My fitness program V- day 14
I went to the beach at Ain Sukhna, the nearest Red Sea coast to Cairo to have fun and to do some barefoot beach running. Which was brilliant. Look at those people hobbling along the soft sand on their heels like they only just learnt to walk, you used to be like that, but no more…at least you hope so…instead feel good and run on your toes, small strides for soft sand longer freer ones for the hard sand near the water’s edge. At long last I have discovered what runner’s go on about ad nauseum- the feeling of utter freedom and flying as you run. Only happened to me before when running after two deer I once surprised in the woods and now doing the barefoot/forefoot experiment.
The beach at the odious Stella di Mare resort complex is great- long- about 1k from end to furthest end- with clean unstoney sand. The best fun is to be had before 11.30am as the beach is nearly empty- but even on packed Easter Day, one of the busiest of the year, I was doing there-and-back runs every hour or so- must have clocked a good 10km and the strange alchemy of sun, sand, sea and fresh air reversed the normal energy flow, I’ve found this in the mountains too, where, despite the physical exertion you are actually getting charged up by your surroundings. Hottest lunchtime temp: 38 degrees C- but I was swimming and mucking around with the kids in the water so it didn’t really feel that hot- all the runs I did with my tee shirt still wet from swimming- still got sunburnt though despite this precaution.
Oh- why is the resort odious? Too big, too used to dumb tourists, too stupid-rule bound, terrible service- the usual. But the early morning beach is brilliant.
The downside of forefoot running is tight achilles tendons. In the early morning it can be a bit of a killer. I don’t want swollen, tendonitus affected, achilles heels so I am dutifully stretching them out five times each for ten seconds each leaning lower and lower against a wall with the floot flat and toes pointing towards the wall, body and straight leg making the hypotenuese against the floor and wall. Doing this stretching at regular moments all through the day as I fear that twenty years of heel running has left my tendons pretty darn tight.
Knees feel great…so far…forefoot running is so kind to them.
Fitness wise- I can’t think of a better way to train than long beach runs in bare feet- you feel you can keep going forever!