Barefoot Running Good for Your Brain?

[barefootmarc]

I have stepped up my barefoot running mileage to get ready for our event on Siesta Key to support IBRD and have found that my focus on key tasks for work and what we call "Finishing Power" is way up. In addition I am much more relaxed. My wife has noticed this upgrade in performance as well. Anyone else find the BF makes you sharper?

 

[khyricat]

I used to...  over the non

I used to... over the non running years I found knitting can also give me that focus... but thats me... And one of my coworkers claims she has to run or she is unbearable to be around... it's a true necessity for her.. and for her daughter...

I can totally understand that.

Amie

 

[Neil_D]

I have thought that this may

I have thought that this may be the case, despite onlookers thinking we have lost our marbles.

As has been noted; we have 200,000+ nerve endings in our feet, most of the time they are switched off by the shoes we are wearing.

With the shoes off, those nerve endings must be going to the brain giving all the information of the temperature, texture and hardness of the surface, this in turn gets converted to knee bend, cadence and stride.

All that along with the extra visual information that must be processed to make sure you don't step on a stone of a piece of glass. Maybe we are using part of the 80% of the human brain that is underused

What we need to do is measure our heads before we start barefoot running and a year after to see how much bigger our heads are ;-))



Neil

 

[barefootmarc]

Barefoot Running Good for

Barefoot Running Good for Your Brain? Yes....

Good article showing that running in general helps us create new grey matter... the Barefoot Running Brain connection might be that as we are creating more grey matter we are also taking in a great deal of sensory information which might enhance the effect.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/jan/18/running-brain-memory-cell-growth



Barefoot Marc

 

[barefootmarc]

 Hi Neil,The evidence

Hi Neil,

The evidence suggests that you are correct. Neurocognitive plasticty is our overly complex term to describe the process by which the brain makes new connections based on experience. For example London cab drivers have a larger hippocampus as result of learning "the knowledge." So if we could measure growth inside the head we should see some action. Interesting article here.... and great running quotes

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/jan/18/running-brain-memory-cell-growth



Cheers

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I have a HUGE head. 

I have a HUGE head. ;-)

 

[Neil_D]

Hi TJ,Maybe we are the next

Hi TJ,

Maybe we are the next evolution of humans, I can just envision in 10 year time, all these barefoot joggers running through the parks with huge heads ( I was going to say like the Tefal boffins off the TV ads but that would probably have gone over your heads so to speak, unless you were English) discussing time travel and string theory.



Neil

 

[stomper]

Marc, what's "Finishing

Marc, what's "Finishing Power"?

 

[barefootmarc]

Hi Stomper,Finishing Power

Hi Stomper,

Finishing Power is a skill set for completing important tasks. It is something that I keep working on. My wife is amazing at this. I guess I am a work in progress.

Marc

 

[stomper]

Ok Marc.  At first I thought

Ok Marc. At first I thought it was something sexual.

Now I am still interested though. What are the skills in this "skill set" ? I'd like to complete more important tasks myself.

 

[barefootmarc]

Big topic and I do not want

Big topic and I do not want to bore folks on this blog more than I already do. Here is a good article on a related topic.



http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200909/quirks-the-brain-procrastinations-perfect-storm

 

[stomper]

no worries, marc, i kind of

no worries, marc, i kind of LIKE how threads wander into other topics. I'll check out your link.