Road to Nowhere

Walk: 2.1 miles

Weather: Sunny and 68. A breeze.

Another lunchtime walk, taking advantage of the good weather. It's funny: I keep getting passed by fitness walkers, striding diligently in their workout gear and bouncy shoes. Part of me wants to keep up, but the other part of me (thankfully) remembers I'm wearing office clothes, and that coming back to the office pitted out is, well, the pits.

Besides, this low intensity walking has a purpose, too. Active recovery, slow-twitch stimulation, "ultra walking" practice. It's all good.

I had dark and 68 degrees with a light breeze, this morning. It was actually pleasant with the north breeze.

I have always liked active recovery events.

ounce wrote:I had dark and 68 degrees with a light breeze, this morning. It was actually pleasant with the north breeze.

I have always liked active recovery events.

Dark and 68? Wow. It's different where you live. It'll probably get into the upper 30s here tonight.

These active recovery events are part of a strategy I'm trying as I work to drop some of this excess weight. I want to keep the activity level up, even if just a few hundred calories worth, as many days as I can. I just got back from a long (9.1 miles) run, but I'm a little worried that my body will go into starvation mode if I start doing too much and I'll short-circuit my plans.

Trail Run: 125 minutes (9.1 miles)

Weather: Partly cloudy, cool, a brief rain shower. Gear: Peregrines, shorts, long-sleeved T. Fuel: None, but carried water in handheld (1 S-Cap before run, one at turnaround point).

I had an unusual mid-week day off today, so I decided to make my first trip back to Portland's Wildwood Trail since I obliterated my ankle on a root last fall training for Tecumseh. Much of what I've been doing this year - including barefoot running - is aimed at making me more capable of handling trails, so this was an early test.

I also decided to wear my HR monitor strap for the first time, to see how well I can regulate the effort level on the trail - not an insignificant thing when long train runs may include thousands of feet of climbing. I would try to run close to my normal low HR target level of 138, but I'd let it rise to about 143-145 before slowing to an "ultra walk." Sometimes the HR ebbed down, sometimes not - it depended on how steep the trail was at that point. I went out a little more than an hour, mostly uphill, and I was looking forward to an easier go of it on the downhill return. Except I found that my HR was still rising more than expected. I was moving faster, I suppose*, while paying a lot of attention to avoiding obstacles. I also avoided taking any fuel on the run, which may have had an impact, as well.

Here's the route and elevation profile.



I can feel some benefit from my barefoot work, especially early on, before I fatigued. That's good positive reinforcement that my long-term plan might actually work. Speaking of barefoot work, I briefly debated whether to try some of this run with the Luna sandals. I was advised, in all capital letters, that it would be "STUPID" to do so, so I relented. Maybe some other time.

Average HR for the entire run: 139

*-I went back and checked the speed on some sections of the trail. And on some of those downhills, I was nearly sub-8. Oopsie!

A few photos from yesterday's trail run:



There are enough rocky parts on the trail to make you pay attention to what you're doing. But at least they rocks stay put instead of rolling around underfoot. I do pretty well on these types of trails. It's the flat ones with the sneaker rocks and roots that tend to get me.



This was taken at my turnaround point. I'd climbed from about 85 feet to about 800 feet (with lots of little ups and downs on the way), so I was looking forward to some downhill running on the return leg.



Here's a view of a typical section of trail. It's very well maintained, and horses and bicycles aren't allowed on it.



And this is the view off that trail. Very dense vegetation.



And the reward at the end of the run: lunch! (Bean and cheese burrito and grapes. Yummy.)

Barefoot Run: 45 minutes (4.25 miles)

Weather: Sunny and cool, with a bit of wind. 49-51 degrees, gusts to 11 mph. Gear: Bare feet, shorts, T. Fuel/fluid: None

After yesterday's jaunt in the hills, today had to be a less intense affair. So I went out and enjoyed the cool breeze and warm sunshine (and pavement) with a whole bunch of laps around the block. It felt extremely good. My heart rate stayed right in the target area, which kept the whole effort feeling easy, and actually kind of speedy. When my Garmin chirped the mile splits, I was surprised to see how quick they were (faster without shoes, really?) and how little the pace fell off for the first three miles (10:33, 10:22, 10:33).

This is very interesting.

I had originally planned to do maybe two miles, but it felt so good I decided to keep going. I exceeded my record of 3.5 miles barefoot on asphalt and finally decided I should wrap it up at 4.25 miles and keep the build-up going at a cautious rate.

