3 Miles and Sneaker Talk

I managed to get 3 miles on the treadmill prior to my emt shift last night (I'm a volunteer firefighter/emt in my community). I find that I tend to set a slower pace on the treadmill, it does allow me to do long slow distances better then I do outdoors as outdoors I tend to move a bit quicker and not have as much stamina. The pace last night came in at 9:03/ mile which i was pretty happy with. 

I'm alternating between a couple pair of running sneakers I just picked up from zappos (love them! try finding size 12 women's shoes anywhere else...).  I'm running in the Brooks Pure Drift and the New Balance 890v3. I like them both, the Brooks has a 4mm drop and the NB has 8mm. I've been running in minimalist shoes for the past few months and I really like them, I ran my best 5k ever (28 & change!) with little training in my NB W10's which sport a zero drop. 

I used the Brooks on a 6 miler and that was about as far as I would go in these personally, at least until I've built up my minimalist muscles a bit more. The New Balance are comfortable but not too cushy, I feel like these will end up being my go-to distance runners. Please note that for me "distance" is 4+ miles, I was a sprinter in HS and have never considered myself a runner until now. 

While  training for the Tough Mudder last year a friend told me during a run that if you're out running, you're a runner. This propelled me through a few runs and has provided a mantra for me in times when I've struggled to finish a run. Personally, if I can keep up my weekly mileage and improve little by little, I'll be happy. It's not about beating anyone else's distance or time, it's about improving my own and improving myself.