The Minimalist Movement: Simplifying Your Life Beyond Losing Your Shoes

I Stumbled Upon this minimalist blog earlier today and thought the idea was worth sharing:

Stop buying unnecessary things.
Toss half your stuff, learn contentedness.
Reduce half again.
List 4 essential things in your life,
stop doing non-essential things.
Do these essentials first each day, clear distractions
focus on each moment.
Let go of attachment to doing, having more.
Fall in love with less.

I became interested in the minimalist living movement after watching our kids' behaviors.  They have a ton of toys; most of which they never play with.  That, coupled with the copious amount of clutter we've accumulated over the years, drove me to question our lifestyle.

Like most Americans, we work to make money to to buy stuff.  We're good consumers.  We've been conditioned to associate positive feeling with purchasing new stuff.  Even though we're acutely aware of the concept, we still get excited at the prospect of buying a new "toy."

There's more back-story, but we've essentially decided to simplify.  The quest to be more minimal is one reason; the looming task of packing to move in the future is another.  Regardless, I am going to begin a quest to minimize our lives.  I am going to follow the plan outlined above.

Step one (in progress): stop buying unnecessary things.  We've actually been pretty good with this one.  We've been working on paying off our accumulated debt (Dave Ramsey plan... good stuff.)  Part of that has been a conscious attempt at limiting spending, especially on unnecessary crap.

Step two (in progress): Toss half of my stuff.  Over the last few weeks, we've begun throwing out or donating some of our unused possessions.  We started with clothing and kids' toys.  Next will be our own possessions.  I have a lot of garbage.

Step three (in progress): List four essential things in your life.  This may take some time, but the plan is to list these four things and systematically eliminate everything else.  Among the things that will go: cable. 

The remainder will be an extension of the first three steps.  I'll document each part of this journey here.  

To my readers- how many of you have made a conscious effort to simplify your lives?  What steps have you taken?  How would you describe the journey?

Win a copy of "Run Like a Mother"... one of the best running books available!

About a week ago, I reviewed the book Run Like a Mother: How to Get Moving--and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity by Sarah Bowen Shea and Dimity McDowell.  I recommended anyone and everyone purchase the book, as it has a much wider appeal than the obvious "mother" demographic.

After posting the review, Sarah graciously agreed to give away a copy of the book to one loyal fan!  There are two steps to the contest:

1. Become a friend of this blog using Google Friend Connect located in the right column.  Simply click on the "Follow' button.  See picture below:

2. Become a fan of "Run Like A Mother" on Facebook.  Go to this page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Run-Like-a-Mother-The-Book/317268647037?v=wall&ref=ts.  Click the "Like" button at the top of the page.  See picture below:

You have until 11:59pm on Friday, July 9th to enter.  On Saturday, July 10th, I will randomly choose one follower from this blog, then cross-reference it with the "Run like a Mother" fans.  Good luck!

While you're in the "liking" mood, feel free to also "Like" The Barefoot Running Book page, the Barefoot Running University page, and the Barefoot Runners Society page! :-)

Barefoot Running on Crushed Limestone

There are many surfaces runners traverse while pursuing their adventures.  To the shod runner, most surfaces are "runnable."  There's little difference between asphalt, dirt trails, gravel, or crushed limestone.   The barefoot runner has an decidedly different experience. 

Many surfaces present unique challenges.  Here are a few:

• Asphalt: This surface can be abrasive if form is poor, blisters are common.  It can also get hot if exposed to direct sunlight.
• Gravel: The size and frequency of larger rocks can dramatically influence the gravel experience.  If the density of large rocks is low enough to allow the barefoot runner to place their steps around the obstacles, gravel can be a fun approximation of technical trail running.  If the rocks are unavoidable, gravel can be nearly impossible to run barefoot.  
• Dirt trails: My utopia.  Aside from the potential dangers of easily-avoidable rocks, sticks, root, acorns, or other trail debris, dirt trails are pure joy for the barefoot runner.
• Sand: Sand is an interesting surface.  It is soft and forgiving, but also has the potential to hide bad form.  If running many miles on sand, it can become somewhat abrasive.

And the there's crushed limestone.  For those unfamiliar with this popular public trail surface, crushed limestone consists of various sizes of rocks ranging from fine dust to dime-size pebbles.  Most trails have a combination of sizes.  The pebbles are problematic because they are irregular in shape, multi-faceted, and contain sharp edges and points.

This past Thursday, I attempted to do a long run on a crushed limestone trail.  I made it 16 miles before using my huaraches.  This particular trail had a wide variety of pebbles.  

Some parts of the trail contained mostly hard-packed dust with an occasional pebble.  This surface was very runnable as it was exceedingly easy to avoid the larger pebbles.

