Had a break through in last 48 hours, very excited

gisanders23

Barefooters
May 23, 2011
25
0
0
I started this process 3 months ago. walked for a month, then started working in short runs while reading books and watching vids to try and correct my bad form. have been through a lot of blisters and soreness on top of my left foot, as well as plantar fasciitis. i know my form has not been correct, i've never been able to run further than a half marathon because of knee pain. my heal strike was terrible in shoes

1 month ago i did a 5K barefoot (prematurely) and it was decent, but tore my feet up pretty bad. took several weeks off because of that...i know my form was suffering

Then, 2 nights ago i figured out what i was doing wrong, i was simply running too fast! by mistake on a walk I was testing my feet and almost fake running at a very slow almost walking pace, and thats when it hit me. If I slowed way down maybe I would get closer to the form needed

So i set out an hour later for my first run in nearly a month. I ran REALLY slow, 1.5 miles...at a 13.38 min pace (my normal in shoes was 9 min pace) and it worked! I still had some tender spots on my feet from the 5K but they didn't blister at all. I couldn't believe it...but didn't want to overthink it and jinx the whole thing

Last night my feet felt pretty good, even though it had only been 24 hours since that last run, so I went for it again. This being the first time ever I had even thought about running BF 2 days in a row. It worked, i was able to increase my pace a hair (12:45 min) and the result was the same after 2 miles this time...i could have even kept going i think but didn't want to chance it.

I cannot overstate how overjoyed I am. Parts of me were starting to question whether I'd ever figure the form out. I think my biggest fault was thinking "Too Much Too Soon" had mostly to do with distance, when in reality for me it's "Too Fast Too Soon". I'm confident now that I'll be able to strengthen my soles from more frequent runs, which I know should then allow me to increase my speed gradually, and eventually my distance as well.

I hope I'm not jumping the gun...but it feels amazing to have run BF two nights in a row and my feet feel just fine. can't believe it.

My goal is the Dallas White Rock HALF Marathon in December, completely barefoot. Let the training begin!!!
 
I think your story is going

I think your story is going to be very helpful to lots of people. We always stress that TMTS has to do with BOTH distance AND speed. But don't worry, you will get your speed back. Once you get your form down, the speed will come. Always form before speed and distance.
 
I had the same epiphany last

I had the same epiphany last year, I was trying to run too fast .....though I was doing decently with increasing distance at a modest rate (well, except for the litle stress fracture I gave myself after running a half marathon only a few months into bfr). It's an amazing feeling once you figure out how your body ticks, glad to hear you're enjoying your runs now. Happy Trails!
 
Hey, congrats!  It's a great

Hey, congrats! It's a great feeling to struggle and struggle and then break through!

My goal is also to run the Dallas Half in December barefoot, also.(already registered...no backing out now!)

Since you're in the area, here are the events I'm registered for...maybe we can meet up while your pace is still slow, like me!

http://barefootrunners.org/forum-topic/north-texas-barefoot-brothers-and-sisterswhachall-runn

My wife and I are doing the too hot to handle 5k on the 10th before the Texas chapter GTG at the Oak Point Nature Preserve in Plano at 9. Maybe we'll see you there?

-Jonny
 
Great news that I'm going to

Great news that I'm going to try out on tomorrows run. Been struggling through winter running barefoot and still haven't figured it out but I'll give this a go and fingers crossed I'll let you know that I had a damage free run:)
 
Rock on!  I think we newbies

Rock on! I think we newbies all seem to run into that issue. I read from someone on the forum a while back that ditching her IPOD helped, so I tried that. All I have to say is, thank goodness for that advice. Sometimes you just get wrapped up in a song and your pace goes all dance-happy.



-Vickers
 
Thx everyone. Small update.

Thx everyone.

Small update. I took a day off after those two runs I mentioned. Then Saturday morning went out and did almost 4 miles. With ZERO blisters. Feet pretty tender but felt great and already fully recovered a day later. I plan to do 2-3-4 mile runs each week for a while to get my soles good and tough before adding an more distance

I will look at my schedule Jonny as I may be up for a race or two. Other than the white rock I know I'll be doing the 8 mile turkey trot downtown on thanksgiving morning. But I could use some others between now and then. The damn heat is brutal right now though

I have yet to try giving up my iPod. And doubt I will as it's one of my most enjoyable parts about running. The time alone with some good music is an important part of it for me. I can see how it could alter your pace though. I have many different playlists specifically for different runs. So I just make sure I don't put on anything that'll get me too pumped while I'm focusing on form
 
Not to harp, but let us know

Not to harp, but let us know when you no longer care for the music during a run. It happens to a lot of us barefoot runners. After a while, we just stop running with all the extras.
 
Will do TJ. I'll be shocked

Will do TJ. I'll be shocked if i do ever ditch it, but never say never

Music is by far my #1 passion in life (I was a professional musician for many yrs and now work in the industry). I can actually attribute getting into running because of music. Best time to listen and relax with tunes cause you can really listen to it as opposed to at work or whatever when distracted

I can certainly see how it could detract from it for some though
 
I'm glad for you.  My one

I'm glad for you. My one problem in 13 months of barefoot running came when I felt so good during a four-mile run that I ran it 2 minutes per mile faster than normal. I was so careful to build up mileage over the previous 9 months, but that speedy run set me back a bit. Speed is not my friend. Now that I'm back on track I watch my speed carefully so I don't overdo it again. It's like others have said here, but I know my form suffers when I run faster or farther than my body is prepared to handle.
 
I had a confidence boosting

I had a confidence boosting run yesterday so I'm feeling pretty good. My feet are still warm but no damage:) A unseasonably warm day in the middle of winter no doubt helped but it was a bright and sunny day so I went out nice and slow and let my feet judge how far and for how long. I ended up in all sorts of cramping but it wasn't due to my feet it was due to stopping to talk to friends that I ran into. I don't want to hijack this thread any further so you can have a read here :)

http://www.dailymile.com/people/Kentox/entries/8144719
 
Went out for 2.7 miles in the

Went out for 2.7 miles in the Texas heat this morning at 10am. Still feeling good. Was interesting to run for the first time on hot concrete...sidewalks not too bad but the streets were pretty toasty.

Looking fwd to being in Florida for vaca in a few wks and bare footing on the beach