my fitness program IV- day 9
A Startling New development in the potentially tedious field of fitness aquisition…
A strange series of coincidences has lead me into the arcane world of barefoot running.
1. I meet a runner who swears by running flats and not super padded shoes.
2. I see two runners- one running on his heels like most joggers including me and one runnning on air ie. his toes/forefeet.
3. I start running barefoot around my large sitting room and dining room- impossible to run barefoot on your heels.
4. I scour the internet and find a brotherhood of barefoot runners and runners who swear by running properly ie. not on your heels in big Nike trainers.
The problem is: I have thirty++ years of wearing shoes to overcome. If you start running on your toes/frontfoot the strain is high at first. Instead of your knees taking a beating your calves and achilles tendon tighten- because they are the new shock absorbers. But it feels so much better- more natural, more fun, more free feeling. The thinner the soles the better- I am currently running in moccasins. Things suddenly make sense- like why I always found it easier running up hill- because you automatically go onto your toes going uphill.I realise too that unless I’m pursuing the offbeat side of any kind of subject I lose interest fast.
The other key thing is making lots of fast small strides rather than loping great big ones. I think its easier to get your work rate up by increasing stride length than by increasing stride speed, so have a fast default stride at the outset.
robert twigger