Average HR for entire run: 136 (no walking warm up or cool down).

Hey Mark, just getting caught up after my little vacation. Looks like you are not quite finished with the cold weather yet. A little jealous as my first day back here it was 88 degrees! Also jealous of the beautiful trails you have there to run. That would be a real joy to experience. And 4.5 miles barefoot - wow! Nobody can say you are not adventurous!!

I wonder if it's logical to say that your body either trusts you, now, or it is rewarding you with a good run. Maybe you've engaged a freshly turned out batch of mitochondria?

Maybe your legs really respond to what grapes and a bean 'n cheese burrito repairs/provides? (there was a serious ponder in that question)

Tom H wrote:Hey Mark, just getting caught up after my little vacation. Looks like you are not quite finished with the cold weather yet. A little jealous as my first day back here it was 88 degrees! Also jealous of the beautiful trails you have there to run. That would be a real joy to experience. And 4.5 miles barefoot - wow! Nobody can say you are not adventurous!!

Hi, Tom. Welcome back! BTW, does it count as "vacation" when you're retired?

As for the temps, it brings back memories of when I lived in Red Bluff, the heat capital of Northern California. At least it was a dry heat!

Oh, thanks for the compliment.

ounce wrote:I wonder if it's logical to say that your body either trusts you, now, or it is rewarding you with a good run. Maybe you've engaged a freshly turned out batch of mitochondria?

Maybe your legs really respond to what grapes and a bean 'n cheese burrito repairs/provides? (there was a serious ponder in that question)

It's a really good question, Ounce, and I'm not entirely sure of the answer. I think it has something to do with improving the efficiency of my stride by running barefoot -- there's no way to hit the brakes every step with a heel strike when you're running barefoot -- and it may have something to do with my motor pathways learning what they need to be able to run smooth and easy in a forefoot strike. Additionally, my legs are learning how to be their own energy storage and return system. (I can actually feel it work sometimes, and it's really cool.) Lastly, it also probably has something to do with me building new mitochondria, especially in muscles that never got much use before. It will be interesting to see if this speeding up process continues.

As for the burritos and grapes, I don't know. But they are yummy.

4.5 miles barefoot....WOW!
And I love the trail pics!

KathyK wrote:4.25 miles barefoot....WOW!
And I love the trail pics!

Hey, Kathy! It seems weird, but it felt so natural and easy about halfway into the run that I started wondering why I run in shoes at all. It'd take lots adaptation and conditioning to go barefoot all the time, but I can see how that could happen - as long as somebody made sure to take time and not rush it.

That said, I'm still limiting my barefoot runs to jaunts around the block, so I can bail out whenever I want to, and I'm keeping them as proprioception training and foot conditioning to aid my regular running. Any notion of taking on a trail as rocky as the one in the photograph above barefoot is purely hypothetical for the foreseeable future.

Still, it felt so right out there today. Hm...

Low HR Run: 60 minutes (4.86 miles)

Weather: Sunny, breezy, mild. 54-58 Gear: Free 3.0 v4s, shorts, T. Fuel/fluid: Carried water in handheld.

After yesterday's great barefoot run, I was excited to see what would happen running today with shoes on.

It was not quite what I'd expected.

I started out with a standard 5-minute walking warm up (which I didn't do barefoot) and then headed out on my normal route. As I switched from walking to running, my stride felt easy, light and smooth. It was also fast: I quickly reached a 9:06 pace. Woot!

Except, of course, it wasn't meant to last. My legs pooped out pretty quickly. After my first warm-up mile, my splits were 10:46, 11:24 and 11:54. Yipes.

I even paused a couple of times, including one point where I stopped and watched a deer graze in a field.

So, what happened? Well, it's *probably* not because I was running in shoes. It was more likely because this was my third run in a row, after a 2-hour trail run on Wednesday and a 4.25 mile barefoot run on Thursday. My legs must be fatigued. It was also sunny and a bit warmer today than yesterday, with pretty bright sunlight, and the route I ran today was a bit more hilly than my laps around the block.

Still. That energy storage and return I felt so much yesterday? It pretty much wasn't there, except maybe at the very beginning. So it might simply be a conditioning issue for proper form. But I can see what barefoot fanatics mean when they say running in shoes is like playing a piano while wearing mittens.

I'll be definitely taking tomorrow as a rest day (except maybe a few laps around the block with Alec).

Average HR for entire run 131.

