Well, on Saturday I took the plunge as my Lockdown 1 mail order running shoes were, to put it politely, past their best. Off I went into Leicester, had a gait analysis done (isn't it weird watching yourself running from behind?!) and after trying a few pairs on, came out with a shiny new pair of New Balance Fresh Foam Tempo shoes. Having already done a 9k run on Saturday morning, I decided to take yesterday as a rest day before stepping out this morning for Week 7 Run 1 of the Magic Plan (Take 2)...
First impressions- I could definitely tell that they were a better shoe, far more supportive especially round the heel area. My left heel was still a tiny bit sore due I think to the sole in my old shoes having compressed, so I started off at (what I thought was) my 5k pace (currently about 6.10/km or so). The first 0.5k split seemed to come up remarkably quickly, so much so that I wasn't expecting it and didn't hear it properly... it may also have been drowned out by Siouxsie and the Banshees playing on Spotify at the time though!
How surprised was I when the first split came up with a time of 5.40...? The pace didn't feel uncomfortable, so I pressed on... the benefits of going out early doors, no dog walkers and only about 3 other runners with whom I exchanged nods, waves and greetings.
I won't say I felt like Sir Mo Farah as I went round the park, but it all seemed just a bit... easier. I did feel as though the laces could have done with a bit of tightening towards the end as I could feel my foot starting to move about a bit inside the shoe, hence I decided not to press on and try to do 5k, but I think the figures speak for themselves. Just the boost I needed after several weeks of feeling like I'd stagnated, both on the weight loss and the running front.
Next run will be Wednesday, staying over in London for work on Tuesday night so I'm going to do 5k round Hyde Park, wonder if I can get back under 30 minutes for 5k again.. ?
week3run1 ✅. 3 x 17 mins with 1 min walks. 
How did your parkrun or (not)parkrun go?
