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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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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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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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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I signed up for another race. This time it’s a 8K race called Harry’s Spring Run Off. I figure this will be good as a first race ahead of the 10K Sun Run which is my first real test of my readiness.

8 km does seems like a short distance since I had just done 6 km just yesterday.  With just 4.5 weeks to go, I should be ready for it.  I am going to aim for a slow time and hope to gain experience in a race.

So, for now, am going to aim for 8K in 1 hour.  At the rate I had been running, it should be easy to achieve.

The run should be fun too as it’s a loop around the Seawall in Stanley Park.   I’ll do a loop around Stanley Park one of these days before the race.

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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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You will need to register your self on MapMyRun.com before using it. There are quite a bit of functionality on it but for now, I am only using the “Log Training” module.

I had been keeping track of my runs on it for two weeks now and I diligently update it after each run. The calendar view gives me a quick overview of my runs.  It helps me see at a glance if I had actually been putting in 3-4 runs a week.  When I hover over each run icon, a popup shows me all the important stats:

• Time taken
• Average pace
• Average speed
• Total distance
• Calories burned
• Workout weight

It even keeps track of the total distance ran on my shoes.  Fancy!

I am quite sure that there are other sites like MapMyRun.com out there but for now, I am quite happy with it.  Are there other websites like this you know of?

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I want to encourage them to run too and I think I am getting successful in coming along with me and going for it. I will only ask if they are interested to run with me … if they want to great, if not, I let it go. I think my determination is rubbing on to them.

Today, Arkensen ran with me on a 3 mile course around the neighborhood. Actually, this is the second time that he had ran with me. I remember the first time a month ago, he outran me over 2 miles. But hey, today, he had a hard time keeping up that he had to walk the last 1/4 mile.

Despite having to walk with him the last 1/4 mile, we managed to do it in 42 minutes 45 seconds. That is an improvement for me. I felt really good after the ran and could have gone a bit further. I won’t push it. At this stage I am still ahead of the training program and I still have time.

I enjoyed the run more so because it is a good bonding time with him. On the run, we talked about some stuff … like setting goals and going for it. I told him about my goal next week to go under 40 minutes (preferably 38 minutes) next week … I hope he will be running with me then.

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It is Friday and was supposed to be the last day of sunshine. Despite the sun the past few days the air had been very chilly with temperature below zero at night. The weather forecast did say that it will snow on the weekends and the sun will go into hiding for at least a week.

So, I got home and feeling weary from the day in the office, had dinner (yummy, rice and pork chop!) and then promptly put on my running shoes for a run around the neighborhood.

I know, I said I will run what the physiotherapist prescribed. But halfway into the run, I felt good and went on a longer route. Man, running is great. In all, I had run 3.06 miles in 45 minutes. OK, I know, the time is lousy and way below my aim to do 10K in 60 minutes. I still have time to catch up … the Sun Run is not until April.

The right knee are still pretty good … not great, but good. I can still feel tension after the run but it’s alright after I rested it.

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TrainHarder.com is a British Columbia based fitness resource site. This is exactly what I wanted … a localized site related to what I am trying to achieve. Frankly, the site somewhat intimated me. Here I am a newbie to running and fitness and the columnists on the site are really seasoned runners.

I compared my stats with some of them. Where I would struggle to do 5km in 44 minutes, there was this guy who did the same distance in 17 minutes. LOL! I sure got a long way to go, I know.

If you are into fitness, check this site out. Being a cyclist, and now a wannabe runner, I find this site very useful.

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