A New Pair of Running Shoes

I have a habit of breaking my pinky toe.

You know the one. The little piggy that goes “wee wee wee all the way home.”

Yeah that one. It is ever the toe that gets snagged on the corner of a sofa leg, or kicked into the bottom of a dresser or stepped on by a horse. Though I’ve broken middle toes and second toes too, it’s the little one that gets abused the most by furniture and horses.

If you aren’t aware, and this is not medical advice, if you break a toe, most of the time you can just tape it to the one next to it and get on with your life. There will be some pain or discomfort and often you can’t get it back in your boot or shoe for a good couple of weeks, but after about 8-10 weeks it’s back to it’s old self - that is, back to getting snagged on everything and anything.

One time after I broke one of my toes, I decided to set it straight. Nothing major, except when I taped it to the one next to it I turned it so it was straight like the rest of the toes instead of how it naturally wanted to be (and had been most of my life). I was convinced it would look better with a nice pedi and some cute sandals! So, as the bone healed and the swelling went down, that’s exactly what happened. I had indeed straightened it; it was perfectly straight like all the others - and honestly it looked kinda weird.

The Winged Sandals of Hermes

This past weekend we went shopping for running shoes. We are the barefoot family that doesn’t mess around with too many kinds of running shoes or sneakers. More flipflop and sandal heads than sneaker heads because we live where it’s hot. But, I took the liberty of signing us up for a 10K in April, so there we were in the Tortoise and Hare running store getting fitted, assessed, questioned and scanned for what I figured must be The Talaria of Mercury or The Winged Sandals of Hermes, which are technically not running shoes, but a girl can hope.

As fate, the running gods and a foot full of formerly broken piggies would have it, my right foot scanned with very little pressure on the outer edge the foot. The place where a little piggy has tried for years to desperately to break free and run home. Ever since I straightened out that toe a few years back, my foot has been compensating for that piggy and while it’s not a problem for running or lifting or coaching beach volleyball, it is a reminder that if we force an adaptation our bodies will counter adapt too.

Stimulus, Response, Adaptation

In every aspect of life and growth, stimulus requires the response and then the adaptation. We can adapt in a way that grows us and pushes us to go beyond comfort. To create a new level of strength. To move the internal state of homeostasis, where homeostasis in this case is the tendency to go back to what feels comfortable, normal or safe (even if it is none of those). My foot adaptation hasn't caused any pain or trouble or problems for me since I straightened it, but the foot scan showed there wasn’t any natural pressure being placed on it when standing.

• Stimulus

• Response

• Adaptation

When we think about emotional or mental pain, we can look at it in the same way. We may try to force a certain behavior or relational style or change in our lives because that’s what we want. We want it to be straight, better, and look good in public. But our body will still remember. As we respond to new and healthier patterns, relationships or behaviors there will be adaptations. Some will feel like nothing has changed, but something is happening below the surface. When you choose to grow or move towards health in any area of your life, whether that be physical, mental, emotional or spiritual health it might feel like you are walking the same, talking the same, relating the same or acting the same, but over time if you stick with the new, healthy habit or skill you will begin to see those things show up visibly in your life.

This Piggy is Right at Home

I was fitted for a perfectly wonderful pair of running shoes in the most unflattering, Steve Jobs greige color you have ever seen. It’s my lot in life having a giant feet. Anything cute or flattering will always look like a boat on my foot. But, the good news is that there’s plenty of room in the toe box of the shoe, giving my wandering little piggy all the room it needs to feel right at home.