I hate the new Brooks Adrenalines

Let me start this post about saying this: I am ending my relationship with Brooks Adrenaline.

There.

I hate the new models. Hate. Hate. Hate. I loved the GT9s. I hate the GT10s. Hate.

I know. Hate is a strong word. But I hate them, and more importantly, my body hates them.

See, last Sunday, on Jan. 31, after I just felt like trash during a 10-mile run and could barely average an 8:30 min/mile, I blamed my lack of nutrition for my sluggishness.

Then on Thursday, a 7-mile run in which my pace was 8:46 min/mile, I blamed my right knee on my problems.

But on Saturday, I had no knee problems, was well-rested, felt good. And over the last six miles of a 14-mile run, my pace was 8:30s after starting out the first 8 miles in 7:50 pace.

As Saturday's run went along, as Mile 9 turned into Mile 10 and so on, I noticed how hard my legs were working just to put one foot in front of the other, like I was running with bricks on my feet. And its not like my lungs were working very hard. Its like I was walking, but could do nothing to go any faster.

When I first began running in 2004, I ran in Brooks Beast and as I became more efficient, the support in the Beast became too much and my legs were always fighting my shoes.

Well, that's kind of how it felt on Saturday. Two weeks ago, running 7:30 miles was effortless and breezy. On this day, 8:30 miles were a struggle, and as the run finished up Waller Street in East Austin, I got on my toes and tried to run out the last mile and the best I could do (without causing any cardiovascular stress) was an 8:37 mile.

So, I averaged a pedestrian 8:06 min/mile over the entire 14-mile run on a flat course around Town Lake and my legs felt beat up and achy and stiff from running in the Adrenaline 10s. (Just a few weeks earlier, I ran 7:20 pace over 14 miles on a hilly course and felt like I could have run five more miles in the old Adrenalines). Its like I was using muscles in my legs I'd never used before and they were revolting because of the new Adrenalines.

Anyway, I popped up this morning eager to figure out if my sluggishness was because of the new Adrenalines or some other leg malady. I laced up my old Adrenalines, the GT9s, which have well over 200 miles on them, and went out for a 10-mile run around Town Lake. My legs were still hurting from Saturday's run - and after taking 9:06 to finish the first mile, I thought, "uh-oh."

But, soon, my legs started to feel like themselves again, and I did each of the remaining 9 miles in paces that ranged from 7:21 to 7:53. The weird thing is, and follow me if you can, throughout most of the run, my Adrenaline 9 leg muscles were interfering with my Adrenaline 10 leg muscles. Got that? Weird, I know. I'd say it wasnt until about Mile 6 until I rid my legs of their Adrenaline 10 habits, when my toe off and midfoot landing began to fit the Adrenaline 9s I was wearing.

Crazy, right? Well, I'm not wearing the Adrenaline 10s anymore. Too stiff. Too much support. I wish Brooks would have just left well enough alone. I'm going to wear my Adrenaline 9s until they are shot, and I've ordered another pair of 9s online. After that, I'm either going to where a Brooks shoe with a little less support or switch to Asics.

But I'm done with the new Adrenalines.