Success, Failure, or To Be Determined?

Six months ago I set out to see if a fat man could run again.  This is what I said...

This is my goal: Six months from today, June 21st 2012, I, Michael David Terrell, will be running again.

Did I make it?  The short answer is, yes, my goal was acheived.  To leave it at that would not really do justice to the last six months.

To review, the reason I started this experiment was three-fold:

1. I missed running, despite how much I love cycling.
2. The concept of "barefoot running" came on the scene and was intriguing.
3. I wanted another avenue for exercise that was not as time or equipment intensive as cycling.

First, do I still like running?  Yeah, but not nearly as much as cycling.  If I had to choose between the two, cycling would win hands down without a second thought.  Running is certainly enjoyable enough that I will continue with it.  That and running a 5k race is fun.

Second, did the whole "barefoot running" thing work out the way I had hoped?  Yeah, pretty much.  Granted, I'm not actually running "barefoot".  I do wear shoes that could best be described as running slippers.  Their only real job is to protect my foot from objects I might step on.  A few caveats should be mentioned for those with an interest in trying the same experiment:

• Currently, I run about twice a week for about 30 minutes at a time.  That is it.  No high mileage for me.
• It is hard to imagine doing anything more than a 10k race.  At this point, I have no desire or ambition for anything more.
• There was a lot of time put into the transition from no-running to barefoot-running.  Anyone thinking of trying a barefoot running style should: 1) thoroughly educate themselves regarding good, natural running mechanics, 2) start with very small distances, 3) build themselves up slowly, and 4) listen to what their bodies are trying to tell them.  Those who fail to listen will suffer the consequences.  You've been warned!!!
• I have had the benefit of having a well-trained and experienced orthopaedic physical therapist to consult (that would be me, by the way).  Not to toot my own horn too much, but I know what I'm doing.

Lastly, is running a good alternative to cycling?  Honestly, this is where I am getting my main motivation to continue running.  Here is a good example...this past weekend we spent time with Michelle's family for Christmas.  This involved driving to McBain, then to Midland, and then back to Grand Rapids.  I loaded and unloaded the van more times than I can remember.  If I had added a bike and the necessary cold weather bike gear, it might have sent me over the edge.  Packing for running is much simpler.  Also, finding time for 30-40 minute run is easier than a 1-2 hour bike ride.  Running was a much better fit than cycling.

How is my right knee feeling?  To be honest, it is not pain-free with running.  Right medial knee pain was the reason I stopped running in the first place.  My hope was that the barefoot-style of running would solve that little problem.  I'm not convinced that it has.  On the other hand, it has not worsened or gotten to the "this isn't worth it stage".  I need more time and a more consistent running schedule to see how this pans out in the long-term.  I only ran once between Thanksgiving and Christmas (not because I didn't want to, but life just got real busy).  The new year should be better for consistency.

Am I a runner?  That is not how I see myself.  I am a cyclist who runs on occasion.

So, how will my experiment continue?  As I mentioned above, I will probably stick with a couple runs a week for around 30 minutes at a time.  There will probably be the occasional 5k and maybe, just maybe a 10k race sometime in the vague and distant future.  Running will always be supplementary and secondary to cycling.  In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if I go through no-running stretches as I'm preparing for big rides.

Yeah, that sounds pretty reasonable to me.  How does that sound to you?

The Occasional Update and Exericse ADD

Over the last several weeks, my runs have been 30 minutes/3 miles on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Admittedly, this is really nothing to write home about.  What's the big deal, right?

Well, they are getting easier.  That's what.  There is less right knee discomfort.  Less right lower leg fatigue.  I feel like I can go a little longer.

I've even been able to "pick up the pace" at the end of the runs, which feels really good.  Let's face it, fast is fun.

There was a period of time where I thought I might be stuck at the 5k distance.  I was beginning to think it was all my body could handle on a regular basis.  I think this will be true for a while, but adaptation is slowly taking place.

In the beginning of my little experiment, my body was changing quickly.  I could add some distance on a regular basis.  Now, it feels like I need to spend more and more time at a given distance before I move up a notch.

Some of the barrier seems psychological vs physical.  When I made it to the 5k distance there was a You've made it!!! type of thought in my head.  That thought put me into a take it easy and just run mindset.  There is really nothing wrong with this but I knew deep down I would eventually have to move beyond it.

As a rule, I get bored easily with workouts.  I need to be constantly changing things up to make it interesting.  Part of the problem comes from having such a wealth of knowledge & experience about exercise, the human body, physiology, and different training techniques.

During a typical run, I probably change my mind on what I'm going to do, how far I'm going to go, and what pace I will run about a dozen times.  I call it Exercise ADD.  My mind shoots from one idea to another like a dog in a room full of squirrels.  It does keep things interesting.

The problem with Exercise ADD is that you never really get to see the results of a particular exercise routine.  As an example, let's say I was to do 2:1 intervals while running (that would be twice as much slow pace running vs fast).  If I was to do this, consistently, for a month, I could do a before and after test on my 5k time.  Now, let's say I get to the second 2:1 run and decide to make it 3:1 or 1.5:1 or race pace run.  Then the third run is long, steady pace.  The fourth run is back to a 2:1 interval.  By the time the month is up, I won't be able to tell what effect the 2:1 intervals had because I won't have done them consistently enough.

I have to admit that deep down I don't really care.  I like mixing things up and being imaginative.  What exactly am I training for anyways?  Fun is more important than "good training principles".

Just Cruisin' Along

There hasn't been a post since October 4th...hmmm.  Why not?

As I mentioned in recent posts, my running has really transitioned to a less intense, maintenance phase.  Basically, there isn't much to talk about.  Over the last several weeks I have run on Tuesday & Thursday mornings.  I get up, help get the kids ready, see Hannah onto the bus and then take off for a 30 minute run (give or take a little).

I don't even keep track of time while I'm running.  My Garmin 500 beeps every 10 minutes, but otherwise I'm not keeping track.  Why do I do this?

Good question.  My running is really for enjoyment and some exercise.  It feels good to get out there and run.  It feels good to know that I've done something healthy before I even go to work.

When I get to the 6 month mark on my little experiment, I will re-evaluate how I am doing and will declare goal met or goal not met.  At this time, I don't see any real problems.

It's all relative

Last Wednesday I rode my bike for 103 miles.  It took about 6.5 hours of riding and 7.5 hours of total time.  That's a lot of time.

After doing a ride like that, a 1-2 hour ride doesn't really seem like all that much, even if you are riding really hard for that 1-2 hours.  Thirty miles seems like a long ways until you remember the 103 mile ride.

By contrast, my typical run takes between 30-35 minutes.  By the 30 minute mark of a bike ride, I'm getting nicely warmed up.

Back in 2008-2009, when I transitioned to cycling from running, a 45-60 minute bike ride seemed like a really long ride.  Most of my runs were probably in the 30-35 minute range, at that point.

Before too long, that 45 minute bike ride didn't seem like a whole lot.  In fact, I started to feel like I needed to ride for at least 60 minutes for it to be even worth it.

It's all relative.

Three to four years later and I have done multiple century rides and many training rides in the 50-90 mile range, which will last 4-6 hours.  My perception of "a lot" of exercise has changed.  A 30 minute run feels good but it does not feel like an extreme exertion.  This morning I did a 34 minute/3.4 mile run before work.  Am I really tired?  No.  Am I really sore?  No.  Do I feel wasted for the day?  Not even close.

Cycling has been good for my running.  It has given me perspective.  I have seen "hard" and this is not it.

My hope is that the running will also be good for the cycling side of me.  Running is a good alternative if I am in a cycling rut.  Running challenges the body in a different way (any triathelete will tell you that).  It is something I can do when I don't have a lot of free time but I really need some physical exertion.  It is also a lot easier to pack for a weekend away with Michelle's family if all I will plan to do is a run (there is just plain-and-simple less stuff to bring).

I should really know better

Sometimes you have to learn a lesson the hard way.  Sometimes, you have to learn that lesson the hard way several times.  Yesterday was one of those days.

My goal was simple - do a 30 minute run around the neighborhood before going to work.  I saw Hannah off to school and then I took off.

Prior to this, I had ignored the fact that, how should I put it....I had to poop.

Any runner or cyclist will tell you that this sort of thing must be taken care of before setting off.  Failure to follow this rule will, at best, lead to a shortened run/ride.  At worst, you're using leaves in the middle of a grove of trees to wipe your bum, praying that no one sees you.

Yesterday was, fortunately, the best case scenario where my run was shortened to 22 minutes.  When I arrived home, it was straight to the brown room.
On a related note, can you run in a relaxed manner while clenching your sphincter?  Not surprisingly, the answer is no.

