Bonjour from the Red Stick

Barefoot Bayou Runner · Apr 3, 2013

Actually, a little outside of Baton Rouge. Growing up in south Louisiana, I've been a barefoot person all my life. From childhood to adulthood, if I could kick my shoes off, I did. But only fairly recently did I start trying to run that way.

I've been through all sorts of shoes, from the "I like these because they look cool" Adidas in the beginning, to the "you need maximum support " pair of Brooks, to VFF's, Nike Free's, to my current running "shoes", a beat up old pair of Corona flip-flops with straps made from a worn out old shirt.

But I like to try new things, so I've been testing barefoot running on and off the past few years. The past 6 months I've tried to gradually toughen my soles to the point of being able to run a 5k as fast as I can in my sandals.

Barefoot TJ · Apr 3, 2013

Welcome!

Phil Hart · Apr 4, 2013

Welcome to the crew, Bayou. Sounds like you're doing this wisely - slowly and gradually. It's a lot of fun.

Barefoot Bayou Runner · Apr 4, 2013

Thanks for the welcome guys.

I am trying to do it gradually, and I've found that I'm at the point where my biggest hindrance (at least for < or = to 5K) is the toughness of my feet. I don't seem to have an issue off pavement (my sandals broke with 2 miles to go in my last trail 10K, and I had no issues continuing the same pace to the finish). But on asphalt, I can't maintain my speed for very long without my feet getting beat up. I can do about two miles at a decent pace at this point and have my feet be ok at the end.

Phil Hart · Apr 5, 2013

Most of us have experienced similar transitions. It's going to take a while to get faster on hard surfaces, as you'll have to keep your non-skidding/pushing-off form exactly right to keep from losing skin to abrasion. That's really challenging to do, and it gets exponentially harder to keep that form the faster you go. Soft surfaces let you "cheat" on form as they are more cushioning and less abrasive. Running on hard surfaces will help you dial your healthy barefoot running form in precisely, but like everything with this transition, it takes time. Patience, grasshopper. When you can take the pebble from TJ's hand...