Going minimal!

I am beginning to suspect that my wife is tired of hearing about shoes. Mostly because of the way she rolls her eyes and shakes her head whenever she asks what I am doing on the computer and I say, "reading about shoes!" Isn't the purpose of a blog to ramble on about things that people in your house don't care to hear about? No? Well, it is today.

Like a ton of runners out there right now, I am jumping on the minimal bandwagon. In case you haven't read a running magazine in the last 3 years, what is referred to as "minimal" footwear can be generally described as lighter, more flexible, less cushioned shoes. The sole thickness difference between the heel and the forefoot, or "drop" is also a trait of minimal shoes. The basic theory is that thick-soled, cushioned, heavy shoes that try to control motion don't actually prevent injuries, they cause them. I have read articles that compare the modern over-built shoe to having two casts on your feet, causing the muscles in your feet to atrophy. That seemed a bit dramatic until I really give it some thought, then it seemed so obviously correct I wonder why it didn't occur to me a long, long time ago.

The problem is after having your feet trapped in bulky shoes for so long, you just can't throw them away, proclaim "I'm free!", and head out the door for a 6-miler. It would be like deciding to start weight-lifting and going to the gym to crank on your biceps for an hour straight. You would be quite a bit less enthusiastic the next day when you could not move.  It is recommended you go minimal in stages. For instance, go from a shoe with a 10 mm drop to one with a 4 and start out with short runs, working your mileage up in gradual increments.

After battling Plantar Fasciitis (if you don't know what this ailment is you don't know how lucky you are) for a couple of years I decided to get with the trend and get a little minimal and bought the Saucony Mirage for road running. It weighed in over 2 ounces less than the usual Saucony shoes I was used to and the Mirage had only a 4 mm drop. I got these in the last fall when I knew I would't be training for anything that would require any longer runs. I could immediately feel the difference. First, my Achilles and the muscles in my lower calf were pretty darn sore for a while. Also, over a short period of time I was naturally using a shorter stride, more like the length of stride I used when running a semi-technical trail, and turning my legs over noticeably faster.

Even though I was sidelined for two months over the winter with a non-running injury, I was completely sold on the benefits of more minimal shoes by spring. My legs had adapted to the shoes and my slight over-striding only showed up when I was fatigued and going downhill. Though it hasn't disappeared, my Fasciitis has improved dramatically. I am definitely going to take the next minimal step with my next pair of road runners and get the Kinvara 2 or 3, which also has a 4 drop but is even lighter than the Mirage. My son has a pair that are, unfortunately, too small for me to borrow. But just handling them I am in love with the flexibility of the shoe. In short, I think all the motion-control we have been sold as the answer to preventing running injuries was total bullshit.

Without knowing it, I had actually gone sort of minimal a few years ago. While in Florida I had picked up a pair of what I call "water" shoes. You may know them as "pool" or "aqua" shoes. If you don't know what these are they looks like slippers with an insole and a thin rubber sole, and they are usually black. I believe the original intent was as a deck shoe for sailing but I am not sure. Not being a big sandal wearer (and a fierce hater of the flip-flop) I thought the water shoe looked interesting. And they were cheap! I have been buying a pair of these every year or so ever since.




My water shoes. Not only minimal but the ultimate in footwear fashion!


Lo and behold, when I started surfing the internet about minimal shoes and barefoot running, I found out some people are wearing water shoes to run in! Again, why this hadn't occurred to me earlier is a mystery, since I had been wearing them casually for about three years. I suspect I may need more hints than the average person for the obvious to sink in. So I started running in grass or on trails in them earlier this summer as a cool down, first for just a few minutes and eventually working up to about a mile. I even wore them for a five mile trail run after I had driven 30 minutes only to realize my trail shoes were at home in the living room. This proved to be a bit unwise (I had a shin splint problem on and off for a while after that) but I have to tell you, it felt GREAT at the time. Talk about feeling the trail under your feet! I could feel every twig! I wouldn't wear them on anything at all technical but down the line under the right conditions I plan on doing some shorter trail runs in my water shoes. Did I already say they are cheap?

Right now I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of a pair of New Balance MT110's to my doorstep. I have been running in the same pair of Nike Alvord 8's on the trails for over two years, and they have served me well. The MT110's have been praised in a lot of shoe reviews (I mentioned I have an addiction to reading about shoes, didn't I?) including The Runblogger, and they are a favorite of former Dubuque, Iowa, ultrarunner Brad Williams. Oh yeah, and Anton Krupicka helped design the shoe. I think he knows a BIT about what makes a great trail shoe, right?

I really don't know what the end game of my flirtation with minimal footwear will be. I don't see myself running a race in my bare feet someday, but I seriously doubt I would ever by a "standard" running shoe again. I will say that my thinking is that I want to get as minimal as possible in my trail running down the road. Got to find a happy medium there somewhere. Road running is a different animal, altogether. If the goal of running barefoot is to run like men ran thousands of years ago, with their feet to the ground, I am not sure if that applies to road running like it does to trails. After all, our ancestors did not pound their bare feet over asphalt and blacktop. I think most runners will always need some kind of cushion when pounding pavement.

While I am on the subject, if you haven't read Born To Run, pick up a copy as soon as possible. It's a masterpiece and would be a great read even if you have never run a step.

Until next time, kids. Gonna grab a Landshark. Good summer beer originally made for Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville restaurant. That's a very short beer review. I live to serve.