There was actually one point at which it felt like my belly might explode from the pressure (yes, I know that wouldn't actually happen but that is what it felt like).  If you had been watching me at that exact moment you might have assumed I was either in great pain or that I was running super-duper hard.  It was neither, of course.  I was trying not to drop a deuce.

So the moral of the story?  Listen to your body.  Take a moment to answer nature's call.

Transitioning

Now that I have completed a 5K race, there is this sense that I have transitioned to something...different.  It doesn't feel like I need to document every run and every detail.  It also feels like I can be more flexible on my running schedule.

Initially, I ran every other day.  Once I got to 2.5-2.75 miles/run , I switched to every third day.  Now, it feels like I can do 2-3 runs/week and that will be good.

This morning, I did a 30 minute run around the neighborhood before going into work.  There was no specific purpose for this run other than to run.  It was great.

No specific agenda.  No specific mileage.  No specific pace.  Just running.

It feels like that is the way it should be.

All of my runs will not be of this variety.  I'm to scientifically minded to not want to add in intervals, repeats, hill workouts, or sustained-pace workouts.  But the thought that I can go out and run for the sake of running is very comforting.  It feels like I have been aiming for this all along.

As I stated in my last post, I am not declaring my goals met but I am awfully close.  My plan is to wait until the 6 month mark and see how everything is feeling.

The 2012 West Side Christian Run 4 Reading

Back on June 21st, I set a goal for myself that I would be 'running' within 6 months.  These were my exact words, in fact...

This is my goal: Six months from today, June 21st 2012, I, Michael David Terrell, will be running again.

As I have noted before, I did not accurately define 'running'.  This was intentional.  The entire process of re-learning to run was never 'accurately defined' so I didn't want to set unreachable goals.  Since that time, my thought process has been that if I were able to get to the point were I could do 30 minute runs 2-3 times per week and do an occasional 5k, than I would consider my goal met.

It is now 3 months since I set my goal and I ran my first 5k race in something like four years.

Just as background, the Run 4 Reading 5k is a fundraiser for Hannah's school, West Side Christian.  Specifically, it raises funds for the library.

During the intervening 3 months, I have been trying to re-learn to run using a natural/barefoot/minimalist style of running.  Sorry for all the different terms but I don't think anyone has come up with an all-encompassing title.  For now, I will stick with "natural".

If you have seen people trotting around in those goofy-looking 5 fingers shoes, you will have some idea of what I am talking about.  The gist of natural running is that the human body is well suited to running (in fact, designed for running) without external support.

There are four aspects of natural running which appear again and again on the various websites and in publications that advocate this style.

1. The initial contact of the foot is on the ball of foot or just behind (not onto the heel).
2. The initial foot contact should take place under your trunk instead of ahead of your trunk.
3. You should maintain an upright, eyes-forward posture.
4. Your cadence (steps/minute) should be quite high (about 180 steps/minute).

Four years ago, when I stopped running, I used the more common heelstrike pattern.  This was causing pain at the inside of my right knee and it did not seem that I could do anything about it.  The promise/premise of natural running is that more of the impact force is taken by muscles & tendons versus by the joints.  From a physical therapist's perspective, this makes perfect sense and is highly desirable.  Your muscles and tendons have a much greater capacity for shock absorbtion compared to joint structures.

I am not yet declaring my goal met and I cannot yet fully advocate for the natural style of running...but I'm really close.  Yesterday, I was able to do the Run 4 Reading in just more than 26 minutes.  This is very comparable to what I was doing between 2001-2008.  However, I have only had 3 months of training.  When I started 3 months ago, my first run was 1/4 mile (seriously...I'm not even kidding).  I didn't get to 2 miles until about one month ago.  Only 2 of my training runs were even at a 5K distance.

How is my knee?  Very mildly sore.  This soreness typically goes away within 24 hours.  Today it is probably more noticeable than after previous runs because I did run rather hard yesterday.

How are my feet?  Perfectly fine, actually.  Other than the expected muscle soreness you get from training, everythng has felt fine.  Most of my training has been on asphalt and concrete.  I do wear shoes, but the shoes are essentally running slippers.  All they do is protect the soles of my feet.  They provide no support or cushioning.  In fact, I didn't get them until I was 2 months into the experiment.  Prior to that, I was running fully barefoot.

Here is what sets apart yesterday from four years ago...I had fun yesterday.  I was able to run and run hard without feeling like I was causing damage to my body.  I feel like I am doing something that is good for myself in the long-term rather than pushing my body to the point where I know I am going to pay the price later.

In my line of work, you see the results of a person's bad decisions.  You see the consequences of not taking care of yourself or of pushing yourself too far.  I like to believe I have learned from other people's mistakes.  I like to believe that what I am doing is good for me now and in the future.

Time will tell whether I am right or not.  A trend I have noticed is that my right knee will be sore the first time I up the distance.  The next run it will be less sore afterwards.  The third time at the same distance, the knee will be very minimally sore.  If this trend continues, I should be able to run a 5K distance comfortably once my body has fully adapted to the stress.

What are my plans for the future?  Keep running, obviously.  I will likely stick to 30-40 minute runs.  All increases in distance or pace will be very gradual.  Am I in a rush?  No.  Do I want to hurt myself?  Absolutely not.  Should the experiment continue well, I can see myself trying a 10K in the future.  It is truly hard to imagine doing more than that.  When would I have time for biking?  Heaven forbid!

Day 83 & Day 87 - Woops, I completely forgot to post

That's right, I completely forgot to post after my day 83 run.  Busy, busy, busy.  There has been a lot on my mind with starting a new position at Mary Free Bed's Pain Center, planting grass in our backyard, and getting ready for the Tour de Donut and Colorburst ride.  Posting slipped my mind.

Distance: 3.2 miles & 3.18 miles (both through the neighborhood)

Weight: 210.6 lbs (Pain Center scale on 9/18/12)

Results: I'm finally starting to feel like a runner.  Less mental energy is spent focusing on my stride and my footfall.  More and more, I can relax and just run.  This is what I have been hoping for.  I have even been able to think about speed and trying to run faster.  My right knee has been pretty agreeable to the last several runs with minimal pain/symptoms.  It really does seem to have to do with how fatigued or not fatigued my right calf gets.

What I Learned: I can do this as long as I play it smart and don't try to do too much too soon.

Plan: This Thursday is the Run 4 Reading 5K at Millenium Park.  It will be my first race in several years and I am very much looking forward too it.  A 5K race is enjoyable because you can run hard without completely exhausting yourself and you are almost always doing it for a good cause.

Day 80 - a day late

I'm starting to enjoy the late evening runs in the dark.  They are done partially out of necessity (it's just easier to do after the kids are in  bed).  Tonight, I could look up and see the stars in the sky.  Everything was quiet.  I didn't see anyone else.  It was sort of like I had the neighborhood to myself.  Relaxing, in a exertional sort of way.

The only downside is that I seem to run more slowly at this time of day.  Why is that?  Not sure, really.  It usually feels like I'm cruising along pretty well, but when I actually check my pace at the end I'm above a 10-minute mile (anything less than a 10-minute mile is a victory for me).
Distance: 2.88 miles (this is the exact same distance as my last run but it was completely an accident that they were identical; I didn't plan it that way)

Weight: 208.8 lbs (Pain Center Downtown scale)

Results: This was a pretty comfortable run.  There started to be a little fatigue in the right calf toward the end, but not too bad overall.  My knee had only the most vague soreness/tightness toward the end.
What I Learned: besides I seem to run more slowly in the evening, not much.  There is a 5k planned next Thursday and I'm confident I'll be able to do it, probably not quickly, but I'll be able to do it.
Plan: Run Thursday, if time allows (it's a busy week).

Day 76 - Not much to say

Another evening run.  This one was almost completely in the dark.  My plan was to do about the same distance as my last run (2.57 miles) but it really morphed into more than that.  Everything was feeling good, so I kept going.  I did not check my Garmin much, which was on purpose.  The run needed to be "just a run".  No big deal, nothing special, just go out and do it.  That is what I did.

Distance: 2.88 miles

Weight: 210.6 lbs (Pain Center Scale)
Results: just about everything was fine.  I did not stop or rest during the run, except for a couple times I let a car pass through an intersection.  There was just the slightest sense of an ache in my right knee and my right soleus was fatigued toward the very end/afterward, but nothing bad.
What I Learned: Take it slow and take it easy.  This seems to be working well.  Since I have been wearing my Samsons each day at work, I am almost 100% barefoot.  There is a definte sense of adaptation in the lower legs.
Plan: Run on Sunday.  I doubt I will shoot for longer than today.  Why rush it.

