Thought I’d share some information with those New Balance fans out there about two newly released shoes. The updates to the 768′s and 1223′s. Both shoes offer mid stability and cushioning. With any NB shoe, the higher the number the more technology in the shoe.

The main difference between these two shoes is the cushioning. The 1224′s do offer a tad more support with the Extended Web, but the cushioning is the main technology feature. The 1224′s offer abzorb DTS (heel cushioning) full length abzorb and abzorb SBS (forefoot cushioning), while the 769′s offer abzorb DTS and abzorb in the forefoot. Another update is the new last the 769′s are on – PL-1 last, which is a new performance last that will eventually be in many more NB performance shoes. The goal with this new last is to create a form fitting toe box and forefoot. It is designed and developed to fit customers that have “normal” foot types. The 1225′s next fall will be designed on this last as well.

Now my personal opinion: I am/was a wearer of bother the 768′s and 1223′s. The 1224′s offer far more cushioning then the 1223′s and still the same great support for pronators. The 769′s definitely fit more “snug” then the 768′s For those runners/customers that have a slender or “normal” foot shape, this shoe will be ideal. Those customers that have a wider forefoot, may need to change the width of this shoe or you may want to stick with a shoe that is slightly more wider in the toe box.

Your thoughts?

So I have accomplished what I tried for two years to do, run a marathon.  And it felt great!!! (Well, you know what I mean – the feeling of accomplishment, not necessarily the 4+ hours of constant running lol).  I am now scheduled to run another marathon in Mobile this next weekend.

My running goal for this year is to run shorter races to build speed.  In 08 I ran a 5k race, 2 half marathons, and 1 marathon.  My pace is the same for all distances right now.  Last year I ran more 5K’s and decreased my time on each race – so I got faster.  This past year…not so much.  So my goal is to return to local 5K runs and build speed again.  Don’t let me fool you, I am slow in the eyes of “runners” but I just run my race at my speed.

As far as long distances… I plan on running Nashville Country City Music Marathon in April.  After Mobile, I’ll return to a training schedule and add some 5k races in the mix.  I would like to complete a 50k this year (I mean, what’s another 4 miles right?) but I need to find a road 50K, because after my last trail run that cost me 15 stitches and a four day hospital stay, I am not too interested in running trails right now.

I hope that I stay healthy and injury free this year.  I had a friend tell me this year that the goal to running is “to run tomorrow” and I am a believer of that.  Thanks James.

What are your goals for 2009?

Until next time….

To think this all started in May 2007 when I set out to run my first race, the Cotton Row 10K in Huntsville, Alabama. I clearly remember the first “training” run when I couldn’t run 1 mile. And I remember the day I was able to run to the 1 mile marker without stopping. I have ran with and have had support from a lot of local runners – all whom I am grateful to have met and ran with over the months. This running thing is addictive. Now I turn my eyes to Mobile in January.

What were your emotions after you completed your first marathon?  Tell us your story of training and achievement!

As I was pulling this list together it dawned on me that runners typically don’t have a coach that can give them a pep talk at pre-game or at half time.  Running is 10% physical and 90% mental.  Beginners, like myself need more of the mental help than other lifelong runners.  I found these quotes to do that, to act as my coach, to be the words that I need to hear when I’m running, when I need that extra push on a run/race.

RUNNING QUOTES
My basic philosophy can be summed up by an expression we use in Norwegian: hurry slowly. Get there, but be patient.”
-Grete Waitz, Run Your First Marathon

Races always evoke some dread about pain that will come. But we can’t escape the fact that the more discomfort we accept in a race, the faster we will run. Successful racing means courting the pain.”
-John Elliott

In running it is man against himself, the cruelest of opponents. The other runners are not the real enemies. His adversary lies within him, in his ability with brain and heart to master himself and his emotions.”
-Glenn Cunningham, American runner in the 1930s

“The more I train, the more I realize I have more speed in me.”
-Leroy Burrell

“If you under-train, you may not finish, but if you over-train, you may not start.”
-Stan Jensen

“It is amazing how much you can progress week after week, month after month, year after year if you allow for gradual training increases.”
-Bob Glover, The Runner’s Handbook

“The battles that count aren’t the ones for gold medals. The struggles within yourself – the invisible, inevitable battle’s inside all of us – that’s where it’s at.”
-Jesse Owens

“The essential thing in life is not so much conquering as fighting well.”
-Baron DeCourbertin, Founder of the Modern Olympic Games

“The most important day in any running program is rest. Rest days give your muscles time to recover so you can run again. Your muscles build in strength as you rest.”
-Hal Higdon

