My running mileage has been inconsistent week to week at best, but on the days I did run I feel like I have gotten in a lot of quality workouts. Just yesterday I ran a 10:13 3000m race with the Steeplechasers, and I felt pretty good the whole time. My pacing was consistent and I was able to finish with a strong kick for the win. When I look back on this past summer of racing events like this I have to marvel at the gift I have been given when it comes to some sort of natural speed. I haven't done an interval workout on my own since high school yet during the Summer Decathlon series so far I have PR's in just about every distance I have ran. For the record, here is the final tally:
1600m: 5:06
800m: 2:11
2 Mile: 11:24 (went out way too fast here)
1000m: 2:57
600m: 1:33
1500m: 4:38 (my favorite race this far)
400m: 57.1x
200m: 26.3x
3000m: 10:13
Overall my win-loss record is 2-7, so I guess that's not too bad. :)
Hopefully I can keep the speed I have shown to have in these events and be able to continue building endurance for the Steamtown Marathon on October 9th. Training for that has been going quite well. I have gotten in 2 x 22mi runs and one 20miler. Where endurance was my problem in the spring in Virginia Beach, I hope I am on the right track to correcting that. Looking forward it looks like the peak mileage I can hit without developing nagging injuries is 70 miles per week so I will try to get a close to that on a consistent basis as I can.
New Balance MT 101 Review
I have to say when I got these shoes (Running Warehouse!) I had very high expectations. Of the reviews I saw, there were only a few negative responses, mostly from people complaining about mundane things such as a the shoe not being wide enough (if you know you need widths why would you buy a shoe without them...), the shoe not being minimalist enough, or the pinky toe rubbing a seam on the outside of the toe box while barefoot (socks anyone?). Naysayers aside the majority of the reviews conveyed enthusiasm, and a sense of pure joy that the reviewers got from wearing these shoes that I couldn't help but to absorb. Some people even went so far as to say these shoes changed their lives! Needless to say I was ready to be wowed, and I was not let down!
The first thing when I got these shoes was their design. I could recognize that the MT101's are an incredible piece of engineering even before I put them on my feet. Most of the shoe is covered by a kind of soft, strong, and very breathable fabric covered on the outside of the shoe by a larger net/mesh covering. The result is a light and breathable shoe that doesn't sacrifice the quality of the upper. The few overlays are not in particularly important areas for drainage so they don't detract from this at all.
Upon putting the shoes on barefoot I instantly noticed how comfortable the were. The toe box seemed plenty spacious enough, I didn't notice any annoying seam that could rub my pinky toe, and I seemed to have no difficulty tying the shoes up to give the perfect mix of tight/loose fit across the top of my foot and also give zero slippage in the heel.
Fast forward to today, and I did a quick 4 mile recovery run in them. About 3 miles was on "trails" that were really dirt roads with gravel mixed here and there and half a mile each way was getting to that trail. I decided to go barefoot the first time around to see how it went and that was a very good decision. Right from the start of the run I felt great. I have been working on my form for the past two months or so by doing barefoot strides and running relatively pain/soreness free in my VFF Bikila's so I felt like I could jump right into these guys which was right.
A few things to note. Sock-less seems like it will work for some people but maybe not so much for others. During my run I had absolutely no issue with the pinky toe rubbing as some people complained, and absolutely no blisters. For comparison over 3 miles in the VFF's leads to blisters. The tread is excellent on all surfaces. The ROCKSTOP technology in the forefoot allowed me to run over the sharp rocks even my old trainer (Mizuno Alchemy) would force me to slow down for and when moving onto the roads the lugs on the outsole don't feel awkward at all.
At the end of the day I think I'm a convert to these shoes for trail running. Tomorrow I want to try running on the AT in these guys to give them a real test drive, but I have a feeling they will only continue to get better with time. I can wholeheartedly say these shoes deserve a 5/5.
Until next time,
"Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character." - Alan Armstrong
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