Day 70 & 73 - Physical Adaptation

It has been a very busy weekend, otherwise I would have posted earlier.  The In-Laws were in town for the Labor Day weekend.  This typical means gettin' some projects done.  Oh boy, did we get some projects done.  By Monday afternoon, I was bodily tired and ready to go back to work just so I could take a break.

I ran on Friday and then on Monday.  In between, I took a couple good bike rides (one by myself and one with Hannah).  As of my last post, I was quite concerned about my right knee.  It would be inaccurate to say that I am not concerned about my right knee anymore but things have progressed well.  I'll go into detail below.

Day 70

Distance: 2.5 miles (trotting through the neighborhood).

Weight: didn't check

Results: When I was about 1.5 miles through my run, my right calf was feeling pretty fatigued so I decided to stop and walk for a little bit.  This was a good idea.  I probably walked for all of 0.2 miles but it was just enough of a break that the last mile was much easier.  There was also less right knee soreness, although it was not absent.

What I Learned: First, taking a break in the middle of a run can be a prudent strategy.  Second, my body is slowly adapting to the physical stress of running.  My limiter is my right calf.  As it feels stronger, I will be able to run longer and faster.

Day 73

Distance: 2.57 miles - I picked a fairly random path through my neighborhood, including the valley and ridge trail.  There was a short walking break about 1.65 miles into the run.

Weight: 210.6 lbs (Tuesday on the Pain Center scale)

Results: Faster than my last several runs with less right knee soreness.  Not completely absent but much, much less.  There was also less fatigue of the right calf, especially compared with the two runs previous.

What I Learned: I need to be smart and give my body time to adapt.  It is basic exercise physiology.  Don't forget the basics.  Never forget the basics.

Plan: Keep on the every third day strategy.  Slowly build up to 2.75 miles.  My daughter's school, West Side Christian, will be having a 5k run for reading on 9/20/12.  My plan is to run it, unless something weird comes up.

Day 67 - My Right Knee

Following my last run, which was 2 days ago, my right knee was sore for the entire next day.  By the day after that, it was fine.  My right calf (likely my soleus) felt sore, especially if I did a calf raise.  Despite this, I ran on Tuesday night after the kids were in bed.  Also, I spent Monday and Tuesday wearing my new Altra Samson shoes.  That means I essentially spent 2 days "barefoot" when I would have normally worn shoes.

By midway through my run, I could tell that both calves were tired with the right being more noticeable than the left.  I also noticed I finished almost 2 minutes slower than when I ran the same route two days earlier.
Distance: 2.5 miles

Weight: didn't check

Results: my right medial knee was sore afterwards but not as badly as I would have predicted (as of writing this, it can tell it is very minorly sore, but not as noticeable as Monday).  My calves and ankles were also sore (kind of a fatigued sore.  Otherwise, I felt fine.

What I Learned: It is possible that being "barefoot" for 2 straight days might have fatigued my calves more than I realized, leading to my slower time and extra soreness last night. 

What I am most concerned about is my knee.  Every other physical symptom I have experienced in this journey has fallen under the category of transient, exercise-related sorenss.  That sort of stuff gets bettter and goes away.

The right knee soreness seems different.  It seems more joint-related.  This concerns me because it is very similar to what I remember from when I was last running several years ago.  If it does not improve, my future with running is going to be limited.  It is as simple as that.  If the intermittent soreness I have now gets worse, becomes more intense and/or more frequent than something will have to change.

Plan: For now, I will run every third day instead of every other day.  I will also wear my regular shoes the day after a run to give my calves a break, but I will wear the Samsons on the next 2 days.  We'll see how it goes.

Day 65 - Altra Samsons, finally

So I finally got my pair of  Altra Samsons (not terribly impressed with the efficiency of the shipping process).  They arrived on Friday but I have not had a good chance to run in them until today (Sunday).  Running last night was a possibility, but I was quite tired.  I wanted my first run in these to be when I was fresh so I could evaluate them realistically.

To this point, all of my running has been barefoot, which has limited me to an extent.  Can someone develop a thick enough callus on the sole of the foot to regularly run on concrete and asphalt?  Probably, but I haven't seen it in my feet yet.  That is, of course, where shoes come in.  What was the purpose of the first pair of foot coverings?  They were likely for protecting the foot.  That is all I really need.

The best way I can describe them is running slippers.  There is no support in them.  They are not constricting in any way.  They have a sole that is flexible but not soft.  The sole is relatively thin, such that I can feel small rocks under my feet but they did not hurt.  They came with a thin insole, but I removed that, which I think helps with fit.

What was running in them like?  I pretty much forgot about my feet.  Without focusing on what the soles of my feet felt like, I could focus on my form and technique.  This was quite valuable.  In the past, I was often distracted by raw feet.  Most of the run was spent thinking about good posture, light foot strikes and a quick cadence.  One other note, in the last half mile I began to notice a hot spot on the outside of my right Achilles'/ankle.  Thin socks might be needed.  We'll see how it goes.

Please keep in mind these are my first minimalist shoes, so I have no means of comparison to other models.

The run was 2.5 miles long, right in my neighborhood (HOORAY!) and I finished it in 23:46.  That is faster than I have been running.  I would be willing to bet that I was less inhibit by having some protection for my feet.

With only one run under my belt, the Samsons seem like a good investment.  Time will tell.

Day 60 - a little break

Yes, I took a day off.  There was a variety of reasons for this.  First, I ran/biked/ran/biked 4 days in a row (last Wednesday to Saturday).  Second, I hadn't seen Michelle & the kids for several days.  Third, on Monday, I could not find time.  Simple enough.

Does it sound like I'm making excuses?  Yeah, I kinda am.

Realistically, a little bit of a musculoskeletal break was probably just what I needed anyway.

Last night, after the kids were in bed, I went back up to West's track and did 2.25 miles, barefoot of course.  My Altra Samson's are on the way and should be here on Friday.  We'll see. 

As a side note, when I ordered the shoes from Altra, I also ordered a new seatpost from a company called Velo Orange.  The shipping for both items was the same.  My new seatpost arrived, in good order, on Monday.  My shoes were shipped on Monday.  Both of these companies are small, US-based companies.  One of them has their ducks in a row.  The other does not.

Distance: 2.25 miles

Weight: 215 lbs (checked at Pain Center scale)
Results: Once again, my right medial knee was sore while I was running, but not afterwards.  I have not figured this out yet.  I'm definitely waiting for the other shoe to drop.  When is my right knee going to start to hurt even when I'm not running?  Hopefully it won't.  We'll see.

Another thing I noted today was that I could finally begin to get a feel for running lightly.  The best I can do to describe it is a sensation of springing my foot up or like quickly pulling my foot off the ground (kind of like there were hot coals).
What I Learned: Learning and adaptation takes time.  Thankfully, I have time.
Plan: My new shoes are coming Friday.  I should run again on Thursday.  On Thursday, Kenowa Hills will be having their first football game of the season, where my niece and step-niece will be performing with the marching band.  What to do, what to do?  At a minimum, I look forward to trotting around my neighborhood without tearing up my feet.

Day 56 - White Pine Trail

Since I was working up in Cedar Springs today, I thought I would use the White Pine Trail to do one of my runs.  My hypothesis was that the trail would not be quite as rough on my feet as sidewalks or the neighborhood streets.  I was wrong.  My intention was to try for 2.25 miles but I had to stop at 1.74 because my left foot was getting a little raw.  I didn't see the point of leaving bloody footprints along the trail. The good new is that I sold my bike frame and have ordered a pair of Altra Samsons.  I'm pretty excited.

Distance: 1.74 miles

Weight: didn't check

Results: as I mentioned above, my left forefoot got raw.  It is not as sore this evening as it was earlier.  While running, my right knee was sore.  This has been common recently but the funny thing is my knee feels fine shortly after I'm done.  This, I can't quite figure out.

What I Learned: Yes, I need shoes.

Plan: Honestly, I should run on Sunday but I will probably take a break.  If anything, I will do some sprints on West's practice field.

Just to Clarify

I titled this blog Can a Fat Man Run?  One would think this was an indication of a strong desire to lose weight through exercise.  That doesn't sound unreasonable, does it?

That is not really the case, though.  My primary goal for this blog is to document my journey in the process of learning to run again, using a barefoot/natural running style.

Sorry for the confusion.

Would I like to lose some weight?  Sure.  Has that thought been in the back of my head for quite some time?  Yep.  Actually, it's been in the back of my mind since I graduated high school (big sigh).

Realistically, I have not had the most success at getting down to a goal weight and keeping it there.  Since high school, I can think of 4 distinct time periods where I have lost weight.  So, yes, I can lose weight.

