by ·Comments Off on Top Three Reasons to Use Minimalist Running Shoes
Left foot hitting on outer heel

Modern Day Running Shoe

Let’s get down to the meat of this article–the top three reasons to use minimalist running shoes.  Here they are:

  1. They are lighter, making it easier to run faster and longer.
  2. They give your run more spring for every step.
  3. They allow the foot to hit the ground naturally

They Are Lighter

Minimalist running shoes are absolutely lighter.  Pure and simple, less padding and less structure mean less weight .  When your feet have less weight to carry, it just makes sense that you will run faster and longer.

About one year ago, I purchased my first minimalist shoes–the Vibram FiveFingers Bikila LS running shoes.  Note that I have not run “barefoot” in any shape, way, or form since I was a little boy in the Philippines.  I’ve worn normal running shoes–the type I’m moving away from now–since I’ve started running, back in the mid-80s.  The Vibram FiveFingers Bikila LS running shoes  look like this:

Vibram Fivefingers Bikila LS running shoe

Vibram Fivefingers Bikila LS running shoe

As you can see, they look like gloves for your feet; they don’t really have much padding and support.  When I first got it, I took it out for a test drive and ran with it for about two miles.  After that run, my ankles were a little sore, and my calves were very sore!  At this point, I realized that I really need to ease into this.  I checked out one of my running magazines which featured minimalist shoes and found the Saucony ProGrid Mirage Running shoe.  This pair isn’t as bare as the Vibram.  It is still considered minimalist; however, it still had a bit of padding and a bit of support.  It looks like this:

Saucony Progrid Mirage

Saucony Progrid Mirage

This shoe is very light and has very minimal height difference between the heel and the toe.  I first ran with this at the 100th anniversary Bay to Breakers in San Francisco.   The only thing was that it was a bit tight around the toes (I have wide feet, that’s why).  However, after I broke it in, it felt better.

During the Bay to Breakers run, this shoe was so light that I didn’t even notice that it was new.  Every step of my run had that extra spring, and it felt great.

More Spring For Every Step

Speaking of spring in every step, minimalist shoes do not have as much heel as most common running shoes today.  As such, your heel may not hit the ground first.  Instead, your foot will land around the mid or fore foot area.

If you’ve been running with regular running shoes for some time, and you start using minimalist shoes (like the Vibram FiveFingers Bikila LS or the  Saucony ProGrid Mirage), you will notice soreness on your calves.  That’s because your calves are acting like springs.

Because you are using your calves more, there will be spring in every step you take during a run.  It will feel like you have more energy because the force of landing is mostly preserved and recovered from the spring-like action of your calves.

Compare this to the energy wasted when you use a running shoe with a thicker heel padding.  With a thicker heel padding, your tendency will be to land on your heel.  And as your heel lands, the force of the landing is absorb mostly by the padding, your knee, your hip, and the rest of your body parts above your hip.  It is no wonder why the number of running injuries have increased over time as the modern shoe designs have used faulty premise regarding foot comfort during a run (i.e. more heel padding and shoe structure is better for running).

Allow The Foot to Land More Naturally

The running shoe Industry has really changed the face of running for the masses.  Ever since they’ve worked to make the ride softer/smoother, neutralize pronation (over or under), and added more support, the number of running injuries have risen.  Why is this? The industry has pretty much arrested the natural running motion of the foot, causing the various foot injuries we hear about from fellow runners:

  • plantar fasciitis
  • Iliotibial (IT) band syndrome
  • Runner’s knee
  • Hip pain
  • Shin splints
Since training for my first marathon, I’ve experienced many such injuries or pains.  Originally, I blamed most of these to over-training.  But after reading Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, it all made logical sense.  The shoe industry was in fact causing people’s feet to get weaker with their fancy shoes (higher heel, more padding, more structure, etc).  In effect the foot and the muscles in it were getting weaker as a result of the shoes providing more support.  This is akin to putting the foot in a cast; this results in the foot muscles getting weaker and basically experiencing “atrophy”.
In reading  Born to Run, Christopher McDougall mentioned that there are tribesmen in Mexico who can run over one hundred miles or can run for days.  For these guys, running was a way of life.  Here’s the interesting thing.  None of them suffered from the western foot injuries mentioned earlier.  As a matter of fact, the tribesmen only ran with hand-made sandals.  They didn’t worry about over or under pronation; they didn’t have extra padding on their heel either.
Because their feet are not restricted and over protected, they are free to move and land as they were intended to be.  Note that the human foot has 26 bones and 33 joints.  It is a complex bio-mechanical structure, and it is naturally designed to move in various ways to absorb the shock of an activity like running.

Summary

So there you go:  the top three reasons to use minimalist running shoes.

  1. They are lighter
  2. They give you spring in every step
  3. They let your foot hit the ground as nature intended them

Are you looking to use minimalist shoes?  Please comment below.

by ·Comments Off on Running the 29th California International Marathon
29th CIM Finish Line

Crossing the 29th CIM Finish Line

I’ve run two marathons in my lifetime so far, and I plan to run more.  The first time was the Chicago Marathon, and the second was the 29th California International Marathon (CIM).  In this article, I will compare how I trained for each and look at the results.

