I ran in the Tom Roger’s Invitational this last weekend and it was cold and pouring down rain. I Ran in flats on crushed gravel and I felt O.K. I feel slow and bit pissed off that I am not what I used to be. I have been training mostly in the Five Fingers KSO’s and I am focused on form rather than speed. In hind sight I think changing your running style might be best achieved when one is out of shape and starting over again. I have not had to fight feeling like I am slowing down by changing my gait. I am slow right now so no biggie, I can focus on proper form and maybe this is a blessing in disguise.

So that is the tip for you go get fat and out of shape, eat tons of pastries and pizza. When you can’t make a lap around the block without being out of breath then make the switch from shoes. You will be slow and this is exactly what a guy like me needed. The problem that cannon balled me in the past was over exuberance and let me tell you you don’t have to worry about it when your out of shape. We runners are funny people because we struggle with ego. Yeah, thats right EGO…we seem to want people to know how many miles, how fast, and what a PR’s are. Don’t believe me? Try this little test, run for a year and never mention to a soul how far, how fast, or what event is next. Run for fun not for fame.

I am loving the Five Fingers right now and I am not too sure how long or how far I am running right now. I run until I am not having fun anymore then I stop. I have been enjoying sprints mingled in with my runs and it is fun to fly along. I will stay focused on form and fun and we will see where that leads. I’ve been down the other road before and  it will be quite interesting to see where this leads. Take care, Jay.

I had a fellow barefooter stop by Toyota of Bellevue out of the blue after reading my blog and it was perfect timing to get me off my butt and update. Thanks George for the visit and the reminder that being barefoot is just good no matter what. Walking, lounging, running, getting asked to leave certain places, life is just good barefoot. Take care.

Howdy all,

I have been on one of the biggest adventures life could throw at a man. Not climbing Everest or running barefoot around the globe…..parenting!  Yup that’s the adventure and if you are a parent you will understand and if your not, well, you may think you understand. Let me tell you life can grab you by the feet and shake you upside down twirl you around and leave you dizzy for days and that would be a good starting point for a new parent. Don’t get me wrong I’m not complaining one bit because I love my new son with every drop of energy I have and that leaves little for training and writing about it right now.

My runs have been on the light side lately and that’s ok for the barefoot running because running bare in this cold wet stuff it just kinda sucks. I have been using either flats or five fingers when out and I have found a huge change in my running form. Good change from where I was when this whole thing started. Barefoot has been a great teacher and I will be doing some indoor barefoot soon. I have been skiing as much as allows and my friends ask if I do that barefoot too. No, not yet but you can never rule things out!  With the sleepless nights and the  struggle to develop a balance during these times I take what I can get and keep in mind life is what it is and having fun is the number one goal. The road will never be the same and neither will I and accepting that is a challenge. Putting some of my activities second has been difficult while the decision is quite easy. I wait patiently for the day when I share all this with my son, barefoot!

I welcome any calls about barefoot running as I have much to pass along to others who seek this style of training. You can find me at Michael’s Toyota of Bellevue where I work as a sales consultant my cell is 425-283-9227.  I can’t sell cars barefoot the management just can’t wrap their mind around the whole idea at this point!  Bare soles feed the soul and I look forward to seeing yours soon.  Jay

Kempo X Workout barefoot of course

It has been way too long since my last post. I have many excuses as to why I took my leave of absence, but, the truth is I find it difficult to stay focused. I enjoy the newness of challenges and projects and when the fun starts to fade I tend to move on. Lots of things have changed and I will attempt to catch up with this post and keep the updates coming.

