Running Au Naturel

I have been absent from here for a really long time.  I was waiting to finish writing about our trip to Tucson, but that seems a little silly at this point.  I had even written some of it up, but I'm not sure what the point of posting it would be now.  So, I'm moving on.

A few weeks ago I attended a MovementU clinic put on by Jessi Stensland.  She talked about a lot of running technique stuff that just made sense.  I won't say that she necessarily encouraged trying barefoot running, but mentioned it briefly.  What she did talk about was the tribe that was studied for the book "Born to Run."  They can run hundreds of miles.  And enjoy it.  And they don't get injured.  Oh, did I mention that they run barefoot in the Mexican mountains?

I was at the point where I needed new runners anyway, and to be honest, running in runners was driving me nuts after the stride changes I had made after Jessi's clinic.  I had researched the various shoes quite a bit, and one thing caught my attention.  In all the reviews I had read (and I read a lot), not one had said that they tried barefoot running and couldn't do it.  Rather I read things like, "My chronic injuries disappeared" and "These are the only shoes I run in now."  Not a single complaint.  How strange.

I thought I may as well at least look into barefoot running shoes.  You may be asking, "Barefoot running shoes?  How the heck can you call it barefoot running if you're wearing shoes?"  These "shoes" are basically protection from the running surface.  That's it.  They allow the muscles to do the cushioning while protecting your feet from sharp rocks, glass, etc.  Kind of like strapping a piece of leather to your foot like many of the running tribes to, except with a little more technology.

After doing my research, I walked into MEC to try a pair.  I slipped on a pair of Vibram Treksports and stood up.  It was truly a transforming experience.  I just felt that this is what shoes should feel like.  Amazing.  I didn't walk out with a pair - I wasn't convinced I was trying the right size and they didn't have a smaller size in the store.  Instead I went online and ordered 8 different pairs of shoes from MEC - free shipping until April 20th - so I could try on what I needed and bring the ones I didn't want back.  My shoes came in on Friday, and I was very excited to try a pair out this morning.

Now these shoes don't provide any cushioning so they recommend that you break them in slowly.  You use muscles in an entirely new way, and you as for any other type of training, you need to increase slowly.  My plan was to go out for about 10 minutes in my Vibrams, and then finish my run in my regular runners.

My Vibram Spints

My first steps were almost like a dream.  Running felt so good.  Truly.  I enjoyed every step, and for those who know me, I'm not really a runner.  After about 5 minutes and a missed turn, I decided to try a little experiment.  I would run the same distance as last week (15.5 km) and see how I felt at the end.  From what I had read, I expected that my calves would get very sore from the added usage.  I was just curious as to what else might hurt after that distance.

I had a fantastic run.  I saw a couple of geese just sitting on the Bishop Grandin Greenway.  They were so close I could have almost touched them as I ran by.  I have heard stories about killer geese.  Either these ones were particularly tame, or those stories are just urban myths.

By around 8km, my calves were starting to get tired.  My solei to be precise.  Everything else, however, felt amazing.

Somewhere in my 11th km, Daniele called me on my cell.  As I was talking to her, I wasn't paying very close attention to where I was running.  Suddenly, I felt myself slip a little.  Ice.  Normally, this would shoot all kinds of adrenaline through my body and thoughts of falling would enter my mind.  This was different though.  Not only do the soles of these shoes have incredible grip, it was like I could feel the ice through them.  I felt completely connected to the ground.

I won't lie.  The last few kilometers were tough.  My solei and feet were tired from hitting the pavement (running on grass alleviated most of the discomfort).  The amazing thing though was that there was no pain.  Not in my knees.  Not in my back.  Nothing.  Other than my overworked muscles, my body felt better than it ever had after a run.

So far, I'm sold.  And you know what?  It makes sense.  After all, human beings have walked and ran for thousands of years with nothing more than a layer of leather or some other material to protect against the elements.  No cushioning.  No heel elevation.  They relied on the muscles to protect the joints.  I don't care where you stand on the creation/evolution debate - we are designed in such a way that this natural cushioning is there.  Weak muscles cause injury.  Weak core - bad back.  My knees were bad until I started running.  (I also initially did some weight training to strengthen the muscles around my knees.)  They don't bother me anymore.  Running shoes do not allow our foot and calf muscles to function they way they are made to work, so why do we wear them?  Because at some point within the last half century or so, someone decided that they would be a good idea.

I'm not going to tell you all that you should go and throw out your runners.  I'm just saying that I truly believe that this is going to work for me.  But I would challenge any of you to give the barefoot runners a shot.  And hey, if it doesn't work for you, at least I can say I heard someone say that they tried and just couldn't run without traditional runners.  As for me, I'm going to enjoy running for a change.