Freedom of the toes!

Well, I finally got me a pair of Vibram Five Fingers. The KSO’s seemed to fit best and I do want to “Keep Stuff Out”

They are really comfy in general except the small “Pinky” toe that seems to be a little annoyed but even after an hour around the office, they have already started feeling better.

Blisters Argh!

So last weekend I got some minor blisters on the balls of my feet after a 2.5 mile Barefoot run. They were nothing serious but hurt a little. Last night I headed out cause I needed some serious stress relief and thought I would go a few miles barefoot and just chill. a Couple of things happened and it really has me bummed.

There are a few things I need to talk about and they are

1. POSE Method
2. Blisters
3. Calf pain
4. Why I run

I suppose the best way to cover them is a separate post each over the next few days sot that is how I will handle this. In this post, it is all about the watery little blisters. Oh, the burn.

After last weekends run I decided a few days to let the blisters heel a bit was a good idea. I have spent a lot of time walking barefoot and wearing flip-flops so the feet stay dry and the blisters seemed to go away. BUT… when I ran last night they immediately came back.  It isn’t horrible nor is it stopping me from anything but I was really not liking the feel as I walked after the run. The blister on my left foot right behind the big toe is about the size of a dime and stings. It is under the callous so popping it is not really an option cause it is deep.

I suppose a few ,more days walking around bare is in order but maybe a break from running would be a good idea. Not so much because of the blisters but more because of the damn calf pain that keeps creeping back on me. During the run last night I had barely gone 1/2 mile when it started and by the end of the run, only 1 1/2 miles, the pain was so excruciating I thought my calf’s were going to explode.

Since every time I talk about the pain I get, people ask me why I run, I suppose my next post is as good as any to try and explain Why I run.

Found this article on Runners World the other day. It made me laugh so I thought I would share it.
http://dailyviews.runnersworld.com/2009/08/running-barefoot-an-opposing-viewpoint.html

RW DAILY: How would you characterize the barefoot running movement: “reckless” or “very reckless”?
ARCH AKEN: Oh, it’s beyond very reckless. It’s horrible. It’s more alarming than nuclear proliferation in the developing world.

OK, now that is funny!

The Honduras Mess

A dangerous standoff that the U.S. helped to create.

A break from my normal routine and a statement of

WHAT THE HELL!

Why is it that our government is supporting a red flag waving commie socialist wantabee?

Zelaya needs to be ousted from the Honduran Government
Finally, someone gets the story right. CNN and Obama, stop supporting the Socialist Zelaya

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204488304574427403985118892.html

Mr. Zelaya was deposed and deported this summer after he agitated street protests to support a rewrite of the Honduran constitution so he could serve a second term. The constitution strictly prohibits a change in the term-limits provision. On multiple occasions he was warned to desist, and on June 28 the Supreme Court ordered his arrest.

Every major Honduran institution supported the move, even members in Congress of his own political party, the Catholic Church and the country’s human rights ombudsman. To avoid violence the Honduran military escorted Mr. Zelaya out of the country. In other words, his removal from office was legal and constitutional, though his ejection from the country gave the false appearance of an old-fashioned Latin American coup.

The U.S. has since come down solidly on the side of—Mr. Zelaya. While it has supported negotiations and called for calm, President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have both insisted that Honduras must ignore Mr. Zelaya’s transgressions and their own legal processes and restore him as president. The U.S. has gone so far as to cut off aid, threaten Honduran assets in the U.S. and pull visas to enter the U.S. from the independent judiciary. The U.S. has even threatened not to recognize presidential elections previously scheduled for November unless Mr. Zelaya is first brought back to power—even though he couldn’t run again

If the U.S. didn’t know about Mr. Zelaya’s stealth return, it ought to feel deceived and drop its support. Now that he’s back in Honduras, the best solution to avoid violence would be for the U.S. to urge Mr. Zelaya to turn himself over to Honduran authorities for arrest and trial.

