Finally The Return to Running

Golf season ended on October 4th and I started running again on Oct. 7th. I signed up for a race on the 16th of October so I was not able to start running barefoot and be able to finish the 5k. I ran for 7 days prior to the race and actually finished the race in 32 minutes. Not bad for someone who hasn't been running for the last 2 months. I will start working in some barefoot running on the weekends but I do not want to get hurt trying to increase too fast. I have a few 5k races planned over the next month I want to run. Those will be ran in shoes until I can run 4 miles barefoot. I plan to start a training program in Dec or early Jan for a 1/2 marathon and I plan on running in my five fingers for that. Lets keep running.

Golf Over, Running Back On

Golf ended on Monday as we had no golfers qualify for State. I hit the trail on Thursday, I had to put on shoes for this run, I have signed up for a 5k in two weeks and I don't have time to get my feet and muscles in shape for that. So for now I will be running in regular running shoes. Thursday, Saturday and Sunday I ran 8 miles, 3, 3 and 2. I am going to push hard to get my mileage up so I can complete the 5k close to my normal times.

No running for last 2 weeks

Golf Has taken it's toll on me. I have been fighting a cold the last two weeks and I have decided not to run. I plan on starting back this week.

Finally, A Break In The Weather!!!

It was a little easier to run this week with highs in the lower 90's. I still only ran 3 days but I'm closing in on 9 miles for the week. The upcoming week will have it's fair share of challenges trying to run 3 or 4 days and a busy week of golf.

Much To Hot To Run

I only ran 2 days this week, the only days I could run in the mornings. I had 3 days I was working 12 hours or more so I really was exhausted by the end of the day. I have kept up with the diet so I still lost a pound last week. Yesterday was a great run, I felt great during the whole run and I pushed myself more than usual. My knees were a little tender but it still felt great. I hope I can run 3 days a week until the heat wave is over. By then golf season will be winding down as well.

Heat Index Over 100

OK I believe the global warming is real. I had to adjust my schedule this week since I am a teacher and school has started back. We had meeting last week and I had to run in the afternoon. It was miserable, hot and humid. After a mile I thought I had been running in a shower. I did hit 7.05 miles this week and hope to add another mile next week.

Great Week

5.7 miles this week. I pushed a little harder on Saturday and I felt that in my calves. It is so hot and humid it makes it really hard to push and next week school starts back and I will have to run in the afternoon and it will be even hotter. My son has been running with me for several weeks and that has motivated me a bunch. Next week I am going to try tweaking my diet as I continue to increase my mileage. I am trying to eat raw as much as possible. Usually in the morning and at lunch is all raw and I mix cooked and raw for supper. Next week my five fingers will hit 100 miles on them and they are going strong.

Hot and Humid!

Still hit the park 4 times this week for a total of 4.55 miles this week. I hit 1.25 as my longest run and I plan on a 1.5 mile run next week. Temps are supposed to be higher and humidity will be high as well.

Feels Great to Be Running Again!

I finally ran a mile this week and it felt great. I am dying to up my mileage faster but I have to remind myself to go slow. My 10 year old son ran with me 2 times this week and he did very well. He wants to run a 5k in August when we have a local race so I hope we are both ready. I will not be trying to break a PR this time. I want to finish with my son. Last year he ran his first in just under 40 minutes so if we can keep that pace this year it should be all good.

When I hit my mile I thought I had finished a marathon. I was sweating and felt really good. I only ran 3.25 miles this week, but I hope to run 4.5 next week. I am also closing in on 100 miles in my five fingers. I was at 84 miles as of Saturday. I would love to get 300 miles out of them, we will see what happens. Here's to another good week of running.

Treadmill vs Outside

I knew it was a little harder to run outside but Saturday I ran outside for the first time since I have been able to run again. I had yet to be sore running on a treadmill. Today my calves are really sore and my ankle is stiff. I've have got to be careful and make sure I am running outside more than on a treadmill. I'm afraid if I continue to run on a treadmill, I will then go out and run 3 miles and not be able to walk for a week. With the humidity down this coming week, I will get outside all week and see what happens.

