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['Press Start']

Excuse the over dramatic style! Don't let that put you off the info.

[charlesr]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micah_True

[charlesr]

I'm considering getting some ultra light performance trainers to start the cross over to barefoot-shoes gradually - I've been running for such a long time with massive padded mid weight shoes that I think going straight to barefoot-shoes will be dangerous. Anyone got any recommends?

I really like the sound of the Adidas Adizero Adios 2.

[Taka]

You're right that you should start the progression nice and slow. Do you currently land on your forefoot or midfoot? If either, you should be able to take to a more minimalist shoe sooner rather than later.

Is there any particular reason you want to move to minimalist/barefoot running? Any knee or shin injuries? I went from a heel striker for years to a forefoot striker over a few months due to a chronic left runners knee from all the pounding. I'm right leg dominant anyway which didn't help things which meant it never really got stronger. Changing my gait was the only way forward (pun intended) for me or have to prematurely stop doing what I enjoy greatly.

Regarding shoes, it ultimately depends on what you feel more in touch with. I have some Nike Lunarglides which are very lightweight, and more or a neutral feel but with enough overall cushioning for my longer runs. For racing and speedwork, I have a pair of Nike Free Run which are insanely flexible for a forefoot strike, but with enough of a heel to fall back on if I get tired and my form gets lazy etc. These are much closer to a minimalist shoe and then there are some proper barefoot style shoes out there like the Vibram Five Fingers. I met a guy at the Silverstone half marathon who was training in them for the Brighton marathon. He said he felt much more in touch with the ground, being able to accurately feel the difference between concrete, tarmac, trail etc. The downside was that he could also feel stones, twigs and other random debris underfoot. The Adizero you've mentioned is a stellar shoe, worn by Haile Gebrselassie I believe.

Also be warned that your calf muscles and achilles tendons will ache a lot initially. Heel raises on some steps will help as will walking around the house barefoot as much as possible.

Tried a hill session on Wednesday instead of my usual speedwork session. Quite enjoyed the hills, in a weird masochistic kind of way, but I definitely need to train for the downhills - I was stepping on the brakes too often rather than letting gravity do its thing and go with it.

Didn't do the Parkrun today, had a lie-in instead since I'm working an event tomorrow and will be getting up early. Completed a 10k steady run instead in 22C heat. Ran to perceived effort rather than regular pace, which happened to be a minute slower than usual.

Feel sorry for those doing the Edinburgh marathon tomorrow in this scorching weather.

['Press Start']

You and Taka seem to do quite long distances compared to me so Lunar Glides would be a good starting shoe from what I researched. I only do short/medium distance so Free Run 3.0 are good for me. Plus I come from a sprinting form so landing on my forefoot is what I always tried to do but didn't know the old running shoes were stopping me.

Do you have any of these near you:-

http://www.sweatshop.co.uk/

If so they get you to run barefoot to check your gait etc before recommending a shoe. If you tell them you want to gradually cross over to barefoot I am sure they can recommend a shoe (although only one they sell!).

Or just get these

Joking of course.

By the way Born to Run written by Micah True is an excellent book (so my bro says). He told me about the tribe in the video above. I shall be borrowing that from him!

[charlesr]

I'm a heel striker with very long strides and pig toe push-off. It puts a huge strain on my groin and knees, although I've never had any injuries - just some niggly pains sometimes which go away after a few days. I try and make the heel strikes softly.

I have hugely cushioned trainers and when my form collapses after 8 miles or so when I'm tired, it takes a few strides for me to notice and get it fixed. During those few strides I do massive thumping heel strikes and I worry that even just a few of these are going to be a risk.

So my theory was that if I moved to a much lighter shoe with less cushioning, I'd be more aware of changes to my form and fix them before form collapses. I have been actively trying to land more midfoot with shorter strides in my current trainers. I don't even really want to go fully barefoot I think, apart from curiosity.

I have an excellent running shop near me in Portsmouth (http://www.alexandrasports.com/). They helped me pick my marathon shoe after doing video analysis.

I'm still thiking about it though. Cheers for the advice peeps.

[charlesr]

Went out for a 5 miler and decided to do a really high cadence (for me) of 160 strikes per minute. It was hot hot hot, but felt very relaxed at 7:45 pace. I also tried to keep my landing very soft.

It felt amazing to be out battling against the heat.

[PeteJ]

Back from Kayaking the Thames and more or less back to being human again, apart from hurting all over. Lots.

162 miles unsupported from Cricklade to Greenwich, camping most of the way (B&B in central london for last day). Each day was between eight and nine hours long as we had a really tough time with the heat and strong winds which were seemingly against us the whole time, so progress was very slow.

Hoping to get a video up of the last day soon which was utterly mind-blowing - those London Clippers don't half shift up and down central london creating a hell of a lot of wash. Obviously it's not the place to capsize - we even saw a dead body (yes, human) on one of the banks which the police just arrived at - so it made it pretty intense.

Not sure if this will work...

[charlesr]

Fantastic Pete. Must have been mental in that heat. Was it 2 of you?

[PeteJ]

Yeah it was pretty horrible, came pretty close to sun stroke on day 4 so had to be really careful after that. Very little shade along the river especially as you move towards the built up areas so it was a bit of a slog!
Just the two of us, yeah.

[charlesr]

What's next?

I'm doing:
South Downs Epic - 44 mile off road ride - I think Lucy is doing this with me, I'll be trying to keep up with her.
Fishbourne Flat 5 - 5 mile off road run
Wildman Off road Duathlon: 10km Run, 18km Bike, 5km Run

[Taka]

Well done, Pete! That's one helluva image there, especially with the dead body knowledge...


Charles, that thinking regarding minimalist shoes fixing your long stride, knee and groin pains is sound. Before diving straight in, I'd say try and further shorten your stride and increase your cadence to 170 if possible (180 seems to be the magic number) and see how you get on with your current shoes.

As always, it won't happen overnight because you're so used to running the way you do, so for now, less = more!

Splashed out on the HRM, which should be with me for Friday. Should be very interesting with an extra nugget of information to work from.

[teddymeow]

Well, 9 months to go until my wedding so I've joined the gym in an attempt to get trim for the big day.

Had a meeting with a personal trainer for my first session and he drew me up a plan to get me into going to the gym regularly without killing myself.

Today was session number 4. Weighed myself on the way out and I've lost 6lbs in the first week. Knowing I have a goal to reach in terms of length of time & how much I want to get down to is a real incentive.

More details to follow.

[charlesr]

teddymeow: Can I suggest also measuring yourself (if you haven't already)? If you don't have a floppy plastic tape measure, then use some cable and measure those instead. Often your weight will seem to plateau during training, but this is just because you are putting on muscle whilst continuing to lose fat elsewhere. So you might find you stop losing weight which might be demoralising unless you realise you are still losing inches off your waist etc.

[Taka]

Just got back from the Parkrun 5k and no PB this week, but I wasn't racing for one. Came back home with a time 25 seconds slower than my PB, but the effort and pace felt much more relaxed than usual so I am definitely getting fitter.

Wore my HRM for the first time and loved it. Didn't obtrude at all or slip and it was interesting having a new set of data to run with. I didn't pay that much attention to it at this stage, merely observing it casually. Max heart rate after a balls to wall sprint at the very end came in at 197bpm, with a resting heart rate of 48bpm - just about above average for my age. Good news too was majority of my run at 7:30 - 8 minutes per mile pace was hovering around the 175bpm mark, so running at 8:45 minutes per mile half marathon goal pace should see me comfortably in with a clear cut sub 2 hour finish. Thanks for pushing me to get one, Charles & Pete.