Save Your Sole: Run Barefoot -- Part One.

Well, at least toughen your sole anyway.

Spring is creeping its way north once again and people are getting outside to exercise. More and more people will go outside and lace up those running shoes and go for their first runs of the year or the their first runs ever. While it appears the "craze" part of the barefoot/nearly barefoot running thing has died down, sooner or later a new runner will be in a race or on a run in the park and see someone running barefoot, in "those toe shoes," sandals, or something that looks like slippers. A brief conversation with these minimalist runners may lead one to question what the guy at the running shoe store told them about over pronation.

There are some things to know before ditching one's shoes though. If a runner is accustomed to old there will be pain, oh yes, there will be pain.
fashioned running shoes (yeah, I said old fashioned) and enthusiastically jumps on the Tarahumara bandwagon without a solid transition,

Over the next few posts here I'll share some things to watch out for if you think you would like to switch to less shoe.

These are close, but still not barefoot.

Today I'm discussing heel - toe differential. If there is a 16mm difference in the heel and toe in your shoe, your heel is 16mm (more than half an inch) higher than your toe when standing in those shoes. If you switch from this to running in a shoe with zero differential, your foot will be in a more natural position, but your muscles haven't been operating this way so there is some adjustment to be done.

If a personal training client came to me complaining of some low back discomfort, told me they had a desk job where they sat in an office chair 8-10 hours per day 5 days per week, I'd already be betting on a particular cause. I would check to see if when standing their pelvis tilted forward. Sitting all day for large portions of life will cause some changes in the muscles. The hip flexors (which pull the knee forward toward the torso will get used to the sitting position, making them shorter and tighter. Meanwhile the hamstrings, getting used to their new position will lengthen and become looser. This is what causes the unnatural position of the pelvis and therefore the lower back pain. Stretches and exercises would have to be done to correct the muscle imbalances.

The same goes for the foot.

Changing the angle the foot with shoes that lift the heel off the ground allow the calf and hamstrings to stretch less, therefore they shorten and tighten. A sudden change in how far those muscles have to stretch could overload the muscles and tendons causing calf pain or injury, hamstring pain or injury, achilles tendon pain or injury. . .

Don't give up though, there is hope.

First of all, thanks to the pendulum swing towards barefoot, and the swing back looking for balance, it is pretty easy these days to find out what the heel-toe differential in your shoe is. If you've been running in a 16mm drop shoe and you want to make a change you don't have to go to zero. Talk to your trusted running shoe person about your goals and they can help you find a shoe with a less high heel.

Another tool in your toolbox is stretching. Find a good stretching routine to lengthen your hamstring and calf muscles. You will here a lot about how stretching doesn't prevent injury and impedes performance, and how you shouldn't stretch before a workout. The purpose of stretching is to improve the range of motion. In this case, a runner needs to improve the range of motion, so after a workout, stretch those calves.

Strengthening. Running requires eccentric contractions of the calf muscles on each footfall. Get those calves ready with some good strengthening exercises. Meanwhile, since we are lengthening the calves with stretching, lets also strengthen the front of the leg with some exercises for the anterior tibialis.

Slow down, and shorten your run. If you switch from a 40 pound weight to a 50 pound weight you would reduce your repetitions. The same applies here, the muscles are working more on each footfall, so give them fewer footfalls at a slower pace.

Use these tips and you can start a transition to a more natural running style. This is only one aspect of the difference between old fashioned running shoes and much older fashioned running on your feet, so stay tuned for more.

How To Choose The Shoe For You

It's that time of year again. The weather is warming up, people are getting outside, getting active, starting running and asking all sorts of questions about how to do it right.

Common question: "What shoes should I wear for running?"

Smart Alec answer: "Whatever shoes are best for you."

Serious answer: "Whatever shoes are best for you."

If you go online and ask what shoes you should wear, a lot of people are going to answer by telling you what kind of shoe they should wear. This information is useless to you unless you are a body snatcher and you plan on taking over there body to go for a run.

So, all you new runners, here is how to pick a shoe.

1. Forget about shoes for a minute, think about your body. Running builds a strong healthy body, but also requires a strong healthy body. Spend two to three days per week strengthening your body. Strengthen your feet, calves, hamstrings, glutes, quadriceps, hip flexors, hips, core, while your at it give the upper body some love too. You'd be amazed how tired your shoulders can get from running.

2. Run barefoot. You don't have to run barefoot everywhere you go, you don't have to run barefoot on concrete, but you will learn so much about running from some barefoot runs.

3. Go to a running specialty store. Not Foot Locker, not Dunham's, somewhere that employs a bunch of runners. If you aren't sure if it is a specialty running store go in and say to the first person you see, "What are you training for?" Their answer will let you know if they are a runner.

4. Tell them what you are looking for, they should watch you run a bit before they recommend a shoe. Try on the shoe they recommend. If it does not feel comfortable, tell them everything you don't like about the shoe. Repeat this process until your feet feel heavenly.

5. Don't forget to run barefoot.

Why You Can't Keep Your Heart Rate In Your Range

Lately I've read lots of posts from runners having a panic attack about their inability to run slowly enough to stay in their target heart rate training zone.

Guys, chill, there are lots of reasons that you could be exceeding your target zone.

Reason 1. Your heart rate monitor is wrong.

I've had heart rate monitors tell me my heart rate was in the high 50's during an interval workout. I had one that wouldn't pick up my heart rate if it were below 40 degrees Farenheit. Before you stress, find out how accurate your monitor is.