With all the changes I still am barefoot almost 98% of time. I have had some struggles with sticking to the barefoot way of life at times and I attribute that to the long learning curve. I have had moments when I have thought about going back to shoes and from time to time I will run in my minimal shoes and I find it to be nice. Running barefoot in the Seattle area can be a challenge. There is no shortage of sharp debris on the ground and there are times I get fed up with stepping on stuff. When I started this journey I thought I would just step on all of this stuff and over time become immune to some of the harsh sensations. I have come a long, long way from my blistering start eight months ago and I am continually amazed of the benefits being barefoot. I do wonder if I will ever get used to the sharp single rocks that patiently await my foot arrival. This is the one area of bare footing that I do grow tired of. There are days when I just want to run and not feel all of the sharps. I can avoid them for the most part by running in certain locations and that defeats my long term goal of running anywhere barefoot. I am realizing the achievement of that goal and I believe I can handle any surface that comes my way. It may not be pretty, pain free, or fast but I can get from point to point if needed. I have been running less lately and walking long distances. When I started I could not go three miles walking barefoot and today I could walk into double digits with no problem. The progress is there and quite remarkable if I take the time to realize it. I am not a big fan of being patient with progress. It fails to enter my mind that I have been in shoes for over 40 years. I thought this would happen quickly like a month or two. It takes some time to reverse all of the negative impacts that shoes have on our bodies and I would say after 40 years of shoes my progress is good.

My feet have changed without me knowing it. The first notable difference is the size of my feet. I knew that my feet would spread out a bit but I had no idea how much until Patti and I were preparing for a rock climbing trip into Oregon. I have about 5 pairs of rock climbing shoes for different conditions. When I was putting together our gear I thought I had better try them on to see how they felt. All of my rock shoes used to fit perfectly except one pair that was always too big which I used with thick socks for winter rock climbing. You guessed it; I now only have one pair of rock shoes and four pair that are so tight I could not climb with them. This is just a small example as all of my footwear seems to be uncomfortable. When I do wear footwear my feet are not at home and they beg to be released from their confinement. Once you get used to walking around as you should structured footwear does not feel right and my knees feel like they are suffering from misalignment. The only footwear that does not affect me is my very minimal running flats.

All of my P90X workouts are barefoot. At first it was a little tough and my weak ankle nagged me with some of the high impact exercise. Being barefoot has had a very positive impact or should I say less impact. What I mean is P90X has Plyometrics (jump training), Kenpo X (martial arts kick boxing), Yoga X, as well as, high intensity weight training that is a six day a week training schedule for 90 days. High impact exercise has the ability to injure easily and that is why low impact exercise became so popular. High impact develops explosive strength and I believe it is very important to any person or athlete. The catch is the impact can be damaging or hard on joints, ligaments, and tendons. This is where barefoot has provided so many benefits for me. When I wore footwear to cushion my landings I experienced more impact translated as joint pain. Since training barefoot I have increased ankle strength and lowered my impact during high impact training. My feet tell me how to land softly and my progress is measurable with the absence of joint pain. Another notable benefit is my balance as evidenced in my yoga practice. I have noticed a huge improvement in all of my balance poses and my strength has increased as well.

Being barefoot is the best way to go for all human beings without question. I believe there are times when footwear is in order and I don’t shy away from protecting my feet when I am doing something extreme that will cause me injury. I find it to be fun most of the time and when I don’t I have to remember the benefits far outweigh the minor inconveniences that I experience. Over the next couple of weeks I will attempt to update this blog with some of the wild experiences this summer and there has been many. Check back soon, Jay.

There are times when life really gets busy and one of the first things to go is the time I spend writing my blog. I have gone from lots of time on my hands to very little. I started learning a new trade recently and it has been a great challenge. This has pushed my workouts to very early mornings and squeezing in my runs in the evenings.

My feet and form are continuing to improve and the surfaces that I run on that used to give me some discomfort have become trivial. My right ankle has been doing pretty well, but the ligament is still tight and can be a bit sore after my runs. I have been keeping the mileage down to prevent overtraining the ankle. I am rethinking this whole summer as a strengthening time putting the marathon goal off for a little while. I am enjoying running and when I need a pick up a run always does the trick.

I was running to a meeting on Thursday and when I passed the local tavern where there were a few people outside having a refreshing cigarette. I could hear the comments and the one that stood out was the guy that said, and they say I’m crazy! I guess society views a barefoot runner as crazy and smoking a cigarette and boozing it up as sane behavior. I admit it I am crazy, crazy for the fun stuff in life and feeling good.