Source: Washington Post Online (Link Above)

No More Zelaya

Web Researching Barefoot Running

In my never ending quest for knowledge I have found many websites and sources of information on Barefoot Running. One thing about me is that when I get an Idea in my head, I get obsessed and Barefoot Running is something I am obsessed about right now. I imagine my obsession is rooted in my passion for running and my frustration in not being able to run the miles I want to run without experiencing pain. Every time I increase mileage above some threshold, I start to break down. The frustration is endless. below is a study I found on SPORTSCIENCE http://www.sportsci.org.

Running barefoot is associated with a substantially lower prevalence of acute injuries of the ankle and chronic injuries of the lower leg in developing countries, but well-designed studies of the effects of barefoot and shod running on injury are lacking. Laboratory studies show that the energy cost of running is reduced by about 4% when the feet are not shod. In spite of these apparent benefits, barefoot running is rare in competition, and there are no published controlled trials of the effects of running barefoot on simulated or real competitive performance.

Chronic ailments such as shin splints, ilio-tibial band syndrome and peri-patellar pain are attributed variously to excessive pronation, supination, and shock loading of the limbs (Siff and Verkhoshansky, 1999, p.451). When running barefoot on hard surfaces, the runner compensates for the lack of cushioning underfoot by plantar-flexing the foot at contact, thus giving a softer landing (Frederick, 1986). Barefoot runners also land mid-foot, increasing the work of the foot’s soft tissue support structures, thereby increasing their strength and possibly reducing the risk of injury (Yessis 2000, p.124).

Wearers of expensive running shoes that were promoted as correcting pronation or providing more cushioning experienced a greater prevalence of these running-related injuries than wearers of less expensive shoes (Robbins and Gouw, 1991). In another study, expensive athletic shoes accounted for more than twice as many injuries as cheaper shoes, a fact that prompted Robbins and Waked (1997) to suggest that deceptive advertising of athletic footwear (e.g., “cushioning impact”) may represent a public health hazard. Anthony (1987)

Wearing shoes increases the energy cost of running. Burkett et al. (1985) found that oxygen consumption during running increased as the amount of mass they added to the foot increased; shoes and orthotics representing 1% of body mass increased oxygen consumption by 3.1%. Flaherty (1994) found that oxygen consumption during running at 12 km/h was 4.7% higher in shoes of mass ~700 g per pair than in bare feet. An increase in oxygen consumption of ~4% is of little importance to the recreational runner, but the competitive athlete would notice a major effect on running speed.

http://www.sportsci.org/jour/0103/mw.htm
Barefoot Running  Michael Warburton  Gateway Physiotherapy, Capalaba, Queensland, Australia

What I find more interesting than anything is the fact that other than a few blisters, my feel feel better out of the shoes and hitting the pavement. Now can I claim that my legs are healed? Not yet but the muscle stiffness I feel in my feet and ankles tells me that I am working muscles and ligaments that have been neglected for a really long time.  Another something I want to mention is the efficiency quote above. I regularly wear a heart rate monitor and on most runs average a HR in the 140-150 range.  That just seems to be where i average unless it is exceptionally hot or I am pushing hard enough that I feel uncomfortable and am really working. When I took off my shoes after running several miles and completed a run barefoot, my heart rate immediately dropped from the mid 140′s to the mid 130′s. Now I have not seen this occur on every run so it is something I want to monitor and will report my own findings.

So where from here? That will be my next topic. Probably total barefoot and coaching

Nike Free Run Naked Video

Nothing much to say but I saw this video someplace and I love it. Just had to share.

Painful legs after my Run

Well, today is a different day than yesterday. I awoke this morning with some serious leg pain again and felt like saying to hell with it all. Maybe I should just ride my bike and stop this running. But deep down I love running so much. Yesterdays run was easy on the legs and lungs. No winded feeling, I was strong, just the annoying calf and shin pain. Then running barefoot after running in shoes I fear is a bad idea. I think that for the next while, it is shoeless only.

