Monday, October 26, 2009

barefoot

So, I finally bit.

Yesterday was a stairmaster day (mostly so I could study and exercise, or, really, feel like I was studying).

I did some weights and realized what a wimp I've become.

At the end, I decided to knock a few miles off on the treadmill. So, after 20 or so minutes of running my foot started to hurt. Pretty standard on the treadmill for me. There had just been a discussion on the ultra list about barefoot running on the treadmill. I thought this sounded kooky, but as my foot ached I started to wonder: "what would it feel like"?

So, I slipped the shoes and socks off, got on the treadmill and started walking. Hmm, my foot started to feel good almost right away. Odd. I cautiously turned the speed up, just to a slow jog. It felt...well, it felt really wrong but not physically, just mentally. Like I was violating some running rule. But, my foot felt great, so I kept going. I ended up only doing about 1/2 a mile but it was fantastic.

My feet did hurt last night; it was weird to be sore in my feet.

I'm not sold, but I'm optimistic about adding some barefoot cross-training to strengthen my feet/ankles.

2 comments:

Josh Snellink said...

Cool to hear that you gave barefoot a try! Just remember to take it slow, and give the newly used muscles time to adjust. Cross training for foot strength is an excellent idea unless you go overboard and injure them.

Dan Taylor said...

Agree with Barefoot Josh... take it slow. I started in late July, a mile at a time, gradually built up my feet and calf muscles to same distance and speed as a ran in shoes. Just finished 12th marathon Sunday wearing Vibram FiveFingers. I tried totally barefoot, but even on the treadmill, it gave me blisters. Good luck to you!