After a long work week with P90X workouts and running I finished off with a backcountry ski tour with my wife Patti and her friend Erika. The weather was good and the snow was nice as well. I felt like I could run up the hill and despite the nasty cold I am battling I feel like I am in really good condition. Sunday will be just a sit around and rest day since I have been going non-stop for a couple of weeks. I imagine that my posts will be limited in the weeks to come and I will miss writing them. Life is sweet, a gift that I unwrap everyday continually surprised with what’s inside. Live large, fast and free!

I’ve been slacking on the blog this week. I have been running and skiing all week and after working 11 hours today I felt like a run on Alki would help me relax. The weather held out and while the temp was not that warm it was quite nice for early spring.

I remember the last time I ran out here my ankle was really bothering me. I would say that I’m about 85% and I really don’t worry about the bottoms of my feet anymore. I have more confidence now and my body is more relaxed and my progression is measurable.

I started off and I usually take a little bit to get into the groove. Tonight was not the case, I was never really able to find the groove. My pace was fast, my mind was wandering, and my feet never really felt good. When I stopped to look I thought I might find blisters, but everything was looking just fine. I suppose it could have been the cold temperature combined with the fast pace that contributed to the discomfort. It was still a fun run and the lengthy sprint at the end was a great feeling. I love the floating, gliding along with hardly a sound, pure joy. If I could run that fast all the time…well not today, but it is possible with time and training. Something to shoot for in the years to come.

The words of the day: When you hit the wall and think that things may never get better. Stop, pick yourself up, make it through the day, and never give up no matter what you think. Nothing ever stays the same except the man who quits.

Have fun!

After the day off from running yesterday, I woke up with the sunrise and headed out to the weight room before the run. They have some really cool cable machines I have never seen before and I really love the versatility they give you for working out. You can do it all at three stations and everything is so smooth and accurate I will miss them a ton they are really hard to be beat.

I was a bit tentative about heading out for a run after my last experience, so I headed to the front gate and stashed my shoes and shirt and started out. I have felt a little out of breath when starting lately and I believe it is due to the humidity and most of the run is up hill in the beginning. I was wondering how my feet would feel after the all of the miles I have put on them around Todos Santos sightseeing. I just focused on being slow on the terrain while maintaining a gentle step. I passed the workers again this morning and I still get the same look, big white gringo with no shoes, no shirt and no tan. I rounded the corner and everything is going well, the feet are warming up nicely and I can see this is going to be a nice run.

There really is no comparison between a good barefoot run and a good run with shoes. I felt free running along in the palm trees on the rocky asphalt. I could have never have run on a surface like this a month ago. I felt like I hit a milestone being able to run like I did this morning, I really did not want to turn around, but I did not want to push it too far and pay the consequences either. About face, and back the way I came the dreaded out and back. I rounded the corner back into the villa and came to the gate when everything was feeling good. My mind was questioning my choice to stop so early. After much trial and error I have concluded it’s better to stop early than pay the price of over exuberance with injury. They have flat skipping stones on their sides that are in concrete in big long strips. I was reluctant to try running on them when we arrived and walking on them was a challenge. This morning I was able to run on them with very light feet jumping the bulkhead at the end of the trail to finish off. My speed picked up with the fun I was having and I was at a full sprint by the time I made it to the room. Wow what a run! It was a great challenge as well as great fun.

Patti and I finished off the day with some light bouldering on the weathered sea granite rocks next to the Sea of Cortez. We had done some rock climbing out at Lands End by the arch the previous year and hauling all of the gear down was a little troublesome. We decided to use the Five Fingers this year for bouldering and scrambling around, a lot easier than hauling all of the gear, much lighter too. The rock climbing really works the feet and is great exercise for all of the muscle groups. The mind gets a workout too with the surf crashing into the rocks below, if you don’t watch your step, one could be bounced off the rocks and swirled around in the surf. I suppose the risk is part of all the fun and to some the activity of rock climbing may seem extreme. I’m not surprised we like it and the surroundings today are unmatched!