For the most part I have gained the weight back, at least partially.  Most recently, I went from around 230 lbs to my current weight of 212.  I think I bottomed out at like 202 lbs.  Oh the 100s, how you taunt me.

Honestly, I'm pretty happy that I have been able to keep myself below 215 lbs.  Below 200 would be great but that is tough.  It seems logical that if I am exercising more (running and biking vs biking only) I should lose extra weight.  It doesn't seem to work that way.

Most likely, if I'm burning extra calories, I will probably consume extra calories.  It's a wash.  Deep down, I know what I need to do to lose weight...control my appetite.  Eat less.  It's that simple...but it's not.

I tell myself, "If I get below 200, climbing hills will be faster.  If I get below 200, it will be less stress on my knees.  If I get below 200, I will be healthier."  There are a lot of good reasons.

The trouble is ice cream tastes really good.  So does chocolate, and cookies, and chips, and cake (cake, oh how I love thee!)  I'm weak.  You taunt me and tease me and then leave me with 5 extra pounds I need to burn off on the bike.

Can you imagine if I didn't run and bike?  I would be 350 in a heartbeat.  Bring on the cholesterol meds and the BP meds and the diabetic meds!

To be perfectly honest, my goal is to keep my weight under control and about where it is right now.  That is realistic.  If anybody knows of a better path, let me know.  I'm open to suggestions.

Day 54 - a little extra time

Michelle and the kids have gone over to Midland to visit her family and make spaghetti sauce.  That's right, Dutch folk making spaghetti sauce.  Kinda weird.  Either way, I had some extra time, so I did my two miles and then did some sprints.  I even rode my bike around a little just to get a few miles and a good warm-up.

Distance: 2 miles/8 laps at West Catholic's track.  This was followed by 3 fifty yard and 3 one hundred yard sprints.

Weight: not sure, I'll check tomorrow (212.2 on the pain center scale)

Results: My knee felt good, but my lower legs were quite tired for some reason.  My time wasn't particularly slow, but by the end of the 2 miles, my lower legs felt quite fatigued.  During most of my runs, I have felt as if I could easily keep going, if I wanted to.  Not so much today.  Also, that little open spot at the base of my left 1st toe came open again, which really hindered my running on the track.  Shoes!  I need shoes!!!

What I Learned: not every day is a good day (honestly, I already knew this).  My legs didn't feel the best, but that is OK.  I got through it.

Plan: Run Friday.  I don't know when Michelle & Company will get home but hopefully I can get a run in before they arrive.

Day 49 & 52 - boy, do I wish I had shoes

Day 49

Rainy, rainy, rainy.  It rained all day long.  Since I was working at the Spartan YMCA for the day, I figured I should just do my running there.  Why not, right?  Actually, I'm not technically allowed to use the YMCA facilities, but, what the heck.  Why not?

Distance: 2 miles (16 laps around the Spartan YMCA track)

Weight: didn't check

Results: I ran well and relatively quickly, especially considering I had to negotiate 64 ninety degree turns while running.  Oddly enough, a spot opened up on at the base of my left first toe from the running.  It looks like the skin actually split open some.  Yuck.

What I Learned: I need shoes.  This track running thing combined with skin issues on the soles of my feet is getting annoying.

Day 52

I skipped another day.  Sorry.  We were out of town this weekend and things just got too busy.  On Monday night, after the kids were in bed, I jogged around the neighborhood.  It was pretty cool actually, because there was a light rain falling.  I haven't ran in the rain in quite a long time.  Very relaxing, really.

Distance: 1.77 miles

Weight: 213.6 (Pain Center scale the next day)

Results: My right knee was sore while I was running but was fine after my shower.  My feet survived pretty well too.  They were just beginning to feel the friction from the concrete/asphalt.  My stride did not feel very symmetrical.  It felt as if my right soleus was tight and limiting dorsiflexion on that side.  I will need to work on this.
What I Learned: Stretch more and get some shoes!  Unfortunately, the dude who was interested in my bike frame decided not to buy it.  Shucks.  That would have given my the necessary cash to buy a pair of Altra Samsons.
Plan: Run on Wednesday night.  I think I will combine some easy laps around the track with some sprints up at West Catholic.  I haven't fully decided yet.

Day 47 - 2 Miles!

Day 47 was my first 2 mile run.  It felt really good, like I have accomplished something.  There is also the part of me that says, "You did 2 miles...big deal.  Talk to me when you get to 10."  The Hooray for 2 miles side is winning out at this moment.  You might have noticed I skipped a day again.  That is true.  Sometimes life simply does not allow you to do what you want to do on a given day.

Distance: 2 miles/8+ laps up at West Catholic (I looked it up and 4 laps around the track is actually 9 meters shy of an actual mile.  So I went just a little beyond 8 laps).

Weight: 212 (Pain Center Scale the day after)

Results: Felt good!  My knee did not bother me, nor is it bothering me today.  I still have not decided if some of the 1st ray pain is soft tissue in nature or if it is joint related (it is probably a little of both).  Doing some self massage with a lacrosse ball is helpful.

What I Learned: The progression is working.  I'm not having any major issues.  I can't wait to get some shoes so I can just take off from my front door.

Plan: Plan?  Good question.  We will be leaving to go up north after work on Friday, when I should be taking a run.  Should I run 2 days in a row or wake up early on Friday and run?  I'll decide tonight.

Day 42 & 44 - What was I thinking?

Ok, so it was pretty hot on Friday for my day 42 run (officially 6 weeks in!).  Since I still do not have any shoes, I went up to West Catholic's track again.  As usual, I started running on the grass just on the edge of the infield.  Before the first lap was done, I switched to the track and it felt OK.  As I kept going, I noticed it feeling hotter and hotter on the soles of my feet.  By the time I was done, I realized I had a mild burn on my forefoot with a little bit of blistering (Holy Hot Batman!).  Needless to say, my feet weren't very comfortable that night and the next day.  I was going to goof eventually.  Oh well
Distance: 1.75 miles (7 laps) followed by 2 x 100 yard sprints (I would have done more but my feet did not feel the best)

Weight: never checked

Results: Please see above.
What I Learned: Yes, you can burn the bottom of your feet on a hot, rubberized track.

Day 44

Because of the day 42 debacle, I decided to do mostly sprints on Sunday.  So, back up to West Catholic.

Distance: 0.5 miles warm-up jog --> 50 yard sprint followed by 100 yard sprint (with minimal rest) --> 2 minute rest --> repeat 4 times total --> 0.55 mile cool-down jog
Weight: never checked again

Results: It actually felt pretty good.  The soles of my feet were still a little tender, but not too bad.  One potentially important things is some achiness in left first toe has started to develop.  I believe I have mentioned this before.  The extension ROM has been limited and I have been working on this, but it does get sore.  I can't yet tell whether it is the IP joint or the MTP joint.  After doing some massage yesterday, I have to wonder if it is more of a soft-tissue referred pain.  Time will tell.
What I Learned: Sprints feel pretty good, even if I am really slow.

Plan: Run Tuesday.  What will I do?  I might go back to the valley and run on hard packed dirt/grass to avoid any needless friction.

What have you learned, so far, about this barefoot/natural running thing?

I'm glad you asked.  I have officially been at this for 6 weeks now.  This seems like enough time for me to be able to share some of my thoughts on what I have learned so far.  Fair warning, after only 6 weeks, I really know nothing for certain.  Not even whether this little experiment will be successful.

Progression - After 6 weeks I am up to a whole, whopping 1.75 miles at a time.  Doesn't sound like much, huh?  I have a very strong suspicion that my glacial pace of progression has kept me from developing any type of injury, such as an Achilles' tendonits/rupture, stress fracture or plantar fascitis.  This is one thing it seems I am doing right.

Sensitivity - As previously mentioned, I have long considered myself a "tenderfoot", not tolerating much direct tactile sensation on the soles of my feet.  It is safe to say that this is also improving.  I spend as much time as I can barefoot.  There has also been a decent development of callus on the sole of the feet.  All of this has helped with the "tenderfoot issue".  On the flip side, I am nowhere near being able to walk on any and all surfaces while barefoot.  There is still a lot of heat sensitivity (thanks hottest summer on record!) and even things like walking on wood chips is not yet comfortable.

Running Form - There is a lot to say about this (it's also a lot to think about all at once).  Most sources have been consistent about what good, natural running form looks like.  Let's break it down.

