When did it all get so complicated?

skedaddle

skedaddle

Barefooters
Sep 3, 2011
1,244
2,066
113
#1
I just enjoy running, simply, one foot in front of the other, that’s it. I hear so much about diet this and heart rate that, every man and his dog seems to have something to say on the matter. I’m sure if our ancestors adopted this type of thinking they would have starved to death, unless they developed a taste for snails, assuming they could catch them while keeping their heart rate down ;).

It all just seems overly complicated to me.

I actually enjoy the feeling of running to my limit. I love the mind battle that ensues, the runners high, the feeling of relief when it’s all over, the failures, the uncertainty. All of these things are why i run, it’s passion, the day i have to rely on technology to tame my efforts is the day I give up running.

I was attracted to the idea of barefoot running in the first place because it seemed so natural and simple, this is just how i feel, and is no reflection on those who enjoy a more structured scientific, training routine, just trying to balance the equation, that’s all.

Am I alone in feeling like this? or do others share these views, or variations thereof?
 
#2
I share the same love of

I share the same love of running. I think we all do...

The reason Im pro Maffetone is because I believe it will allow me to improve my performance AND allow me to continue running throughout the rest of my life.

As far as when it became so complicated, I guess for me it was around 9 years old when I started discovering that I had a strong attraction to chicks... Life seems to have become complicated ever since then..
 
#3
You're not alone, Ske.  I

You're not alone, Ske. I don't jump through all the hoops when I run either. I just go. No HRM, no GPS, no MP3, no GU, no water, nothing.
 
#4
Thanks TJ, im glad

Thanks TJ, i’m glad that others feel the same, i was beginning to feel a bit lost with it all.

I actually run my fastest half marathon the other day doing exactly what you do. I took nothing, but left well hydrated though.

Oh and when i'm out running i stop to talk to people along the way, sing Mister ED to the horses and baa at the sheep, i want to interact with trails I run, not with a gadget on my wrist, or a head full of rules.
 
#5
Error...Error...does not

Error...Error...does not compute...fatal error...
I kid, I kid!
Honestly, I can't get enough. It's not complicated to me... It's layers. I want to burrow under, submerge myself and roll around in all aspects of running and I love competing against my self and running with other people. It's ok with me if some people don't get that or want to dig that deep. I'd still run with ya! ;-)
-Jonny
 
#6
Ske, it seems from my

Ske, it seems from my exposure to the barefoot running community these past years that "most" of us prefer to run without all the bells and whistles. It seems we start out the opposite, but the longer we spend at this running barefoot thing, little-by-little we start to shed all those extra layers until finally we are left with just our feet.

One with the run, one with the self.
 
#7
The only thing I like is to

The only thing I like is to analyze the data and see if I can tell why a particular run went better than another. I might go more in depth than that if I had some sort of hope of being good at it. But I just enjoy doing it. So I run and drink beer. And life is good.
 
#8
Sigh..., it is a little

Sigh..., it is a little complicated for me. I love just running, particularly on trails, but like so many people nowadays, I only learned how to run as an adult, actually only 18 months ago, at age 47, because before that I thought you had to use running shoes and I hated the feeling of running in those (made me feel like a big klutz). This means my muscles, my cardio-vascular system and my energy-delivery system as well as my brain need to learn at a time that is less than ideal. The extra help of a heart-rate monitor provides me with biofeedback that will help me in the long run to run without gadgets. The running form theory, especially the Chi-Running book, helped me to run with balance and now decent form comes without any conscious thought.

I also grew up on a diet low in vegetables and fruits and had to learn as an adult to like them, prepare them etc. and needed some outside help in the form of cook books. Now I eat a healthy diet for the most part because it tastes good and my body wants healthy foods and that helps my running.

For people who grew up running all these things come naturally and easily, lucky for them. But I know that with the temporary help from a few gadgets and some advice I can learn to run well enough that I'll be able to do it into my 80's without major injuries.

People also used to run without needing an internet forum to talk about it but it sure is nice to have it.
 
#9
JonnyI can see the

Jonny

I can see the attraction of monitoring progress, i also love gadgets, i’m a bloke after all, but when it comes to running i just like to keep it simple and sweet.



TJ

I place my feet firmly in the minimalist camp these days. Over the past year or two i’ve slowly been shedding baggage, not just with running, but with life in general. I don’t even own a car anymore, i just run everywhere.



NotSoDoomedRunner

I here ya, most of us will never be pro athletes, which many of these technical training regimes are designed for. Just run because it’s fun and drink beer, gotta love that.



palouserider

My story is very similar to yours, only i’m a little older. I have learnt the basics of form, but for me thats enough.

I think running comes naturally to everyone, after all it’s what we evolved to do, you just have to trust in your instincts. Sadly in such a noisy world where everything is geared to performance and sedation it can be very hard to hear your inner voice.
 
#10
I'm rediscovering my love for

I'm rediscovering my love for just going out and running. For a while I was getting concerned with distances and times and splits. Then I went for a few days without running. I was miserable. When I did finally strap on my waterbottle and head out the door....I just ran until I didn't feel like running anymore. 9 miles later I was home, didn't know how long I'd been out, and only knew how far I'd run because I'd run the 4.5 out and back to my job. Then I promptly had a guiness...Best run I've had since taking off my shoes.
beer.png




I don't need all the fancy gadgets for running. I have the rest of my life to use those in...Running is my simple time.
 
