Hi, everyone. I have been lurking around here for months but rarely have time to post, so here's a belated hello and a huge thank you to all of you who share your wisdom and experience on this site. (This post is similar to one I did at that "other" site, since I lurked a lot around there too.)
I hated running my whole life, except for sprints. I never understood why people would run long distances for fun—who could possibly enjoy all that pounding, jarring misery for hours on end? It was definitely not for me, so I would sort of “power walk” around my hilly neighborhood for exercise. But that never lasted long because my shins would start to hurt. I tried walking through the pain, I tried resting and then going again, but the pain always came back. I was pretty frustrated with my body—walking is just about the most basic human movement there is, and I couldn't even do it without being injured?!? So I started doing some research about shin pain and found out that I didn't have a defective body at all, I was just walking wrong because of my shoes. Landing on that fat, cushy heel had screwed up my gait, causing the front of my foot to flop down while the shin muscles were still tense, causing pain and inflammation in the front of my ankles and up my shins. Since I generally believe that nature got things right almost all the time, this made perfect sense to me since feet aren't made to be "protected" by cushioning and arch support and grippy soles and pronation control. I couldn't believe the thought had never occurred to me before.
Well, you don't get very far browsing the internet for barefoot walking without coming across barefoot running. I started reading, and things started falling into place—that awful pounding, jarring sensation of running is a result of bad running form in shoes, not from running the way nature intended. I had to try it the “right” way, so I kicked off my shoes one day and went for it. Ahhhhh.....this is why people run. It feels good!!!!
I had always been barefoot inside my house, but never outside thanks to a childhood diagnosis of a potentially fatal bee sting allergy. I always wore flip flops or something outside since I was afraid I could step on a bee and end up in the hospital. I bought some VFF KSOs which I really liked and I wore them everywhere in the summer, including camping/hiking, Disneyworld, etc. But when it came to running, I wanted to go truly barefoot--not only did I want to simply feel the ground beneath my feet, but I also wanted that ground feedback you all tend to advocate. So I went to an allergist and had some tests done and guess what? No allergy. The shoes came off, and I started running and walking outside truly barefoot. (Oh the years of bare feet in cool summer grass that I missed! But I could do without the stupid prickers that seem to be common on a certain tree around here.)
Once I started running on a regular basis I found that my form sucks and my muscles, ligaments, and tendons are really weak from lack of exercise. I suppose many years of not exercising will do that. I heeded the TMTS advice as best I could and have managed to avoid serious injury, just taking it easy when I have aches and pains beyond plain muscle soreness. My right knee has started to make an alarming crunching sound when I go down stairs, and I have concluded that it’s probably because my leg muscles aren’t strong enough to keep a good form, so I have been hiking in the rough, steep hills around my house wearing KSOs to build my leg strength. (I did a 7-mile hike yesterday - my longest ever! I saw some impressive trail runners up there.) I’m also finding that being barefoot in the dark, cold mornings really sucks, and I don’t run long enough to really warm up and feel good. Perhaps I will go easy during the week and go more on the weekends when I can go out when it’s warmer and light outside.
Anyway, I cannot thank you all enough for all the wisdom and advice you share on here -- it is SO helpful, supportive, and inspiring! I could not have embarked on this journey without you.
I hated running my whole life, except for sprints. I never understood why people would run long distances for fun—who could possibly enjoy all that pounding, jarring misery for hours on end? It was definitely not for me, so I would sort of “power walk” around my hilly neighborhood for exercise. But that never lasted long because my shins would start to hurt. I tried walking through the pain, I tried resting and then going again, but the pain always came back. I was pretty frustrated with my body—walking is just about the most basic human movement there is, and I couldn't even do it without being injured?!? So I started doing some research about shin pain and found out that I didn't have a defective body at all, I was just walking wrong because of my shoes. Landing on that fat, cushy heel had screwed up my gait, causing the front of my foot to flop down while the shin muscles were still tense, causing pain and inflammation in the front of my ankles and up my shins. Since I generally believe that nature got things right almost all the time, this made perfect sense to me since feet aren't made to be "protected" by cushioning and arch support and grippy soles and pronation control. I couldn't believe the thought had never occurred to me before.
Well, you don't get very far browsing the internet for barefoot walking without coming across barefoot running. I started reading, and things started falling into place—that awful pounding, jarring sensation of running is a result of bad running form in shoes, not from running the way nature intended. I had to try it the “right” way, so I kicked off my shoes one day and went for it. Ahhhhh.....this is why people run. It feels good!!!!
I had always been barefoot inside my house, but never outside thanks to a childhood diagnosis of a potentially fatal bee sting allergy. I always wore flip flops or something outside since I was afraid I could step on a bee and end up in the hospital. I bought some VFF KSOs which I really liked and I wore them everywhere in the summer, including camping/hiking, Disneyworld, etc. But when it came to running, I wanted to go truly barefoot--not only did I want to simply feel the ground beneath my feet, but I also wanted that ground feedback you all tend to advocate. So I went to an allergist and had some tests done and guess what? No allergy. The shoes came off, and I started running and walking outside truly barefoot. (Oh the years of bare feet in cool summer grass that I missed! But I could do without the stupid prickers that seem to be common on a certain tree around here.)
Once I started running on a regular basis I found that my form sucks and my muscles, ligaments, and tendons are really weak from lack of exercise. I suppose many years of not exercising will do that. I heeded the TMTS advice as best I could and have managed to avoid serious injury, just taking it easy when I have aches and pains beyond plain muscle soreness. My right knee has started to make an alarming crunching sound when I go down stairs, and I have concluded that it’s probably because my leg muscles aren’t strong enough to keep a good form, so I have been hiking in the rough, steep hills around my house wearing KSOs to build my leg strength. (I did a 7-mile hike yesterday - my longest ever! I saw some impressive trail runners up there.) I’m also finding that being barefoot in the dark, cold mornings really sucks, and I don’t run long enough to really warm up and feel good. Perhaps I will go easy during the week and go more on the weekends when I can go out when it’s warmer and light outside.
Anyway, I cannot thank you all enough for all the wisdom and advice you share on here -- it is SO helpful, supportive, and inspiring! I could not have embarked on this journey without you.
