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| Coronado Valentines 10K |
I've been on a lot of runs since I wrote last. No big surprise there. Running gives me many things. Not only does it give me good health and a more peaceful mind but it teaches me valuable lessons. One of those is how to face setbacks and how to persevere and overcome them. This is a huge lesson for all areas of one's life but is clearly exemplified for me in my running journey.
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| Our getaway to Coronado, feeling no setbacks here. |
For instance, a few weeks prior to my last half marathon in January I bought new shoes. They were Mizunas which a person I admire on a running blog wears with good success. But that isn't why I bought them though it probably played a bit of a role in it. My previous shoes, Asics, were great in all ways except in long runs I got a blister on two of my toes. Everything else felt fine with them, my knees, my feet etc. But blisters kind of suck so I decided to try new shoes. The guy at Road Runner Sports suggested the Mizunas and they felt good so I gave them a try. At first I loved them and I think I posted about how excited I was to finally find the "perfect" shoe. I even went on Amazon and ordered a second pair so I could have them when these wore out. I ran the 13.1 mile race and felt great in them. But... a few days after the race I developed plantar fasciitis. My heals hurt a lot. So I did what we all do now when something is wrong I scoured the internet and read lots of articles about PF. And I did what they suggested. I iced my feet, I stretched my calves, I rolled my feet, I backed off a little on running. And I even bought this ridiculous contraption called a Strassbourg sock. You wear it to sleep at night and it keeps your foot flexed so the plantar fascia doesn't get tight and hurt when you wake up in the night or morning. I did all these things and my feet were getting somewhat better. I also read that the problem might be your shoes. I went back to my old shoes that gave me blisters on long runs and lo and behold my feet felt much better. So, I took my new shoes back to Road Runner sports and traded them in for my Asics. And I bought new socks and inserts to help with the blisters.
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| Aiden and I in San Francisco |
This was a lot of writing to exemplify the power running makes me feel. It makes me feel strong to overcome a problem. When I first started running and I had challenges to face I got scared and depressed. I remember when my knee hurt. I was so thrown by that and scared it meant I would never run again. But experience has taught me that if you really want to do something you can do it. Figure out what the problem is, learn as much as you can about it, do what needs to be done and most of the time things will get better. Granted this example is a small problem and some problems we face are huge but I think this may apply to those also.
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| Today at Lake Miramar |
When I first started running about 3 or 4 years ago I would go to Lake Miramar and run to the 1 mile marker and turn around and run back. Sometimes if I was tired I would just go to the 1/2 mile marker and run back. But usually it was the 1 mile marker. Today I ran around the whole lake and then to the 1 mile marker and back totaling 7 miles. And it wasn't hard. It wasn't easy either. In fact, it is never "easy". You keep doing it and you get better. It is almost impossible not to. And that makes you feel powerful too.
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| If you get lost, hug a tree! |
During my recent runs I have started to listen to podcasts. If you do anything that gives you the time to listen to the radio check out pod casts. My favorite is Rich Roll. He is an ultra runner vegan but he doesn't just talk about that. He interviews all sorts of interesting people that are doing amazing things with their lives that excite and challenge the listener to grow. Another excellent podcast is The TED hour on NPR. They present four 15 minute segments of TED talks that relate to each other in some manner. The talks are inspiring and moving. You won't regret tuning in.
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| I am trying to eat a huge salad for lunch everyday. It feels good! |
Keep on eating those veggies people. My new advice I give to my patients is eat so many vegetables you won't have the space for anything else.
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| Hiking in Muir Woods |
Recently I heard the two most important things to give your children are LOVE and EXPERIENCE. I like that a lot. What do you think the 2 most important things you give to your children?