I REALLY NEED to convince my wife next year we are coming up your way...that area looks to be just right up our alley as far as vacations go. Which races (i.e. 1/2 and full's) around there are during the summer months?

4+ miles barefoot....you go Mark!

Joel H wrote:I REALLY NEED to convince my wife next year we are coming up your way...that area looks to be just right up our alley as far as vacations go. Which races (i.e. 1/2 and full's) around there are during the summer months?

4+ miles barefoot....you go Mark!

Summer runs of half-marathon length or greater in the Pacific Northwest? Well, there's a few...
(I boldfaced races that are within an hour of where I live. )

Timberline Marathon & Half Marathon Mt. Hood, Oregon

June 9: Helvetia Half Marathon & Drop Top 10K, Hillsboro, Oregon

June 10: Footzone Dirty Half, Bend, Oregon

June 16: "Vancouver USA Marathon" & Half Marathon, Vancouver, Washington (!)

June 17: Beacon Rock 25k and 50k, North Bonneville, Washington - super hilly trail race

June 23: Pacific Crest Half Marathon & Marathon, Sunriver, Oregon

June 23: Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon & 1/2 Marathon benefiting the ACS, Seattle

July 4: Foot Traffic Flat Half & Full Marathon & Firecracker 5K, Portland, Oregon

July 7: Smith Rock Sunrise Summer Classic Half Marathon, Terrebonne, Oregon

July 15: Fueled By Fine Wine Half Marathon, Dundee, Oregon

July 22:Harvest Days Run Half Marathon, 8K & 2 Mile Family Run/Walk, Battle Ground, Washington

Aug. 5: Haulin' Aspen Trail Run- Half Marathon (and marathon), Bend, Oregon

Aug. 26: Eugene Women's Half Marathon, Eugene, Oregon

I pulled these off of Race Center Northwest's website. I wouldn't be surprised if there are other events that didn't make this list. I also didn't bother to list the scads of shorter distance races, or races that were too far away, like in, say, Canada. Some of the races in Central Oregon (Bend, Terrebone) look awfully tempting to me at some point.

See? Plenty of opportunities. Come on down!

Don't get frustrated Mark. It is easy to remember what we used to do for training (when we had been able to do a lot of sustained work!) and compare that to what is happening as we strive to regain some of that ability - and to get frustrated that it just isn't happening fast enough. As you've told me so often, slow and steady and pay attention to your body. Hope you are a better listener than I am .

Tom H wrote:Don't get frustrated Mark. It is easy to remember what we used to do for training (when we had been able to do a lot of sustained work!) and compare that to what is happening as we strive to regain some of that ability - and to get frustrated that it just isn't happening fast enough. As you've told me so often, slow and steady and pay attention to your body. Hope you are a better listener than I am .

But, I thought I was always one of those "Do as I say, not as I do" sorts of guys...

Not frustrated, or even very impatient. What I am, though, is curious about (and intrigued with) how running barefoot seems to agree with me physiologically. Learning how to do it right, and getting that form translated over to when I'm wearing shoes (or even sandals - I do not run the same in Lunas as I do barefoot) is going to take some time. But if I can make it work? It could be very cool, indeed.

Low HR Run: 8.25 miles

Weather: Clear and cool, but warming up fast. 47-57 degrees. Gear: Free 3.0 v4s, shorts, T. Fuel: Oatmeal/coffee before, carried water.

I pushed it a bit more than normal this past week, so I decided that this morning's run had to be as easy as I could make it. I went out on my Llama Ridge route and allowed my HR to rise up gently to my target of 138 rather than blasting out of the barn at a 9 minute pace until a rapidly rising HR forced me to slow down, like I did Friday.

I did a pretty good job maintaining the low HR. My average splits were 137-139. Not perfect, but close.

I was going to make this a 90-minute run, turning around at 43 minutes. But I was partway down Llama Ridge and feeling good when it was time to turn, so I allowed myself the luxury of running out to the 4-mile marker, just past the bottom of the ridge, before heading back.

The splits were slower (no surprise there) but more consistent than usual, too. I only had to walk twice to get my HR down; the rest of the time, I was able to slow to a shuffling jog and let the HR drop - even going uphill. Well, most hills. The ravine still got me on the return trip.

No llama sightings this morning, but I did see five alpacas (alpaca?), two deer and a good number of cows.

Average HR for the entire run: 134

Nice job. Sounds like a really nice run. We had an incident here where a couple of lowlifes killed a few alpaca just for mischief. Awful stuff.

