OK, so I have to do a post about my running shoes. There's no piece of equipment that matters more for a runner and I just got a brand-spankin new pair.Pictured at right are the Asics Hyper-Rocket Girl XCs, in Turquoise/Lightning/Iris. And it's probably one of the more interesting purchases I've ever made, in terms of method.
I bought these shoes mainly because I liked the name and how they looked. I never tried them on before buying them. I relied solely on my previous experiences with this brand of shoes and customer reviews. And, despite my love for the look of the color combination--I overcame my strong, long-standing and continuing distaste for the color turquoise. (Just in case you were wondering what my favorite color is--now you know what it's not.)
I do not usually make purchases this way. But, this was sort of a novelty buy and it's worked out great. The suckers are finally broken in and I'm feeling quite like the hyper rocket girl in them. So, there. Branding works.
However, I would not recommend people buy shoes this way--- I just happen to have a strong understanding of what shoes work for me, even at a two-dimensional distance. As well, I first spied the pair under rare circumstances, for me. I was reading Vogue or some-such girly magazine while running on a treadmill at the gym. As well, it was my first return to a pair of Asics shoes since high school, when I was last at my peak running performance; so (as every company everywhere has always wished) I had an 'emotional connection' to the brand.
Let's just say it was infatuation at first sight. And for what it's worth I feel like an action figure in them-- so snap! Sometimes, a nice little athletic present to yourself is worth it. Hey, snowboarders have artsy boards and baseball players can fetishize gloves, bats and balls--the list goes on. All we runners have is our shoes. A little functional motivation?--sign me up!
I can imagine that when it's winter and everything is steel gray, damp concrete and bland white, I'll be able to look down at my shoes and 'BAM!' -- at least something besides me is "on".
So those are my new shoes. If you can't tell, I like them. Sometimes you just have a to take a chance at infatuation at first sight. We make a nice pair.
2 comments:
Hi again Melanie,
Quick question for you...
When you are running and still have a way to go and maybe feel like giving up - how do you motivate yourself to keep going....
- what do you tell yourself
- what do you visualize
- what pushes you over the 'hump'
- what is your 'motto' (if Nike's is 'just do it' and adidas' is 'impossible is nothing', what's your motto to keep yourself going in the tough times during the run???)
Thanks!
Hi Jo -- I answered your questions with a post, 'A running mantra'. But, here's more...
If I need to get over a hump (be it dehydration, exhaustion, one more hill or just laziness rearing its ugly head), sometimes I'll tell myself:
'OK, go ahead and slow down, but don't stop. It doesn't matter how slow you go. Go as slow as you want but just keep going.'
This is a wicked self-manipulative mind trick, that despite my self-awareness of it and repetition of its use, never fails to work.
Why? Because once you're running (unless you're actually injured) there's no way you can run slowly. You can't just "run slow". It's actually physically annoying to your legs--whose memory will resist a clipped pace--and it's mentally more tiresome to deal with everything in slow motion than to just get it over with.
In short, if anything, I just end up running a bit slower, but will more likely recover my pace.
The key phrase: "Go as slow as you want, just keep on going."
And, since you mention Nike -- even though I'm not a big fan of their running shoes, I can admit-- they have awesome marketing. That winning line--- Just Do It--really does say it all.
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