Running Rehab

Warning: this post is about running. It may bore you to tears.

Since my last post on trying the “barefoot” running style, I have upped my runs to 3+ miles. Every day I put on my cap and run into the Texas summer sauna to find that I have no more pain in the balls of my feet from the fallen arch. I do feel a twinge in my knee sometimes. But I try to use it to help me tweak my form. I go through my little checklist: landing on the front of my foot, stroking the ground rather than plodding, feet under my hips, chest open, narrower stride. By the time I get to the bottom, the pain is gone.

It still feels weird, but I think I’m running more smoothly and a little less like a recovering stroke victim. Let’s see, what’s Barefoot Ted’s advice? Gentle, quiet, silent, smooth. Never thought I’d be taking advice from anyone named Barefoot Ted.

I read in this post how whenever Danny Dreyer feels the beginning of any pain from his runs, he heads over to his neighbor’s crushed granite driveway to walk barefoot. Yikes! After 10 minutes, his body corrects it’s own wrong movement patterns, he feels great, and is back on the road. Crushed granite. Why am I listening to the these guys?

(running cap, 365 Day 208 Photo)

I don’t see how anyone could do this. I can’t even walk barefoot on my plain cement driveway, because my skin is so tender. But I have gone twice to the high school track to run a mile on the astroturf. It does make self-correction easy, but I payed for it with blisters. Don’t think I’ll ever get used to that. But the point was to re-train my body and rehab my arches, and I’m really pleased with the results so far; however, I do look forward to the day where this comes naturally.