August Close Out Report

WOW – it’s all I can say.

I ran 7.40 miles this month. My first month ever really trying to run. My first month ever really tying to run AND trying to do all this with basically my barefeet.

So how do I feel? In short, I feel great. My cardio feels really strong, like I could another couple miles, but my damned legs are pretty much calling it quits at 1.5 miles. They simply need me to keep putting miles behind me so strength can build.

I’m getting to this place where I constantly have to check myself. I want to run faster, farther, etc but I have to not lose sight of taking this slow and remembering that running even the distances I am running now was not possible a month ago.

This is awesome.

My Mission Of Miles Is Over, I Think…

I’ve been sooooooooo good at keeping myself on track and with my plan to take it S-L-O-W. Tonight I just completed my 4th 1 mile run. I gotta tell you, having no pain, I want to keep going. My calves are still a bit sensitive and seem like they maybe have another half mile or so in them but I assume with time those will get stronger.

Here’s my days and runs so far:
8/18 – 1mile in 11:00
8/20 – 1mile in 8:20 (not sure how I ran that fast…)
8/22 – 1mile in 9:42
8/25 – 1mile in 9:50

I think I’m going to slowly ramp it up a bit from this point. I can’t emphasize enough to people just starting out with barefoot running or minimal running in FiveFingers – slow it down, take it easy.

First Run In The Vibram FiveFingers

Holy shit, I can’t walk. Seriously, people at the office are trailing me just to see me hobble around stiff legged and incapable of descending the stairs…

A little history to try and explain what I think is happening.

I’ve never run. I mean sure, I’ve tried to run. I even remember running the mile in middle school and hating it and probably taking 12 minutes or more. I also have never done leg exercises. I was pretty jacked leaving high school and through college. I lifted weights 4 days a week, but NEVER did my legs. What does all this mean? I have a lower leg that consists of a shin and behind it, maybe some tendons, but that’s it. There’s not one ounce of muscle back there.

That’s pretty much an accurate picture of my legs… So on top of the fact that I’ve never done anything substantial with my legs, I have come to realize that I am a habitual HEAL STRIKER.

You see, after just one run I now know why I always hurt when I run! The Vibram FiveFingers don’t allow me to heal strike. Don’t believe me? Go ahead and take your shoes off and try to run as fast as you can with a massive stride and pound that heal in the hard concrete below. Ok, don’t really try that, but you see what I’m talking about? My natural stride is TINY compared to what I attempt to do with a ginormous padded heal attached to my foot.

So what’s the outcome? I did 1 mile and it took 11 minutes. Most importantly…not one instance of pain anywhere in my entire body! I think I’m going to like this!

UPDATE [December 2009]
I can’t stress enough to people just starting out either barefoot running or running in the Vibram FiveFingers – GO SLOW. I have converted a half dozen people to date to the shoes (and no one has gone back!). These people ranged from folks who were like me (not runners at all) to people who were seasoned runners (multi-marathoners) and all have raved about the results from the shoes. The people who were like me, progressed much as you see how I progressed on this site, slow and steady. The seasoned runners adapted much more quickly and were logging long mile runs within weeks. My mantra is simple:

Simple. Slow. Listen. Log.

Simple- get your shoes off. Run barefoot or pick up some FiveFingers. I don’t recommend getting simpler shoes over time, most things I’ve read show you’d be putting yourself at increased risk of injury. Just do it, get back to the natural way your body was built to run!

Slow- run slower than you think. A lot slower. My starting pace was around 12min miles and my lower calves and Achilles were fried on my first several runs. Just jog it out, take it slow, it will come!

Listen- you’re going to me AMAZED at how talkative your body is going to be, trust me. You’ve removed that barrier that prevented your highly tuned feet into talking with your brain and getting valuable, instant feedback. Last month, into a long run, I noticed a twinge in my left hip. I quickly analyzed my body posture and realized I had slipped to a slight forward curve in my back. I readjusted and, bam, the pain was instantly gone. Having shoes on can block you from recognizing things and you need to listen to your feet and body now. When they say they are tired, you stop running. Check out the Pose Method of running as well. If you run in FiveFingers or barefoot, you’ll be surprised to find that you probably naturally already run this way! It never hurts to understand this method though so you can check your form mid-run when you get a signal that somethings off a bit.

Log – most of us are results driven. Running gives you INSTANT feedback. You can set goals for yourself, hit those goals and make amazing leaps in distance and time by just keeping at it. I tried a bunch of different logging techniques and fell in love with RunningAhead.com. It offers a great way to keep track of the progress you are making, which is sooooo important. It also takes data right from my Garmin Forerunner 305 and gives key data like average and max heart rate, pace, interval data, etc. Keep an eye on the price of the 305, it fluctuates highly. I got it a couple months ago for $150 and have seen it go as low as $130 and back up to near $300!

