I've been running barefoot since June and inevitably after joining a running club, I just ran my first race! I was warned the course was hilly but nothing really prepared me for 2 laps of this rollercoaster of a course. After arriving and warming up our club was herded to the bottom of a hill and before I knew it the whistle had been blown and everyone shot up, I was keeping to the back to avoid the flurry of running spikes that were tearing at the ground. I eventually got to the top of the hill and the next part of the course - three or four hills that were already being conquered by the elite. The trails were mostly grass or worn down into hard earth but to my delight I saw no gravel.
I noticed my quads were already beginning to fatigue halfway around the first lap, which left me wondering whether the bent knee stance causes me to work on hills, something I may to experiment with. Soon I was climbing another hill into a wooded area which as we all know means acorns, I bent my knees more and was careful where I placed my feet and managed to get through with minimal pain, and onto a gravelly road.
"Caballo blanco!", someone called from behind me. He caught up and we discussed born to run, and how he had been told not to run by his podiatrist in the past, starting to run again when he read the book. It's a familiar story to a lot of us and I asked him whether he had ever considered taking the final step to running barefoot. I kept on having to fly past him down hills and wait for him to catch up and continue our conversation, before one massive hill near the end of the first lap I pointed him in the direction of the BRS. Going Dow. This hill I felt a little out of control and felt I couldn't quite get my legs moving fast enough underneath me, my landings weren't my gentlest so I was glad when the terrain flattened out and I could rest. Soon the first lap was over and after a flat section I even felt my legs had recovered. I was soon proved wrong by that first large hill.
The next lap was painful, my quads were aching continually, though my cardiovascular fitness seemed ok, it really was my legs fatiguing that was holding me back. I noticed that when crossing a hill my right foot didn't have the flexibility to lie flat on the sloping ground, ny ankle on that side certainly feels less flexible. I just about made it round the second time and was passed by the guy I had been talking to. I felt even more out of control on the last hill the second time round, but had just enough energy left to sprint the last 50 metres or so and beat my running buddy to the finish line. Turns out he didn't hear me behind him!
Overall, despite aching like crazy and feeling quite ill shortly after the finish, I really enjoyed myself. I placed 3rd last out of just over a hundred runners, but I am glad I took part and it has opened my eyes to what I need to work on. This has turned into a bit of a novel, but thanks for everyone's support!
I noticed my quads were already beginning to fatigue halfway around the first lap, which left me wondering whether the bent knee stance causes me to work on hills, something I may to experiment with. Soon I was climbing another hill into a wooded area which as we all know means acorns, I bent my knees more and was careful where I placed my feet and managed to get through with minimal pain, and onto a gravelly road.
"Caballo blanco!", someone called from behind me. He caught up and we discussed born to run, and how he had been told not to run by his podiatrist in the past, starting to run again when he read the book. It's a familiar story to a lot of us and I asked him whether he had ever considered taking the final step to running barefoot. I kept on having to fly past him down hills and wait for him to catch up and continue our conversation, before one massive hill near the end of the first lap I pointed him in the direction of the BRS. Going Dow. This hill I felt a little out of control and felt I couldn't quite get my legs moving fast enough underneath me, my landings weren't my gentlest so I was glad when the terrain flattened out and I could rest. Soon the first lap was over and after a flat section I even felt my legs had recovered. I was soon proved wrong by that first large hill.
The next lap was painful, my quads were aching continually, though my cardiovascular fitness seemed ok, it really was my legs fatiguing that was holding me back. I noticed that when crossing a hill my right foot didn't have the flexibility to lie flat on the sloping ground, ny ankle on that side certainly feels less flexible. I just about made it round the second time and was passed by the guy I had been talking to. I felt even more out of control on the last hill the second time round, but had just enough energy left to sprint the last 50 metres or so and beat my running buddy to the finish line. Turns out he didn't hear me behind him!
Overall, despite aching like crazy and feeling quite ill shortly after the finish, I really enjoyed myself. I placed 3rd last out of just over a hundred runners, but I am glad I took part and it has opened my eyes to what I need to work on. This has turned into a bit of a novel, but thanks for everyone's support!
