Hi, I'm Adrian and I'm based in West Sussex in the South of England. I've often tried to take up running but got plagued by shin splints, etc so two years ago I decided to try minimalist shoes to see if they would help. My first were a pair of Vivobarefoot Trail freaks (I prefer to run offroad) and they were marvellous. I found I could run further with very little discomfort so carried on with these, eventually adding other minshoes to my arsenal - Xeros, Freets, VFFs (KSO Evo and Trek Ascents).
Then a month or so ago I decided to take the plunge and go out in my naked feet. So under the cover of darkness I went for a 1k run round our village. It was wonderful! My feet felt great at the end of it so a week later I extended it to 2k, again feeling great!
I then decided to take part in the 5k run on the 1st May as part of IBRD and found that the sudden jump to that distance was a bit of a shock to my soles. I picked up a few minor blisters but nothing major but it did indicate that I was overstriding a touch and also not lifting properly. However, I went out again on Monday and did the same route and tried to focus on my form. I was slower but my feet suffered less distress so I'm hoping I'm moving in the right direction. I even had another shod runner stop and shout "RESPECT!" to me, which was nice!
So I guess this is the start of my journey into barefoot running. I may never truly ditch my shoes completely as some terrain I run on is a bit challenging but I aim to do as much as I can. My goal so far is to take part in a 10mile race in October (Bright10) and do that barefoot. That's the goal anyway but I'll let my feet be my guide
Then a month or so ago I decided to take the plunge and go out in my naked feet. So under the cover of darkness I went for a 1k run round our village. It was wonderful! My feet felt great at the end of it so a week later I extended it to 2k, again feeling great!
I then decided to take part in the 5k run on the 1st May as part of IBRD and found that the sudden jump to that distance was a bit of a shock to my soles. I picked up a few minor blisters but nothing major but it did indicate that I was overstriding a touch and also not lifting properly. However, I went out again on Monday and did the same route and tried to focus on my form. I was slower but my feet suffered less distress so I'm hoping I'm moving in the right direction. I even had another shod runner stop and shout "RESPECT!" to me, which was nice!
So I guess this is the start of my journey into barefoot running. I may never truly ditch my shoes completely as some terrain I run on is a bit challenging but I aim to do as much as I can. My goal so far is to take part in a 10mile race in October (Bright10) and do that barefoot. That's the goal anyway but I'll let my feet be my guide