Agony of de-feet.

I, like many, am renewed, vindicated and justified by Christoper McDougall and his book, "Born to Run". For good reasons this book has become the bible for runners. After running 30 years, completing 17 Marathons, qualifying for Boston and countless 10Ks, I am totally taken by the ideas in this book. I feel justified and vindicated because I am now part of big awakening of who we are.

My success at running has been very good. Over the years, I felt the need to justify my running. Some people would even question my motives and attitudes towards running; now it is they who should justify themselves. We are a running species.

To be here at this point in time and having had the history as I had, and backed by evidence that we are a running species, not just differentiated by intelligence, but by our ability to run, is very empowering. I was ready to take the next step. That step ... that step which is literary barefoot would be the most difficult I ever had to make.

My success at first was great. Within a month I was up to running 4 miles completely barefoot and another 2.5 with minimalist shoes; vibrams 5 fingers. I didn't like the Vibrams though and so I tried Huaraches, a simple running sandal mde of a thin rubber sole and strapped with leather laces to the foot. The same sandals the Raramuri's used. Until I trashed my right foot in them, it was one of the best runs I had. I felt fast, smooth and light, until mile 5. The pain started in very gradual at around 4 miles. It intensified until I had to stop at 5, but went away when I walked on it. So I finished the run with about 6 miles in all.

The next few weeks, the pain persisted. I knew I needed to stop running on it for a couple of weeks. And so I did. I rested, iced it down, wrapped it in Ace bandages. After another couple of weeks, I'd try it again. I'd have some success, but after a bit, the pain would return. This thing just wouldn't heal the way my other injuries would heal. After being off if it for a month, I went to a doctor to get it x-rayed. No stress fracture. Well that's a relief.

I gave it a couple more weeks. What this was doing to my running was one thing. What it was doing to my wife, friends and co-workers was another. When I can't use running to sweat off the stress at work, I'm not someone people you want to hang around with. Hell, I didn't want to hang around with me. I was a freaking mess. Angry at myself for pushing myself to quickly into barefoot running, scared that I may not recover, and fear that I was loosing control.

After several more weeks of trying different things, I wasn't getting much better. The pain persisted. Sometimes getting real bad other times just some discomfort. I tried running flats (sneakers) to see it they would help. I was trapped. After running barefoot successfully for several weeks I couldn't go back, but nothing I was doing was indicating I was going to get better. To say I was frustrated just doesn't describe it. I knew I had to overcome the atrophy that had set into my foot, but what is it going to take? How weak can my foot be? I got to 6.5 miles, how far back do I need to reset this thing to get started again?

The answer came to me through twitter and a link to http://runningquest.net. A twelve step program to transition to barefoot running. It became glaringly obvious what I was doing wrong. I was measuring progress in miles, instead of feet. It shocked me to realize just how much my foot had atrophied. My foot wasn't even strong enough to handle one block (100 ft), let alone a mile.

The body is an incredibly adaptable system. But training is as complex as the body is. My foot had developed a lot of strength from my 30 years of training and marathoning, in shoes though; not by themselves. I can't explain why my foot did so well at first and why it went so bad when it did, but it did. I'm following the plan by running quest now and for the first time, my progress is measurable, consistent and pain-free. I also put the shoes on and started running with them as well. It's a good compromise. I have to run. I can't wait for my foot catch up to what the rest of my body is used to and needs. This plan makes the most sense. I'll keep increasing the mileage for my barefoot runs and my other runs. Some day I hope to get rid of the shoes forever, but for now, I'm running again and that's all that matters.