There is no question that this winter has worn on me more than previous snowy seasons. The cold seems more bitter, the sky seems more overcast, the wind seems more biting, and the snow seems more relentless. I’m clearly not alone, as this seems to be a common theme both locally and nationally. I don’t remember the last time at least one part of the country wasn’t bracing for winter storm _______. When did we start naming winter storms? Are we trying to make the hurricanes and tropical storms jealous? At this point, I certainly hope we can all agree that global warming is doing a number on us at this point!
After being forced to bite the bullet and spend some time on he indoor track, I’ve actually come to enjoy the track work, as well as the strength-training that I’ve incorporated into my workout routine. However, when I noticed that the temperature gauge had the potential to creep above freezing for what seemed like the first time in ages, my heart still fluttered a bit. Sure enough, by early afternoon, the temps were heading past freezing and towards 40 degrees. In an ideal world, these would be the lowest temperatures I would ever see. Alas, that is not the world I live in, so I was going to jump on this opportunity! As I headed home from campus, the temperature read 42, and I knew it was a sign that I had to get out there and enjoy the weather
Now, I’m not sure what your threshold for shorts is, but if it’s above freezing, you are probably going to see me outside running in shorts. Today was just one of those days! I was scheduled for a strength-training session, so I drove to the Rec Center, parked, and soaked up the downright balmy temperatures during a 3-mile tempo run. Mother nature didn’t want me to enjoy myself too much, of course, so the wind picked up out of the north as I was heading back. Somehow I didn’t mind running into the nasty headwind quite as much as I looked down to see the shorts I was wearing. Take that, Mother Nature!
It had to have been a sign, right?
I headed back in and moved through my strength-training routine, making good use of the adrenaline pumping through me. Then I pulled out the bonus excitement for the day. Last week, I finally pulled the trigger and ordered a pair of Hoka One One Stinson Evo shoes. I’ve been contemplating trying them out for ages, and seeing a majority of runners at Across the Years sporting them sealed the deal for me. You can expect a more thorough discussion of my thoughts on them in the future. However, before fully committing, I wanted to take them for a spin, and since the treadmill was off-limits, the track worked perfectly. Almost immediately after putting them on, I felt like I was walking on wonderful little pillows of running goodness. They aren’t designed for speed, per say, but they felt so amazing to run in that I kept getting faster and faster and ended up pushing through the last of 3 additional miles at close to a 6 min/mile pace. I’m pretty sure these shoes are going to serve me well, and they made for the perfect end to a workout reprieve from the winter running doldrums!
I love a new shoe unboxing!