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Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Bad-ish News

Okay, so I scored ONE goal last night . . . and came really darn close to another when I sent a rocket past the keeper--unfortunately, the wind kicked up at the last second and the ball ended up hitting the far goalpost. Bummer. It would have been the winning goal! Oh well. I guess I'll take the 2-2 tie, considering it's not a loss (but we were WAY better than the other team).

The "bad-ish news" is that I suffered a deep thigh bruise towards the end of the game. I went one-on-one with the other team's keeper in my attempt to win a 50/50 ball and hopefully score . . . and the keeper (legally) stuck her knee up in the air to protect herself. My thigh, of course, crashed directly into her knee at about a billion miles per hour. Ugh. I could tell my quad was pretty pissed off by the way it was swelling and spasming last night (and still throughout the day today). It was reminiscent of when I tore the hamstring last year (shudder!). Luckily, I can walk without TOO much pain, so I don't think it's going to set me back all that far (whew!) . . . but it looks like I'm going to have to do nothing but rest for the next several days. That means no soccer tonight . . . and once again, no running. Ha, I think I'm starting to learn that 4 soccer leagues and marathon training really don't mix! Yikes . . .

Moving on. I have to ask you all your opinion on something that's been a rather hot topic for a while now: running skirts. Growing up as a very competitive athlete, I was always trying to prove to myself and others that I could play with the boys--which honestly--I could. In grade school/junior high gym classes, I was forced to play with the boys in pretty much any sport we covered . . . because our gym teacher insisted it was "unfair" for me to compete against the not-so-athletically-gifted girls in our class. Still today, when I play in co-ed soccer leagues, I find myself sizing up my male opponents and comparing their skill-levels to my own. As a result of this silly need to be on an equal playing field with male athletes, I have never wanted to do anything that might bring attention to the fact that I am-gasp!-a woman. Thus, I have never bought into the feminization of sports gear.

BUT. After the August issue of Runners World focused so much on the "Rise of the Skirt Culture," I have to admit, I am a little intrigued. After all, if Runners World is touting cutesy running skirts, surely it doesn't make me any less of a runner if I take the plunge and don one myself. Right? (Please note: I do not look at other women in running skirts and think they are "not runners"--this is actually just a personal issue I seem to have). Despite my personal prejudice against them, I still feel like there is a part of me that would embrace running skirts were it given the chance to do so. After all, I like to consider myself a stylish chick . . . and I do like to look my best. Oh, and have I mentioned that I HATE running shorts? So um . . . I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I think I want a running skirt! AH!

If any of you running skirt experts out there have any advice for what works best or what to look for in a running skirt, I would love to hear it!

6 comments:

EmLit said...

Personally, I love my running skirt. I like the way it feels, I like the coverage I get, I like that I am not constantly thinking about how annoyed I am that my shorts are riding up *yet again*. I feel like the running skirt is the first thing ever made to be worn on the lower half of the body in warm weather that is female-friendly. And I totally understand your opposition to them, but think of it this way: not only are you kicking some guy's ass, you are doing it in a skirt, thereby declaring how much more awesome it is that you have kicked his ass because you are a woman and you can do anything. I think the skirt can really just enhance your already-stellar athletic performance.

The only problem I have is that I only have one. If I had any money whatsoever I would go out and buy about four more.

Meg said...

Ouch. Hopefully it's just a bruise and you'll recover soon!
I don't own a skirt but I've wanted one for a while. I think they're cute and as they become more popular I think they're perceived as more stylish than cheesy. I say get one!

Laura said...

My initial problem with running skirts was that I hated the look of a skirt with sneakers. However, as Meg said, I'm getting more and more used to them, and I finally bought one, and then two more. The first one I bought is not my favorite - the skirt is made of kind of a windbreaker-y material with no stretch. The second one I got is a Nike one that's really stretchy and Lycra-y, and it's SO much more comfortable than shorts! I absolutely love it. The third one I got is also Nike, but a completely different material - haven't tried it yet, so I can't really comment.

Just try a bunch on and I bet you'll find one you like and are comfortable with!

MissAllycat said...

I bought a running skirt a few months ago...and still haven't tried it out. Next Wednesday is my run club's "skirt run" so I guess that will be the maiden voyage. Wish me luck!

The Laminator said...

Don't have a comment about running skirts, but just want to remind you not to get all cut up and bruised in your soccer games.

Besides messing up your running, I think black and blues would not go well with running skirts!

Rachel said...

Go for the running skirt! I just bought one 2 weeks ago and I love it!! I ran my 5k in it last week and it was amazing! I don't mind running shorts, but if I had to choose I would probably most definetly choose the skirt.