Other parts of the trail contained a high density of larger pebbles.  This is also runnable as the points and sharp edges create a "bed of nails" effect.  The cumulative surface area of the potentially-painful pebbles does not allow a single point to poke your foot.  The result is a pleasant massaging effect.

An example of a high-density "runnable" trail

The majority of the trail contained a lower density of large pebbles, but not enough to allow you to avoid them.  The result- I would step on four of five sharp rocks with each step.  A singular sharp point is an easy adjustment... you shift your weight and relax your foot.  Several points are much more difficult.  It requires a light step to minimize the poking.

The experience of the 16 barefoot miles was analogous to a tattoo.  In the beginning, there was some pain.  The slight discomfort was enjoyable as it awoke my senses.  Yes, it is slightly masochistic. 

After a few miles, the pain subsided as my feet adapted to the experience.  It was if my body shifted into cruise-control.  Even the difficult areas were handled with ease.

Until about mile 12, the rough patches were equally distributed with the easy patches.  Once I passed that 12 mile point, the trail turned consistently difficult.  At first, it was annoying.  At about mile 14, I recognized the "annoying" feeling was actually mild pain.

By mile 15, the pain was disrupting my gait as I tried to adjust to minimize the discomfort.  I immediately noticed a quickly-developing pain in both knees from the altered gait.  At this point, all my attention was focused on form... which is a bad place to be.

By mile 16, I threw in the towel.  We were still a mile away from the "quarter of the way" point if we went the full distance (we didn't, we stopped at mile 36.)  It was at that point I went to the huaraches.  

The rest of the run went well, though we did encounter many sections that would have been runnable barefoot.  Needless to say, I was tempted to ditch the huaraches.  For the sake of my running partners, I left them on.

The lesson learned- crushed limestone will take more adaptation than what I currently possess.  That entire trail could be runnable barefoot, but I am not ready.

The Long Run Pics

Preparing the gear for the unsuppported run.

Taking a water break.  Pictured from left to right: Mark Robillard, James Webber, Jesse Scott, and Jeremiah Cataldo.

Jesse's open wound from his Camel Bak

Jesse's bloody nose.

Mark, Jeremiah, and Jesse running into the sunset.

At the half-way point...

Very long training runs... a chance to experiment and test gear

I'm about three hours from embarking on what may be the second longest run of my life.  Mark Robillard, Jesse Scott, Jeremiah Cataldo, and I are planning on running the length of the Kal-Haven trail in Southwest Michigan.  If everything goes according to plan, the run should be about 67-68 miles.  It's a run that defies conventional wisdom... but is should be a fun adventure.

 This long run will give me the opportunity to test some ideas I've been playing with in preparation for Burning River at the end of this month.  I'll be testing the feasibility of carrying two handheld water bottles instead of a waist back or hydration pack.  The probable heat of Burning River will necessitate more than a single handheld.

I will also test the fitness of my feet.  This entire trail is crushed limestone.  If my bare feet can survive this challenge, the varied terrain at Burning River should be easy.  As a precaution for this run, I will be carrying my huaraches.

Lastly, I will be testing fuel.  I have been toying with a mostly-vegan diet.  I made a few faux chicken, black bean, chia, and avocado wraps.  They should provide a palatable energy source for the later stages of this run.

I've spent a good deal of time reading information on the Crossfit Endurance (CFE) philosophy.  The idea is simple- long, slow runs are more or less useless in regards to fitness.  As such, the longest prescribed run in the CFE program is 13.1 miles.  I religiously followed the plan in 2008, which resulted in a DNF at Burning River that same year.  

I mostly agree with the idea that long, slow runs are terrible in regards to developing general fitness.  A high weekly mileage is not necessary and will unnecessarily increase the risk of injury.  A well-planned weight training routine based on high intensity interval training, high quality speed work, and ample rest and recovery time will result in the best possible fitness.

HOWEVER, the long, slow run does have value.  First, it develops physiological adaptations that simply are not possible on shorter runs.  Every physiological process in the body will undergo extreme stress in any run over the marathon distance, and this stress increases dramatically as you approach and exceed the 100 mile mark. 

Second, running very long distances involves incredible peaks and valleys of a variety of things... moods, motivation, fatigue, sleepiness, pain, etc.  Short runs cannot emulate this experience.  Learning to predict, interpret, react to, and survive these peaks and valleys is critical.

Third, having traversed a given mileage threshold brings immediate confidence at that distance.  This rule holds true for any distance, but long ultras bring an aura of impossibility.  Until you conquer a given distance, the unknown element can be a major regulator on performance.

Based on this premise, how should one train?  We're all individuals, so it is up to each of us to experiment and find our own ideal routines.  For me, short, intense weight training mixed with two or three weekly runs will get me to the finish line.  

Today's run is a major test.  It will give me an opportunity to assess my readiness for Burning River.  The length of this run may defy conventional wisdom, but it will also give me a major confidence boost.  Of course, that assumes we finish.  :-)