We discovered this weekend that an animal had gotten down the vent of our radon fan. We could hear it, but we were unable to get the poor thing out. Due to the holiday weekend, we couldn’t get anyone out to resolve the problem until today.
I’m gonna leave a lot of details out here, but when the radon guy came today, we discovered not one, but two squirrels in there. One had apparently been there a while (this is all outside the house, so we never smelled anything). Let’s just say that I would have paid the guy what it cost to get a new fan, a better vent arrangement and a screen at the top just for the fact that I did not have to be the one to deal with the removal. (And one way you know I’m a mom of boys? They were all about the gory details. Gross.)
After dealing with that particularly lovely event, I needed to run. Seriously.needed.to.run. I decided to give the Vibrams a whirl outside.
Short story: I really liked them!
Long story: If I don’t pay attention, the Vibrams allow me to land on my heels in a way that I don’t tend to do when I’m truly barefoot. I’m not sure why that is. The souls are very thin and I feel like I can really feel the ground with them, so there doesn’t seem to be a reason for that to happen. In order to step lightly and keep good form, I had to really pay attention. If I didn’t, my form got sloppy, my feet tended to slap the ground more, and my heels hurt. When I run with shoes, bad form does not result in such immediate feedback.
In the end, I did 3.2 miles in them and I felt it was a successful run. I got progressively faster (9:59, 9:32, 8:58) without feeling like I was pushing myself all that hard. I was pretty tired at the end, probably from a combination of the heat and paying constant attention to how I was holding my body. Hopefully, as I continue to slowly build my barefoot mileage, I’ll be more able to naturally hold a good form. (And I need to spend a little more time with Jamoosh’s hard core club…)
very cool! it will be interesting to follow your progress. happy wednesday.
Awww come on, that would have made for a great "wordless wednesday" pic!! Lol :-p
I was wondering about that for the vibrams. According to my PT, my running shoes right now are very close to vibrams (the sole is only 8mm thick, compared to 5mm for the vibrams). Like you, I find that when I go completely barefoot, it's easier to maintain my form…so now at least I know it's not because my shoes are too thick. I've become much much better at maintaining my form with my minimalist shoes on…but, when I get tired (like near the end of my half-marathon) things get a little sloppy. Maybe that's when I should take my shoes off and finish the race barefoot 🙂 …something to think about!
I'll definitely follow your Vibrams adventure. I have never thought about my form while running…! I just slog it out!
interesting about how you have to watch your form with the vibrams vs true barefoot running
Nice run with the Vibrams!
Its easier to run barefoot because the feedback is even better. I agree that when I put on minimal shoes I have to work harder to maintain good form.
So curious about the vibrams. Way to go.
Some people say squirrel is good eatin'……… ha. Your feet should still be getting stronger, so that's a good thing.
ahhh! the same thing happened to us, except he got sucked into the fan, which burned out, which created a rather…interesting…smell in the entire house. yuck!
Ew, that is GROSS! (What is a radon fan, anyway?) Nice job on the Vibram run. I love runs where I get faster as I go!
Ewwww on the squirrels! I would not want to deal with that either.Awesoe on the Vibram run outdoors! I love how you have transformed your running this year.
I had the same issue with the Vibrams too. I think the foot is tricked into thinking it is wearing shoes.
Ewww is right!Glad the squirrels are gone.Interesting about your vibram experience. Sounds like there's need to really maintain focus!
Definitely gross about the squirrels! But, great job in the Vibrams!
cool! i'm anxious to try vibrams!
Ewwwww … 🙂 Glad you got those out.
Glad you got the squirels out of the fan. EWWWWW is right. We have had bat's in the chimney and house. Possums under the storage shed and deer roaming through the yard. Love nature. Sounds like a lot of people are trying the Vibrams and / or barefoot. I have never tried either – but just might. I would be worried that I would step on a stone – but it would probably be something to try first on the treadmill.
glad the the vibrams worked for you on your outside run.