Well, I'm invested.

You'd think after my previous posts about running this *ridiculous* race that I had been invested in running for a while. Really, what normal, non invested person signs up to run this *hard, worst/best, killer* race without some emotional and financial investment? Well, I have crossed over. I went to the big deal running store here in town yesterday. This store measures your foot length and width, has you run on a treadmill to take a video of how your feet plant when you run, they take a scan of your arches and mold a pair of insoles to fit your feet perfectly. One of the questions they ask is do you have pain when you run? Duh, yes I do. Lower back, hips, knees, ankles and heels. I think that list shows something was wrong. Turns out, there was:

*I have a high arch, so I need to have stability support in my shoes so my feet land properly.
*I land too hard on my heels
*When I stand upright, like normal, my ankles/knees rotate inward, so my knees, shins and ankles are not aligned straight.
*When I run, my right foot turns out a little bit
*When I run, my arches sink down in instead of flexing to keep the arch up, my foot flattens-hence the knee, ankle and hip pain.

So, I came out with a pair of Asics that were for stability and high arches and a pair of insoles that are so sturdy, that when I run, my arch can sink down, but will be popped right back up. I wore them and it's like working out muscles I hadn't worked before. The outside areas of my feet hadn't felt that motion for a long time. I've always been a little knock kneed and this helps explain why and how to fix it. So when the guy who was doing all these scans asked me about my pain and injuries, I could roll out lower back pain/lock ups, ankle sprains and knee issues and pretty much, while he said this wouldn't be a cure all, having the right pair of shoes that align your body the correct way, can help with so many things.

So after having spent a little $$$, I have learned how to possibly fix these physical ailments that started before kindergarten (I had "magic" and "special" shoes in kindergarten to help move my feet from going in to going out, to keep my knees from sinking in and knocking). Good investment?...we'll see.