You see, I have zero problems dishing out my opinions on a variety of topics, but watch out if I do something that contradicts one of my previous public rants. I have so many rants it's hard to just choose one, but this time I'm specifically talking about shoes.
In a nutshell, I have chastised some of my female friends over the years for buying cute athletic shoes and then complaining about how they weren't all that comfortable. Insert me going on a massive rant here that covers everything from how that's stupid to how that's really stupid.
Foot. mouth. done.
Last month on a trip to the Leesburg Outlets with my bestie, B, I knowingly bought a pair of uncomfortable athletic shoes.
Guilty. Guilty. Guilty.
In my defense, if I'm allowed one, I didn't buy them because they were "cute." Rather, I purchased them in a somewhat pathetic hope that by suffering pain in the interim, I would actually feel less pain in the long run. Yeah, I read "Born to Run" and while I don't plan on rocking the Five Fingered look anytime soon, I do admit that there's probably a bit too much cushioning in my running shoes. I'm starting to run more in preparation for a half-marathon and I'm already starting to fear that first step in the morning.
What happens if the pain comes back? If it comes back then notions like, "needles, "orthotics," "lasers," and "physical therapy" might come into my life and if there's one thing I know, I'm not a fan of doctors and I'm definitely a pansy when it comes to needles. I tried to limp out of the podiatrist's office when he wanted to give me a cortisone shot last September.
So, I plunked down $55 bones for these Nike Free Hyper Trainers. I hate that everyone tells me they're cute. No, they're badass, they used to hurt to walk in and still hurt to run in. However, last night I ran 4 miles in them and finally felt good. Maybe there is hope for me after all.
These shoes are part of the whole "running barefoot" movement. They're a minimalist shoe designed to mimic the individual's natural gait, which really boils down to running on the balls of your feet more and not striking with your heel first. My pathetic hope is that these might help build up some foot strength and that will cut down on the amount of fluid that can build up in my foot. The fluid buildup is what causes the pain aka plantar fasciiitis.
I'm eating my words and wearing uncomfortable athletic shoes. I'm going to give them another month and keep trying to get in shorter runs in to see if that helps with any of the pain. I really don't want to go back to that crazy foot doctor!
In the meantime, I'm wearing them every day on my walk to and from work and whenever I walk my pups. I have gotten a ton of compliments on them because they are badass. Although, every time someone says they are, "cute" I want to cringe. Hopefully, I can get over that pain as well.
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