Why the reverence for Boston?

My friend Shelley Viggiano recently blogged about qualifying for the Boston Marathon.  By the way- check out her blog, she's an awesome writer!  It's a goal many of us runners have.  Adding a "BQ" to your accomplishments is a badge we wear with pride.  It's tough to do.  If I were to qualify this year, I would need to run a 3:10.  Given my aversion to speedwork and inherent laziness, it's not happening.  After next year, I will gain an additional five minutes.  BFD.  Shelley's blog forced me to ponder this odd accomplishment.  It is THE measuring stick used to quantify your ability as a runner.

Then I remembered this elevation chart from Stan Jensen's run100s.com website. 

 

The small red area represents the Boston Marathon... the pinnacle of the road racing world.  The big wavy line represents Western States, the pinnacle of the ultramarathon world (in the US, anyway.)  Neither race is the toughest in the world, but both are the most prestigious races in their particular genre.  Note "Heartbreak Hill"... a art of the Boston course known for it's treachery.  Doesn't look too bad compared to WS, does it?

What's the point of this post?  I have no idea.  Even though I'm more or less mocking the Boston course, I'm not fast enough to qualify.  It IS a goal of mine... just secondary to my ultra goals.  Why is this such a major goal for us?  Why do we obsess about this singular race?

The Vibram / Top of Foot Pain Connection?

I've officially begun my next training cycle.  My goal race- Mind the Ducks 12 Hour in Rochester, NY on May 15th.  Training for this race will require something I have historically avoided- lots of miles on flat, smooth ground.  I love trails... so much so, it's all I've done this winter.  For whatever reason, I decided to go for a long run earl Sunday morning.  I woke up at 3:30 and was out the door by about 4:00.  

The original plan was 17 Vibram-clad miles.  At about mile six, I realized the mileage was a bit optimistic.  I turned back.  By mile seven, I noticed a familiar twinge on the top of my right foot.  Top of the foot pain.  The bane of barefoot runners.  By mile eight, I was reduced to a shuffle.  By mile nine I was unable to run.  I walked the remaining two and a half miles.  The frigid temps combined with thin, sweat-soaked clothing made the trip miserable. 

After returning home, I assessed the situation.  It hurt to run.  It hurt to walk.  If I flexed my foot in any way, it hurt.  I hobbled through the rest of the day.  I was expecting to be out of action for at least a few days.

I am pleasantly surprised to report the pain completely vanished.  I ran 2 miles at a fast pace this afternoon without any discomfort.  While I am ecstatic that my training wasn't derailed, my curiosity is driving me crazy.  Why did the pain start and why did it vanish?

Typically, TOFP is a symptom of doing too much too soon.  It occurs when the soft tissue of the foot adapts to the rigors of barefoot or minimalist shoe running.  It's not a serious condition and it does require one to back off training to a degree.   This was different.  The run was shorter than the trail runs I've done over the winter.  Could it be the roads?  Could the flat, repetitive nature of road running have been the culprit?  Or was it my choice in footwear?

I was wearing my venerable Vibram KSOs.  I've had these shoes for about three years.  I've run approximately 700 miles in them.  They have been my choice for gym footwear since I purchased them.  They smell horrible.  And I love them.  However... they could have been the cause of the injury.

It has long been speculated that the strap on KSOs that transects the top of the foot somehow causes TOFP.  I have always questioned this assumption... it simply doesn't make sense from a physiological standpoint.  Having said that, I've had three incidents of TOFP in the last four years.  Each one occurred when wearing those KSOs (I do almost all of my running barefoot.)  Part of the mystery may be the tightness of the strap.  If over-tightened, others have reported experiencing TOFP.  

My question to the greater barefoot/VFF running community- what are your experiences with this?  Is it something you've experienced?  Anyone have a good theory that explains the physiology?

Winners announced for being a blog follower!

Congratulations Anzura and Denis Rosiere for being randomly picked as winners of "The Barefoot Running Guide" ebook!  You two were chosen from the 90 followers of this blog.  I sent both of you a message.  just respond and I'll send the pdf file back to you.

Congratulations to Andrew Roberts, Robin Robinson, and Doug Lovall for winning a copy of the ebook for being a fan of Barefoot Running University on Facebook!

Win a Copy of Jason's eBook!

Win a copy of my ebook "The Barefoot Running Guide!"  This Saturday, I will randomly choose one "follower" from the current list of followers found in the right margin of this blog.  If you are already a follower, you're automatically entered!  If you are not a follower, simply click on the "follow" button:

If you are not already a member, you will have to join Google's "Friend Connect."  The winner will be announced by Saturday evening here on the blog.  Good luck!

The Importance of Patience when Learning to Run Barefoot

The following is an excerpt from my book "The Barefoot Running Book: A Practical Guide to the Art and Science of Barefoot and Minimalist Shoe Running."  The book should be available by March 1st.

Throughout the process of learning to run barefoot or in minimalist shoes, it is important to be patient.  Your feet have likely spent many, many years encased in heavy, sweaty foot coffins (a term Barefoot Ted coined).  Those shoes have weakened the muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones, and plantar skin of your feet and adjoining anatomy.  This book addresses the need for patience by slowly increasing your barefoot experiences.   In the beginning, you may be tempted to run further than you should.  In the barefoot running world, we refer to this as “too much too soon” (TMTS).  You will also reach various “break-though” points where everything seems to come together.   Your form will finally click.  Everything will feel great.  You will be tempted to try out your newly-perfected form.  It will once again be important to exercise caution.  Do not increase your mileage more than 10-15% per week or pace by more than 15 seconds per mile per week.  If you exercise adequate caution, your transition to barefoot running should be smooth and injury-free!