My “old favourite” trainers, and trying to find a replacement

I’ve been through many trainers in my running career so far. When I started out with my run/walk sessions, I just wore my normal leisure trainers (most probably skechers), and then I swapped over to Nikes as Andy got me a Nike+ wrist watch (you put a little sensor in the sole of the shoe and it tracked your distance).  It was a long time before I plucked up the courage to go to a shop (I don’t look like a runner, what am I doing in that sort of shop?) and have the gait analysis.

I started on some Mizunos, and I totally loved them, but after a year they were less springy. I went back to the shop and the salesperson said that as I had no problems with them, I should stick with them, but the same version was not available so I got the newer one. Alas, the newer ones just never felt right, I could not put my finger on it, so I took a chance and ordered some pretty looking shoes online. They were Asics Gel DS 19’s (and in fact I had to swap them as I originally ordered size 5.5 and needed a 6).

I still have them. I loved how comfy they were, and they saw me through many races including the Brighton marathon. After that they felt pretty flat so I went back to get gait analysis. I was between a pair of Brooks and a pair of Asics, but as I had loved these so much, I stuck with Asics, and the new pair (Gel Kayano 21’s) were fab, so when I got the parkrun monthly prize I got a second identical pair.  Since then I have mainly bought shoes online in the sales, and I have pretty much stuck to Asics (including for trail shoes). My current favourites are Asics GT2000’s, but they are reaching the end of their life (464 miles according to Strava- my Kayanos got to 590 and then 470 before I replaced them), so it was perfect timing when Millet Sports offered to send me a pair of Asics. Even better, the newest version of my favourite ever ones, Gel DS 22’s were on the list.

They are so pretty! More importantly, they are so comfy. As with all trainers I wore them around the house for a bit, mainly to sort out how tightly to tie the laces (and also to admire the colours before they start getting muddy), but I don’t think running shoes should need breaking in. The first outing ended up being a 9.5 mile run out to Panshanger park and back. It was a fairly slow run as my back had been sore (my fault for doing my work on the sofa the day before instead of sitting at my desk), so I ended up stopping in the middle to stretch out my back and admire the view. There’s a bench on a hillside so I enjoyed the view for a bit before heading home.

The Millet Sports website lists that these shoes have:

– Flytefoam midsole
– Propulsion Trusstic
– Impact Guidance System
– External Clutch counter
– PU Duosole
– Wet grip rubber forefoot
– Rearfoot GEL cushioning
– Ortholite sockliner

But I have no idea what most of those things mean. All I know is that they feel supportive but also very light and springy. I do overpronate a bit (I tend to flick one leg out to the side) but I don’t like the feel of the really chunky trainers. These seem a good middle ground to me, and so far they are going well.

I think these may be my new favourites! I shall need to keep an eye for the Gel DS in the sales next time I need to add another pair into rotation.

Onto some general bits:

Alpacas:

On my way home from the long run I tried to take a photo of the alpaca (or llama) but it was hiding behind some bushes- how inconsiderate!

Trees:

Since we moved we have not liked this huge tree, (it towers over the house and you can see it from the front of the house). We had to apply for permission to have it cut down as there are tree preservation orders in our town, but we were granted permission provided we replace it with a different tree (apple, cherry, basically nice trees that blossom).

This week it was finally taken down- hooray! It makes a huge difference to the amount of light upstairs and also means we have a much bigger garden now.

Funny Facebook stuff from April:

This was actually for the Easter weekend, and it made me laugh a lot. We didn’t quite have that for this past weekend, but I love the idea of it still.

Cake and National Trust visits:

I made a carrot cake (in fact, two, one to take to work) as it was my birthday this week. It’s fab having my birthday around the time of the May Bank holiday as it means I get a long weekend to celebrate- after going to Winchester and Southampton we visited a few National Trust places in Surrey on the Sunday, before coming home.

Polesdon Lacey National Trust house and gardens (complete with fluffy llama toys to spot in each room in commemoration of a trip that the owner made to South America).

Claremont gardens- loads of goslings about.

The ultimate marzipan combination!

On Monday after my long run, we walked into town for breakfast, and later Andy’s parents popped over for tea and cake, ending a long weekend in a very relaxing way.

Car annoyance:

I had not driven my car all weekend, and as I went to go to work on Tuesday morning, I had a completely flat tyre. What bad luck! Any other time I would have spotted it over the weekend.

The AA person changed it and found a screw in it (I’d already had the same tyre patched fairly recently, but it wasn’t in the same place)- luckily Kwik Fit had the right size tyres in stock but I was late for work which was a very stressful start!

I was running a meeting after work, but after that was finished I popped over to see my mum for a bit before coming home (and then, my mum had given me some eggs in a bowl, so after driving home carefully with the bowl on my passenger seat, when I was putting them away I dropped one and somehow it fell under the fridge and then smashed. As I was crouching down trying to see it, my hair got caught on the lace hooks of Andy’s walking shoes- it wasn’t my day!)- anyway, Andy had ordered this canvas for my birthday- photos from our trip to South Africa last year. I loved seeing the penguins so much, and of course the safari was amazing, so to have a reminder up on the wall is just fantastic.

Do you go for gait analysis or do you buy online? What did you get up to over the long weekend? Do you print many holiday photos? My dad always makes lovely photo books now, and they are lovely to look through. We have a couple and I think we should make some more but they do take a while to make.

*I was provided the shoes for free in exchange for a mention on my blog. All opinions are my own.