Reason 2. Your ESTIMATED heart rate zones are wrong. Did you notice the emphasis I put on the word ESTIMATED? In case you didn't let me emphasize it some more. ESTIMATED. How did you decide what your target heart rate is? 220 - age times a percentage? Did you MAF it and go with 180 - age? Did you know that 220- age could be off as much as 30 beats per minute?  For perspective, I turn 38 next month. According to the MAF method my maximum heart rate for aerobic work is 142. 30 bpm error factored in it could be 112. What if I tried to run my long run at 142 when I need to run it at 112? That error could also put me at 172 for my maximum aerobic capacity, at 142 I'd be barely working.

Unless you've had your maximum heart rate tested you really don't know what it is.

Reason 3. You are running too darn fast. Slow down.

So what is a fan of Phil Maffetone to do?

Chill guys, I got this. If you are running down the road and you say out loud, "Oh geez, my heart rate is ten beats higher than 180 minus my age. What am I going to do. I just can't seem to run slowly enough to stay in my heart rate range. This is really embarrassing I don't want anyone to see me running that slowly. Oh well, I guess I either have to embrace the shame or ruin my workout."

If you can say all that out loud, you  haven't exceeded your aerobic zone, you're OK to keep going at that pace.

It's called the talk test. If you can say about a paragraph's worth out loud you are aerobic, if you can't you've crossed the threshold.

Links to other articles on this are below.

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/24/health/maximum-heart-rate-theory-is-challenged.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm
http://www.runwashington.com/news/1134/310/The-Problem-with-Heart-Rate-Monitors.htm

5 Reasons I Hate the Treadmill (and 5 Reasons I Love It)

Every once in a while, the elements outside combine in such a fashion to drive me to run on the dreaded treadmill. Treadmill running is psychologically hard for me because I get so bored, but it also has its benefits.

Five reasons I hate the treadmill

5. Snot rockets. Where in the world can I send my snot rocket?

4. The view. The other day I spent an hour staring at a cobweb.

3. It is too tempting to stop. If I'm on a 10 mile out and back and I feel like quitting halfway through, guess what, I still have to get home. If I feel like quitting on the treadmill, the couch is right over there. Very tempting.

2. No wind. I like the feel of the air moving across my face as I run, I get none of that on the treadmill.

1. Boring. Boring, boring, boring.

Five reasons I love the treadmill.

5. If I am focused on a certain pace that day, I dial up that pace and the treadmill makes sure I keep it.

4. Slick roads. I refuse to do my speed workouts when there is patchy ice, or snow compacted into sheets of ice, the treadmill keeps me safe on those rare icy days in Kentucky.

3. If something happens, I can stop and be at home. No need to search for a bathroom or water fountain, I can hop off the treadmill and meet whatever needs I have.

2. No wind. Yesterday morning there were winds gusting 20-30 miles per hour. No thanks, I'll run on the treadmill.

1. It keeps me honest. I can know exactly what my pace is, if there is a discrepancy in my stride I can't blame it on terrain, with so many variables controlled any errors in my running are MY errors.

How about you? What do you like and hate about the treadmill.

How To Get Faster.

A grey blanket covered the sky and a thin misty rain kept everything soggy. It was one of those days on which it seemed an umbrella would be useless. It felt like the raindrops were just suspended in the air blowing around in every direction. Despite the conditions, I had a goal in mind. 20:00 or less for a 5K. In my first year of running I went from a 26:47 to a 20:30 PR. Today I wanted to do even better. I had 6 months more experience since my last PR, but I had some things working against me too.

Over the winter I had stopped focusing on 5K speed and was adding distance to train for a half marathon trail race. Over that training cycle I had injured myself and was set back a little bit. The half marathon (report here) was an awesome experience but there was only one month between it and this 5K. I took 2 weeks to recuperate, not running for one week, then taking it easy for another week leaving little time for speed training.

At the halfway mark I talked to another runner we both were trying to break our 20:30 PRs so I stuck with her for quite some time. We did a little leap frog for about a mile. Then on the hills in the last mile she left me in the dust. My final time was 20:32.

Here it is one year later and I still haven't beaten that 20:30 PR much less gotten under 20:00.

So on to the question so many runners are asking.

How do I get faster?

There is a system, there are steps you can follow. Which step you start on today really depends on what you've already done.

1. Get more efficient. 
If you are new to running, stop thinking about getting fast, instead get more efficient. Your tendons, ligaments, and muscles need to adapt to the stress of running. So do your heart and lungs. So for now, ban the word faster from your thinking. Gradually increase the duration of your runs, add minutes or miles a little at a time, week after week. Your body will start adapting down to the cellular level. You could spend as much as a year in this phase. Don't worry, you have the rest of your life to run.

Part of getting more efficient is improving your technique. Learn to run correctly, research running form, have someone look at your running form to see if you are doing something that will slow you down or injure you, then fix the problems.

2. Get stronger. 
Don't neglect strength training. Running is the best exercise for running, but doing the same motions over and over works the same muscles in the same movements. Give the other muscles some love so you don't develop imbalances in the body.

3. Don't get hurt.
Don't say footstrike any more. Say landing. Why would you want to strike the ground with your foot? Striking the ground sends energy downward into the ground. Leave foot striking to martial arts training. Run soft and easy, land your foot on the ground and propel yourself forward. Follow the advice I was once given. "If it hurts, don't do it." Believe me, pushing to hard and getting injured will slow you down a lot more than taking it too easy.

4. To learn to run fast, you must run fast.
Once your body is now a runner's body (remember, it could be a year or even more) start running fast.
Once a week, work on intervals, do a warm up, then run hard for three minutes then jog for three, run three, jog three. Gradually build up the number of intervals you do. Look for other interval workouts, this is just a super basic way to get started.

Other than getting a personal trainer and a running coach, that's really the way to go. If any of you were hoping for a magic solution to cut your 5K time by five minutes in four weeks I don't have that for you. If you find out how to do that, let me know.