Went and got myself some running shoes Saturday. Bearing in mind that I think I’ve only every bought running shoes once in my life, and that was back when I was 12 years old or something stupid like that (i.e before I discovered basketball), and I was amazed by the different styles and ‘technologies’ available. I tried one of each, Adidas’s Cell technology, Nike’s pillar spring thingy, don’t know how else to describe them, the tried and tested air max stuff and some Puma (they were pretty crap so I don’t even remember what they actually looked like, just that I tried on a pair).

Luckily I got talking to a guy at work on Friday who told me what to look out for in terms of running shoes. Apparently go for things that are light; the lighter they are the more designed for running they are. Lots of stylised rubbish going on with these types of shoes so I guess he had a good point there.

Get one size larger, so as to avoid blisters on your toes. Hmm another goldie I guess, wouldn’t have thought of that, although it does make sense. Just make sure it’s only half a number if you’re UK or US size, and go for a full number if you have European thought patterns (like me).

What amazed me is just how much difference there actually is between the spring and the air option. Dunno why anyone would go for the spring option, because I tested them both and I tell you what, the one that absorbed the most shock from my heel was the air. No comparison. I’m not sure if there’s something I’m missing out on here but anyway.

I never thought I’d be excited about the next time I go running. When I was at school we had to do cross-country training as well. It was DEATH. The reason I guess it was tough is because that type of running is something you get the hang of after a while. Even if you’re relatively fit, from playing ball sports, it’s a different kind of muscle and health that’s involved. The good news is that you pick it up pretty damn quickly. It’s only taken me a week of this.

And like the Morgan from SuperSize me said, ‘once you get over the three day hump, it’s pretty easy to continue after that.’