DAY 6 - Blisters are a Bitch.

Leaving shod behind
If blisters are a barefoot runner's rite of passage then its official... I'm in the club. Just when I thought I had defeated my nemesis knot monster, the lingering blood blister on my second toe (yes... the webbed one) was torn up today. No longer a blister, but a flappy mess that needs some serious healing. At least I got a small barefoot run in today. Baby steps.

I was able to run shod for 1.68 miles and then barefoot for .7 mi. I meant to do about 4 miles shod but cut it short on account of some slight tenderness in my hip (maybe the knot monster moved?) I was half OK with this since I was able to get a good 5 miler in on Tuesday. Still, to think that only a couple months ago I was able to complete my first triathalon without any issues. Well... except for the fact that part of my support team - my husband - was in the hospital nursing a mountain biking wound. Injuries in my house are as common as sneezing. If its not me, its the husband. If its not the husband, it one of the boys. If its not that boy its the other boy. And if its not the boys, its the dog. Yes. The dog. She got bit by a rattlesnake recently, but thankfully I thought to get both dogs vaccinated. I really think it saved her life.

My next nemesis
But jumping back to my run today... about one quarter of the way into my barefoot run I realized that I did not feel the tenderness in my hip at all. That's when I truly wished I were further along in barefooting. Oh yeah. That is, if it weren't for the bitchy blister.
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Comments

  1. Zap,
    I tried doing what you are doing - keeping my mileage up by running shod with little stretches of barefoot thrown in, trying to work my way up. I ultimately found I could not do it at all. I'm going on the assumption that your shod running is with "real" running shoes, not a minimalist shoe. Ultimately, I completely gave up my mileage and switched to VFF/barefoot all the time. I supplemented my running with biking until I could run three miles two days in a row, then backed off the biking some. For me, switching back and forth ended up causing me more problems than helping, despite the hit my ego took for drastically cutting my mileage! Just a thought and my experience - I hope you are able to make the transition without having to give up the distances. Oh, and with that webbed toe/VFF problem it might be hard to do anyway if you can't find a workaround. Please post if you are able to find a solution, as I have a friend who won't buy any VFFs because of the same problem.

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  2. Hey duey! You are SO right! It is totally not working. This realization has been a hard pill to swallow. I did work some cycling back in and will continue to do so if need be. I didn't realize that you really can't do both and had this idea that I would just throw a little barefoot in while maintaining my normal runs. My form is so off in my shoes and I feel every little nuance. I think running barefoot has increased my sensitivities since my focus is more about listening to my body than it ever was.

    I think my VFFs will work if I make that modification between my second and third toes. Its just a little worrisome that I may never go back to running shoes again because I keep thinking I might need them again some day. I know. Its weird. I never expected I would just throw them out!

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