My running plan said to run 22 this weekend as my last long run, but after careful consideration of many factors, I decided to start tapering this weekend instead. Last year this time I got sick, which seriously dampened my race, and I'm sure part of it was that the long run compromised my immune system to get whatever was going around the office. There are a TON of people sick at work and my dad is getting over what was probably the (real) flu, I don't need something to push me over the edge. Also, only 1 long run of taper seemed a little short to me, I'd like to see if an additional week means I have a little more energy. This might be the last dedicated marathon I run for a while, with Ironman CdA in June and Florida in early November I won't be able to run one between April and December.

So, long story short, I ran 12 instead, and since it was 40 and overcast I took my dog the whole way. She's tired today.

I have decided it's better for me to not run in the Bikila, at least for this distance. It's possible if I sized down 1 size they might fit better on the bottom of my foot (though that doesn't solve how they squash the top of my foot), and I think maybe they work better (for me) for shorter/faster distances. I will be repairing my KSOs and running in them for the next 2 weeks to make sure it's the right call, but they never hurt my feet or wore into them like the Bikila do. Also bought a pair of Flows that I might try running in to see if they are comfy enough. They might just end up being wet/snowy running and winter everyday shoes if they aren't quite the right fit. By the end of this week I will have 4 pairs of FiveFingers in 4 different sizes.