Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Shin splints
I'd been having pain in my shins during my runs, so I went to 2nd Wind Sneakers and the sales dude looked at my feet and said the pain was from lack of arch support. So I bought a $100 pair of Nikes (selling out my principles for the sake of comfort, which is basically the definition of "American") and went for a run first thing this morning, and man, do these shoes make a difference. No pain. At all. My calves aren't even sore. The old dude who I sometimes encounter while jogging to the beach, and who I saw this morning, still kicked my ass though. Sometimes the high school girls' track team kicks my ass, too. I try to do all my jogging while they're in school so as to preserve some of my pride.
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2 comments:
As much as I rail against excessive consumerism and comfort purchases disguised as need, I think a good pair of running shoes is important if you are going to run regularily. Shin splints, ruined knees and collapsed arches are no joke and running, though good for much of your health, is really hard on your lower limbs.
I just would've gone for a brand other than Nike. Saucony are good and Brooks are still made in America.
Yeah. It was a tough call. Apparently there's quite a lot of variety in the world of running sneakers -- beyond brand and color, there are sneakers designed for all everything from shock absorption to arch support. I had no idea.
The sales dude, who was clearly a running enthusiast (I picked 2nd Wind Sneakers specifically so I wouldn't get the shoe-sales equivalent of an after school burger flipper) looked at my feet, diagnosed my problem, and brought out the shoes he thought were best for me.
I considered a pair of Asics and a pair of New Balance, but the Nikes felt best in the end and, like you say, I didn't want to mess around with injuries.
I still feel kind of lame for buying them, but for the first time in about two weeks I've run two days in a row without pain, so I guess they were worth it.
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