Would You Rather…

Would you rather run a race in 2 days in–

A worn down pair of shoes that makes your arches sore

or

A new pair of the same shoes that leaves you bloody?

Great choices, right?

Ok, backing up.   This is week is a mess of doctor’s appointments so I was keeping my running plan fluid but since Monday was appointment #1 I figured it would be a rest day.  Plus Monday workouts rarely work in my favor.   Except the late afternoon appointment went faster than I thought it would.  Driving home I realized I had enough time to change super quickly and get in a run outside before it got dark.   Since I still don’t feel 100% I figured any more ventures into running in the dark would wait until next week.    I changed as fast as I could and was out the door.

My right shoe had felt off on Sunday’s walk but I figured I was cold and just getting over my sickness so I was probably walking weird.   I didn’t think about it until I was about 5 minutes from my house.  You know the feeling when you have a sticker or a burr in your sock?  That’s what it felt like.  1/2 mile in, I stopped at the top of a hill to adjust my sock and check it out…holy crap- blood!

No need to see the inside

My sock was bloody and there was a large red spot on my new shoes.  Well, crap, that’s not good.   I sat for a moment and debated what to do.   I didn’t see a blister, just a tiny hole.  Hmm.  I put my shoe back on and ran another half mile.  I stopped and checked again,  Hey look, blood was now down the inside of my shoe.   Ok, I get it, time to call it.  I rerouted to home.

 

tired shoes 😭
 
A 1.51 mile run is better than none right?  Except I didn’t like that.  So after a quick clean up, a sock change, I slapped on a band-aid and my old shoes and was out the door again.  I figured I had enough daylight for another 1.5 mile loop but I decided to run it backwards.   My foot felt ok so I added on a little more.  😃  2.19 miles for a total of 3.7 for the day.   I’m calling that a win in my book.  ✅  And that last 2.19 miles felt pretty good.   It was a great run mentally speaking.

  

What was not great was that 2 miles in old shoes was enough to make the arches of my feet start to ache.  Which was why I switched to the new shoes.  They are the same brand and model just a different color.   I have never had a blister problem in any shoe.  Any time I ever felt even the slightest hot spot it meant I needed new shoes or new socks.  A quick switch and the problem was solved.  So now what?

I have an 8.2 mile race on Saturday, I already knew it was going to be rough, being so undertrained and after a week of being sick.  I wasn’t anticipating pain with most of my steps though.  I don’t spend most of my time in the air like Usain Bolt.  😝  Do I wear the old shoes and suffer arch pain?  Do I wear the new shoes and hope for less bleeding?    I have an old pair of Mizuno’s but they made my knees and left calf hurt.  It’s why I switched to the Pure Flow’s.    I’ve even considered wearing my trail shoes.

So, in short- HELP!  Any tips on blisters?  Actually it still doesn’t look like a blister but that’s not the point.  Any suggestions on how to make the new shoes work?  Or should I run in the old ones?  So many questions!

 

 

 

26 thoughts on “Would You Rather…”

  1. Ugh blisters suck! Have you ever rubbed Body Glide on your feet?? When I started doing longer and longer runs, my feet would get some blisters (but usually near my big toe and arch). I started slathering them with Body Glide and boom – no more blisters (note: Vaseline also works for me!). If I have chafing or blisters anywhere, Vaseline/Body Glide is the perfect remedy or preventative method. Hope it works for you! Good luck!

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    1. After reading this I tried Vaseline tonight at the gym. While my shoes weren’t comfortable, I was able to run 3 slow miles with no pain and no bleeding! Now if I can just figure out how to carry Vaseline with me on Saturday. 🙂 Thanks for the tip!

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  2. I feel like if it’s bleeding a mile in, I can only imagine how much there’ll be after, say, 7 more miles… I’ve used vaseline on my feet before to prevent blisters, and switched socks. The sock change usually accomplishes the most.

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      1. I have success with the socks with individual toes–I haven’t actually bled in them yet.

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  4. Was it irritation from the shoe that made you bleed? Or did it end up being a blister? I’ve had my Achilles bleed from shoes before (more times than I’d like to admit) and usually a bandaid on the spot that’s rubbing does the trick. For a race, however, I’d totally recommend using moleskin (something like this http://www.cvs.com/shop/personal-care/foot-care/corn-callus-blister-bunion/cvs-moleskin-padding-regular-skuid-345280), because I’ve heard that sticks way better than normal bandaids. It would probably work for a blister too, though I echo the above about Body Glide being awesome! If it were me, I’d slap some moleskin on that puppy and rock the new shoes, because sore arches don’t sound fun at all. Good luck!

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    1. It never actually blistered- it went straight to bleeding. I may have some moleskin, I need to check my drawer. I tried Vaseline tonight and it helped. I only ran 3 miles but it did help. I will definitely be doing that again on Saturday. Thank you!

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  6. I’d stay away from shoes that cause pain, especially for 8+ miles. Moleskin might help the area that’s bleeding. I put a bandage over the spot, and cover that with moleskin. Good job on getting the miles in!

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  7. I say put a bandage on the area and wear the new shoes. I also wonder if maybe there’s some kind of defect on the shoe? If it’s the same model of the same brand, it’s weird that you’d be getting a blister where it’s never happened before.

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  8. Where did you get your shoes? It’s possible there’s a defect. Any good running store will replace them.

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  10. I had THE WORST blister EVER over the summer. I also have suffered from arch pain. My advice is to wear the new shoes because I would hate to see you get plantar fasciitis. I also echo Adrienna’s comment that you should bring your new shoes back to the running store. If they aren’t working out, I bet they will exchange them! Good luck!!!

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      1. If you pile on enough band-aids, you’ll still feel the blister at first but then it will just go numb after about a mile 🙂 I think your shoes are the Brooks Pure Flow, yes? I LOVE the Pure Connect (ugh being discontinued) but they would change a little something with every model and I swear it fit completely differently! Maybe they changed something with the model you bought. I hope you figure it out soon!!! Since they are discontinuing the Connects, I tried the Cadence last time. They were okay, but the Flow is my next pair to try.

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  11. Boo! That’s pretty crappy. Do you have time to bring back the shoes before the race? I have a pair of trail shoes that always cut the back of my foot unless I wear a longer sock. I’m with Charissa on the body glide. In my experience band aids do not stay in place but I haven’t figured out a better option yet.

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    1. I don’t have enough time to return them before the race. My socks are tall enough so that the shoe does not rub the skin directly but the blister formed through the socks. I am concerned about the band aids moving so I may stash some in my belt just in case.

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