If you're been paying attention, every time I mention my name and version X, the X is the speed that I ran on the treadmill when doing treadmill sprints. This time is no exception. This week I have been in the gym twice. Tuesday I did circuit training and at the end I decided to do some treadmill sprints.
The exercise equipment at the BLR is Cybex brand and my home gym has other brands. It is obvious that the Cybex equipment at the BLR is new and the other brands at my home gym are older. However, I decided to try it out anyway and I managed to work my way up to 10.5 mph. I am getting faster and will reach the point where I max out the treadmill speed at 12.4 mph.
On another note, there has been a setback in ice skating. One of the things that I haven't told you is that I have a high arch in my feet that causes me to walk naturally on the outside of my feet. Also, my feet are wider than normal. When buying shoes, I have to get a 2E or even a 4E width depending on the brand of shoe. This is not a problem because the shoe store has these widths in stock.
Buying ice skates is completely different. I mentioned earlier that my skates didn't fit right and it was because of my wide feet. The skates didn't fit right in college and I don't know why I didn't investigate it back then. Oh well, that is the past. Earlier this week I went to the rink to get fitted for skates. The width of off-the-shelf skates is 2E, which I thought would work. It didn't and a 2E in ice skates is a lot narrower than a 2E in shoes. Also, ice skates run about 2 sizes smaller in length than shoes. I wear a 9.5 size in shoes and a 7.5 in ice skates. Why are there two different sizing systems for skates and shoes?
So, all of this is to say that I will have to get custom made ice skates for my feet. I am alright with this because the ice skates are the foundation of hockey and to have a pair of skates that fit perfectly for my feet should be an awesome thing.
Also, in order to account for the high arch in my feet, I had an orthotic made many years ago and they work when I wear athletic shoes. Now that I am older and working, I need a strategy for wearing steel-toed work boots and dress shoes. I saw a Chiropractor with a kinesiology background and he conducted a thorough analysis of my feet including how I walk and distribute the weight as I walk. Most of this was computerized. We are making three totally custom insoles based on the analysis - one for dress shoes, one specifically for ice skates, and one for general use.
I am telling you this because I am excited and they should be in next week. I can only imagine the combination of the custom ice skates and the custom ice hockey orthotic. I will be able to stay on the skates longer and will enjoy playing that much more, which will result in more calories burned.
I remember wearing the work boots and them being uncomfortable because of the way that I walk. I will now be able to walk properly in the boots, which will keep me outside for longer at the job site, which will burn more calories.
I'm also looking forward to using the orthotics in my hiking shoes. I used the old orthotics during the hikes at the BLR and it was ok. The orthotics were hard plastic that moved around easily in my shoes. I've seen samples of the new orthotics and they will be much better. If only there were mountains around Houston where I could try them out. Despite this, having these orthotics will make hiking more enjoyable, which will allow me to do it longer, resulting in a higher calorie burn.
Do we see a theme here? I'll let you know what happens next week at the end of the week after I get the orthotics and the quote for the custom ice skates.
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