoping to get two training sessions in since I'll be missing our group run this coming Saturday although I'm thinking it may be a bit ambitious.

Last weekend a number of us got brand spankin new kicks but I've been hearing mixed reviews thus far. I took mine for a longer run over about 6 miles as a trial and while about halfway my feet were feeling a bit foreign, by the end things were pretty comfy.

Others haven't been so lucky. Both Brandon and Ashwin have come up against tight leg muscles and shin splints they weren't experiencing with their older shoes. We have varying theories on what might be the cause but I imagine a few more miles to break them in is all that's needed.

So aside from the obvious trial of running a marathon and the purging of aging running equipment, there a few smaller running related goals I have for the coming year.

One will actually be finishing well in my first competition of the year, as I'm joining my roommates in the half-marathon portion of the Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach this March. To make a strong time, I'm learning better pace myself during training. Also, as I'm writing this in Reagan airport staring at a McDonald's, I'm hoping that training for the marathon will help me eat better (Taco Bell excepted).

So, any goals for the New Year? Tips on breaking in new shoes? Eating tips? Feel free to share them below.

I'll try to update with some photos from running in Boston - in the meantime check out some of the photos from last weekend on our Flickr page - and I hope that everyone has a happy New Year!