#11
i am quite anti gadget. i

i am quite anti gadget. i resisted getting a computer for a long time. i only got one when i returned to school. ok, i had one before but didn't use it for much more than looking at email and myspace. don't use the latter anymore. after i'm off this site there's not much i can do online except watch movies and get help with homework.



i don't run with music. i have never like headphones. i have carried water once. it was summer and the streams on the trails were dry. i could've made it but my dog couldn't.



the reason i got a gps/hrm was so i could run uphill like joshh and paraganek do. those guys run uphill faster than most can do on flat land. it's impressive and depressing at the same time. after doing some reading i realized the hrm and maf training would help me. so i saved and got a garmin. i take it off the second i'm done running. sometimes while i'm walking to cool off if i have a jacket on with zippable pockets. i don't wear watches, rings, or any jewelery.



here's a good one for chaser and any other sickos. i wear a pearl necklace that joshh gave me. ya, you read that right.



I HAVE A PEARL NECKLACE.



i say it with pride and wait for the laughs. if you haven't, check out his link on his avatar. kamakopearls. he owns a pearl farm. it was crazy going to his house and seeing a table with bags of pearls on it.
 
#13
BarefootpuffinSounds like

Barefootpuffin

Sounds like you had fun, i do much the same thing, just run until i don’t feel like running any more. My long weekly run is more regimented, that’s when i test my progress and stick to a certain milage, but during the week anything goes.

I too love guinness with a splash of blackcurrant.



Migangelo

I totally understand your drive to conquer hills, i can be very tenacious about things like that too, if a garimin helps you to achieve your goals then more power to you, just not for me that’s all.

Wearing pearls, wow, it takes one confident dude to pull that off, kudos for manning up and sticking a finger up at convention. I sometimes wear a bow in me beard, on special occasions, and i thought i was being brave and out there.



Barefoot Gentile

I think with whatever you choose to do in life there’s always going to be someone telling you there’s a better way. If you start trying to make sense of it all it will just drive you nuts.

I guarantee if you compared the running form of everyone here no two people’s would be the same, even though we have the same sources of reference. So what might be the best approach for me might be completely wrong for someone else, that’s why i just like to keep things simple and run to my own rhythm.
 
#14
Simple is how I like it. 

Simple is how I like it. I've mentioned before that my optimal runs are on those summer days when I can just go with nothing on but a pair of shorts - not even a watch for extra weight and tech. If I can jump in a river to cool off after, why, that's just about as good as it gets.
 
#15
A little different

A little different perspective on why some of us complicate running: Some of us add layers of complexity to keep it interesting and advance our knowledge. I've been immersed in this world for years now to the point where this is what I do professionally... though I do what I can to be as unproferssional as possible. I couldn't sustain my enthusiam by simply skimming the surface year after year. Digging into things like diet, gait analysis, and training has allowed me to become a better runner and teacher.

I think it's great that people want to just run for the simple joy of physical movement without an complicating variables. In fact, that's my preferred way to run. However, understand that some of us make it complicated to figure stuff out, which is then used to help our ability to help others. We wouldn't be where we are today (quite literally with the BRS) if it weren't for a group of people that were willing to take this ball and run with it.

My advice- if you want to keep it simple, ignore the talk about the complex matters.

BTW- I hear your rant on heart rate training. I tried Maffetone... the criteria had me walking up a mountain at a 25 minute pace. The experiment lasted about three minutes before I went back to running hard until I started to get tunnel vision.
 
#16
JosephTreeWow, i wish i had

JosephTree

Wow, i wish i had a river near by to jump in when i get hot on my summer runs. I think that would top it off for me too.



Last Place Jason

Don’t get me wrong, i’m just trying to understand the endless wave of theories that flood through the running world in general. It’s almost like the old medicine shows with tonics, potions, gadget and theories that claim to put a ‘peck in yer’step’ or ‘cure whatever ails ya’

In my eyes this just seems very counter intuitive to the barefoot movement and ideas of minimalism.

I’m fairly new to all this, but even i can see that over complicating things is the reason that many runners got injured in the first place.

Talking of adding complexity to keep things interesting doesn’t sit all that well with me either, thats like drawing a moustache on the Mona Lisa with a big black pen because you’re bored with the painting.

So for me running to the tune of my own body seems to make more sense. Sometimes i have the urge to run as fast as i can, why i don’t know, but it only lasts as long as my conditioning will allow then my bodily defences kick in and i have to slow down.

So the question is should i ignore such urges? Mask them behind gadgets and theories? Or just go with the flow, trust my instincts. I just choose to go with my instincts.
 
#17
I hear ya.  My quest to

I hear ya. My quest to explore complexity probably has more to do with understanding running from different perspectives. Personally, I like to run exactly as you describe. Others do, too.

Unfortunately, not everyone can/is willing to learn to run by feel. To help them reach their goals, you need to understand how they think, what motivates them, what methods are most effective, how to they learn basics like gait and pace, etc. That requires a functional knowledge of a lot of different things, including training methods and gadgets. The more tools you have in the toolbox (figuratively), the better the teacher you become.

I know of a few others that explore complexity for this reason.

Of course, I think a good deal of the complexity we see is simply a function of our consumer culture, but that's a rant for another day.
wink_smile.gif
 
#18
Last Place JasonAgreed,

Last Place Jason

Agreed, consumer culture and vanity driven by competition, the exact human condition i started minimal running to get away from.
 
#19
The interesting thing- we're

The interesting thing- we're sort of influencing the shoe/running/outdoor industry with our overall minimalist philosophy. It's not readily apparent from the consumer's perspective quite yet, but lots of weird stuff going on behind the scenes.
 
#20
...thats like drawing a

...thats like drawing a moustache on the Mona Lisa with a big black pen because you’re bored with the painting.

Or trying to see what happens to the paint when using said marker... ;-)
 
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