Running to defeat MS (symptoms)

It is really good news that I've worked out my kinks from the previous few weeks. All last week and so far this week I am feeling nag-free! Especially great since I ran my furthest - 9 miles on this past Sunday. Here let's see if I can paste it in from garminconnect. I ran into a friend on my 9 mile run and would have liked to stop but instead I just kept running, I was in the zone! I'm sure she understands. So, on the negative side I am still fighting with occasional flare-ups of the MS. They are coming in two different angles. First, my back parasthesia is sometimes problematic, but this seems to be almost 100% related to lack of sleep. Which is odd because I sleep well, but I'm pretty busy and usually up too late reading a book... The other is also parasthesia which is affecting my arms and hands. The way I would describe is that it feels like my hand or arm is wet, when it is not! It's discomforting and worrisome, but not completely unexpected - it is just...

Longest run today - 8 miles. Still on pace for half marathon end of September. New shoes felt great, same as the old shoe, but after 225 miles they were making my right knee feel a little sore. Today, mild soreness in the middle of the run but when i picked up my cadence it went away!

Last Tuesday I ran 7 miles in fairly hot humid weather and I felt great! Followed up with shorter runs during the week and was hoping to be ready for 8 on Sunday. However, when I got out on the road on Sunday I just didn't feel right. I turned it around at 1.5 miles and settled for a 3 mile day. My legs were tight and sore, my left plantar fascia was acting up, my right quad was stiff... All seemed to indicate to me that I should slow down. So, in order to motivate myself, and possibly even as a solution to my nagging spots I went over to Marathon Sports in Wellesly, MA to get new shoes. Talking to my best friend who is an avid runner on vacation I thought I would look at a pair of Newton running shoes as we noticed I have a fairly good midfoot strike and generally good running form. My old Brooks Adrenaline's were noticeably worn on the forefoot and I certainly felt like I wasn't getting the cushioning they originally had. Maybe that is part of the reason I'm fee...

Things are going well as far as running. I upped the pace and hills last week while running with my friend Scott in Maine. Even though we were on vacation and running through the hills, kept it fast and pushed myself. It really makes a big difference to have someone pushing you harder. I loved it and hated it! Twelve runs for the month of July for a total of 44 miles and 2,400 ft elevation gain. Thanks to garminconnect.com and my new watch for give me fun figures and gadgets to motivate me. There are not as many cool colors and icons as nike+ but I love having the convenience of just a watch, no headphones, armband with iPhone and bounciness in my ears. I still like to run with music so I will continue to try to find the perfect headphones. I'm looking to keep increasing my distance in August and push it hard to be ready for the half marathon at the end of September. I still haven't registered though.