Flats purchased...Ready to Race!

Hello Friends!  It's Sunday already and I just can't believe how fast these weekends fly by so quickly.  

Yesterday was quite productive.  I actually had a chance to do some things around the house, as well as some well needed shoe shopping with my daughter. Plus, we took a walk with Willsey.  

But the highlight of my day was a special purchase that I made at Aardvark, the local running store.  For the first time in say, thirteen years, I purchased a pair of racing flats!  

Before I debut my new shoes, I want to tell you what I learned about the newer versions of shoes that people are training and racing in these days.  

First, the "minimalist" movement towards running shoes has caused shoe companies to consider different designs in their products.  Many traditional training shoes have a 10 – 12 mm lift from the toes to the heel.  The extreme minimalist shoes (you know…the ones with the toes) have a lift at around 7 mm and weight between 5 and 6 ounces.  Basically, the lower the lift, the closer a person is to running barefoot. 

Why run barefoot? (Or at least close to it)…The theory behind this approach is that when running with a very low lift, the muscles in the calves grow stronger and the Achilles tendon begins to elongate.  Of course, it takes time for the body and the legs to adjust to this way of running and any running store specialist would advise a runner to begin this transition slowly. 

To make the conversion easier on those runners who want to go in that direction, companies have been making lighter training shoes with lifts ranging between 8-10 mm. 

In addition, many people have been passing over the traditional flat and are racing in one of these ultra-light trainers.  Hence…this is what led me to my purchase today.  

Drum roll, please...

The Asics Gel-Hyper Speed 5 in Black/Lightning/Flash Orange!

This baby weighs 7 ounces and has a 6 mm lift from the forefront to the heel...very minimalist!!  Ha!

And another thing that was pointed out...these shoes go perfectly with my Oiselle singlet and shorts!

And finally, I made one other purchase...this adorable little clip light that can be taken with me on early morning or night runs.  

This cutie is made by Saucony, and it can be charged through my computer's USB port. 

This light lasts up to 100,000 hours, is visible from 100 yards away, and a 20 minute charge = an hour or more of light.  I can't wait to try it out!

And last, but not least...I ran an easy 8 miles this morning in 1:02.  I must have looked like an Easter egg with sneakers since I was wearing a plethora of bright colors!

Off to my weekly trip to Wegman's!  Have a good Sunday!

Tracy