Perhaps I should have titled this “I haven’t hurt myself… yet.” Last week was a mishmash of increasing speed and distance. For a little variety, I threw in a bit of completely barefoot running on the treadmill. Yeah, not exactly the definition of smart training.
I ended up doing 19.2 miles in 5 runs and several times probably should have stopped just short of where I was. I made it to my goal each time, but there were a couple of times where my feet and ankles were fatigued enough that I should have listened. My goal this week is to pay better attention to what my body is trying to tell me. I actually contemplated a run in shoes yesterday, but ended up eating cheesecake and sitting on my butt instead. ;o)
Details, details…
Run #1 – 1 mile barefoot on the ‘mill just to test it out. My soles weren’t entirely thrilled.
Run #2 – 5 “fast for me” miles in the heat in Vibrams. I pushed a little too hard at the start and the heat ended up wearing me out, but my legs and feet felt great with the fast, light turnover.
Run #3 – 4 miles on the treadmill barefoot in a skirt. ;o) I should have probably stopped at 3.5. My feet were pretty tender at the end, mostly from the heat and roughness of the treadmill surface.
Run #4 – 3 quick miles in my Merrells. I wore them without socks and that improved the ground feel a bit, but I still prefer a lightweight sock in them. It felt good to have a little more cushion and protection after the barefoot run only about 12 hours earlier.
Run #5 – 6.2 miles. I should have stopped at 5.5 as my feet were seriously fatigued…
You sound like me…the tops of my feet are hurting pretty bad right now. I have overdone the BFing for sure. It just feels good (until it hurts!) so I think it's easy to get carried away. Listen to what you're saying and go easy!On the treadmill-I wear socks b/c the friction hurts!
Oh, be careful, my friend!
I've had 2 barefoot running dreams in the last week. I wonder if it's from reading your blog…
And the theme of the week is "should have". 🙂 Way to go on all the runs – I hope things feel okay this week!
So amazing how running barefoot allows you to use so much more of your feet and the muscles within. Keep up your steady progress but listen to your body. You don't want to lose all that barefoot ground you've gained!
I agree with Shelly but it does sound fun. Soon your feet will catch up with the desires of the rest of your body :)Top of the foot pain is annoying but usually all and goes away in a day or so. I had it after my 15 miler and was better a day later. Work that your feet do feels foreign compared to the work say your quads do. You become more aware as you go and you are doing a great job of showing others how to transition into barefoot running slow and steady 🙂
You are doing great getting more miles. It is hard to hold back when you want to go full blast. Just make sure you listen to you feet.
Well, at least you kinda know where your BF threshold may be…
4 miles on the treadmill *barefoot*in a skirt.All the makings of a great XXX movie. 😉