Deformed but working

My left calf, that is.  I absolutely CAN NOT STAND how the Graston work distorted my calf muscle -- but I'm running ok these days so I'm trying not to notice it. 

I have been working my way into a weekend long run the past couple weeks, and this week I wanted to shoot for a 12 miler.  I planned to meet up with my sister and a friend early Saturday morning.  It was due to start snowing in the morning, but we thought if we started early enough the roads would be ok.  Not great, mind you, because of the previous snow and icy conditions, but good enough to get the run done without major problems. 

Um, nope.  About an hour in, the snow picked up and soon we were trudging through a few inches on the paths.  We really just wanted to be done.  At the same time, however, I was LOVING the fact that I was running this many miles, in the raw nature, and my leg was holding up.  A definite contradiction, but the sense of accomplishment when we finished made the rough conditions worth it. 

And speaking of rough conditions, I got a new pair of full-length tights for those rare occasions in the winter that I actually wear long pants rather than capris.  I didn't think I'd need them for the 12 miler -- it wasn't going to be that cold -- but I thought with the wind and the snow I'd test them out.  That's them in the pic above.  The Brooks Utopia Thermal Tight.  Yum.  Soft, perfectly fitting, zippers up the calf to allow me to air out my legs.  As much as I love my capris, I'm glad to have a pair of tights that are comfortable and worked great on a longer run. 

They even fit over my deformed calf...