I really want to get out and run longer. I just received my new copy of Runner's World and I get fired up by the time I finish reading it. I have a 5k race coming up in August, hopefully I will be ready for that when it comes around. I want to run a half marathon so as soon as I am able to run around 12 miles a week for 3 weeks I plan on finding a half marathon to run.

I found a great website that lists half marathons in the US. halfmarathons.net is great, it breaks the races down by states and months. I plan on finding a race that is 12 weeks out once I hit my weekly mileage of 12. I found several websites with training guides for the races and I finally found one that should work for me. It is designed to finish the race and not break a time. I think you must finish one first and then work on times. It doesn't have as many speed runs, mainly just mileage.

And just so you know, I ran 2.3 miles last week. Here's to increasing that.

Just a little running this week

I ran three times this week. Well let's just say for a short, very short distance I ran very slowly this past week. I could feel a tug or pull in my ankle when I was running but I had no pain afterward. I am running on a treadmill for now until the air quality is better and the heat index is lower. Currently we have had several 100 heat index days in the last week. I have been hitting the free weights as well, I need to increase some strength all over not just in my ankle. I have been running in my five fingers and I am beginning to see several people wearing them in the gym. I plan on slowly increasing my mileage and keep a rather slow pace until I am at 3 miles and then I will increase the pace.

Time to Start Running

I am going to start running tonight. Hopefully my ankle has healed. I plan on only running about 1/4 of a mile tonight and see how my ankle feels tonight and tomorrow. I will increase my running much more slowly this time. i have a 5k coming up in August but that is not a concern. I want to run a 1/2 marathon in March of 2011 so my goal is to slowly increase my running to attempt that goal.

Still Not Running

I'm still fighting an ankle injury. It's not hurting as bad as it has been. I played golf yesterday and I'm not hobbled this morning so that is a good sign. I plan on starting some cross training at the gym starting today so I don't lose all my fitness. I am still hoping for a return to running on June 1st so I have really turned up the dial on my diet. I am trying to eat far more fruits, veggies and beans and less breads and pasta than I have been eating. I'm hoping that a decrease in my weight might help me to not re-injure my ankle. Less weight less stress on the ankle.

No Running

Ok, Let me just say I hate being old. My ankle has been sore for a month. Everytime I run it takes me 2 or three days of rest to be able to walk without a limp. When I was younger a few days and I was good to go. I am going to wait until I feel 100% to start running again. I took off for about 2 weeks before and tried to run and the pain came back. It's been about 2 weeks since my last run and I am still sore trying to walk.

This week I am going to start walking and next week I am going to hit the gym and do some cross training while I'm not running. My goal is to be running the 1st of June but we will have to wait and see on that goal.

Post Race Doldrums

I finally got my official results from the race, 28:47, I set a 9:18 pace. Then the next day I was on a high from the race and ran 3.5 miles at an easy pace. Then a pain on the top of my foot started hurting. I thought it was a stress fracture, but after much research I found out it was less serious. It's supposed to be like plantar fasciitis but due to running barefoot it affects the top of the foot. So I have not ran in a couple of weeks to give it a rest. It feels much better today and I played golf yesterday with no problems. We have strong storms coming today and tomorrow, so I plan on waiting until Tuesday to get started back. At when I start running again it won't be to break any records, it will be to just run.

I finally loaded an image and that was at a Turkey Trot run for education last Fall. That was the first 5K my son had ever ran, and I am very proud that he finished without walking.

In an effort to go barefooted more often, I wore water shoes all day one day and on the weekends I try not to wear shoes unless I'm playing golf. I thought my feet would be sore and my back would hurt. The bottom of my feet were a little tender but they didn't hurt and my back felt great. So I'm waiting for summer so I can go barefooted everyday.

Next week I am hoping to take some pictures of where I run and post on the site. Keep running.

Race Week

I had a good week of running. With the first 5k of the season coming up Saturday. I ran Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. I took off Thursday and played golf. Golf had some good and some bad hits in it but I finished with two pars on the front nine. It was a great week as far as weather goes.

