September 09, 2008

back from cali! let's talk about feet.

hello all! i'm back! i had a WONDERFUL trip to california, which i will tell you all about soon, since as is standard for me i did not download any of my pictures when i arrived home last night, choosing pizza and cuddling (and/or passing out) over unpacking.


i did, however, manage to stop into the running store near my house, because my sneakers are in a horrifically embarassing state. (they actually HURT ME to use. not, like, "gee, i feel like it will be time for new shoes soon!".. no, actual pain upon use. am procrastinator.) i'd heard that this particular store, road runner shoes, had some sort of fancy treadmill doohickey that measured how you ran, to fit you for sneakers better. SOLD! sign me up!


and OH MY GOSH, it is so neat. i went with The Boy, since he needed sneakers as well, and we both did the full evaluation of our feetal areas. it starts with you walking over a special pad that records the pressure each area of your foot exerts, leaving you with a little map, like this:

The Boy went first, and according to our helpful lady, Lesley, he produced the typical pressure-map - almost identical to the picture above, which shows a nice arch. not flat footed, not a freakishly high arch, and slight tendancy to over-pronate, suggesting he should get sneakers with some added stability to compensate for that. lesley then had him run for a short time on a treadmill, while a small camera recorded his gait from the knees down. she showed us the playback in slow motion, where right before his foot came down, his achilles' tendon was nice and straight, then as his foot hit the surface, the tendon curved in toward his other foot a bit - further proof of a small amount of pronating. neat!

then it was my turn. she asked how much i ran (me: uh... not very much?) and if i had any injuries or special circumstances around my feet.

me: well.. um.. i'm starting physical therapy for my right ankle in two days, i've had bunion surgery on my left foot, i still have a bunion on my right foot, and i wear arch inserts as directed by my orthopedic surgeon.

lesley: ....oh. ooookaaay. *lots of writing on a clipboard*

so! i walked on the little pressure mat to get my foot-map, and lo, i hardly even registered on the outer edge of my foot at all because my arches are SO HIGH. (i once went to the doctor in college because my lower legs around my ankles were hurting when i ran. he told me i had tendonitis and had to stop playing frisbee. two years later, i found out that NO, i just needed better arch support. GEE, THANKS DOC.)
lesley: oh WOW! those are some HIGH ARCHES! well ok, let's get you on the treadmill.

so on i hop, running barefoot for a bit while she tapes it. i don't think i've really ever run barefoot (i mean, aside from on the sand, or around my yard for a bit - not purposeful running, i guess i mean) and it felt very uncomfortable. mostly in the back of my ankles. like... where my achilles' tendon is. lesley watched the playback and then called us over.

lesley: ok, i expected a little bit of pronating from you as well, but... well... take a look at this.

and she showed us a picture of the back of my leg, which looked BROKEN IN HALF as my foot came down on the treadmill. no joke, like this:


no wonder the backs of my ankles hurt when i run barefoot. and why my doctor wanted me to wear arch supports. dayum.

so obviously lesley suggested A LOT of stability in my shoes, and shortly thereafter i found myself outfitted in deliciously comfortable shoes that hug my deformed little feet like happy clouds. i doubt this will actually make me ENJOY running, but at least now it won't suck quite so hard. that's what i'm telling myself, anyway.

19 comments:

  1. I love it. It's all about the shoes. Which is probably why my "best sale at Kohls" Reeboks aren't letting me meet my full running potential. Um, that and the fact I haven't run this month. Or much last month.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ooh, we have one of these types of stores in Wellington, and I've been meaning to go! I too get sore feet from my shoes (and they're not even that old yet!)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your diagrams make my day - seriously.

    I need to find one of those stores because my feet are the worst feet ever. EVER. Honestly, EVER.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yay - you're back!

    I totally want to try that foot thing now. Not that I need it, seeing as I'm a lazy bastard.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love your illustrations, and I'm so glad you found comfy shoes. Go you! And welcome back! Are we still on for dinner?

    ReplyDelete
  6. That is crazy! I am glad you found some comfy shoes.

    I would love to go to one of those stores. Hmmmm....

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh man! I want to go to a store like that!

    ReplyDelete
  8. One time I had a doctor tell me I had poison ivy. I went on this belief for two weeks whilst silently developing a life threatening staph infection. So hey! Could be worse!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Welcome back! Can't wait to hear stories!

    What a cool system to find your best match in shoes! I'm posting a running entry tomorrow. But, this post? Gets me excited to get back out there!

    ReplyDelete
  10. huh, how cool is that machine?!?! i would have totally signed up too.

    and sneakers that fit like a dream? um yeahhhhh

    ReplyDelete
  11. I've got to get over to that store. Running is hurting a little too much for me these days...oh, and I love gadgets and tests like those.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Ouch is right! But that is just so awesome they can fit you just perfectly! Yay for comfy shoes!

    And welcome back! Can't wait to hear your stories and see pics. :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. That foot thing sounds SO AWESOME! And welcome back! I tagged you for a meme!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ohmigosh! That's awesome! I need to get myself to one of those stores!

    Also, Hi! New here. :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Wow - that's some serious technology. We have a similar store here, and in my previous life (when I ran), I shopped there because of all the excellent attention. Sometimes I think that I liked shopping for the sneakers better than I liked, um, USING the sneakers.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow that is awesome. The closest one to me is like 50 minutes away though.

    ReplyDelete
  17. That is so cool. I would LOVE to try something like that. Having the right shoe really does help!

    ReplyDelete
  18. My left foot (insert Daniel Day-Lewis joke here) is kind of jacked up these days. I've been wearing flip flops pretty much all summer long and I think they've taken their toll. Why my left foot hurts worse than the right, I have no idea. But I saw a report on the news at the beginning of summer saying that flip flops are bad for your feet, and I totally was like, "Ahh, that's bullshit! Cavemen didn't have fancy shoes!" And then I remembered that all the photographic renderings I've seen of Cavemen showed them having some janky feet.

    ReplyDelete
  19. my feet are freakishly flat. thank god for the foot scan...

    ReplyDelete