Day One: tracks hurt!

It's easy enough to find information about how to make the transition from running in traditional shoes to running barefoot, or running in minimalist footwear, but it is much harder to find information about whether or not it is advisable to start barefoot from square one. I found one blog that suggests starting from square one barefoot may be easier than switching from running with shoes, because you might not have to unlearn so much.

So, today I embarked on my first barefoot adventure. I followed the advice of many barefoot runners, and only did five minutes. I found a post somewhere that said running on a track would be a good way to log miles without tearing up your feet, so I tried it. WRONG. A track, especially in the wet weather, has many tiny pieces of rubber on its surface that enjoy sticking to the soles of your feet like... oh, well the musician in me says like cat hair on your favorite concert dress. In any case it sucks to run on. I stopped because it was uncomfortable, realized what was happening, brushed the excess track off my feet, put on my "hand weights" and jogged on my toes back to my starting point. I then tried a couple other surfaces: the asphalt path that leads to the track, which was better, and the sidewalk in the neighborhood next to the track, which was infinitely preferable to either of the previous surfaces.

My feet feel a little tender, but alive, and I'll know next time to run on the sidewalk where it is most smooth.