I'm back! 40-minute run

So, my new running shoes finally arrived Wednesday afternoon. They were waiting for me on the front steps after I came in from showing Jack how to drive the riding mower for the first time. (He did fine.) The new shoes are the Nike Structure Triax+ 14  And for comparison with my old shoes (below), here's a picture of the sole after my first 40-minute run with them.

But I didn't need to run with these to know how important a new pair of shoes could be. As soon as I put them on, I felt immediate relief. Then, it became clear to me that my old pair had fallen apart to the point that I was under a constant strain. I just didn't notice because it had built up gradually.

Here's my concern, tho. Although I had my old pair for about a year, I really did not start intensively running with them until some time in April. I had started jogging with Jack in June/July 2010, but only with very light runs, alternating telephone poles to build up to a mile. Then I slowly built up from a mile to two miles before the weather started getting nasty in November.

So, really, I didn't start putting miles on until about four months ago, and the old pair got torn apart very quickly. I'm going to need to keep an eye on this new pair and see how long they will last.

This morning's run was just an easy 40-minute run. 20 out and back.

But I am back in the saddle again.

All worn out

Yes, I'm all worn out.

Actually, my shoes are.

Sorry that I haven't posted recently. To bring you up to speed, I ended up running three days last week. It was an awkward schedule because Liam had to be at Cub Scout camp by 8 a.m. Monday through Thursday, and that meant I had to get up at 5:30.

So, I was able to do that on Monday. I ran close to five miles in 1 hour and 2 minutes. On Tuesday, I ran about four miles in 48:47, and on Wednesday I ran 1 hour exactly.

But on Thursday morning -- the fourth day in a row of getting up at 5:30 -- my body just said "No way!" As I've said before, it seems like I need to keep everything in balance so that I can run. Getting up too early, too many days in a row, just threw off my stride.

Not only was I tired and sleepy, but it was the kind of tired that was difficult to get any rest -- if you know what I mean? Too tired to sleep.

On Friday, I was able to sleep in a little, but it was raining when I stepped outside. I checked the radar and saw thunderstorms were coming in, so I skipped that day too. But then I also took a good look at the soles of my shoes and wondered about the slowly building foot pain.

Take a look:

I have to say that these look as bad as they might if I'd been training for the marathon with 20-mile runs. I bought these only a year ago.

Why have they worn out so fast? Because of my weight. All those extra pounds slamming into the road over and over again wore out the rubber.

Amy and I spent Saturday morning trying to decide which store to go to buy a new pair. After a few phone calls and searches of the Internet, I settled on getting the next generation of my current shoes: The Nike Structure Triax. Mine are No. 12 in that style, which are just about all off the shelves. So, the ones I need are the Structure Triax 14, but those are not in all the stores yet.

So, I ordered them online, the first time I bought a pair of shoes over the Internet. I'm hoping they will fit and be comfortable. But I've had good luck with Nike and with this style, so I'm hopeful. I also signed up as a member so I can get a free return if needed.

Now, I am waiting for my shoes to arrive. In the meantime, I'm scaling back and limiting myself to either the regular bike or the exercise bike until they get here.

I'll keep you up to date. I promise. This is just a pause, not a complete stop.