Can I expect this to improve?

[JosephTree]

TD, you better be careful. The thought police will start keeping their eye on you if you write too much about unplugging and being in the moment. It's unAmerican!

Don't tell anyone, but sometimes I tie a length of string to my earing and close the end of it in a tic-tac box just to look like I'm iPodded.

 

[jldeleon]

Don't tell anyone, but sometimes I tie a length of string to my earing and close the end of it in a tic-tac box just to look like I'm iPodded.

LOL!

 

[scedastic]

It's amazing how long the built up plantar skin lasts even when not running barefoot. Last week I ran barefoot on a trail for 1 1/2-2 miles after not running bf in 3 months and did not have one blister or even sore spot. I ran barefoot on pavement today and did not have any raw spots either. Once it's built up it stays built up for a while. I probably could not do a half marathon or anything at this point, but I am pretty confident I would be able to do 4-5 miles with no issues.

Not for me. I'm delicate. One trip to the beach and I lose a layer. One sweaty day on hot pavement and I get blisters and thin, raw skin.
A week or so away from bf, and I start to soften up. Gravel hurts. I can put up with some rough pavement, but I don't like it. This is after all summer trying to be bf as much as possible, wearing closed toed shoes almost never, bf except in stores where I don't want to cause a scene. (started bf last fall).
So don't get too discouraged. Yeah, some of it is probably form, but much of it may not be.

 

[ThomDavid]

TD, you better be careful. The thought police will start keeping their eye on you if you write too much about unplugging and being in the moment. It's unAmerican!

Don't tell anyone, but sometimes I tie a length of string to my earing and close the end of it in a tic-tac box just to look like I'm iPodded.

iPod, youPod, he/she/they iPod...does Apple know you've turned their subject into a verb?

Seriously though I actually discovered a justifiable reason to carry an iPhone on my run today... A metronome app. Today was a designated run day, and I just wanted to get a good feel for a 180+ pace. So I set the metronome app to 182 spm at 4/4 time and set off. I asked my wife to video me, and man, did I get some great info.

First, some things I thought I was doing wrong weren't a problem after all, while other fo errors were glaringly obvious. Now I can focus on fixing those things and stop wasting energy on the other things.

Secondly, I've figured out that my blistering may have as much to do with where I run as to how I run. I think I'll stick to pavement and asphalt at least until my soles toughen a bit. Trail runs may be too friction-intensive at this early stage.

And finally, maintaining that cadence felt very comfortable, not at all like I was pushing the pace. The video seems to confirm this impression as well. BUT my per-mile pace was still faster than my normal shoe training pace. Honestly, I'm not trying to run fast. But the increased cadence seems to be the difference.

My soles feel great, I kept it down to about 1.5 miles, and I checked my soles before, during, and after. It just was a really good run!

 

[jldeleon]

When you run on trails you have to be really careful not to push off too much when you go uphill -which is kind of hard at first.

 

[BFwillie_g]

When you run on trails you have to be really careful not to push off too much when you go uphill -which is kind of hard at first.

I've experimented a lot and concluded that the Achilles' can take over a lot of the work in getting us (me) up hills - simply by allowing the heels to drop all the way to the ground with every step. Wait for the "boing" when the Achilles is fully stretched/loaded, and feel the automatic heel lift set the whole leg cycle into motion - as passive as possible.

(I'm still a weak uphiller - and that's why I try to find ways to make it easier )