Saturday morning was cool and damp, with spotty drizzle around the area. In the past, I used to start way back in the pack and I wasted probably 20 seconds just getting to the starting line once the race started. I decided to move up to the middle and really push to break 30 minutes and set a new PR.

I took off at a pace I have never ran at, but I was determined and the atmosphere of the race really had me pumped up. When I hit the first mile they called out 9:25, I was a little nervous at this point. I wasn't sure if I could keep up the pace. I started to run with a guy and we chatted about breaking 30 minutes. That did it for me and I took off and at 2 miles I was at 18:30. I decided to put the pedal down and run as hard as I could. As I was headed for the finish my son and wife were cheering me on but they did not know the time and I could not see the timer at the finish. As I got to the finish I crossed at 28:47 breaking my goal and setting a new PR. This is unofficial as they have not posted the official results online yet.

This has fired me up to run some more races and up my training a bit. I'll run on
Sunday and see how the week unfolds. Until next week.

Summer Cold

Man, I hate getting a summer cold. It really knocked me down a few days. I did get 3 days in for a total of 9 miles.

I order a pair of Merrell water shoes with a vibram sole to try out. I went out one day and decided to just walk in then to see how they did. By a mile and a half I had skin missing around my ankle. The shoes where super comfortable as far as the walking goes but I need to wear them around the house for a while and then take them back out. I'll keep you posted on the progress but for 15.00 dollars I couldn't help but try.

My first 5k of the year is in a week. I hope to break thirty minutes this time. I'll post again after the race.

Beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Beautiful does not even come close to this week. Sunshine every day and warm weather, probably 75 to 85 degrees this week. I hit 3 miles on 4 separate runs for a total of 12. Only problem is that my calves are so sore I can hardly stand it. I received my new Runner's World today and they had an article about only increasing your weekly mileage by 10% a week. I increased my mileage by way more than that and that may be what's contributing to the increased soreness. I will run this same mileage for a few weeks and see what happens.

I ordered a pair of Merrell water shoes this week and expect to have them by Monday or Tuesday. I found a great deal on Ebay so I ordered them. I will write a review of the water shoes when I have an opportunity to use them. I am currently tracking how many miles I get on the Five Fingers and I will track my mileage on the water shoes as well and see which is the better value. Until next week.

A Great Week for Running

Spring is trying to arrive. It's a typical spring in Tennessee with cold mornings and warm afternoons. We had some rain two days this week but I still got out 4 days and hit 3 miles on Saturday morning. My weekly total was 10.95 miles, an increase of 2.15 miles from last week.

I did not get any water shoes this week. I will write a review after I get them. My calves were sore after running this morning but after 4 hours of yard and flower bed work the soreness was gone. What replaced it was shear fatigue. With rain in the forecast tomorrow it will be a much needed rest.

Good Week of Running

The week started off a little rocky with rain. I had to run the treadmill on Sunday, I hit two miles but I ran in an old pair of shoes. Having to run in shoes on a treadmill is awful. Thursday and Wednesday were spent out of town for my son's birthday but I ran early on Tuesday morning at the park. I finished out the week on Thursday and Saturday and hit 8.8 miles this week. A weekly increase of 2.1 miles.

The next week looks promising to hit a 3 mile run by the end of the week and the weathers looks good most of the week. I am still having tenderness in my calves later in the day after a run. When I sit down for a few minutes and then get up they are really sore and tender until I get moving. Tomorrow is 80% chance of rain so I will have a day off to let the calves rest.

I would have to say I really enjoy using the minimal running shoes. It is much more enjoyable than running in normal running shoes. I am looking to purchase some water shoes tomorrow and try them out Monday or Tuesday. I'll write a review next weekend.

It's a Long Week

This was a rough week to get some running in. I was in Connecticut 2 days during this week and it was not just rain but flooding rain. I did not get to run Friday or Saturday there and I ended the week with with 6.70 miles. That was an increase of 2.1 miles over last week.

