Shoes: barefoot
Had an awesome run tonight! Recently, the big toe and inside ball of each foot have been feeling tender after about 2 miles of running. Because of my flat feet, I tend to overpronate which causes me to use my big toe for stability. The added pressure on that part of my foot is what was causing the tenderness.
I played around with my form a little, trying to minimize the unevenness and I think I may have fixed it. I angled my feet so that if I formed a straight line from my heel to my big toe it would point slightly inward. I believe my feet were pointing outward before, especially on my right foot.
As soon as I made the change I noticed a difference in my form. I could tell that I was landing (and lifting off) more evenly on the entire surface of my feet. And on top of that, it made an immediate improvement in my pace. The loop I run has a slight hill, and on the downward part I felt like I was flying. I have no idea how fast I was going (I don't carry a watch; just shorts and my house key), but it was way quicker than my usual pace. I'm feeling a little muscle soreness, probably from engaging new muscles, but there was no other pain. I ran 2.5 miles, but my feet felt like they could have done more.
I also had an interesting conversation with one of my neighbors. She was walking her dog with her son and she asked me about my bare feet. She seemed skeptical at first, but in the end she seemed fairly open to the idea. It's been pretty neat how interested random strangers have been, and then getting an opportunity to explain it.
Oh, and to top off an already good night, I have now run 50 miles barefoot this year (since late August). Going to shoot for a 3 mile run this weekend, and then maybe sign up for my first ever 5k!
No comments:
Post a Comment