• Foot Strike - all sources advocate landing on the forefoot or the midfoot (essentially a foot flat landing).  Adapting to this has been relatively easy. Who would want to heel strike without a shoe on?  Highly uncomfortable.
• Does the heel ever make contact?  Yes, but only after the forefoot has made contact and then, only lightly.  I still have to focus on letting this happen, although it is becoming more "automatic".  I find that if I don't let the heel lightly come down, it puts too much strain on the calf muscle.
• Foot strike under the body - does my foot strike happen under my body or in front?  I don't know.  I can't bend my neck quite that far.  Seems like it, though.
• Posture - all my sources advocate a very upright, eyes focused ahead posture.  Looking down is not an option.  This has been a struggle.  I have long been in a bad habit of looking down while walking and that carries over to running.  Typically, I pick a distant object and try to focus on it.  Looking forward makes sense.  It allows you to see upcoming obstacles and is better for respiratory function (I've heard breathing is important for aerobic activities).
• Trunk Lean - While maintaining the upright posture, you still need to leanthe trunk forward from the shoulders.  It wasn't until my Day 40 run where I really "got" this (just a little bit of "got", though).  When I was able get that little lean forward, it gave me the sensation of falling forward vs running forward.  I could understand what others mean when they say that your running stride naturally flows from the forward lean.
• Heel Kick - in all the videos and photos of good natural runners, the thing that stands out to me is the heel kick.  Take a look at a long-legged, African distance runner and it will look like they are going to kick themselves in the butt with each stride.  I kinda wish I had some video of myself running so I could see if this is going on.  Trying to assess your own heel kick is kind of like trying to look at your own back.  We're just not built to do that.
• Cadence - 180 steps per minute is what everyone advises.  Oddly enough, I have a digital metronome so I can check what my cadence is.  Unfortunately, I haven't used it for weeks.  I really should bring this along on my next track run.  That might be the last little variable I need to "get".
• Easy, light and fast - In the book Born to Run, Caballo Blanco sums up the Tarahumara running style as "easy, light and fast" where you need to learn to run easy first, then light, and fast naturally flows from the first two.  I have a feeling I am getting close to easy, but what exactly defines easy?  I haven't quite put my finger on it.   Light?  When I have focucsed on "light", it seems like I start bouncing or springing too much, which seems like wasted energy.  The concept of light will have to jostle around my cranium for a while before I understand it.  Fast?  Nope, not yet.
• Theoretically, if I can put all of the above together, I should be set to go and be able to run with much less likelihood of an injury.  I guess we will have to see.

Fun - yes, I am having fun and fun feels good.  If I can keep on progressing like I have and get up to 30 minutes while still remaining comfortable, in the musculoskeletal sense, I will consider this experiment a success.  At that point, it will really be fun and if it ain't fun, what's the point?

Day 40 - Pushing it a little

For this run, I had to hurry up to West Catholic's Track to run so that I could get back home in time to let my wife go pick up Hannah from VBS at West Leonard CRC.  Because I was in a rush, I was pushing the pace a little more than previously.  Up to now, I had been running at an easy, comfortable pace.  For this run, it was a little beyond that.

Distance: 1.75 miles (7 laps)

Weight: never checked

Results: While I was running, I could feel the beginnings of the sensation of achiness in my right knee.  I really thought I was going to be feeling it afterward and the next day.  As of my writing of this entry (almost 2 days later), my knee has been fine.  Fabulous!

What I Learned: Running on a rubberized track is not that hard on my feet, as long as the track is not super hot (it was more cloudy today with a lower overall air temperature).

Plan: Run Friday.  Not yet sure where, but it will likely be 1.75 miles again.

Day 38 - I wonder if duct tape will help?

Since I have yet to purchase shoes, I performed a little experiment.  My feet were adorned with a strip of duct tape on  the sole of the foot covering the 1st and 2nd MTP joints and wrapping a little around the medial side of the first MTP joint.  This was, of course, an attempt to ward off some of the friction that has developed while running.

Did it work?  No, not really.  After 1.5 miles, the piece on my right foot had come off and the piece on my left had nearly come off.  There was a decent blister on the left foot, on the inside of the 1st MTP.

Distance: 1.5 miles

Weight: 213.8  (Tuesday morning at the Pain Center)

Results: Here was the funny thing...before the run, my right knee was a little achy and had been since Saturday (my last run).  After my run, there was no achiness and even today (Tuesday) there isn't any achiness.

What I Learned: Duct tape is not all that helpful, unfortunately.  I will, eventually, need shoes.

Plan: Run Wednesday night, hopefully 1.75 miles, up at West Catholic.

Day 36 - Yes, I skipped a day for no good reason

Friday was supposed to be a run day.  I did not run.  Sorry.  Do I have a good excuse.  No.  My excuse was I was tired and it was Friday.  That is the best I can do.  You will all have to forgive me.  Thanks.  My run was on Saturday, through my neighborhood.  I felt like a real runner for just a little bit.

Distance: 1.5 miles

Weight: didn't check

Results: My right medial knee was sore later in the day and is just very slightly sore on Monday morning as I write this, but this is just barely.  More than anything, my left foot was getting a tender spot/blister just medial to the 1st MTP joint.  This caused me to run in the grass next to the sidewalk rather than on the sidewalk.  This was on an area where there should really be very little ground contact.  At least not enough to cause a blister.

What I Learned: The rubbing on the inside of my left foot might be due to a lack of extension of the 1st toe.  I have noticed it is limited compare to the right 1st toe.  I can imagine how this would cause my foot to roll just a little more inward and cause extra friction on a portion of the foot that should not really be in much contact with the ground.

When it comes to my knee, I'm still not sure.  The soreness is nothing bad, so I will just have to slowly continue and see how things go.

Plan: Try to run Monday night, likely after the kids are in bed.

Where are you getting your information?

This seems like a reasonable question.  The advent of the internet has led to wonderful amounts of information sharing.  There is also a lot of really crappy information out there.  As a physical therapist, I often have to battle misinformation to help the patient get to the mental place they need to be.  Just because WebMD says it does not make it true.

With that said, most of my information has come off of the internet.  I use a couple of guidelines when judging the information.

• Is the information consistent across several unrelated sources?  If yes, this gives some credibility.
• What are the credentials/education of the writer?  Is this Joe Shmoe spouting his opinion/experiences or is the writer operating from a positon of knowledge.
• Does the information pass the logic test?  Is the writer making big leaps and assumptions based on limited evidence or experience?
• Is this biologically plausible?  Does the information mesh with basic anatomy/physiology/biology?
• What type of financial interest does the writer have?  Do they own the company selling the new wonder product?  Never believe what a marketing department writes.  Their job is to sell you stuff.  Period.
• How often do they use terms like never and always?  Do they use highly emotional terms?  Is the language meant to "stoke your fire"?  Major decisions need to be made from a calm, informed place not from an emotional and ignorant place.
• Has any research been quoted?  If research is quoted, where is the research from?  Who did the research?  Does the writer keep quoting the same piece of low power research?  If someone is basing their conclusions off a couple of case studies, be very leary.
• Is the author quoting a lot of his own research?  Not to say that the research is bad but we do tend to agree with ourselves.

My biggest rule when evaluating information is, "Never assume the information is 100% right and never assume it is 100% wrong".  Even the most dishonest, manipulated information can have a grain of truth (think about most political ads; there is a little bit of truth present, but not a whole lot).

My journey started when I heard about the book, Born to Run by Christopher McDougall.  It has been in the press a lot recently.  I'm not going to go through a whole book review but I will say it is a fun and inspiring read.  It really makes me want to get out and run (obviously).  Throughout the book, the author presents a variety of information about why we were born to run.  This includes anatomy, physiology, evolutionary biology, evolutionary pyschology, and basic sports science.  The information comes from a wide variety of sources both current and historical.

Do I fully buy the author's premise that we humans were, in fact, born to run?  For the most part, yes, I do.  I saw some signs that he was cherry-picking some information and possibly making more of "the facts" than should be made.  Overall, it doesn't seem unreasonable.

On a side note, if you have ever read the entire Chronicles of Narnia series, you will be familiar with the last several chapters of the final book, The Last Battle.  In the last chapters, many of the familar characters find themselves in Aslan's Country, which is essentially Heaven.  Besides it being beautiful and peaceful, they find that they can all run faster than an eagle can fly without getting hot, tired or out of breath.  Think about that.  Wouldn't that be fabulous?  Would any rational human turn down the ability to run super-fast without getting hot, tired or out of breath?  Of course not.  It makes me think we are, in fact, born to run.

So, Born to Run got me inspired, but where do you go from there?  The first place I start is my own personal athletic experiences and my physical therapy background.  How have I been injured?  What are some of my "issues"?  How do runners commonly get injured?  What would I reasonably anticipate could be some issues with barefoot running?

Two websites which have been helpful, so far, are http://birthdayshoes.com/ and http://naturalrunningcenter.com/.  Birthdayshoes.com has less technical information about running and more shoe reviews.  Naturalrunningcenter.com has a list of contributors with significantly better credentials and a little more how-to information.  I am still exploring each site and seeing where they lead me.