I haven't had any problems running in the five fingers but I have noticed that once I hit 2 miles my calves would be extremely tender the rest of the day. I don't know if I'm increasing too fast or not but a day off after running is helping.

The weather is not looking good for next week so we will see what happens.

Starting Week Three

I am starting my third week barefoot today, so I thought I would recap the last two weeks.

Week One, 2/21/10-2/27/10: The weather was bad that week, snow, rain and cold. I ran three days that week for a total of 1.15 miles. Not good but I started and it gave me time to recover and be ready for the next run.

Week Two, 2/28/10-3/6/10: The weather was much better this week and I decided to run everyday it was not raining. I ran 5 days this week for a total of 4.6 miles. My longest run was 1.25 miles.

The weather forecast has rain several days this week, so lets see how many days I can run. Plus I'm leaving Friday evening for Connecticut, that's going to limit my running some this week.

Slowly Increasing Miles

Well I probably shouldn't say miles yet. I ran 3/4 of a mile Wednesday 3/3/10. It was raining on Tuesday so I didn't run. Monday I think I ran .6 to .65 miles. If all goes well I plan on being at 1 mile by Friday and with much warmer weather coming this weekend I hope to increase my distance to 1.5 miles by Sunday.

I'll be heading to Canterbury, CT next Friday for my annual fantasy baseball draft with my league. I hope to get some running in while I'm there. Hopefully I will be at 2 miles by then. I am setting up a running log to show how many miles I'm running each week. If times allows, I hope to train for a half marathon by Fall. My next 5k will be in April and I should be able to do that in my five fingers. That will be my first race barefoot.

Really Cold Run

The weather man said partly cloudy and cool for Wednesday. I'm leaving with my son to go run and it's snowing. So much for the weatherman. It's much colder today than it was yesterday. My goal is to increase my mileage slowly to avoid straining or injuring myself. The wind was blowing the snow so bad we skipped the stretching and I would say we ran about 4 tenths of a mile. I hope to run tomorrow and hit a half mile.

Again the five fingers did not make my feet cold, maybe that would have happened if I was running farther. I really like the five fingers but in order to save some money I plan on trying out some water shoes. I was reading a blog on barefoot running and they reviewed several kinds of minimal shoes to simulate running barefoot and watershoes were ranked the highest. I really can't find any now so hopefully I will be able to find some as warmer weather gets here. Maybe I'll do my own reviews as I try out different shoes.

Starting Over

It's Sunday February 21st. It has been really cold and snowy this year, much more than in previous years. The temps are suppose to reach high 50's, low 60's today. It's as good a day as any to put the five fingers back on and try barefoot running again. At first I was concerned that the concrete path in the park would be too cold for my feet in the five fingers. I was suprised to find out that is was really not as cold on my feet as I had thought it would be.

This time I decided to be smarter about going barefoot. The local trail is marked off in quarter mile sections so I decided that I would only run a quarter mile and walk another mile and a half. At the quarter mile marker my legs and feet felt good and I considered running longer but decided to stop and walk. It's a good thing I stopped because my calf muscles were a little sore the next day but nothing to scream about.

Rain and cold returned the next two days and that has kept me from running again. But it has given my legs time to adjust to going barefoot.

Some History

This is not my first attempt at running barefoot. My first attempt and I think everyone else who is trying out running barefoot, was after I read Born to Run by Christopher McDougall in the summer of 2009. It really is a good read even if you are not a runner. So after minimal research on the subject, I took off running. I had already run 2 or 3 5k's and took off barefoot to run 3 miles. No problem, at least until the next morning. I couldn't walk my calf muscles hurt so bad. So I did not have a great start with running barefoot. I went out and bought a pair of Vibram Fivefingers to wear, as I was concerned about broken glass and metal. I probably only ran a few more times barefoot after that and before I knew it it was winter so I stopped running barefoot and had the shoes back on full time. Again, knee and lower leg problems surfaced and I couldn't run for a month. Now it's February and I am ready to try again.