The UmBlog

Unlike last time , two years ago, I wore shoes and the 11.5 miles were only 3 minutes faster, 1' 48", 42nd in my age group . I don't think shoes made the big difference. I wear Nike Free 3.0 shoes, which are barely there. There not made for "support" but for flexibility and freedom. I would not have worn shoes if I had decided to start running back in June instead of July. I went out a few times in early July barefoot, but I was going too far too soon. The best way to condition the feet is with patience, 1 mile every other day for a week then adding a mile every week. Instead, I ended up getting too many blisters and too many days off to recover. Eventually, I gave up and put the shoes on with 2 weeks to prepare. I squeezed in a few 4 milers and two 8 mile runs. I asked my wife and another running friend, Kristen, who couldn't run due to sesamoid issues to meet us at the awful 8 mile hill. They said many of the runners appreciated their location. The day wa...

mapmyrun.com is my new friend. for week 5 of barefoot running, i wanted to start out the week by not missing Monday's run. so i made a 3 mile loop and set off with the dog, who did remarkably well. also, i happily found out that my supposed 3 mile run at work is actually 4 miles. my plan is to do this 4 mile run for 4 days this week. now that it is warming up around here, i'm running right after my bike ride. 5 mile bike commute followed by a run. the muscles are a little different so it's not that insane. also, the road is a little cooler on the feet. i learned this morning that scraping your big toe on tar is far less damaging than scraping it on cement. my other big toe took 2 weeks to heal from a skin raking scrape on a cement sidewalk. speaking of bicycle commuting...i have a future recumbent in mind, the cruzbike . if gas gets up to $4 a gallon i'll have my current bike paid for itself sooner and can justify this next one.

i took off a long weekend. 3 days of no running. went out today and did 2 miles with no foot damage. technique and conditioning are the answer to soft foot vs. rocks and prickly macadam. very little grass running today too, but it sure feels nice.

it looks like a habit may be forming. i used the same short route as yesterday so i can focus on conditioning and technique. conditioning my feet started out a little tender. i was glad for a cloudy cool day to keep the ground cool. no excursions on the grass today. no new blisters. my feet are less happy after the run. my left ankle got a little sore but my feet weren't tender after a few minutes. technique as i tire, i lose my form. what is the form for barefoot running? it's the forefoot strike. the pose method is another name. when i get tired, i need to focus on marching and bringing my knee up higher and falling forward more so that i have to land on the balls of my feet.

another short 20 minute run to focus on conditioning and technique. i chose a different route that had less grass to tempt me. my lungs and legs are ready for more and the soles of my feet are getting there. no new blisters on the balls of my feet. i did get a new one on a toe but those don't hurt. i tried to focus on short strides, direct strike and quick release. the better the technique the less the condition of the running surface matters. i did notice the macadam was almost hot. temperature sensitivity is another conditioning aspect for the foot sole.

i forgot that the biggest pain in BRing is the calf not the blisters. so last week, i needed almost all week for my calves to recover. because of the forefoot strike, the calf receives a much greater workout than shod running. i just got back from a shorter run. i wanted to work on my method and minimize my recovery time. i was only out for 20 minutes. i also incorporated more grass time in the run. grass does not give the feedback you need for correct technique but it allows the other muscles to remember too. no blisters today. calves are feeling tight though.

unlike last year , when it was 52 F out, i waited until we had an April heat wave for 2007. i'm 9 days later than last year. last year was also a running dud for me. i really hope i make the time this year. i had many lunch time meetings then and now, so i need to find another time to run, like this afternoon. i have three new blisters. it's like breaking in new shoes. i need to get my stride right, the forefoot strike and in a few weeks i'll be ready to get some miles in. just 2 and a half or three quarters today without fatigue. i think my recumbent biking has kept my running muscles in shape.

It's 52F outside. There is too much sand on the sidewalks and road. But it's 52F outside. I declared my post-flu symptoms no longer severe enough for postponing the run any further and I went out. Last year I started out on the beach and grass, but those surfaces don't provide the feedback for correct form, so I began this year on the sidewalk and the road and avoided the soft surfaces. I have 2 blisters each on my forefeet under the big toes, but none on my heel which tells me I avoided heel striking. Barefoot running is forefoot running. I'll give my feet the day off and try again on Thursday. I hope to get my bike back from its tuneup tomorrow. Biking is so different from running that I never feel ready when I'm in the beginning of my running season. In that post last year, I promised I'd announce when I've achieved a 50 mile week. I have yet to still do that. I spent all last year learning to run barefoot. Hopefully this year I'll get some distance...

Barefoot Rick is in his 3rd winter of barefoot running. This is my first. It snowed last night. But I got out there at lunch time, 34F. I tried to keep my bare feet on the blacktop of the road and off the wet stuff. Got a couple miles in. Got my 2nd ever piece of glass in my heel. The first time it happened, this summer, I stopped and flicked it out real easy. This time, my feet were numb so I didn't notice it until I got back in the locker room. It was worked in a little bit. Came out in the shower though. I never did a marathon this year. I realized I needed to learn how to run barefoot before I trained to run a marathon barefoot. Maybe next year.

This isn't a spiritual thing. I'm a cheapskate and i always buy cheap running shoes that don't last very long anyway. I heard about this guy who is running the Boston Marathon today barefoot. In addition to the health claims I see myself being spared from laying out dollars for shoes. I started this weekend with a couple 3 mile runs on grass. My tender soles are a little worse for the wear but not my joints or muscles. I want to run a marathon this year, maybe the Hartford or the Mystic Places marathon. I participated in a work sponsored sprint triathalon last year and a local nearly-half marathon called the Kelley Race. I will let you know when I'm running on cement and asphalt bare footed and when I am running 50 miles a week.