Running is expensive

I have been pretty much MIA for the past three days..physically, digitally, and probably mentally as well. I had a three-day weekend, and a busy one at that!

I took Friday off because my dad was supposed to come to visit for the weekend. He didn't end up coming, but since I had already planned to go to the shooting range with him, my brother, Amanda, and our friend Tom, I kept the vacation day. (My brain was SO HAPPY about sleeping in!) Yes, you heard that right. I went to the shooting range. And shot guns! PLURAL! Here's a little tidbit for you. I have my concealed handgun license. If you've never gone to a shooting range and took it out on a target, you totally should.

Friday night was the Kenny Chesney concert. SO AMAZING! (Yes, I listen to country music and I like it). Plus, Kenny's hot.

(Kara, I took this video is for you :)

I wore my SPIbelt to the concert to hold my ID, some money, and my phone. Best idea ever! Also, I learned what SPI stands for. "Small Personal Items". Now I don't feel so dumb for using it for something other than running.

At the concert, we ended up eating a good amount of the soft pretzels. I got mine unsalted and decided it was "carb loading" for my run on Saturday (I can talk myself into eating just about anything). Also, Tom was sharing his beer with me. Carb city!

Amanda, mid-pretzel chew

Jeremy, still chowin.

Tom and me. Scary picture: check.

We got home around 1am and by the time I took Pippi out, calmed her down, and got ready for bed, it was probably 2am. I then slept until 9am Saturday morning, which is extremely late for me. Amanda had expressed an interest in going to the gym with me and she wasn't up yet, so I got breakfast and vegged out for a while. By the time we ate, let our breakfast digest, and watched a couple episodes of Rocco's Dinner Party, we didn't get to the gym until after 11am. (God bless the treadmill, because the humidity of this weekend was killer).

I want one of my own!

I had a pretty great four-mile run. I definitely felt good about (and during) this one, and am hoping today and tomorrow are good running days as well. In the middle, this dude came up to me (making me take off my headphones), to say, "you're going to wear that thing out" (meaning the treadmill). I wanted to say, "You obviously haven't met Kari." :)

Amanda and I then went to Fleet Feet because I wanted to find a shoe similar to my Sauconys since they didn't make my version anymore. I'll be honest, I felt like a fool walking in there, but it didn't take long for that worry to subside. The experience was way better than I ever expected. I was "fitted" one other time for shoes and it was a terrible experience. It was at a running store in VA. I will never ever ever ever be going back there!

LOVE LOVE LOVE!

The girl who was fitting me, Natalie, was a-mazing at her job. AND she didn't seem disgusted at my already sweaty socks. In fact, I learned that I was not wearing the right kind of socks. Socks with any kind of cotton are, apparently a huge no-no and are most often to blame for blisters. Did you know that? I sure didn't but since I'd been getting them in a few places, I was game to try to $11 Balega running socks.

Since I like fun colors, I decided to go with blue. They had
other colors, but I decided I'll try them out before stocking
up.

Natalie then asked me why I am a Saucony wearer. I told her that I've tried other brands and wasted a lot of money over the years on the wrong shoes. She asked me what brands I've tried. I told her Nike (huge fail many times over! and also the brand the other running store put me in. Jerks), Asics,
and New Balance. She had me walk barefoot a few yards and she watched me walk. The verdict is that one foot is landing just right and the other is rolling funny. The side that I've been having knee pain after running is the one that rolls. Interesting. She asked if I'd be interested in trying other brands. I basically told her, dude, YOU'RE the expert, teach me!

She brought out a pair of Mizunos and a pair of Brooks. The Mizunos already felt better than my Sauconys. I was sure these would be the shoes I'd end up with. And THEN I put on the Brooks. It was like the heavens parted and I could finally see clearly. Verdict? All these years I've been an idiot.

My plan was to find the shoes I wanted and then order them online. I ended up buying them at the store for two reasons: it was tax-free weekend in North Carolina, and I was so thankful for Natalie and her expertise (and for touching my stinky, sweaty feet without flinching).

Time will tell, but I guess I'm a Brooks girl now.

Being the nerdy designerd that I am, I couldn't help but document the cool
design in the Brooks icon on the side. Can you see it?

As I was waiting in line to pay, this male employee came up and asked me if I'm training and what for. He had these amazing blue eyes that were kind of mesmerizing. I think I was producing coherent words, but I'm not positive, as I was in a trance. He was telling me about a couple of running groups, one of which meets up just a couple of miles from my gym! This was good news. I wanted to ask him if he runs in the group. And if he could run with me...in front of me, running backwards, without sunglasses on...

I will hypnotize you to run faaaasst....

The rest of my weekend was spent doing laundry, giving Pippi a bath, watching Mad Men on Netflix, taking pictures of collars (!)...and wishing I could have another day to the weekend.


How often do you replace your running shoes?

Did you know running was so expensive before you started?
I really have no extra money to spare, but since I've committed to running now, and I don't want to injure myself, I've decided the money is necessary, and worth it!

Do you wear running socks?