Runs with iPod

My runs have been inconsistently pain-addled since Monday. On Tuesday I chose to repeat Monday's run. The overtaxed ankle muscle kicked about 6 minutes into the run. I slowed down, stretched and forged onward. I ran along the worn trail rather than the cement sidewalk, which helped slightly. But by the time I got around 2 1/2 miles in, I was having other issues.

You see, earlier that morning I'd gone out for a run/bring out the trash and accidentally locked myself out of the building. It was the wee hours of the morning, so I felt that ringing doorbells wouldn't have been greeted kindly. So I waited (too fearful that I'd miss the one neighbor if I went for a jog). Silly idea. No one showed for 3 hours. The guy I managed to snag lived in the place next door and I had to convince him that (a) I lived there and (b) that his key also worked for our building. I had to physically show him that it did.

When I got inside, I tore off my unused running gear and shoved it into my gym bag. Except the socks. I somehow missed the socks. When I took off for the run on my lunch break, I realized my sockless situation and grit my teeth. I thought I'd just run without socks. It's only aesthetically unpleasant, right? Wrong. My feet got sweaty, they shifted unusually in the shoes when I ran, and I ended up with severe shin splints up the outer calf of each leg.

The run ended with me jogging barefoot, combating three different aches and sharp pains in my legs. I felt like I'd taken a beating when I got back to work. The rest of the week involved more painful jogs like that. My Sunday run went well, however. All the pain in my legs dissipated by the 4th mile. I was running telephone sprints in the middle of the run, which I really think helped out a lot. Maybe it was my imagination, but maybe there is something to it. My gait and form change when I'm sprinting as opposed to jogging.