There is definitely a difference running with and without shoes. After the 5+ miles with shoes I shed the shoes and ran another 2.5+ miles. I think I was hitting the ground hard and couldn’t really correct. It was as if my pattern in the shoes was set and removing the shoes just increased the beating. I ended up with a blister on the big to of my right foot, some odd abrasions right foot in the mid ares just behind the ball and a gnarly blister deep on the ball of my left foot right behind the big tow. I noticed that I was twisting my right foot as I lifted it. That was new and really started getting sore. I had not noticed that twist in previous barefoot runs. Maybe the shoes reinforce my bad habits and then taking off the shoes really emphasizes the poor form.

I really need to relearn everything I know about running. I have the Pose DVD so I am starting from scratch and may invest in the Pose  coaching local cause I just am not ready to give up on this as discouraging as it is. The Marathon I wanted to run in November is slipping away, further and further.

Here is a video showing the difference between shoes and barefoot running. It is quite reveling

8 Miles, Some Shod, Some not, it’s all about the ‘tude!

Headed out today to put in some miles and get ready for the upcoming Army 10 Miler.

Holy Crap, Army is coming up again, has it been a year already? It is so hard to believe. Anyway, it was a beautiful day here in Maryland today and the temperature was in the Mid 70′s. You can’t ask for a better day unless maybe it was in Hawaii

I readied myself for the run by a good stretch, spent the morning hydrating and was ready to head out the door and realized my shoes just felt wrong. Being that I was headed to an area where I knew there was a lot of broken glass, and my feet aren’t ready for an 8 mile run yet, I decided to wear my Asics Numbus Gel 11′s. God they feel like bricks, and my hells just hate them. I get Blisters really easy wearing many shoes but only lately have I experienced blisters from Running and it is always in the Asics shoes. Never again will I guy a pair of Asics Blister makers.

Well, not feeling the groove with the Asics I headed back to my closet and dug through the graveyard of shoes, I have them all, and pulled out my old New Balance 880′s from the early 2000′s. I put them on and they just felt good. Seems like the old warn out shoes are a lot like and old pair of bluejeans, they just feel right. Out the door I went.

My goal was to practice good form, back straight and a fast cadence of 180+.  Bu the first mile I was getting some shin pain again but nothing like I have been experiencing, then a little calf pain. I was paying very close attention to landing mid to forefoot on the ball of the foot and picking up my feet. Something that almost comes naturally when barefoot but is a huge mental task for me when wearing shoes.  My lungs were good, I was relaxed and after 5.75 miles, I was feeling good and hit an area where I could shed the shoes for the last 2.25 miles.

Oh the freedom. I didn’t run faster, I didn’t float on air, in fact the only thing I noticed was that I was more relaxed and happier running, I received an attitude adjustment when the toes were free. Running Barefoot is as much an attitude as anything else, It makes running fun and brings back that little kid feeling again. Other runners would see me and they all smile, they look at my feet and my face and I was smiling. They always smile back.

A question of balance and hard surfaces

A question someone asked me

One thing we did not have 4,000 years ago were roads and asphalt. The only drawback I can see to your experiment would be running on such a hard surface. Wouldn’t it be much better to run on something with a little more “give” if you’re going to do it barefoot?

I am very interested in this thread because of my personal situation. I am learning how to walk all over again, yup, like a one year old. When I was still in PT, my therapists would tell me to walk barefoot as much as I could because it’s the best way to get better. In shoes, the feet and legs get “lazy”, and the little muscles used for balance don’t have to work as hard. Going

Never give up

You don’t say why you are needing to learn all over again but you make a very important and distinct point. I have noticed significant increases in my balance since starting this little experiment. Over a year ago a PT told me I had balance issues, I was shocked, I thought I had great balance but when I took off my shoes and was tested I couldn’t stand on one foot and close my eyes.  Almost immediately I would start to lose control and fall over.

I have been doing balance exercises ever since and made huge improvements on my balance yet, when I started running barefoot, I noticed that I went from 30-60 seconds on one foot to infinity. I can feel my feet grabbing the earth and every muscle is in control.

