Hi from the South of England

Hi, I'm Adrian and I'm based in West Sussex in the South of England. I've often tried to take up running but got plagued by shin splints, etc so two years ago I decided to try minimalist shoes to see if they would help. My first were a pair of Vivobarefoot Trail freaks (I prefer to run offroad) and they were marvellous. I found I could run further with very little discomfort so carried on with these, eventually adding other minshoes to my arsenal - Xeros, Freets, VFFs (KSO Evo and Trek Ascents).
Then a month or so ago I decided to take the plunge and go out in my naked feet. So under the cover of darkness I went for a 1k run round our village. It was wonderful! My feet felt great at the end of it so a week later I extended it to 2k, again feeling great!
I then decided to take part in the 5k run on the 1st May as part of IBRD and found that the sudden jump to that distance was a bit of a shock to my soles. I picked up a few minor blisters but nothing major but it did indicate that I was overstriding a touch and also not lifting properly. However, I went out again on Monday and did the same route and tried to focus on my form. I was slower but my feet suffered less distress so I'm hoping I'm moving in the right direction. I even had another shod runner stop and shout "RESPECT!" to me, which was nice!
So I guess this is the start of my journey into barefoot running. I may never truly ditch my shoes completely as some terrain I run on is a bit challenging but I aim to do as much as I can. My goal so far is to take part in a 10mile race in October (Bright10) and do that barefoot. That's the goal anyway but I'll let my feet be my guide :)
 
Very cool! Glad you found us. I'll bet the reason you had trouble with the 5K would be because you were in a "race environment," which is fine because you learned some good lessons there. When you back off of competition mode (or running alongside others who are in competition mode, if you are not), then you can concentrate more on your form as you will be lost in thought. Welcome! :barefoot:
 
I have the feeling the first time everyone runs barefoot does it when no one is looking :D
Welcome to the community, Adrian!
pffft, speak for yourself, my first bf run was on halloween in full view of the town and my cross country team during regular practice.

Welcome to the community Frizz! I recently joined up too, although I've been running around barefoot for quite a while! This place is great and is filled with people you'll be able to relate to and get great advice from as you plunge into the wonderful world of forgetting that most people put shoes on BEFORE getting to their destination. : P
 
Welcome, Adrian! I'm sure you will find BRS a valueable source of information, and community. I can relate to your first under cover barefoot run, I had my first on a rainy late afternoon not expecting anyone being around. However, there was a training going on nearby (after some thinking I decided not to walk away), and quite a few people saw me, then I noticed this is a great way to raise attention. As a consequence now I make a concious effort to run barefoot at least once a week somewhere where many shod runners are around, although I prefer to run offroad, just like you.
 
My first barefoot run was in full view of everyone at the park, around a lake, on an asphalt path. I had no choice, since I was in so much pain from my shoes, but as soon as I took them off, I was sailing!