Training for the Chicago Marathon

Before I ran the Chicago marathon, I trained for an entire year.  I used a training plan from a book I read by Dean Karnazes (50/50: Secrets I Learned Running 50 Marathons in 50 Days — and How You Too Can Achieve Super Endurance!).  This marathon training plan is in one of my postings if you want to get right to it.  Does the training take an entire year to do?  No.  I ended up running through the training two times.

The first time I completed it was around May-Jun 2010 time frame; I actually ran a marathon on my own; were my calves sore after mile 21.  I had to walk and jog periodically until I completed around 26 miles; it was pretty hot that day too!  My time was around 4:37.

The second time I completed the training plan was before the actual Chicago marathon.  I really stuck to the plan, which meant I ran anywhere from 4 to 6 times per week, logging in many miles.  during this second round, I injured myself a couple of times.  The first time was to my left knee.  I think I logged so many miles to the point that my left knee got very painful to the point where I could no longer run.  I stopped running for about a couple of weeks until I could run on it again.

The next time was maybe a month before the marathon.  This time the muscles under my feet were sore.  I experienced the pains associated with plantar fasciitis.  To treat it, I iced my feet regularly using ice in a regular plastic cylindrical bottle (I rolled my feet on it); eventually, it wasn’t as bad anymore and I could run on it.

Oct 10, 2010 came.  I ran the Chicago marathon and completed it in 4:57.  It wasn’t ideal running weather as it was warm (around 60’s in the morning, then 80’s later in the morning).  Were my legs sore!  The last 800 meters were a killer as a small incline caught me by surprise.  Then on last 200 meters I pushed to the finish line, even getting a chance to take a picture of the finish line from a distance.

Training for the CIM

I took a different approach to training for the CIM.  This time I used a training plan from Active.com which they provided for free.  The training was scheduled to begin in August and complete just before the CIM (Dec 4, 2011).

Before August 2011, however, I continued some degree of running regimen.  Running three times a week only with occasional cross training activities involving a stationary bike (non-weight bearing workouts).  I used a training concept I read from the book titled “Runner’s World Run Less, Run Faster: Become a Faster, Stronger Runner with the Revolutionary FIRST Training Program“.

The general idea is to run only 3 times a week with cross training work outs in between.  For the three runs to work, you need have a purpose for each run–interval runs, tempo runs, and long runs.  This comes down to achieving the following with each run:

  • interval runs – trains you to run faster
  • tempo runs – helps your body become efficient at processing oxygen; this way lactic acid are handled better, and as a result, you can run faster longer
  • long runs – designed to help your body get used to running for long periods of time; builds endurance
During this time frame, I also read a book called McDougall called Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen (Vintage).  McDougall is on to something.  This inspired me to look into two thing:

Perhaps the problem is that my feet have been effectively in a cast for the many years I’ve been wearing running shoes.  This could account for the weakness in the muscles in my feet, and the issues I had with my plantar fascii.  So I got myself a Vibram shoe–Vibram Fivefingers Mens Bikila LS Castle Rock/Navy/Grey 44 to be exact.  All information regarding running barefoot says to take it slow, so I did.  On some days I do short runs, I would wear my Vibram Fivefingers Bikila LS.  Boy, did I notice a big difference; my calves were sore.  Running almost barefoot makes you want to land on your forefoot by instinct.

To ease my transition to barefoot/minimalist shoe running I also bought a Saucony Men’s Progrid Mirage Running Shoe,Silver/Black/Yellow,11 M US.  This is considered a minimalist shoe.  It has a very small heel to toe height difference.  I ran with this for this first time in May 2011 at the 100th Bay to Breakers (12K run).  Running in these shoes felt great, it was very light.

I stated to experiment with the chia seeds.  You can make chia seed drink simply by mixing 2 table spoons of the seeds with 40 ounces of water.  Add some brown sugar for flavor (or whatever turns you on), mix, and let stand for at least one hour.  I leave mine overnight in the fridge, and it tastes good.  It really does give you a energy and because it absorbs water very well, it serves as a good energy drink for long runs.

OK.  Back to the training.  August came and went.  I began my training runs, doing only 3 purposeful runs a week and mixing in some occasional cross training workouts in between.  The core of my training was just the 3 runs per week.  Two week from December 4, I began to taper off.  On the last week, I did very little running.

December 4 in Sacramento area was great.  The weather was perfect for running–no wind and the temperature was around the 40’s.  On the morning of the run, I made sure I had a little light breakfast (just a light breakfast bar), and I made sure I was hydrated (drank gatorade).  Just minutes before the run, I finished drinking my chia seed energy drink.  For this run I wore my Nike Pegasus 26+ (not my Vibram Fivefingers since I’m not ready for that yet).

I had a strong first half (2:03), but I buckled at around mile 23 I think.  I had some of the most serious muscle cramp attacks in my life–on my left quadriceps and on my right hamstring.  I had to periodically stretch and walk just to recover.  Nevertheless I completed the run in 4:36!  Overall a good run.

Conclusion

Personally, I thought my training for the CIM was better for my body since I didn’t suffer any injuries during my training period.  However, I think I didn’t really follow the training plan as well as I could have.  I attribute the muscle cramps to this.  The preparation in the morning with the chia seeds also helped significantly I think as I felt a lot of energy that day.