Thursday
Jun102010
Another TV Report: FiveFingers... "Funny Looking Shoes"
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 8:17AM I found the following video linked to the Barefoot Runners Society website of a Boston channel 5 TV report on the benefits to running barefoot. Both Lieberman, a member of a Harvard team that studies the biomechanics of foot strikes, and McDougall, the author of Born to Run, find their way into this concise report. Watch for the Brown/Walnut Classics that find a little camera time as well.
Reader Comments (4)
Hi Nathan,
Just wanted to catch up with you on your VFF Challenge, and share my own recent barefoot experience. First of all, congratulations on your "pace PR" in the Legacy Half. You must be in your best running shape yet to PR over a 13.1 mile distance in the conditions of that day. I don't know which was worse... the uphill going out or the driving headwinds and icy snow on the way back. Well done!
Presently, I'm recovering from the Lewis and Clark Marathon from last Sunday. I went for my first 4-mile recovery run yesterday. The going was tough. My quads ached from the trashing they took on the undulating "net downhill" roads and single track of Bozeman, Montana. I really wasn't enjoying my painful 8:00 min./mile pace, but I know it's a necessary first step on the road to recovery and racing again. As I was passing a large grassy space that remarkably resembled the dimensions of a track at G.S. Lakie Elementary School, an idea popped into my head. Remembering our conversation about your barefoot saga after the Legacy 2 weeks ago, I spontaneously kicked off my Brooks and continued my run, barefoot on the grass. What a difference! The pain in my quads virtually disappeared and my eyes nearly popped when I checked my pace on the Garmin. I was effortlessly cruising around this field at a 6:30 min./mile pace. I think you and Zola Budd have it right. When I had to put my Brooks back on to make it home over the ashpalt and gravel roads, the pain in my quads returned and my pace dropped back down again. Very interesting. I'm going to include a weekly barefoot session in my runs from here on, and I'm looking at picking up a pair of Vibrams. Which model would you suggest for me?
Hope all is going well with yout training. See you at the races!
Tim
Tim, it's great to hear from you, and thanks for the barefoot report. Perhaps you would be up for runnig the Legacy half in bare feet with me next year :-) Before I recommend a VFF model for you I have to say that going barefoot is the better and cheeper option. You get significantly more feedback from the ground, and it's surprisingly freeing. 'Runnig Barefoot,' by Michael Sandler and Jessica Lee, is a book that I have started reading, and it seems to have some great information regarding barefoot transitioning along with barefoot benefits. I would reccomend it.
As far as Vibram FiveFingers, the Bikilas are tougher to find but worth the hunt. They are running specific, with a lighter, softer upper, reflective accents, and slightly more aggressive sole (rubber pods placed at strategic points offering traction for hills and increased stiffness keeping toes from rolling under the foot). One downside is that they provide less sensitivity to the ground than the KSO or Sprints, but if you are running barefoot at least once a week, your body will have a chance to feel how things are going adequetly enough.
Runner's Soul may have your size in the KSO or Sprint, and they could help you out with sizing. If you have any other questions or need help tracking down locations for Bikilas, let me know. I'll help you out however I can.
Cheers!
Tim, your reference to Zola Budd had me questioning who she was. Being that I have only started running I am a little ignorant of 'running' history. What a remarkable barefoot running woman. I read up on her in a Runner's World article that claimed to have a more objective view of her controversial running career. Check the article out here .
Hey Nathan I was checking out your blog. its been awhile. we will see you in a week. I was just wanting to say that we stayed in that hotel you see behind this guy in Boston, the one that looks like a pyramid.