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Armed with a doctor’s prescription, I went to Kintec to have my feet checked. My family doctor thinks that I have a flat feet which contributes to the pain on my left foot. He thinks I need a custom orthotics fitted.

I knew it would be expensive and from what I hear, it’ll be somewhere in the region of $300 to $500, or maybe even more. Good thing my extended healthcare benefits covers that.

Yesterday, TS posted a comment with a link to a CBC Marketplace program (link here) that talks about some unethical practices in the orthotics industry. Pretty interesting stuff. That show made me feel somewhat wary going to Kintec thinking that they might just get me to get expensive orthotics that I do not really need.

Long story short, they could not conclusively find that I needed custom orthotics but did find other things about me … my left leg appears shorter then my right leg. LOL! Well, at least that seems the case from the rough approximation measurement they made.

Moreover, they also found that I had been using my off-the-shelf orthotics wrongly. You see, I should have removed my insoles before slipping in the Superfeet which I got from my physioherapist. They suspect that that might just be the cause of the pain on my foot I had when I run longer distances.

I like them, Kintec. At least they were honest people. So, they wrote an assessment and asked that I bring it back to my physiotherapist to check my foot and wait a few more weeks to decide if the pain goes away. If the pain does not go away, only then will they consider custom orthotics.

I feel like a ping-pong ball. Anyway, the foot felt much better today. I’ll try running again tomorrow. The 8K run is just 15 days away …

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The right knee is doing very well the past few weeks but now I am having a new set of problem. This time it is with my left foot. The runs in the past two weeks had been particularly painful, some days more than others. The worse was when I laid off running for an entire week after having done 3.8 miles on the threadmill.

So, two days ago, I decided to go see my family doctor and he gave me a prescription to go see a foot doctor. I am going tomorrow. He thinks that the arch of my foot is too flat which really also what my physiotherapist was also saying. Well, I’ll see what the podiatrist say tomorrow. Looks like I am going to get fitted with custom orthotics.

I had never been running so much in my life. Maybe the constant pounding on the pavement the past weeks is really showing through my problem. I mean, it will never been a problem to me doing walking and all but running is an entire beast all together.

The only thing I am quite worried about is if I am ready for the 8K Harry’s Spring Run Off two Sundays from today. I am determined to make it to the finish line and does not really care for the timings seeing after all this is my first race.

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This week I was supposed to take it easy. It is going to be a recovery week for me.

So Monday, I went to the Minoru Track to try to just jog laps but gave up after 3 laps. I stopped because I felt so lethargic and tired. Little did I know I had the same old intestinal blockage I get every now and then. I fell quite ill and spent the next couple of days recovering.

I am better now, and I decided to start running again today.  I started off cautiously, after all, my belly is still quite sore and I had not been eating well.  I tried the same 3.36 mile circuit around the neighborhood block and came away with another best time.  It was over 1 minute better than my previous best.

Frankly I could have gone faster but reminded myself that this is supposed to be a recovery week!  Next week, I push … this week, I take it easy.

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Tiffanie brought to my attention this video from Nova PBS. It is simply called the Marathon Challenge. For those of you planning the run the Marathon, this is a must-watch video.

It chronicles a group of normal people like you and I who trained together to complete the ultimate test of human endurance. The site is here — go check it out. Below is a little of the video which I gotten from the PBS Nova website:

Chapter 1 - The Training Begins Can a group of sedentary non-athletes be transformed in nine months into a team that can complete the Boston Marathon?

Chapter 2 - A Long Way to Go Serious training gets under way, and some members of team NOVA struggle with their own unique problems.

Chapter 3 - Born to Run? As the team moves into longer runs the injuries begin to mount, and one runner has to be replaced.

Chapter 4 - Mental Toughness For the longest training run—20 miles—more than fitness is required.

Chapter 5 - The Finish Line On the day of the race Team NOVA battles with severe weather conditions, and 40 weeks of preparation are put to the test.

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Arkensen is still sore from the run two days ago and he decided not to join me today. He has a sore ankle and he’s complaining that his head hurt. I think it’s from the constant jolts which he was not used to. Key thing about running is not to push oneself too much until there are pain!

So, I ran by myself today and decided to do a slightly longer run. It was not very far but as far as distance is concerned, I am past half way mark to 10km. I did 44 minutes over a distance of 5.4 km (3.3 miles).

I am encouraged from the run today. There are still work ahead for sure and am not near the 60 minute 10K run I am working towards. But from my fitness level, it is a far cry from what I was capable of just two months ago.

I think I better take it easy next week and take a step back from running longer distances. It’s about time I take it easy and before forging on again.

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OK …

I am not sure if this is all a mistake or what. This thing had been in my mind since early December last year. For some strange reason, I am so determined to complete the Marathon. I don’t care how I do it but I will make every attempt to complete it … whether I run or walk … or crawl!

This will perhaps be the hardest thing I will ever attempt in my life. Right now, I am not sure if I will make it. I have all the odds stacked against me right now:

• I had never ran competitively before
• I am overweight
• I am in the throes of middle age

For what it is worth, I am going to finish the Marathon in 2008 and will be recording my attempt on this blog. Once I had achieved that, I’ll stop this blog and move on to another challenge in life. But for now, I am bent on completing the Marathon.

Wish me the best! Cheers …

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