tingly toes

Last night Dad & I went to a local track to do this week's speed-work session. A not-so-long story made shorter, I wound up running 2.5 of the 4.5-mile workout barefoot on the grassy middle. It was so freeing. I thought I might have unusual soreness today from jumping so eagerly into something different, but I really don't. Dad tried it, too. He sod his feet and jumped back on the track sooner than I did but said his feet stayed "tingly" for the next mile.

While experimenting with the new method, we both became tangibly aware of the theories we'd been reading about and researching. Once the spongy soles of our running shoes were left standing alone, we naturally landed on our mid-to-forefront foot areas, which is ideal.

When we initially freed our feet, I verbalized how light I felt, at which point Dad guffawed and retorted with, "That's so mental it's ridiculous." Of course! Ray Zahab, one of the three Sahara runners, put it well: Running is 90% mental. And the other 10% is mental.

In that case, why run barefoot? It feels good! And it's good for you, too, because it teaches proper form. I find my Newtons to be extremely comfortable (and I adore wearing them as "everyday shoes"), but as Dad astutely pointed out last night, their theory is maybe a bunch of malarkey. They've built up the forefront of the soles, and claim their shoes will make you fast, more efficient and teach you to be a forefront striker. The cost for this technology starts at $150 and goes skyward. (Granted, this isn't that unheard of for running shoes. Runners nearly rival Hollywood fashionistas when it comes to what they're willing to spend on shoes.) Nevertheless, when you're buying a new pair every couple hundred miles, it adds up. The other option is to incorporate shoe-ditching into your weekly training plan and teach yourself proper form for the whopping cost of nothing. Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-Newton. Like I said, I enjoy my pair, just not as much for running as for casual comfort.

My conclusion thus far is this: Running is more fun when you do it naked. (Ooops...I mean shoeless.) Try it.

{Photo borrowed from 802 via flickr.com}