As for asphalt roads and concrete, Neither can hold a candle to solid granite. This “Hard Surface is bad for you” is part of the deception we were sold. hoe companies bet on the belief  you need to pad yourself from these brutal surfaces in the urban jungle. Someday, when you are strong enough, hit some untouched trails and notice how tough they are.

Like this one. I just don’t know how we survived as a species before shoe companies.

Arches are the foots natural shock absorber

Arches are the foots natural shock absorber and supporting the arch with orthotics and high arch supports eliminates the foots ability to absorb shock. imagine a building with an arch, natural strong and beautiful, then you put a pillar under the arch to support the center. Under load that supported arch becomes week and fails. After supporting the arch, like most shoes do, the foot muscles and ligaments atrophy causing you to need support when in fact, you were supported well before. I have found that the more support I give my feet, the worse I get. My old original 7 year old flats had probably 1000 miles on them and I NEVER had leg pain. Then I was told by a sales rep that I should exchange shoes every 200-300 miles as big as I am and get something that added support. That is where my problems all started. He made the sale, I am in pain and it has been and endless spiral downward ever since. In fact, I am going to pull out those old shoes and start using them between BF runs.

Running is the Best thing for my knees

My first concern was my size. I am just a big guy, big bones, lots of mass and sure, a little fat. But that is an excuse. So many of the barefoot runners I am reading about are the atypical runners. Many tipping the scales in the 200′s and busting through the clouds at 6′ +.

Then was the biometrics. My knees, especially my right knee used to swell like a bee stung allergic kid after a run. In fact on 9/11, 8 years ago today I was getting the results from an MRI and the Doctor wanted to do surgery. This was about 1 year before I started my running again. I refused the surgery. Later as I ran I developed a gnarly bakers cyst behind the knee and endless pain but it started diminishing mostly a few years back. Last year I had the cyst evaluated by my current running Doc and he gave me a cortisone shot. But the fact is that over the years, the knee has gotten better and better. In fact this year the cyst is gone, the pain is infrequent and swelling just doesn’t happen.

Contrary to medical theory and belief, running is the best thing that ever happened to my knees.

My calf’s, they are a different problem. I have massive muscular calfs and docs tell me that is bad news for an endurance runner. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t but I have to question the science now days. This isn’t your every day shin splints, the pain is higher, more muscular and gets worse with distance and starts into cramping. I am seeing one of the best running docs I can find and we are on the problem.

Yesterday I really started paying close attention to my walking. More so than before, and I do pay a lot of attention to how I move. I am very aware of my body and its effect in the world so to speak.

I noticed that when I walk barefoot, I lead in with my toes, I plant my feet and I land more fore and outside, very sure footed. But even put on a sock and I start to heel strike with a less sure foot. Since there is not any reason for this it almost makes me wonder if there is some mental trauma that occurred from an accident that triggers this reaction even with just a sock. Maybe a slip and fall creating a fear and caution when feet are unexposed. I feel more sure footed bare, totally bare.

Add a shoe, any shoe and it is almost impossible to not heel strike when walking. shoes build up the heel forcing it to land first. The “best” running shoes add 100% more height to the heel than the toes and force a heel strike. This is just an observation but sure footedness does not come from a heel strike. Case in point, watch a woman or man, walk in high heels which almost guarantee long term Achilles tendon problems and immediate sure footed issues..

I am early in this process but I have went to wearing flip flops again with flat soles and avoiding padded shoes for any running or walking activity. Yesterday I spent most of the day bare footed, at least when I could. This morning my feet were sore, muscles were tired and I could tell that I was making some changes and taxing muscles that have been pampered for way too long. Funny thing is I pulled out my most favorite running shoes of all time. They are old NB’s and they had almost no padding. In high school I wore Puma and they had no padding whatsoever. The shoes I hate, yes hate, running in have HUGE gel heels, almost 1.5 inches of padding and feel like something kiss would wear on stage. They are very expensive Asics Gel-Nimbus 11. Makes me wonder if the shoe companies are selling us a line.