There is a video on naturalrunningcenter.com that is very helpful in understanding the mechanics of barefoot/natural running.  Referencing my comments above, the concepts seem plausible and make logical sense.  This is a video I will likely watch numerous times to glean further bits of info.

It is impossible to say what I might run into later on.  As I go, I will have to do my best to judge the credibility and validity of advice and information I come across.  Don't we all?

Day 33 - tryin' a few sprints

Once again, I got out of work and Michelle and the kids weren't home, so I went up to West Catholic's track and did 6 laps followed by four 100 yard sprints with 2 minutes rest between sprints.  Felt pretty good overall.
Distance: 1.5 miles (6 laps) plus four 100 yard sprints on their main football field.
Weight: 211.6 (Thursday on the Pain Center scale)

Results: less right knee soreness.  It seemed like it wanted to be sore the whole time but never was.  I did develop some soreness of my left 1st toe (the big toe).  That toe is one of the little issues I have had for a while now.  About a year and a half ago, I forcibly extended the toe while trying to run up the steps carrying my son.  It never really seems to have gotten back to normal (a little stiff and occasionally sore).
What I Learned: First, I probably need to do some stretching and mobilization of my 1st toe into extension.  Second, I should stick with 1.5 miles for a few days to make sure my knee does not continue to ache.

Plan: run on Friday, probably after work.  I think I will try this within my own neighborhood (no sprints involved).

Day 31 - back on track

Now I feel back on track.  As I was getting out of work, there was a message from Michelle indicating she and the kids would not be home when I got home.  Even though I was planning on running in the evening, I took the opportunity to hop on Sam the Singlespeed and head up to West Catholic.  It was hot, but not too bad.

Distance: 1.5 miles (6 laps) plus two 100 yard sprints on their practice field.

Weight: 215 (Tuesday on the Pain Center scale)

Results: There was some soreness of my medial left knee by the 5th lap (otherwise I might have tried for 1.75 miles).  I liked the sprints; they felt oddly good (I never would have said that in high school).

What I Learned: I have two thoughts on the medial knee pain: first, as the run progresses, I am getting some muscle fatigue transferring stress from each foot fall from the muscles to the joint.  I like this option because I can slowly train through it.  The second possibility is that my knee is showing me what life will continue to be like if I keep running (i.e., the more I run, the worse the knee will feel).  Which one is it?  I don't know.  We will have to find out.

Day 28 & Day 30

Ok, ok, I skipped a day but I do have some pretty reasonable excuses.  First, we had to get packed up to leave for camping on Thursday morning.  Second (and this is the good one), I actually developed an ear infection and had to go to the doctor on Wednesday evening (it kind of felt like my ear was going to explode).  With all that, driving up north and setting up camp, I didn't get to run until Friday morning, where I ran through the Interlochen State Park campground.  On Sunday, after we got home, I went for a bike ride and then stopped at West Catholic to jog around their track.  That run didn't go so well (see below).

Day 28

Distance: 1.45 miles

Weight: didn't check

Results: a little rawness of the feet (I was running on asphalt) but otherwise OK.

Day 30

Distance: maybe 0.5 miles around West Catholic's track.  It was a really hot day and I had already done 15 hard miles on the bike.  I just couldn't keep good form and I felt exhausted.

Weight: once again, didn't check (216.4 on Monday morning on the Pain Center scale)

Results: I was already sore from the weekend of camping and biking, so my lower legs were just tired and achy the rest of the day.  My medial right knee was also a little sore.

What I Learned: trying to run after a hard bike ride on a hot day is just plain not a good idea, at least yet.

Plan: Run on Monday, in the evening, up at the West Catholic track or possibly through my neighborhood (I really need to get some shoes).

Day 26 - Making Progress

I managed to get a run in, but not until about 8:30 at night.  Rode Sam the Singlespeed up to West Catholic's track and did 6 laps.  My time was 14:48 for the 1.5 miles.  That seems pretty reasonable.  About 75% of the lap was actually on the grass just at the edge of the track and the other 25% was on the track itself.  This was just to protect my feet.  Even 2 days later, they are still kind of sensitive from the heat on Sunday.
Distance: 1.5 miles

Weight: 214.8 (Pain Center scale)

Results: did pretty well, overall.  No real knee pain.  Not much lower leg or calf fatigue.  It actually felt pretty good.

What I Learned: running in the evening is just plain a good idea on a really hot day.

Plan: Run on Wednesday, probably back up at West Catholic's track.  I think I will stick to 1.5 miles for several sessions to allow adaptation.

Day 24 - HOT and hurting feet

Not hurting like the joints or muscles hurt, but hurting like the pavement is burning the bottom of my feet and the straw-like grass is slashing them to bits.

It was another hot day and I didn't really feel well yet, but I knew I needed a good bike ride and I knew I needed to get a run in.

Basically, I rode to Milleniuim park and back and stopped at cemetery along the way to do my run.  The pavement was so hot and the grass so poky that I abandoned the run after 0.73 miles and rode a little farther to West Catholic and ran on the grass of their well-watered football practice field (much nicer by the way).

When I got home, I soaked my feet in cold water (this felt wonderful, by the way).  My garmin recorded the average temperature at something like 96 degrees for the whole ride/run.  Yuck.

Distance: 1.31 miles

Weight: didn't check

Results: scorched feet from the pavement.  Not really sore or tired, though.  Even my calves did not seem to be too fatigued.  This is a good sign.  No knee pain, either.

What I Learned: on a hot day, some type of shoes almost seems like a necessity.

Plan: Run on Monday, likely back up at West Catholic's track/infield so I can avoid the burned, raw feet I have experienced recently.

Day 22 - only one day off

I've been sick all week.  There has been a variety of symptoms, including a sore throat, runny nose, excessive fatigue, achy joints, sinus congestion and a sneeze that hurts my throat really bad.

With that said, I missed running on Wednesday.  Sorry, I just couldn't do it.  Does that make me a bad person?  Hopefully not.

On Thursday night, I waited until the kiddos were in bed and then I headed out.  There was a lot of waffling back and forth as to whether I should even go.  I didn't exactly feel the best but I went out anyway.  I picked a route around the neighborhood that I figured would come out to one mile.  It ended up being 0.81 miles.  If I had been feeling well, I would have done more, but not today.  Yuck.

Distance: 0.81 miles - all on blacktop, which did cause some mildly raw patches on the medial side of the forefoot at the 1st ray on each foot.

Weight: 214.6 (doctor's office scale)

Results: as above, there was some sandpaper effect from the blacktop.  From what I have read, I'm not really sure whether continuing to run without any type of shoes is good or bad.  Will more callus build up?  Will enough build up to allow me to run on concrete or asphalt on a regular basis?  If it does, how long will it take?  I'm not really sure.  Getting shoes seems to be the best idea (Am I really going to run in the snow with bare feet?).

There was some aching for a few minutes in the medial side of my right knee.  As with my last run, is this because I'm not feeling well or does it have something to do with my form?  Questions that will need to be answered.

What I Learned: Had I not been sick, I could have gone farther.  It seems like an accomplishment that a run even happened, to be honest. 

Plan: Run Saturday.  The distance will depend on how I feel.  Hopefully 1.2 miles, maybe up at West Catholic's track.

Day 19 - I should have stayed home

The day started with me calling in sick to work (sore throat and pretty fatigued).  My mom took the kids and Michelle was at work.  Around 3:00, I was feeling better so I thought I would take a little jog, to make sure I stay on schedule.  I did a one mile loop up the ridge trail, through the neighborhood valley and then back up Glen Aire and Glen Valley, ending at my driveway.  Considering how I feel today (horrible, in case you didn't guess) I probably should have skipped it.

Distance: 1 mile

Weight: 215 (at the doctors office)

Results: other than feeling like crud today, no big deal.  I did have some knee pain while running, but most of my body was sore at that point so I'm not going to get overly concerned.

What I learned: I tried running in my old Teva sandals, just to see how they feel.  Not the best, really.  It seemed like I am able to adjust my stride when I'm barefoot but not with the sandals on.

Plan: Run on Wednesday (maybe).  That will depend on whether I am still sick.  It likely won't be until the evening anyway, after the kids are in bed.

Day 13, Day 15 and Day 17 - off the grid in McBain

The Terrell family has spent most of the last week up in McBain at Uncle Gord's Lodge.  Thankfully, I did have time to continue with my "training" or whatever you want to call it.  All 3 of the runs below were done at the local high school track (McBain Rural Agricultural School, home of the Ramblers - "FEEL THE WHEEL!).