“To exercise at or near capacity is the best way I know of reaching a true introspective state. If you do it right, it can open all kinds of inner doors.”
-Al Oerter

“If you can train your mind for running, everything else will be easy.”
-Amby Burfoot

“You have to wonder at times what you’re doing out there. Over the years, I’ve given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement.”
- Steve Prefontaine

“I always loved running…it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs.”
-Jesse Owens

“The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare.”
-Juma Ikangaa, 1989 NYC Marathon winner

“In running, it doesn’t matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, ‘I have finished.’ There is a lot of satisfaction in that.”
-Fred Lebow, New York City Marathon co-founder

“Ask yourself: ‘Can I give more?’. The answer is usually: ‘Yes’.”
-Paul Tergat, Kenyan professional marathoner

“The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”
-John Bingham, running speaker and writer

“What distinguishes those of us at the starting line from those of us on the couch is that we learn through running to take what the days gives us, what our body will allow us, and what our will can tolerate.”
- John Bingham, running writer and speaker

“You also need to look back, not just at the people who are running behind you but especially at those who don’t run and never will… those who run but don’t race…those who started training for a race but didn’t carry through…those who got to the starting line but didn’t in the finish line…those who once raced better than you but no longer run at all. You’re still here. Take pride in wherever you finish. Look at all the people you’ve outlasted.”
- Joe Henderson

“Winning is being able to say “I didn’t quit”

RANDOM OTHER RUNNING QUOTES:

No one has done less than their best.  And their best is in a real sense better than everyone who finished ahead of them.

The self esteem earned through running has liberated me from the ruling opinions.  It has frees me from comparison with others. I no longer think of myself as inferior or superior to anyone else Just Different.
My goal is the perfection of my unique and original self.

Go out hard and finish harder

Don’t run with your legs, run with your heart.

To call running “fun” would be a misuse of the word.  Running can be “enjoyable” “rejuvenation” but in a pure sense of the word, running is not fun.

Suffering is the sole origin of consciousness

You just have to put one foot in front of the other and keep pushing yourself onward.

Hope these are motivating… What are some running quotes that drive you?

Sunday I was suppose to run 17.  I woke up with NO Energy.  I couldn’t keep my eyes open, my head up, or get my body off of the couch.  I listened to my body and took a zero.  Monday, I woke up and felt the same grogginess.  I was very disappointed in this.  How can I run two half marathons and a full all in the next 4 weeks and miss my long run and feel so exhausted?

Monday after work, however, my training partner, Caroline, asked if I’d get in an easy 4 with her (Chickamauga will be her FIRST marathon).  I said yes but warned her I wasn’t feeling great.  I left work, met her, and we started off downtown.  The weather was amazing.  It had cooled off to around 50 degrees.  We started off just talking and venting about our day.  I Looked down at my Garmin and realized our speed was decreasing with each half mile.  We conquered a few hills at an amazing pace and at the end of the four miles we ran negative splits the whole time.   When we were finished I FELT GREAT!!! That was the best run in weeks.  Caroline yelled as I walked to my car “WE OWNED THOSE HILLS!!! SEE YOU AT 6:30 A.M. TO DO IT AGAIN.” That is a run I needed.

I am now more confident than ever that I can complete these races I have signed up for.  One bad run/day is just that… ONE.  But those good runs are absolutely priceless.  They make all the time and miles so much more meaningful.

Two things affect running this time of year, but neither should stop you! They are:

1. daylight hours diminish
2. colder weather

I noticed a few weeks ago that my morning runs started in darkness and ended in darkness (or at least very little daylight).  So I’m looking forward to the time changes next weekend when the morning runs won’t be dark the entire run.  But then my evening runs will get darker.

There are a few necessary items for runs in the dark/dusk: reflective apparel and if you are a klutz like me some additional light.  Many of the roads I run have street lights, but there are a few that are darker than I’d like.  The reflectivity is for visibility to cars but the light is for my own visibility, so I don’t trip on a stick or a rock and fall(again).

Here in Huntsville, the weather channel has warned us about our first freeze of the season: Wednesday’s low will be 29 degrees. So this weekend I spent some time digging out last years cold weather gear including tights, gloves, long sleeve tech shirts, and half zip pullovers.  I tend to dress warm when it’s cold outside because the way I see it,  I can ALWAYS shed layers on a run.  So bring on the cold mornings, I am ready.  I ain’t scared!

“The battles that count aren’t the ones for gold medals.  The struggles within yourself- the invisible, inevitable battles inside all of us – that’s where it’s at.”  Jesse Owens