Day 30 - Hooray!

Yay! Today is the 30th day and with this morning's workout, I've finished my first promise to myself. I feel great and have seen some great results, even though I gained 4.4 lbs this morning. Again, it's the sodium thing - I really have to start watching that much more closely! So, here's how I'm rewarding myself:

First, a new pair of running shoes. I strongly recommend going to a running specialty store, especially if you've never done so. I went to Big Peach Running Co. in Kennesaw. The salesman who helped me, Nathan, was great. He told me that he's on the running team for KSU, so I felt pretty confident in what he had to say. Anyways, first they had me stand on a machine that analyzes how you stand. It turns out I have mid to high arches (a good thing) and my balance is a bit to the right - which I know from using the Wii.

Next, they put me on a treadmill and video taped my walking and running. They do this to determine your pronation. That's how you land on your foot when you run. Do you land flat, on the inside of your foot, or the outside of your foot. It turns out that I am a neutral pronator, but I splay my feet out as I walk. Of course, I know this too (the splaying part) because my mom always used to tease me about it as a kid. I asked Nathan about this and he said it's normal and as long as you move forward in a straight line not to worry about it.

Next, he had me try on about 6 different shoes in an effort to narrow down my best fit. I narrowed mine down to two different brands. Then he put one on each foot (so you're wearing 2 different pairs of shoes) and had me walk, jog, run around for a bit. I'm really glad I took this step as the pair that was more comfortable initially turned out to be less comfortable once I was "working" in them. I ended up purchasing the Mizuno Wave Rider 12's for about $100. I think it's a great investment as I intend to keep the exercise routine going!

I also picked up a few other things that I'll need for phase 2 of my routine, in the 30 day shred. I went to Dick's Sporting Goods and got some 2 pound weights (my wife already has the 5 pound ones), a yoga mat, and a new pair of Umbro shorts that were on sale. Umbro is my favorite workout and exercise shorts.

Finally, today we're heading to the Georgia Renaissance Festival so that should add some additional exercise since we'll be doing TONS of walking. I just really need to make sure to keep the whole sodium thing in mind - particularly there!