#7: Back to the Brooks!

(Please note that I initially pulled in a pic of these shoes from the Internet but thought it would be a more personal touch if I got on the floor and photographed them myself. It made sense at the time.)

Behold! My new Brooks Ravennas. Woo-hoo! After having a brief affair w/ Saucony ProGrid Guides for 3 months, I'm back to my Brooks;)

Nothing was wrong with the Saucony's- no injuries, no nagging pains, but I just never fell in love. They were BIG, bulky and just too soft.

Why did I even stray to the Saucony's after almost 2 years of marriage to Brooks? Oddly, when I was shoe shopping last August, the Ravenna's insole was too high. Now, in November, they are back to normal. So my Saucony affair is over....for now.

So- time to retire the Saucony's, my 6th ever pair of running shoes. They did well by me so I feel they deserve some sort of sending off. Here they are in all their glory, before their first test drive:

Good-bye Saucony's! I'll pull you out for rain, snow and trails but otherwise to the closet you go!

I gave the Ravenna's a test drive today. I needed to do some Yasso 800s left over from last week. The first four 800s went well but during the 5th my left knee started to feel funny. It still felt funny during the 6th and I could feel myself starting to favor the right knee more out of fear than out of pain. I just couldn't tell if the left knee sensation was just a niggle vs impending doom. One of my rules to prevent injury is if something feels funny enough to affect my gait, I stop. I didn't really want to. My intervals were going great! But I thought about how many running bloggers I know who are sidelined with injuries and I sure don't want to be in that position. So, I stopped.

You're probably thinking "Oh no! Is this a new shoe test drive fail?" Nah. I don't blame the Brooks. I actually blame the Sauconys because after my 15 miler on Monday both my knees hurt for the first time in months- I think the shoes were just a little too old for a last long run and the left knee today is residual discomfort from Monday. And I also think it will be just fine tomorrow after some rest and red wine.

I have high hopes for my new Brooks. Short term goals include a fast 5K on 12/4 (Santa's Hustle) and an enjoyable marathon in Maui in January. Then it will be time to craft a marathon training plan for my spring marathons. I'm still tossing around various ideas....more on that in the future. For now, I'll stick w/ my 3 month plan in my new kicks:)