Day 13 - ran one mile at the track.  I just barely squeezed this one in.  It didn't happen until 9:00 at night.  By the 4th lap, I could tell my right calf was getting fatigued.  By the last lap, I decided to pick up the pace a little and that is when I started to notice a little right medial knee pain (Schnikes Scooby!).  I realized I had lengthened out my stride some and when I shortened it up, the knee pain stopped.  Basically, my foot strike was starting to happen in front of me instead of underneath me.  Oh, and as a side note, the rubberized surface of a track can tear your foot up, or at least it can tear up mine.  Just the left foot though.  Curious.

Day 15 - Hot.  That is the best description I can muster.  This run actually started as a bike ride on a mid 90's day.  After about 19 miles of mostly riding into the wind, I ran for 8 minutes on the infield of the track.  I just couldn't go in further (I had planned on doing 11 minutes).  It was too hot and I was too tired.  But I did get it done, and that is what matters.

Day 17 - This was a good run.  I really felt things start to click.  I kept my cadence relatively high and I ran the mile in 9:38.  I didn't even check my watch until I was finished; I just ran at what felt like a good pace.

There were a few encouraging things from these runs.  First, at an aerobic level, I certainly could have done more.  There was not a great deal of fatigue on Day 13 or Day 17.  The only reason I stopped was because of the need to pace myself from a musculoskeletal perspective.  Second, running on the track gave me a chance to play with my stride and try to get into a rythmn, which I think I accomplished.  Third, it just felt good to run.  One mile is only one mile but it seems like a mini-milestone to me.  Like I have crossed a threshold.  People often say, "I don't think I could even run a mile".  Granted, these people probably could but they are the type that would never try.

What's next?  I will probably stick to a mile for the rest of the week to allow for adaptation.  My hope is that I will be able to make it to the mile mark without the right calf fatigue.

Day 11 - Yes, running on rocks does hurt

Just in case you were wondering.  You probably weren't.  It's pretty obvious.


Sunday was a busy day, so I did not get to run until after the kiddos were in bed (about 8:30).  I walked over to the neighborhood trail, hid my sandals in a bush, and took off.  The ridge portion of the trail has many small rocks and twigs to step on and, yes, I stepped on many of them.  Afterwards, my forefeet felt bruised, but not too badly.  Even today, I can feel it some.  My next run should be interesting.


Distance: 0.93 miles (almost one mile!)

Weight: 219 on the bathroom scale (I don't trust that thing)

Results: bruised forefeet and just the tiniest hint of something possibly, in a different world, that might be knee pain.  But I might be just imagining things.

What I learned: Yes, a pair of minimalist running shoes seems like a good idea, just for the protection.  Oddly enough, a "minimalist" shoe is no less expensive than a regular running shoe.  Curious.  Also, I can see where those little rocks do lead to a different running style.  Not much choice but to change how you run when a pebble is trying to embed itself into your forefoot.

Plan: do a road run around around my block on Tuesday morning, shooting for just under a mile, like today.

le Tour de Playground 2012

le Tour de Playground

Saturday, June 30th 2012

Michelle and Hannah are off camping with Michelle's friend, Cathy and her son Jacob.  That leaves the little dude and I for a Father/Son weekend.  I was pretty geeked from the outset.  When Michelle told me they would be gone for the weekend the first thought that popped into my head was "Let's go on a bike ride to a playground!"

When I mentioned this to a friend at church, he said, "Why don't you make a tour to several playgrounds?"

BRILLIANT!!!

After breakfast, we loaded up the Burley and took off.  Our first stop was John Ball Park.  They have a nice playset by the main parking area with this really cool climbing area (big kids only for this).  David was kind enough to poop for me.  Thanks David.

Once cleaned up, we were off to the Kent Trails with the plan being to stop at Millennium Park.  What I hadn't considered was how many playgrounds we were going to pass on this whole trip (eight total).  We ended up stopping in Johnson Park and playing there.  While there, we had a snack of grapes and water.  Oh, and David pooped again.  Thanks David.

We then toured through the Millennium Park trails and headed up Maynard to the Standale Trail.  As the trail crosses Sunset Hills, there is a ball field and a playground.  This was our third stop.  I have always liked this playset because it has some really interesting elements.  David decided not to poop at this playground.  Thanks David.

From there, we continued on the Standale trail, hopped on Leonard and went to the West Side Christian playground.  Always a hit.  Once we were there, I realized how late it was getting, so we had a snack of cereal bars, crackers and milk (water for me, actually).

From there, it was a short jaunt home.  A little play time, a little lunch and few books = nap time for buddy boy.  How can you beat that.

In the end, we went 21.4 miles and our time was almost evenly split between bike time and play time.  I would have to call this a win/win for the both of us.

Day 9 - early again

Once again, I woke up early and walked down to the park.  After doing some lunges to get my self nicely warmed up, I took 2 laps around the ball field and up the path towards home.


Distance: 0.67 miles

Weight: never checked

Results: nothing really new or extraordinary.  There is more achy, muscle soreness in my feet.  To me, this is good old-fashioned post-workout muscle soreness.  Nothing to be concerned about.  My feet might be getting slightly, very slightly, less sensitive.  This is probably just imagined.

What I learned: My plan seems to be working well.  Patience is my biggest obstacle.  I just want to go and run a 5K,  but I know that that will likely not end well.  Also, I can certainly see where some type of "barefoot" shoe would be a good idea, just for a little bit of protection.  Oh, and a lacrosse balls work pretty well for foot self-massage and self-mobilization.

Plan: Go out again sometime Sunday.  I'm not really sure when.  The plan will be to go down the neighborhood trail and try for something around 0.8 miles.

Why are you doing this to yourself?

This is a pretty reasonable question, when you think about it.  Yes, I did have to give up running about four years ago and, yes, I have missed it.   But what about cycling?  You love cycling, don't you?

Let's not be absurd, of course I love cycling.  My obsession with cycling is in no real danger.  Cycling still provides me with stress release, sunshine, exercise, time alone, and something to "geek out" about.

But running...running, oh how I desire thee!

In Christopher McDougall's book Born to Run, he argues that we were, in fact, born to run.  He proposes that running is part of our physical, mental, and spiritual structure.  The arguement for this is pretty good.  Not definitive, mind you, but it certainly makes sense to me.

From my point of view, running seems to be such a natural thing.  It makes sense to me.  I understand running.  For reasons I cannot wholly explain, it seems like the thing to do...like I should be doing it.

I experience great enjoyment from physical exertion (some would call it self-flagellation).  Typically, the harder I go and the longer I go, the better I feel.  It isn't too long after a particularly brutal ride that I am thinking about doing it again and doing it better (don't ask me to define better, because I'm not usually completely sure).

The thought of coming home from a hard run, tired and sweaty, fills me with peace.  Have you ever felt "right with the world"?  That is how I feel after a hard ride.  It is also how I would feel after a hard run.

Why wouldn't I want that?

Day 7 - The First Trail Run (if you can call it that)

Work was finished early enough today that I could sneak in a run before picking up the kiddos.  I decided to head around to this weird, little wooded valley/trail that runs through our neighborhood.  My assumption has always been that this land couldn't be used as part of the subdivision so it was basically left as is.  It consist of a long, flat valley (all grass) that takes a right hook uphill and forms a trail running along the top of a ridge.  It loops around nicely back to my house.  Lacie and I used to go back there all the time to take a walk.  My Garmin was having trouble reading while I was running, so my distance was only 0.52 miles.  I was aiming for more like 0.60.  It sure felt like more than 0.52 miles.

Distance: 0.52 miles

Weight: 210 lbs (home scale)

Results: There is some soreness in the medial calf, likely Tom, Dick and/or Harry (I bet my PT friends will be smiling as they read that), but otherwise ok.  Actually, legs felt more stiff before the run/walk than after.  The pavement was pretty hot, once I was off the trail, so I might have just lightly burn the bottom of my feet.

What I learned: Keep going.  No reason to stop yet.  Running on the firm earth/grass down there felt pretty good, although it was harder to focus on the mechanics of my stride because I had to pay more attention to my immediate environment.  That may be a good thing, in the end.

Plan: Next will be Friday morning, before work.  At the mo, going back to our little mini-trail seems like a good idea.  Today, I will do some stretching and some lower body strengthening.

A Brief History of Mike's Right Leg

Why is it always my right leg?  Can we just get lefty in on the action for once?

I played 3 sports for 4 years in high school - football, wrestling and throwing shot/discus on the track team.  Do you know how many injuries I had?  One.  One sprained ankle during 2-a-days as a freshman.  It didn't even keep my out of the next days practices.  That seems like a pretty good record overall.  Actually, if you count the concussions, it would be more than one...what was I talking about...oh yeah, my right leg.  You will have to forgive me, every now and then things get a little discombobulated.

