This summer I've started going barefoot as much as I can. I'm required to wear shoes at work, but once I get home, off they come. There are several blogs I read about the topic of walking and running barefoot that inspired me starting with Torjus's. Next I read "Learning to Walk" at The Anthropik Network. Finally my brother pointed me to http://www.runningbarefoot.org/ which finally gave me the urge to give barefoot running a try.
Yesterday I ran barefoot. I ran my usual course through the park. It was a hot day so I took of my shirt as well. It felt very natural until I got cat-calls from a couple girls. "Hey sexy!" "I love a man who runs barefoot!". I asked them to join me but they didn't. Anyway, the run was more exciting since the course I ran was suddenly brand new. Instead of thinking this is the part by the playground, it was this is the part over rocks and sticks. As usual when I got to the forested part, I concentrated on running without making a sound. It was way easier when I was barefoot. As I left the forest the path was covered with broken glass so I had to watch my footwork.
I felt light weight and more agile. I felt like my legs weren't as tired as usual. I was still out of breath but my legs weren't as tired. The only negative was the blood blister on my second toe. It took up pretty much the whole bottom of the toe. I guess I still have some work to do on my technique.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
'I got cat-calls from a couple girls. "Hey sexy!"'
It's always nice to recive positive feeback, isn't it
Here's some more:
Good to see that you're posting again, i missed you, keep it up
SBW
PS hope the job's going well
nice work yo
don't try cutting out the floor boards of your car and stopping your car barefoot.
don't do it that way.
awesome! You've inspired me to go barefoot again.
Just curious: breathing through your nose or your mouth?
http://ultimatefitness.wordpress.com/2006/10/13/the-importance-of-nasal-breathing/
http://www.tullyrunners.com/Articles/RaucciArticle.htm
hey brohan...
...another tracker school student / primitive skills obsessive here from the jersey shore/nyc.
if you like being barefoot but still need to have a ( " normal " ) job or exist in urbania check out www.vivobarefoot.com / www.terraplana.com / www.vibramfivefingers.com .
These are the only true shoes on the market which I would say, other than a "hollowed out" pair of vans (the cheapest and my once preferred option for the last 3 years) promote walking with the earth, allow for proper posture, and protect your feet. Terraplana, in particular, references the popular alexander method in europe as a tension reliever and stresses the importance of our connection to the ground.
perhaps the greatest argument for being barefoot is "technology" itself. compare millions of years of human evolution with several hundred years of "advanced" or modern footwear. what we are born with is essentially what is best for us. Terraplana has an excellent "little red book" they have at their stores in EU and in NYC which outlines some interesting facts as far reaching as the foot condition of barefoot rickshaw drivers in SEA and how our feet have over 200,000 nerve endings; one of the most dense concentrations anywhere in the body.
Vibram's shoes have recently been used in several marathons and I think were even reviewed on the site you referenced in your post. I'll be demoing a pair pretty soon and I'm excited to see how they perform. The opportunity to strengthen individual digits is pretty rad - most modern shoes "assist" each toe making them one moving part.
I paid the high price tag for a pair of vivos and I will tell you there is nothing quite like these shoes in the world. They are, for lack of a better word(s), super moccasins. Truly, what makes them "super" is...well...cordage. Super modern, synthetic cordage: Kevlar. This element is essentially what makes them superior to everything else out there. Although I am curious if it will stop a nail or, say, a knife point (as most bullet proof vests cannot even do that) you can tell immediately putting them on that you are protected yet certainly free. it was like trying on the first real pair of shoes in my life.
hopefully ill catch you out at eddies @ practical primitive one of these days.
cheers
frank
Frank, interesting stuff. Hope to meet you at Eddie's sometime.
Post a Comment