It has probably been for the best, however, that I postpone my trip. I have not been able to commit to training as I had expected. An aggravating case of diverticulitis, then costochondritis, my best friend's kitchen tea and hen's night, my boss going overseas and an interstate visit from my mother have all adversely impacted on my time and ability to train. I had been training for another half marathon when the diverticulitis sidelined me on the couch and it has been a downward spiral since. A new pair of Asics GT1000 2s, swimwear and the coveted Suunto Ambit3 Peak Sapphire heart rate monitor later, my good conscious (and significantly poorer pocket) cannot allow me to sit idle any longer. And who would want to with all those new toys to play with?!
Of all my recent investments, I have to say that the Suunto Ambit3 is the finest and most exciting. While I have had it for only a handful of days, I am utterly enamored. As a female, it is bulky on the wrist but I purchased the larger Peak model for the purpose of hiking as well as for its functionality as a HRM. The inbuilt GPS is certainly an advantage. My Polar RCX5 required the GPS device to be worn on my arm which often equated to another source of chafe. While the Polar HRM was of a similar size (only 4mm smaller), the Suunto is certainly heavier at twice the weight (a whopping 92g total!) but it is not a nuisance for all of that. Indeed, all the little features are well worth it. I have been eyeing the activity tracker daily and cannot wait until I have justification to use the altimeter on my next hike.
As for the shoes, I cannot deny that Asics have been my runner of choice for the past decade. While the Kayanos model have always served me well in the past, I have struggled a lot in the past 18 months with what I believe is deep posterior compartment syndrome. Undiagnosed but consistent with its symptoms, swelling to my lower calves generally occurs within the first kilometer and the pain (read: the sensation of the muscle trying to explode through the muscle sheaf) does not numb until approximately the fourth or fifth kilometer. It does not seem to matter if I rest or not, which is a nuisance. I have also recently been getting arch pain which I attribute to the greater arch support of my Orange Superfeet in my Scarpa Mythos Tech GTX hiking boots making my arches lax.
My last pair of Kayanos having reached their retirement, I elected to have my gait analyzed (as far as can be done so in a store setting) at Running Fit's Shoe Lab. The verdict: I have high arches and mild overpronation (both of which I was already aware) and I was fitted out accordingly with inserts as well as the GT1000 2. Having trialed my new shoes for the past few weeks, however, I have come to the conclusion that even with all the arch support and pronation correction, it is my running style that must change.
I am a heel runner (read: jogger). I had been consciously trying to run a little further forward on my sole to reduce the strain and swelling in my lower calves and it had been helping but it is not enough. So I've taken it upon myself to try to run more on my toes. I should say that I am a slow runner; I run for distance and not time. I ran the distance of a half marathon in preparation for Nepal and I am training to do so again. I would like to run faster but my preference is always to run further and if that means I sacrifice time, I'm ok with that. Running on my toes is an interesting experience but certainly not unpleasant. The pressure seems almost wholly contained to the upper calf area. I do not experience any swelling in the lower calf area or cramps in my arches, and even the pressure on my thighs seem reduced. I feel lighter on my feet. Resuming heel running after toe running feels like running through sand, slow, heavy and trudging. I hope that slowly building up endurance to toe running will be the cure to the issues caused by my heel running. And who knows? Maybe I'll even run faster for it.
When I'm not running, I'm swimming. I have foregone weight training for the moment, preferring cardio instead. In the new year I'll reintroduce weights but for the meantime it's all about the kilometers and endurance. While I know that I do not need to be as prepared for trekking through Peru and Bolivia as I would for Mount Kilimanjaro, I want to be well prepared all the same. There's no need to suffer the trail unnecessarily when the hardest thing about the trip was your training for it. I know more than one person that could have benefited from that mantra.
At any rate, I'm now left to source a Power Monkey to charge my Suunto Ambit3 watch before my next trip. I think I'll add that to my Christmas wish list, seeing as the watch was an early birthday present to myself.
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