Most important thing of all HAVE FUN! Running is such a joy for me now and I love hearing about how people have changed their lives and realized their abilities through running. Please leave me any comments if you found this helpful or have anything else to add that people could benefit from.

My First Week With Vibram FiveFingers

I’m trying to be smart about this.

I’ve had the “shoes” now for almost a week and have worn them religiously, every day. I wore them to dinner to the other night and my wife almost killed me. I’ll admit, they are a bit goofy looking, but looks aside these are THE MOST comfortable things I have ever had on my body.

I’ve just been walking in them for the moment. The first time I put them on it was like nothing I’ve experienced in my life. Sure I’m used to putting gloves on my hands and getting each finger into each respective slot, but doing this for my feet? A little weird. And I use the word weird in a most good way, these things feel awesome. When I walk I can see my toes splay like they are naturally meant to do. There’s no toe-box like on a shoe so there’s nothing preventing my feet from acting purely natural…purely fantastic!

After the first couple of days I had some soreness in the arches of my feet. I would assume this is completely natural as it is what I have read in research and is the reason I am attempting to take it S-L-O-W. I have to be honest though. I want to run. I feel like I’m five again, I feel like running will be a blast!

I am planning my first run tomorrow. 1 mile, keeping with the keep it slow mentality. I plan on running my next four or so runs at only 1 mile. This also happens to be the exact distance I have ever been able to run because pain sets in just prior to the mile mark and I am forced to stop…I’m totally stoked to see what happens with these!

Due Diligence And A Purchase!

I’ve spent the past week researching and digesting a WEALTH of information. I even went out and ran barefoot. It was a short jaunt, maybe a quarter mile tops, but everything in my mind has changed with that one run.

The barefoot run, combined with the hours of data and musings I’ve been pouring over has totally changed my mindset on what it means to run. Before I go further with my plan, here’s some of the stuff I found most important over the past week:

http://runningbarefoot.org/?page_id=525
*this is Barefoot KenBob’s site. I’ve linked you to his post on “Beginnings” because the information he provides is so critical to what you will experience when you take your shoes off. This guy is like the godfather of barefoot running.

http://barefootted.com/
*all these “barefoot [insert name]” guys are insane. I love it! Ted has a great site with tons of information into running ultra distances that I cannot even conceive at this point in my life.

http://www.posetech.com/
*the Pose Method of running is badass. Even if you decide to keep shoes on, this is a must follow to ensure you don’t eff your joints up forever. Watching the videos on the Pose method has made me realize that my super fly stride and heel strike is probably why I’ve never been able to run without pain…

http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/
*the combined efforts of the three previous links I posted have led me to this company. This is my first purchase on this new path in running.  I chose the KSO model of the “shoe” and here’s why.

The classic seems to be adequate but in appearance alone seems that it may feel like it’s slipping off my foot while I run. I also REALLY like the fact that the KSO is closed top and has the strap. I plan on running trails, I figure they are more entertaining than concrete passing beneath you…and so the KSO will offer just enough top closure so that crap doesn’t get into the “shoe”.

I picked up the shoe online from City Sports and signed up for their mailing list while I was at it, which saved me an extra 15% on them! They ended up being $73. A small price to pay if they give me the ability to run. I’m patiently awaiting their arrival and will post an update once I have them!

You Run… And It Doesn’t Hurt?

This past weekend my wife and baby boy headed over to Newport, RI to meet up with my mentor, Rob. I’ve known Rob now for 5 years or so and as of last year he moved to Tennessee and we’ve missed him and his family so so so much. Needless to say, it was a blast catching up and seeing his family.

So what does this have to do with the title of this post? Isn’t this the first post of a journal about running?

Yes, chill out a minute.

Rob looked different this trip. I mean different in a good way. He was much thinner and seemed happier since I last saw him. I also noticed he turned me down when it came time to throw back beer #3 so I naturally said, “what gives?” He explained that he had a 9 mile run the next morning along Cliff Walk and that he’d logged some 10 miles or more already while on the trip. INSANE, I thought to myself. You see Rob was a special forces guy, the kind that jumped outta perfectly good flying machines for the heck of it. If anyone is going to have knee issues, it’s gotta be Rob.

“I don’t get it”, I said.
“Get what”, Rob replied.
I continued, “I’ve been trying to run for like 10 months and my right leg just burns with pain from my outside ankle to the outside of my knee. How in the world can you run 9 frikin miles without agony?”

Rob’s reply both stunned and intrigued me in the same moment. “Run barefoot”.

What ensued from that point forward was a series of exchanges where I went from thinking he was off his rocker to thinking he actually has researched this stuff and he’s starting to make sense. I didn’t even have my computer with me this weekend, but I wasted no time on my BlackBerry browser looking up some of the key buzzwords that Rob had spilled out; barefoot running, chi running, pose method, barefoot ted, barefoot kenbob…