So biking season ended when Daylight Savings Time did – mainly because I don’t like biking home in the dark. But I didn’t want to be a slug all winter (even if I do play frisbee once a week), so I’ve taken up running.
Now, you have to understand: I hate running. I think it’s boring, and it doesn’t have the advantage of biking in being able to go fast. Plus I’ve had shin splints for years, and this year I’ve mixed in problems with my right heel. So, really not a lot of fun all around.
But one of my cow-orkers suggested I try running so I land on the balls of my feet, rather than my heels. It’s weird to change my gait, and whenever I start out I feel like I’m leaning backwards and leaping into a ballet recital. But I get used to it surprisingly quickly, and I don’t even have to focus on maintaining the gait. Well, once I’ve run far enough that I start getting tired I need to concentrate a little, but that’s not bad.
But more importantly, neither my shins nor my heel have hurt much since I started, which makes getting up in the morning to go running a lot less dreadful.
I’m currently running about 1-3/4 miles every other day, and averaging between an 11 and an 11:30 minute mile. I guess I’d like to get up to about 3 miles, and then try to increase my speed, because I don’t think I could stand to run for more than about 30 minutes at a stretch.
I’ll be happy when biking season rolls back around, too.