My Journey With Health And Fitness – Back To My Orthotics

It was a challenging bootcamp this morning. I have to admit by time we got to the finisher I was slowing down quite a bit. But, when we did the last Tubthumping I opted to kick it back into high gear and get ‘er done. Why I am suddenly on this push to the limits kick is beyond me.

I’ve mentioned I am having ongoing problems with my ankle. This started just before we left on our last Mexico trip and while it is nowhere near as bad as it was at first it still tends to bother me and it keeps me from running which I really want to get back to (who the hell ever thought I would say those words). Yes, I do have an appointment with my doctor to look at this but unfortunately not until Aug 12th. I decided there had to be something I could do in the meantime and I thought hmm, why not try the orthotics again?

I had stopped using my orthotics nearly a year ago. Why? Because I was wearing those horrible NB runners and the orthotics made the discomfort even worse. Ok, I acknowledge I should have gone back to the place I got them to see if they could be adjusted but really, I should have given up on the NB shoes long before I did as well. Just to remind you, I ended up hating those shoes and no matter how long I wore them to break them in it never happened.

And so I put the orthotics in my Brooks runners and thought ok, we will go slow and break them in. Well dammit, no need for that because they contour to my feet perfectly. I walked just about 27 km yesterday and they felt great. I realized I so made the right decision when I changed my shoe brand. I am hoping that going back to the orthotics will help not just the ankle but also the cranky knee.

Lessons learned through this process 1) if shoes are not comfortable, get rid of them 2) wear the shoes that do feel comfortable despite what your podiatrist says 3) always use your custom made orthotics and finally 4) when something hurts (like my ankle) for more than a couple weeks get it checked by your doctor.