The feet and body are changing! When I put footwear on my body does not like it and I actually feel some discomfort. This is an interesting development that I will continue to monitor. Adios.

Beach run in Todos Santos

Up with the sun again this morning and it is just beautiful. I could really ease into this lifestyle of no work, waking up to the sound of the waves, with palm trees in the wind. This is great training weather and I will not miss a day if I have anything to say about it.

I had to put some shoes on today to run my feet are still a little sensitive after yesterdays extended workout. I’m glad I have made it past thinking I was failing if I put on a pair of shoes to run when my feet are still recovering. Running for me is about having fun and not some screwed up ritual that has to be performed. When I run like it’s a chore the joy is gone, having fun like being a kid just vanishes, and that’s what it is about. So, move over ego were putting on the shoes today and were having fun!

The diet here has been a little hit and miss, the chocolate cake that we picked up at Costco was a hit! Yeah, you get the picture see food diet, no holds barred; if it looks good eat it. There is only one problem when I fall into this pattern and it’s not the extra calories stacking up. My body has a special way of thanking me for all that good looking food coming down the chute. The guys working in my lower GI track are saying, “Oh I see, that’s the way you want to play well you’re going to pay.” I will say this right now what I consumed the day before is going to play out in my run today and if you can’t take a little poop talk then you better just surf on to YouTube or something because things are going to get a little interesting from here on out.

If you are still here there is something that you should know about me and it’s really a pain in the butt. I am not the kind of guy that wakes up and his first move is into the bathroom to take care of his business if you get my drift. I am one of the abnormal people on this planet that has to work at getting the plumbing working. If things don’t go off well in the morning then all bets are off and I can almost count on being in some sort of compromising position when nature calls. Just so you can appreciate what I am saying here I’ll give you a small example. I was climbing Mt. Rainier and when we headed for the summit that morning I knew things were going to be bad because the morning business didn’t go as planned. At 13,700 feet it was time, yep, TIME! I had my two climbing partners on the rope with me and I was leading 3 other rope teams. Harness down, pants down, 10 degrees, balls dangling in the wind with ice pellets flying by. (Use your imagination and yes ice pellets do hurt when that happens.) To fight it would have been futile because I know this is how I am. Go now or pay is the way it works and this can happen any time any place when my diet get off track. I love food and that is the curse and just to show me who is really boss the boys in the lower GI let me have it again coming down the mountain at the same spot. At least this time the ice pellets had stopped flying and we were headed down. That’s the way I work and now that you know, well, this was some foreshadowing for today’s run.

The scenery is stunning here and it makes running really fun with lots to take in. The morning business did not go well and when I left the villa I knew thing could be bad, but I just thought I would deal with it. I have the same talk every time, Oh I’ll make it, yeah right! Nothing gets stuff moving like going for a run and by mile two it was time, yes TIME! I had been gliding along and all of a sudden even the most beautiful place in the world makes no difference as all focus goes to finding the spot. You know the spot, quite possibly the most important place on the planet at that point in time and all scruples go out the window when selecting that all important spot. I spotted a construction site to my left and I stopped to survey the area for the illusive, endangered Porta Potti. With my razor sharp hunting skill I zeroed in on the plastic blue oasis with no trouble and headed that way. There was a Mexican worker standing close by and I looked at him and said, “Banyo!” His reply was a quick, “Si.” He must have seen the look on my face and realized I was not a man that was going to take no for an answer. The door slammed shut and I was faced with my next dilemma. You guessed it, no toilet paper, what the fuck!!!! So close to nirvana and yet one step away. Sometimes you have to compromise with life and this would be the case today. Shit your pants trying to make the futile journey home or improvise, I chose to improvise and McGiver would have been proud. I won’t go into detail, but use your imagination and remember the pool of resources was limited. You have a pair of running shorts, socks, two shoes and you must come out with everything you started with. Good luck and have fun, I did, let me rephrase that, I had a good laugh at the situation. Never lose you sense of humor in a shitty situation a good laugh will carry you through the rough spots!

