Was it the tree branch or the aluminum can?

Stepped on two things today that hurt while running on the grass at Greenbrook Park.

Thing one was a tree branch. There was a lot of wind yesterday. The wind brought down a lot of sticks. I was just running happily along and all of a sudden crack - I was breaking a knobby branch under my foot.

Thing two was a compactly crushed old aluminum soda can. Couldn't do much about that one.

So when I got home I felt a little damp under my right foot, and sure enough I had a flap of skin torn away under the middle of my foot. It was bleeding just a little. Took a photo for the blog. After satisfying my carb craving with some juice and some fig bars, I took a shower and cleaned it well, then put a band aid on it. And I have been wearing socks tonight around the house, just to keep it clean. Don't want to jeopardize my New York Marathon on Sunday!

Can't decide if it was the branch or the can that did it.

Barefoot Ted's Adventures: Barefooting the Grand Canyon

Barefoot Ted's Adventures: Barefooting the Grand Canyon: "If you ask the question, 'Can one run down the Grand Canyon barefoot?', the answer would be yes. If you ask the question, 'Should one run down the Grand Canyon barefoot?', the answer should be, 'Hell no!'"

Ted has done something I have dreamed of doing since 1995 - and he did it barefoot! In '95 I would have never dreamed that. And if I went to the Grand Canyon today, I would do it in shoes. I don't think I could handle the trail barefoot. Ted didn't really make his goal of a rim-to-rim run, but considering the problems his group had to overcome, getting rim to river and back barefoot is still awesome!

Eniva VIBE

It is amazing that this stuff is not illegal. I have been using Eniva VIBE since last Friday. I can definitely report that my runs take less effort and my recovery has been amazing. I believe my body is using fuel and oxygen more efficiently. Not only do I notice this while I am running, but I notice it all the time. My breathing rate and heart rate is lower during everyday activities and I feel full of air as if my lungs are more inflated - just walking feels like I am pulled up by this inflation as if I was a floating balloon. I have not changed my eating patterns. I have continued to eat normally, yet lost some weight, and I am not experiencing hunger and carb highs or lows, as I had been tending to previously. I feel much more wide awake, without the use of several cups of coffee, even though I have not added extra sleep. My tendonitis in my Achilles continues to improve. All this while increasing mileage!

My Left Foot

When I run barefoot on pavement lately, my left foot feels less perfect than my right foot. On pavement, it seems to pick up more twisting friction at lift-off, and has a slight amount of landing friction, kinda like I am gliding forward into the landing with that foot. Before relearning to run barefoot, I had left ankle sprain issues, which was one of the factors that led me to run barefoot. Also, the extra friction thing only started this summer, around the same time I had some (now improving) Achilles tendon / PF issues. Perhaps it is a contributing factor. Also, I have been more "up on my toes" than ever before this summer - an evolution, this being my 3rd running barefoot. Last week, I noticed I do not have these twist and landing friction issues on grass. (Yeah, completely different surface features, but it is more than that. Read on...) So within the last week I have analyzed what I do different on grass as opposed to roads. I ran on that grassy strip between the road and the sidewalk, then would switch to the road or sidewalk, then back to the grassy strip. Here is what I can tell: On grass I twist my upper body slightly more when my left foot lands and lifts. That is to say, that my left shoulder travels a little more forward and back - It is a matter of about an inch difference each way. I don't know why this is. When I carry it over to the road, then I have no extra friction. But I still have to think about it. In a few weeks it will probably become autonomic. Perhaps the body twisting compensates for the foot twisting? I could not be sure of the biomechanics without complicated high speed digital imaging and computer footstrike analysis, but it feels right to me.

see http://runningbarefoot.org/?name=How"
Vertical torso, but allow it to twist. Hips rotate with your legs, shoulders rotate with your arms."