Coincidence that it's the left leg and I run counter-clockwise on trails? Maybe...with a slight slope, it'd be getting a different impact than the outside foot, and it's of course taking a brunt of the effort when I'm turning. I could give it a go clockwise, though that's completely against my nature and will freak me out! Maybe I'll hit the straight, flat 51 mile trail and stay away from the loops for a few days and see what that does.

My knees suck all around (said almost every runner, ever), but I've been resisting any sort of brace since they've sucked the same way since I was 15. I'll be icing tonight though, as I sit down for a few hours with my quantitative decision-making text and hoping I stay awake!

The sleeve (or wrap) is for the calf. My knees are trashed as well, but I dont have much faith in running in a brace.
And yes, I run counter clockwise one day clockwise the next, and i dont run the same street or trail everyday. I vary my runs for that reason. it saves knees and hips.
Brain, I think your idea of tossing in the eliptical is good for knee preservation too. But

My current schedule is:
M-Trail A
T-Trail A, half mile intervals
W-core/weights
Th-Trail B
Fri-core/weights
Sat-Trail C

I did have T/Th swapped up until this week, the back to back mileage days on M/T (only about 5 each day) wasn't feeling great so I wanted to try spacing them out. I'm still working on finding something that works for me, I'm not progressing how I'd like to be and don't really have the time to keep trying to find a new training program every couple weeks if I want to make it up to a half marathon by October. Time is slipping away all to fast and I don't think I'm adding mileage very aggressively, so dealing with new pain and potential injury is only going to get more in the way. I'm supposed to be de-stressing when I run, not getting futher agitated!

Jen is a great resource for how to add miles and the mind set. Also pretty good on what to do with PO'd parts.
But be forwarned, she is a fan of ice baths
Those things hurt!

Ice baths, never done one (aside from during a couple of races)but don't like the idea of it! I'd definitely beg her to be my personal trainer, but I don't think I can afford the mileage I'd have to pay to get her up here!

Great minds think alike, I just told him the same thing!!

Two people, one brain!

Is this what it means, when I say, "If I had half a brain...?"

When in doubt, ask Jen. It's reasonable advice for all manor of questions from those regarding aches and pains to shoes to wiring diagrams for any type of random vehicle!

She's just that awesome!

I bet teej could give some good advice too, now that I think about it.

Ok, I have a question. In Body Pump, it goes warm up, squats, chest, shoulders, etc, then squats & lunges again (I can't remember the exact order). For the first squat group, my feet hurt! Like the bottom inside of my right foot. It hurts through the whole song (which feels like a very long song especially with squats!). By the time we get to the next squat and lunges group (after doing chest, triceps, shoulders, etc), the pain is completely gone and the foot feels fine. Any ideas what could be causing the pain? I'm trying to make sure my form is correct, but if that's off, then wouldn't it be off for both sets?

I have many thousands of running miles in my rear view mirror and am happy to share what I have learned with anyone who has a question. Same with cycling.

I've had weird foot pain similar to what you're describing, during some different cardio-type programs I've done in the past. It could be your shoes, or just that you need to stretch out your feet a bit before you go into everything. It seems like a stretching issue, given that it goes away instead of getting worse. Once everything's warmed up, it's fine.

How long has it been happening? Is this a new program you're doing or is it a consistent problem?

I've been doing Body Pump for several months now, twice a week. Same pain always. Tried new shoes, that didn't help (great excuse to get new shoes though). I'll try doing some stretches or something today before I go.

First question is what kindo of shoe are you using and how old are they?
Joints are funny (the feet are loaded with joints) they are full of nerves, ligaments, bursa, cartilage, blood supply, etc. Actually, its a miracle (literally) that they work at all!
Typically, they work better once they have a chance to warm up and for all the parts to have a chance to get orchestrated.
If the shoes are the right shoes, I would suggest getting to body pump a little early and doing a 5 minute jog or walk and get the blood supply up to speed.
Hopefully, if you technique is off, the instructor would point that out.

The shoes are about 3 weeks old. They are a running shoe, just cuz that's what I usually buy! Asics of some sort, can't remember exactly. I'll try warming up and stretching a little better today. Thanks for the advice. I'm not real great at stretching prior to working out. I do stretch after, so don't yell at me!!

Running shoes may not be the best choice for cross training activities like Body Pump. Running shoes tend to keep your foot from torquing and twisting and are generally meant to keep you going in a straight line. Cross trainers may give you more stability when doing other types of activities like squats and such.

I am horrible about stretching before I run; however, if I have an issue with an injury or nagging pain I do stretches to get that area comfortable before I start out.

you and I are a lot alike........only I have thousands of driving miles

Fixed!

it's hard work staying that still for a long time

You mean I need to go buy another new pair of shoes? Darn. It was a little better today. I stretched and ran about 1/2 mile prior to class. I could still feel it there, but it wasn't as sharp a pain as normal. I'll maybe see if I can find a good deal on cross trainers this weekend.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

You can't ever have too many shoes.
Its in the Constitution somewhere.......

Article 10 1/2....EE

^^^not a strict contstructionist or original intentist!

You're talking about a guy that believes the right to bear arms means he can wear tank-tops to work regardless of what the policy says.

.....And a .45!

You guys are killing me. I get busy at work for a day and WOW.

From what I remember reading above the things running through my head are:

Always unwind on the track or trail. AKA go the other way!!! The same with a seriously sloped road. Yes, we all know we should run on the left side of the road, but you're beating your body up if you stay there and it's really slanted.

I avoid braces/supports/taping of all sorts unless my PT says its necessary. Much of my opinion (started to type wisdom and then thought better of it) is based on info from the PT, she says the braces/supports/taping allow the weakness to continue and you dont correct the biomechanical issue. The sore spot is your engine warning light...it's a sign/symptom very rarely is it the root cause.

Warming up...I like the way the cross country coach does it with the kids. I ran with them all summer. Dynamic warm ups, high knee marches slowly followed by slow butt kickers. Then high knees running and butt kickers running. Soldier march, walking lunges, leg swings, etc. Maybe 10-15 minutes. No stretching before running. Stretching is after, part of your cool down.

Pain when running/working out. I use the PT's 1-10 scale. 1 is "huh". 2 is "what on earth, I feel something off". 3 is "that's really uncomfortable". 4 is "ouch" and you STOP doing whatever you're doing at that point. (I've finally learned that lesson after finishing a 15 mile run with a stress fracture...very stupid.) If you're at a 3 resting, RICE and some cross training (bike, elliptical, pool, etc) are probably a good idea for a few days. I will admit, I dont do that very well.