My first real injury came playing paintball of all things.  To be brief, I ducked down onto one knee to avoid being hit and rammed my knee into a tree root.  There was immediate pain and a complete inability to extend my knee.  Things improved and I was back to normal...almost.  Running in a straight line gave me no issues at all.  Pivoting or quickly changing directions was a different story.  One of these maneuvers was quickly followed by pain, locking up of the knee, and swearing (I try to avoid the swearing now, just so ya know).  It got to the point that I had the knee scoped and the surgeon removed the piece of torn medial meniscus.

Following this, I was doing great.  One hundred percent back to normal.

And then I herniated a disc in my low back.  Crap.

This healed up without the need for surgery or shots but it did lead to one major long-term problem...weakness, specifically in the right calf and hamstring.  Not the kind of weakness you can see.  I look perfectly normal, but when I physically push myself, there is a difference.  I can feel a difference.

The torn meniscus and the faint weakness are not a good combination.  Why?  Well I'm glad you asked.

The only reason I stopped running was because of my right knee.  After my scope, I was fine.  As I got more into running following the low back injury, I found that I had poor impact control on my right leg.  I could feel it.  As I came down on my left foot, I could feel myself absorb the impact and spring forward.  As I came down on my right foot, it felt like a thud.  Kind of like dropping a sandbag.  Thud.  No spring.  No return of energy.  Thud.

As time progressed, it got to the point that I could not run at all without the inside of my right knee aching.  It didn't matter what distance, what shoes or what I tried to do to fix the problem.  Thud.

Back to the orthopod --> MRI --> small meniscus tear on the edge of the old meniscus tear.

"Doctor, if you were me, would you keep running?"

Brief pause.

"No."

"Thank you doctor."

This is when I took up cycling (which I truly love, BTW).  No more knee pain.  No more any type of pain really.  Kinda nice.

So why in the blue-blazes do you want to run again?  That will have to wait for a different post.

Day 5 - A little longer run in the park

Woke up at about 5:30 (ugh, I know) and walked down to the park to do 2 laps around the ball diamond versus one.  Before I began, I did the following:

• Forward lunges x 10
• Lateral lunges x 10
• Rotational lunges x 10
• Push-ups x 18
• Hill Climbers x 20
• Jog in place at a step/minute of 180 for about 2 minutes (I used our metronome to help me keep pace)

Distance running: 0.60 miles

Weight: 208.5 lbs (measured on a scale at a doctor's office)

Results: from a musculoskeltal point of view, I really feel fine.  No knee, foot, ankle, hip or low back pain.  The soles of my feet are a different story. They feel a little...raw.  Just a little.  Walking in the grass on the way back felt pretty good.  The last week was spent on vacation with me being barefoot most of the time.  My tootsies need to callus up some.  Luckily, I will be working all week and there is no option to not wear shoes.

What I learned: First, that I can keep trying.  Second, this really will be a long process of trying to run in a different fashion.  It takes a great deal of focus to learn or re-learn a new motor skill.  I know this perfectly well, but usually I'm preaching it to patients and not actually having to do it myself.  If anything, this will be a learning experience.

Plan: repeat today's workout, hopefully on Wednesday evening (probably once the kiddos are in bed).  I am going to try to stick to the whole every other day thing.

BTW: it turns out walking and standing on rocks about the size of an egg is a good way to self-mobilize the foot.  It also hurts like the devil.  Hurray for me!

Strategies

So, how am I going to go about this whole barefoot running thing?  As you might imagine, I have a good number of ideas rambling around the cranium.  One of my intents with this blog is to help keep my thoughts organized.  One thing I can say, because I am so new to this, is that the whole process will be evolving on a daily basis.  Potentially even a moment to moment basis.  In now particular order:

1. Spend as much time barefoot as I can.  This should help improve strength, endurance and flexibility in my foot and lower leg.  Basically, I'm trying to get them back to a more "natural" state, if that is even possible.  I have considered getting different work shoes that will allow me to spend all day as close to barefoot as I can without actually being barefoot.  This will have to wait some as I don't have the cash right now.
2. Go slow.  Do I have a schedule?  Nope.  Am I preparing for an event? Nuh-uh.  As long as Mr. Ego can stay in check, I should be cool.  Also, as a PT and someone who seems to like a little self-flagellation every now and then, differentiating between workout soreness and pain shouldn't be a big issue.  My feet will need time to toughen up anyway.  I have always been a bit of a tenderfoot.  To be honest, that is one of my small motivations for taking this journey.  I want to be less of a pansy.
3. Going all in on the barefoot thing and almost never wearing supportive shoes probably won't be a good idea at first.  My regular shoes will be like slowly weaning off crutches, or a cane or an ankle brace.
4. Incorporate single leg balance and strengthening exercises into the routine.  This should also help improve leg and foot strength/flexibility.
5. After I have begun to adapt to barefoot running, add short hill repeats to help perfect my form.  Everything I have read advocates short, quick strides where your feet land underneath your hips.  The picture I have in my head is like a slow-motion sprint.  Or maybe a sprint with a small stride.  I have read in several places people advocating a cadence of 180 steps/minute.
6. On the cadence note, we happen to have a programmable metronome (don't ask why; it's a long story).  Why not use that to help me get the "proper" cadence.

Give it two or three days and this list will probably change.  What do I know, really?  Nothing that I really need to know.  I have to hope that my body will start to adapt, remember it's old self, and Mr. Ego will stay in check long enough to let this happen.

Day 3 - A little run in the park

The only real way to describe today's run is "a little".  Basically, I walked down to our neighborhood park, barefoot of course, did one lap around a baseball diamond and then walked home.  Calf stretching before and after the run.

Distance running: 0.32 miles (ya gotta start somewhere)

Pace: 11:39 minute/mile (setting new land speed records)

Weight: 220 lbs (this is questionable since the scale we have has registered me between 210 and 220 over the last few days)

Results: no ruptured Achilles.  No gaping wounds on the soles of my feet.  The right lateral side of my low back is just the tiniest bit sore.  Related to the running?  I'm not sure and I wouldn't want to pass judgement. Calves a little sore?  Yeah, a little.

What I learned: black asphalt is hot on a mid-80s day (pretty smart, huh?).  There is no obvious reason not to try again.

Plan: do a little more than 2 laps around the baseball diamond on Monday, hopefully before work.

Day 1 - A walk in the park

No really, it was a walk in the park.  Literally.  David and I walked down to the Alpine Estates park, each of us barefoot.

We played around on the playset and then we walked back with David on my shoulders.  While I was there, I trotted around a little bit to test out some techniques for barefoot running.  It felt pretty good.

Later on, I did some good calf stretching (I will need plenty of this) and practiced the "100 ups" running exercise.  Hopefully, on Sunday, I will run a 1/4 mile in the park.

And yes, I know that a 1/4 mile sounds pretty wuss-tastic but I will really need to build into this slowly.  More later.

Can a fat man run?

This could be better phrased as, "Can a fat man run again?"

This is my goal: Six months from today, June 21st 2012, I, Michael David Terrell, will be running again.

All of my PT friends will probably have noted that I have not clearly defined "running again".  That is intentional.  There is no race or event i need to aim for.  There is no number of miles I need to achieve.  I just want to run again.

I want to run again and enjoy it.  I want to run without killing my knees or my back.  I want to trot down the street and have it feel good.  I want to run when I want to run.

About four years ago, I gave up running.  There will be posts later as to why that is, but for the moment you should know that I have always missed running.  Odd that I would miss it since running always beat me up so much.

How shall I accomplish this goal?  The main tool I plan use is barefoot/minimalist shoe running.  OK, raise your hand if you just rolled your eyes.  Yeah, I know what you are thinking.  "He'll give himself Achilles' Tendonitis".  "He'll beat his feet to a pulp (literally)".  "He's not some lithe, lanky Ethiopian guy.  He can't run that way."

I will grant you all this...you could easily be right.  To my knowledge, barefoot running has not been shown to lower the risk of injury or to be a "better" way of running by good, solid reproducible research.  You do have to admit, it does make sense (I'll get more into this later, as well).

Currently, I am not running.  I don't like not running.  What do I have to lose by trying?

With that said, this blog has two purposes:

1. Keep a record that I can look back at to see how the journey has progressed.
2. Keep me honest.  If I wuss out on this, there needs to be someone out there to call me a wuss and badger me to "man up" and get back out there.

Will anyone do this for me?  My plan is to do a brief post after each training session.  The posts will give the basics of what I did and how I did it.  There will likely be reflections on what went right and what went wrong (and, oh yes, something will go wrong).  My feeling is that this is going to be a fun and educational trip.  Wanna come with?