Eluding Tuonela

I started the first week of the new year with a rest day. It was a good call as my legs actually feel a bit better now.

It's been hard to get back to a good rhythm as I've seem to lost all motivation and incentives to keep pushing. Still, I count this week as a positive as I got something done every day.

As I just bought a new pair of running shoes I was not very keen to purchasing yet another stutted pair for icy winter conditions. Yet, as I found out last year, you really need ice studs if you want to go out on wet and icy conditions.

As an alternative to 185 EUR pair of shoes I opted to purchase a packet of ice studs for 25 EUR. This particular packet came with 20 small studs, just enough for a pair of shoes. The studs are installed with a special tool that comes with the package and fits into a regular 1/4" tool socket.

The installation is easy but takes a little bit of learning to get right. I tried both power drill and hand wrench, and got better results without the drill. You need to just find a good spot, apply plenty (meaning a lot) of pressure and keep the stud at correct angle at all times. When the flat part is flush with the rubber, you're done. It took me about 20 minutes to install all the studs to a pair of Salomon trail running shoes. Had I had a choice, I would've opted for a shoe with more rigid / less rubbery soul but I worked with what I got.

The end result feels a bit sketchy indoors and on clear pavement, but works great on snow and ice. You really feel the extra grip and the shoes aren't at all wobbly. The studs feel like they will hold perfectly if I don't need to do any crazy full-on cartoon stops.

After a couple of runs, I'd definitely opt for studded shoes over regular ones with any snowy and/or icy conditions. That said, if you run on trails or pavements that don't have ice, regular shoes will probably work better. YMMV.

This was the last week of 2021. Not surprisingly I found it pretty hard to find the motivation to keep running at home after a productive week on a holiday far away. I only managed to get in two runs.

I also continue have issues with my right leg. I've tried to do more stretching and yoga but it really doesn't like even the very mildly cold weather at all.

The weather keeps changing from ridiculously cold to annoying warm. The trails that last week were almost perfect are now covered in 15 cm of wet snow and water, and next week will be frozen again. I cannot hate this part of the year more.

Feeling great after a full week of running in very cold but beautiful conditions. The small village didn't have many good routes for running as there were practically no pedestrian roadways, the ice on the lake(s) wasn't yet strong enough to safely carry a person without proper gear (full-body safety suit etc), and all the trails have been repurposed to skiing. So I mainly ran on roads / highways but luckily there were so few cars that it really wasn't a problem.

I did have a problem with my right calf, though. First time in my (not that long) running career I had to abort a run about 3k in and walk back home due to pain in the calf. I suspect it was due to two things; extremely cold weather (-14C to -20C) combined with relatively few running in past few weeks. I gave it one day off and it was pretty OK after that. I clocked a healthy 41k of running this week.

Most importantly, I'm feeling really good again after a week of active life!