by William on 2008-03-30
Rebecca and I decided we wanted to run a 5K together. Rebecca used to run, but hasnʼt in a while. Iʼve never done more exercise than was required to receive my high school diploma, and have never run farther than 1 mile at once. And I donʼt think I even ran the whole time the last time I did the mile. Which was in 2000.
So, Rebecca found us a nice six-week training program and when we were in Waco on the 15th of March we shopped for shoes. Rebecca mentioned this recently, but allow me to elaborate on the shoeing process.
I had never shopped for running shoes before so I had no idea what I was doing. We decided on a maximum price and Rebecca just started pulling shoes off the shelf and bringing them to me. I tried on six or seven pairs and, depending on how well they fit, put some in a “keep” pile and gave some to Rebecca to put back on the shelf. Then I went through the “keep” pile a second time and eliminated some more by walking around in them. I narrowed the choice to two pairs, and I couldnʼt really distinguish between the two, but I thought of a great idea.
I tried on Left Shoe A and Right Shoe B at the same time and walked around. I noticed a definite difference; there was much more shock on my heel when I stepped on my left foot than on my right. I thought this might have something to do with the way I walk, so I put on Left Shoe B and Right Shoe A and walked around again. This time, the shock was on my right heel, so I figured it must be the shoes.
Rebecca thought I was rather clever.
I ended up with a pair of Asics GEL-1120, and this marks the first time I have ever owned a pair of shoes with a model number.
As for the running, we started on Monday, March 17. I later reflected that starting this routine may have been the best birthday present Rebecca could have given me.