Sunday, August 2, 2009

The miracles of GU and squeaky orthotics.

The running gods were smiling today.
I had an idyllic 14 mile run this morning with the good company of Onkar, John, Ted, Bruce, and Jason. The conditions were pretty close to perfect and the trails were in fine shape, all lush and green from the weeks of endless rain. We looped into Fort Whyte Centre and returned along the same trail. I left the others at the trail head on Grant Avenue and continued solo to complete the scheduled 14 miles. I'm still on track for Toronto full on October 18 (touch wood!).
Make no mistake, I don't endorse GU. Frankly, just the thought of it is enough to get the bile backing up in my esophagus. However, I do admit I was relieved to find a long forgotten chocolate outrage tucked away in my water belt at mile 11. I sucked it slowly and enjoyed the walk break. A little GU, a little sip of H20, GU, H20, repeat until fully choked down. The trick to GU's is to consume it in small squirts followed with a sip of water in between swallows. As much as I detest the stuff I can't deny it works. It provided the energy (glycogen) I needed to finish off the run with just enough in the tank. Truth is, I simply can't stomach more than one or two GU's so I need to substitute GU's with other Frankenfoods. My current favourite is Carbo-Pro, but that's a whole other blog post.
Squeaky orthotics!? I have new set of physiotherapist-prescribed orthotics to correct a significant pronation. My physio thinks the pronation might be cause of my exploding calf issues so I purchased a very expensive (well over $200) pair of orthotics. They feel great and I can sense a positive difference in my stride, but the left one squeaks incessantly. Every step is a squeak! It's driving me crazy. I can stop it temporarily by taking it out and re-inserting it, but this isn't too practical while running. It also helps if I tie my lace more snug than normal, but this too is a temporary fix. What to do, what to do.... a little WD40 perhaps?
Hope your training is going well and your health is solid. It's a good day to be alive,
Mike
PS. I just found this tidbit... Duct Tape, the handy man's secret weapon, does it again! Problem solved?

Squeaky Orthotics

If you have squeaky orthotics here’s an easy solution. Place cloth or duct tape on the underside of the orthotic as shown here.

squeeky_orthotic.gif

The squeak occurs when the orthotic material springs on the shoe’s insole. Occasionally you will need to place the tape further back, but usually application as shown is sufficient to stop the squeak.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Mike
Sprinkle a little baby powder on the inside of the shoe and rub it around the edges of the orthotic device. Works great and lasts longer than you would expect.
Erick

Unknown said...

Thanks for the tip Erick. I'll give it a try for sure. I've been meaning to join you for a run, but life keeps getting in the way. I will connect with you soon. Cheers, Mike