Now that all that was over with I sprang from the Mexican shit box like Clark Kent from his phone both complete with the big “s” on my chest. I rocketed by the nice caballero that gave me my free pass to almost nirvana and yelled, “Mucho gracias amigo!” Needless to say the rest of the run was quite nice and who couldn’t have a smile on their face after that adventure was behind them. Tomorrow will be a weight day at the gym with some walking. I am heading up to Todo Santos for some exploration and the usual stop at the Hotel California it’s such a lovely place, but I won’t be checking in! Adios muchachos!

Gritty sidewalk

Cabos San Lucas running barefoot 3-30-2009

It is great to be in some warmer weather for a change of pace. The Sun was just peeking up and the waves crashing into the beach was lure enough to get me out of bed after a long travel day yesterday. It just feels like one should be up early running around playing and I can lay around later after I take care of the body and mind.

All of the different surfaces here are really quite the experience for the feet. I have no clue where to run or what to expect, but I have gained confidence that I can move over just about any surface that I could face. This is a good thing because running here would take all the skills I had.

I started off the run on the beach in front and did not last too long. The sand is ankle deep and very course with chunks of coral. The sand felt really good massaging the arches of my feet and is a great way to give the bottoms a quick exfoliation. The sand is good for a change but I think it does little for working on the running form. So, I headed up to the stairs which had some nice running sections between flights. I was still right by the beach and the texture was like 80 grit sandpaper. I ran up and down and up and down doing some sprints while alternating form work in. After about 20 minutes I transitioned back to the beach and finished with more sprints on the grass. There is nothing like grass after working on very tough surfaces. Pure joy describes it and you go from Volkswagen to Ferrari with the increased speed and comfort.

Patti and I went back to the villa and had just missed Judi out for a walk. We took off out the door and tried to catch up. I wanted some more barefoot running and I got it. Out to the main road and the asphalt is best described as…rocks. This stuff is mean and it tested me to my limits. Trying to land softly is a must and I was quite surprised I could run on this stuff. This was by far some of the most challenging terrain I have encountered for asphalt. You could call it chip seal, but chip seal is chips and this stuff was small rocks. Running on the crushed rock trail at home still has it beat because of how sharp the rocks are. Enough of my whining, on we went as I danced the dance looking for the smooth spots and running in the gutter was pretty good at least it was smoother.

As you could guess running in the gutter is probably not that safe and you would be right. I keep a close eye on the road when cruising along and sometimes the pokies are just too small to see. I was greeted with what felt like a sharp rock and that is normal for barefoot. I just keep going and it will drop off in a couple of steps, but this was not the case this time it kept hanging on. Just like a flat tire on the freeway during rush hour, you don’t want to pull over and stop, but you know if you don’t you might end up on the five o’clock news in flames saying, “I don’t know what happened it just burst into flames!” Yeah right buddy here’s your ticket for being a moron. So, I pulled over and put my foot up on the jack and gave it a look. Hmmm, not good, not good at all this is a first. I had stepped on a small little spring that was broken and of course the pointy end was stuck in the ball of my foot. “Shit!” I thought of all the countries to step on a piece of nasty steel well, let’s try and pull it out. I seemed like it was corkscrewed into my foot so I worked on it a while and it finally let go with fight. I was not sure that it did not just break off and there was a little blood to add to the sinking feeling. Poke, poke, prod, squish, hmmm it feels like I got it. Oh well, no more pain and I’ll be dammed if I’m heading for the ER here I would probably have to bargain for my services, I’ll take my chances and see how it goes on with the show.

We never did catch Judi and my feet were telling me time for a siesta gringo, so we headed back to the villa. The injury never really bothered me and the run was a great learning experience and reinforcement to the progression of the feet and form. I covered terrain that was a challenge and the looks I got from the locals were priceless. “What happened to your shoes amigo?” I just smiled and said, “I had to sell them to get to Mexico.” “Really, would you like to buy some new ones?” I must be loco, but what the hell, I’m having fun running in the spring stepping on springs in Baja. Adios amigos!