Barefoot and Shod Running Concurrently

Readers of this blog will be well aware that my minimalist running progress is going very well. I am enjoying it, maybe a little too much and in real danger of moving into the TMTS (Too Much Too Soon) category.

I have been lucky enough to find my mid-foot strike form quite easily and now that i’m 50+ miles into the barefoot running i naturally fall into and out of the mid-foot form  depending on the shoe. It is with this in mind i decided over Christmas i would try to run parallel training patterns that will allow me to build my foot strength and elongate my barefoot runs while also running greater distances over all.

I want to be able to run my first marathon the end of this year or the beginning of next year. I have just signed up for the ING NYC Marathon in November. I will have to wait until April however to see if i have a number. So i want to get some distance running in, something i don’t dare do yet in my minimalist shoes. I have decided the best course of action is to continue to run my 5-6 mile routs in my Merrell‘s and Vibram‘s  and build foot strength. A pace that some already consider to be TMTS, but i am happy with.

I have got what i consider to be intermediate shoes, like the Nike Free that will allow me to run with a mid-foot strike or heel strike and give me some padded protection for the distance. I decided on a pair of Saucony Kinvara

Saucony KINVARA

I felt this to be a good intermediate shoe, Limited support for the foot, a slight heel to toe drop and enough cushioning for me to get some distance in. I have done a few runs in the shoe so far and have been able to hold my mid-foot strike form in them. My last run in them is here. A nice 9 miles.

http://runkeeper.com/user/simonjcole/activity/64273287

So going forward my plan is to run my 5k and 10k races in minimalist shoes and my half and marathon training and running will be done in the Saucony’s. I will be sure to label runs and posts correctly so it’s clear what i’m doing. To be honest it’s also nice to be able to wear some warm socks in this cold weather right now!

So lets see how this concurrent training goes and how easy i’ll be able to switch shoes and on occasion running form.

Related articles

• Barefoot Running: Is it Better? (runningshoes.org)
• Barefoot! (netniewoo.wordpress.com)
• Born to Run? (christostriathlon1.wordpress.com)

1st Barefoot race Jingle Jog 5k, Atlanta GA

Had my first barefoot race today. The 5k Jingle Jog in the perimeter area of Atlanta. All in all it was a bit of a mare. Both Sophie and Ian were also running in the 1k version of the race. Noah my nephew was going to help out and run with them. In all the muddle getting to different starts etc I ended up have no warm up time and it was freezing.

The race was starting as i approached the line. So i took off in the Merrell’s with very cold legs and feet. Far from ideal and to top it off i’m starting from the back of the pack and the GPS would not start up.

So here is 2 miles of my 3 miles:

http://runkeeper.com/user/simonjcole/activity/62495631

My overall race time was 28:15, so my pace i think was pretty good. I started toward the back and so it took me a couple of mins to reach the start line as everyone shuffled off, The section missing from the runkeeper above was also down hill. So i would hazard a guess that my overall time was probably in the 8:40 mi/min range.

Finishing up though the i might have hurt my left foot. Running off when it was cold and not warmed up, it does not feel good at the moment. Lets see how its doing tomorrow morning for my run then.