Hey all! I hope I'm posting this in the proper place...if not, let me know. And I have lot's of concernss....I'll try and make this as succinct and cohesive as possible. Let's start with my running background:
I have been an avid hiker since my teens. Hiking was daily thing in my 20's when I lived in Montana. Once I moved to Seattle (12 years ago) that changed and I took up running-3-4 days a week 3-6 miles at a pop. I only lived in Seattle for 1 year and once I landed in Alaska, hiking again became my main cardio although I did run more during the winter. Running had been an on and off thing until a year and a half ago. I've been fairly consistent 4 days a week 4-5 miles per run since. I've never had an injury due to running. I've never "trained" for running....I just love to get out and run.
Last May I inherited my mom's VFF Treks(too "weird" and pink for her). I had resisted trying vffs for years thinking it was just another bullshit fad, but since I had a free pair, why not try 'em?! I didn't know anything about barefoot or minimalist running....so I squirmed my feet into the VFFs and went right out on a 5 mile trail run. OUCH!!!! But I LOVED them!!! LOVED the feeling of being so near barefoot and connected-brain, feet, Earth. I had some intense calf soreness for the first 2 weeks but continued to run 5 miles in the VFFs every 3-4 days. Eventually I could run the trail with no soreness. The stiffness and "puffy" feeling I had always experienced in my knees diminished almost completely and the chronic low back pain I deal with due to a sacral anomaly is not as bad anymore! I ran all summer-did 3 ten milers and lot's of steep hiking- in those shoes with no problems. I also ran on our road 3 or 4 times as well as a couple times in NJ. No real soreness.
Until the end of September when we went to St. Louis for my husband’s work. We were there for a week and ran 4 of those days on pavement. I was surprised by how super sore I was after that first run and have felt sore after every ROAD run since-except for when we have run on the trail! My feet themselves are not sore, although I've noticed two small bruises on the top of my left foot where metatarsal meets phalange. The pain is up through the calves. I thought perhaps part of the problem was wearing very high heels at night for the fancy dinners we were going to in St. Louis. I RARELY wear heels. Since snow hit in Oct. I've been running on our road which is now packed/plowed snow and will be until spring.
So, not knowing a lot about the intricacies of running, I assume I jumped into road running to quickly? I figured after a summer of running in VFFs , my feet and calves had gained the strength stolen by fancy schmancy running shoes and I could run anywhere.
I also ran across Barefoot Ken Bob's book where he advised that to become a MINIMALIST runner you should still START with barefoot running and work your way up to VFFS? What is the consensus on this? How to do this in Alaska in the winter?!?!
Do I have to take my running in VFF's down a notch? Where to begin?! Running in Alaska is frustrating. On any given day the hardness and depth of the snow pack can change...or even disappear to expose bare road. I don't have access to an indoor track but my gym has treadmills-ECK! And speaking of treadmills, I did my first workout on a treadmill last week (45 min)and experienced the deepest soreness yet. When I sit with legs out in front of me and invert/supinate my ankles...OUCH!
So where do I go from here folks? And then there's nordic and skate skiing......HELP! I want to be able to run until I’m an OLD lady!
If it helps, I’m 41, 5’ 7”, 135 pnds. THANK YOU for any and all advice!!!!
I have been an avid hiker since my teens. Hiking was daily thing in my 20's when I lived in Montana. Once I moved to Seattle (12 years ago) that changed and I took up running-3-4 days a week 3-6 miles at a pop. I only lived in Seattle for 1 year and once I landed in Alaska, hiking again became my main cardio although I did run more during the winter. Running had been an on and off thing until a year and a half ago. I've been fairly consistent 4 days a week 4-5 miles per run since. I've never had an injury due to running. I've never "trained" for running....I just love to get out and run.
Last May I inherited my mom's VFF Treks(too "weird" and pink for her). I had resisted trying vffs for years thinking it was just another bullshit fad, but since I had a free pair, why not try 'em?! I didn't know anything about barefoot or minimalist running....so I squirmed my feet into the VFFs and went right out on a 5 mile trail run. OUCH!!!! But I LOVED them!!! LOVED the feeling of being so near barefoot and connected-brain, feet, Earth. I had some intense calf soreness for the first 2 weeks but continued to run 5 miles in the VFFs every 3-4 days. Eventually I could run the trail with no soreness. The stiffness and "puffy" feeling I had always experienced in my knees diminished almost completely and the chronic low back pain I deal with due to a sacral anomaly is not as bad anymore! I ran all summer-did 3 ten milers and lot's of steep hiking- in those shoes with no problems. I also ran on our road 3 or 4 times as well as a couple times in NJ. No real soreness.
Until the end of September when we went to St. Louis for my husband’s work. We were there for a week and ran 4 of those days on pavement. I was surprised by how super sore I was after that first run and have felt sore after every ROAD run since-except for when we have run on the trail! My feet themselves are not sore, although I've noticed two small bruises on the top of my left foot where metatarsal meets phalange. The pain is up through the calves. I thought perhaps part of the problem was wearing very high heels at night for the fancy dinners we were going to in St. Louis. I RARELY wear heels. Since snow hit in Oct. I've been running on our road which is now packed/plowed snow and will be until spring.
So, not knowing a lot about the intricacies of running, I assume I jumped into road running to quickly? I figured after a summer of running in VFFs , my feet and calves had gained the strength stolen by fancy schmancy running shoes and I could run anywhere.
I also ran across Barefoot Ken Bob's book where he advised that to become a MINIMALIST runner you should still START with barefoot running and work your way up to VFFS? What is the consensus on this? How to do this in Alaska in the winter?!?!
Do I have to take my running in VFF's down a notch? Where to begin?! Running in Alaska is frustrating. On any given day the hardness and depth of the snow pack can change...or even disappear to expose bare road. I don't have access to an indoor track but my gym has treadmills-ECK! And speaking of treadmills, I did my first workout on a treadmill last week (45 min)and experienced the deepest soreness yet. When I sit with legs out in front of me and invert/supinate my ankles...OUCH!
So where do I go from here folks? And then there's nordic and skate skiing......HELP! I want to be able to run until I’m an OLD lady!
If it helps, I’m 41, 5’ 7”, 135 pnds. THANK YOU for any and all advice!!!!