Michael Enright wrote:Nice job. Sounds like a really nice run. We had an incident here where a couple of lowlifes killed a few alpaca just for mischief. Awful stuff.

Don't you just love people sometimes?

Let me be the first to tell you on this page (at least) that you're getting old. You needed a rest day, even in your sandals or bare feet, you needed a rest day.

You'll be fine. I hear the weather in the NW is getting into the 80's.

ounce wrote:Let me be the first to tell you on this page (at least) that you're getting old. You needed a rest day, even in your sandals or bare feet, you needed a rest day.

You'll be fine. I hear the weather in the NW is getting into the 80's.

Old* has nothing to do with the need for a rest day. That's a given, even for 20-something stud muffins. Or studettes. Anyway, I took Saturday off, and today's run felt very nice. It wasn't speedy, but it didn't need to be. I've got a long time before I hit even the second stage of my evil plan.

As for the 80s, you're right! It topped out at 88 today here in Vancouver. Of course, the dew point is only 43, so it's not like it's uncomfortable (relative humidity 21%). It'll cool off into the low 50s overnight and make another run at the upper 80s tomorrow. I actually had to adjust my sprinklers!

*-I'm barely halfway to "old," and I'm not even committing to that. So there.

Barefoot Run: 5 miles on pavement

Weather: Sunny, warm. 67-70 degrees. Gear: Bare feet, shorts, T. Fuel/fluid: none.

I got a little ambitious this morning and turned what was going to be an easy couple of miles barefoot into my longest barefoot run yet, and the first barefoot run where I left the confines of my neighborhood.

I started out planning to do a couple of miles around the block, but as usual, the run felt better the farther I went. As I hit the two mile point, I started another lap but then succumbed to temptation and headed out on one of my normal routes. I wanted to see the difference between shoes and barefoot when I'm on the same course, because I was still doing laps faster barefoot than my usual pace wearing shoes.

The verdict? Well, first off, I learned the asphalt on the main road outside of my neighborhood is WAY more pointy! Yipes! I alternated between the asphalt and a much smoother concrete sidewalk. And as for speed, it's pretty hard to tell, because the texture of the surface slowed me as much as the hills. And really, does it make any difference? Nah. No sense getting too analytical and spoiling the fun.

I went out a mile and then back, and then decided to do a few more laps around the block until I got to 5 miles even.

As I stopped, the neighbor across the street looked up from her watering.

"You are crazy, aren't you?" she asked.

Well... yeah...

Average HR for the entire run: 138

Mark is off the deep end. Gorgeous trail photos and nice job with the Mowgli running!

Mark B wrote:
"You are crazy, aren't you?" she asked.

Well... yeah...

That's a given. So, do you work on toughening your feet up?

Mike MacLellan wrote:Mark is off the deep end. Gorgeous trail photos and nice job with the Mowgli running!

Thanks, Mike! And thanks for the great blog title (Bare Necessities!), though I'm probably more a Baloo at this point.

ounce wrote:

Mark B wrote:
"You are crazy, aren't you?" she asked.

Well... yeah...

That's a given. So, do you work on toughening your feet up?

I do! I run barefoot.

Okay, to sound less flippant, I run barefoot - but I gradually increase the distance to allow the soles of my feet (not to mention the bones, ligaments and muscles of my feet) to adapt to the new stimulus. Essentially, I run until I can feel that the soles of my feet are starting to get a little chewed up. Then I stop. The next time, I can usually go a little farther. (This is why I'm running laps around the block instead of heading out on the roads; so I can stop when I need to with minimal hassle. In fact, after today's extra jaunt, I decided I'll stay in the neighborhood for the time being. It made it too stressful, and less fun, to be so far from home base.)

Looking at my feet right now, I have some mild abrasion/callus shredding at the fifth metatarsal head of both feet (the normal touchdown point) and a little extra sensitivity on my big toe (usually the last thing to leave the ground). I accidentally dragged the tip of my big toe of my left foot today - that got my attention - and I have a slight worn spot (a blister that broke, actually) on the tip of my second toe.

I'll be walking gingerly for the rest of the day - but that's a good thing. I can see how people can get sucked into doing too much, too soon, wearing some protection for their soles, and end up cooking their feet. At this point, the Lunas are for casual wear only.

Speaking of cooking, I could feel the pavement warming up as the run progressed. I would not have wanted to try this at 3 o'clock this afternoon, when the temperature is going to be in the mid-80s. (Of course, maybe that's the body's way of telling us that we shouldn't be out running in blazing heat, mm?)