Running with an Apple Watch

I should preface my thoughts about the Apple Watch by saying that last night I drove to "Big Mac" (i.e. McPherson Avenue) for an evening run and ended up running into a group of runners from the local Running Room run club--they graciously allowed me to join them. 

As always I used Runtastic, but this time I used the "Workout" app on Apple Watch to track my run. Aside from keeping a constant lock on my heart rate (and thereby producing what I think is a more conclusive calorie burn), the app also provided a few interesting post-run metrics (splits, distance etc.).  Where the Workout app falls short is that it doesn't provide any maps or location data (not to say this information is not recorded), which happens to be something about Runtastic that I really like.

But the utility of the Apple Watch is in the fact that you can leave your phone zipped away.  This is a big deal if you're running during a Canadian winter--phones have a habit of freezing when it's cold enough.  Since the Apple Watch will allow you to control both Workout and Runtastic apps, you really don't need to take your phone out.  The watch is also in contact with your skin, which produces heat, and this helps the watch to avoid freezing.  Last night's run was in the -15C to -18C range, so I'm impressed that the watch held up over the six kilometre distance.

New shoes: Brooks Pure Cadence 2

I'll just go ahead and say that although I've only logged five kilometers on my new shoes, they feel terrific. I bought them at Running Room in Saskatoon for c$85 -- that's $100 + $10 (GST/HST) - $25 (Running Room gift card for winning the Transplant Trot 5k).

The shoes have a slanted back foot, which promotes a mid/front foot strike. Thus, during my impromptu running session this evening, I had my fastest training run ever.

The latest from the trail

And so it would seem that I must buy new running shoes. Thanks for my pelvis and hips being properly aligned now, my running gait has changed and my Brooks (in which I've probably logged about 275 to 300 kilometers while running) are now retired since they are molded to my old gait.  My Saucony's are probably finished as well.  It's all good, since I can put my gift certificate to Running Room to good use.

My next pair of shoes will be used primarily for the Manitoba Half Marathon, River Run Classic Half Marathon and training for the Queen City Marathon.  And so I will need to start breaking them in within the next week or so.

So the question now is: how much has my running gait changed?  What will that mean in terms of the type of shoe I now need?