No TMTS here! Beginners log

Spinningwoman

Barefooters
May 23, 2013
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Is it OK to start a thread here? There seem to be two or three beginners on the forum and I thought a diary thread might help keep the enthusiasm going while helping to resist the temptation to go wild.

So far, my foot pain seems to have gone. Whether it was just rest after overdoing it, or whether it helped that the massage therapist at the running shop suggested using a Tiger Tail roller on my calves, i dont know.

I'm really liking the skipping. If I do a bit of that on the hard pavement of my garden patio and then run out onto the grass, my running form feels really easy and natural. I think it is probably because skipping is something i have done with a forefoot touchdown ever since i was a kid, so there are no conflicting messages from my brain. I am doing such small amounts at the moment I would feel pretty ridiculous calling it 'a run' and going out of my own backyard. So I'm just thinking of it as foot strengthening/ form building exercises. I am strictly truly barefoot only for running & skipping now, because I just don't get the 'don't have to think about it' feel even with the VFFs which I love otherwise.
Next week I am away on a retreat at Ampleforth Abbey in Yorkshire, and unless they have Health and Safety issues, I will probably be able to be barefoot more or less all the time. I'm rather wishing I had some minimal sandals in case they do have a rule about it. I might even try to make some, but I think the leather I have is too soft for a sole.
 
I'm rather wishing I had some minimal sandals in case they do have a rule about it. I might even try to make some, but I think the leather I have is too soft for a sole.
You could also knit or crochet a pair of minimal sandals with a bit of liquid latex on the bottom to prevent slipping on tiles!
Or felt some wool, cut out the shape of your foot and attach some strings!:)
 
Is it OK to start a thread here? There seem to be two or three beginners on the forum and I thought a diary thread might help keep the enthusiasm going while helping to resist the temptation to go wild.

So far, my foot pain seems to have gone. Whether it was just rest after overdoing it, or whether it helped that the massage therapist at the running shop suggested using a Tiger Tail roller on my calves, i dont know.

I think you might benefit more from becoming a regular contributor to the weekly mileage reporting. Everyone is welcome there--from beginner to veteran, recreational jogger to ultra runner--and you'll probably get more feedback. I know for me it was a great help when I was working through TOFP and ITBS, and it's fun and motivating to keep track of everyone's running.

Don't forget to massage/roll the shin muscles too. For me that's just as important as rolling the calves.
 
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Don't forget to massage/roll the shin muscles too. For me that's just as important as rolling the calves.
I strongly encourage any new person to take the rolling/massage of the shin muscles (and the whole leg in general) very seriously. A lot of new people get top of foot pain (tofp) which they think is a serious injury, when it really is just tight muscles in the shins that needs to be worked out. I seem to recall, correct me if I'm wrong Lee, that Lee had said his foot pain was diagnosed by a dr as some serious injury when it turned out all he needed was just a bit of massage. I was diagnosed with a low lying muscle belly in the peroneal tendon along with a c-shaped calcaneus (heel bone) and the dr wanted to do surgery to repair these. It turns out for me, the massage or rolling of the outside edge of my shin with a tennis ball was exactly what was needed because of tight muscles, not because there was an actual injury.
 
I am doing such small amounts at the moment I would feel pretty ridiculous calling it 'a run' and going out of my own backyard. So I'm just thinking of it as foot strengthening/ form building exercises. I am strictly truly barefoot only for running & skipping now, because I just don't get the 'don't have to think about it' feel even with the VFFs which I love otherwise.
.

I used to do barefoot runs around my house and yard. It's rough enough to be solid work for the feet. Not much mileage, but a fun way to start.
My son still does, just to "burn off energy" (he's 8) but don't underestimate the power of goofing off like a kid, skipping, playing on the playground, exploring; my kid never "runs" seriously, but I can take him on a 5k any time I want and towards the end he will complain he is tired in easy breathing run-on-rambling-sentences that demonstrate he is not in the least bit tired.
 
I strongly encourage any new person to take the rolling/massage of the shin muscles (and the whole leg in general) very seriously. A lot of new people get top of foot pain (tofp) which they think is a serious injury, when it really is just tight muscles in the shins that needs to be worked out. I seem to recall, correct me if I'm wrong Lee, that Lee had said his foot pain was diagnosed by a dr as some serious injury when it turned out all he needed was just a bit of massage. I was diagnosed with a low lying muscle belly in the peroneal tendon along with a c-shaped calcaneus (heel bone) and the dr wanted to do surgery to repair these. It turns out for me, the massage or rolling of the outside edge of my shin with a tennis ball was exactly what was needed because of tight muscles, not because there was an actual injury.
Yah, I got top-of-the-foot-pain (TOFP)--basically pain or soreness in the tendons on the top of my foot--soon after I took up barefoot running again. I felt it mostly in my left foot. A sports medicine doc identified it as a stress reaction in my metatarsals, and he even pointed to a stress fracture that, as far as my untrained eye could tell, was non-existent in the x-ray.

So for the next nine months or so, I rested my feet every time they felt sore. "Man, despite feeling generally healthy," I thought, "it sure is taking a long time for this stress reaction to heal."

Then after another flare up, after making a jump up in distance from six miles to over nine miles, I re-read Jimmy Hart's article on TOFP. There he explained the whole business of how the shin muscles and the calve muscles work together--so if one team isn't happy, the other probably won't be either--and also about 'deferred' pain, which means the cause of the pain isn't necessarily located in the same place as the pain.

Wouldn't it have been nice if my sports doc had been familiar with these concepts?

Anyway, I began rolling my shins and felt immediate relief in the tops of my feet, kind of like a flush. I also did some more focused massaging with a Knobble and massage wheel, but these days, just rolling once a day or so with my mini stick, and using an electric massager the morning after a run, seems to keep the lower leg nice and loose. I also like to stretch a lot, and feel like I benefit just as much from that.
 
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Yes, when I said 'calves' I meant lower legs in general, calves shins ankles and feet. I tried it on my husband when he was moaning about being stiff from a run, though, and he actually screamed<g>.

I also have a Novafon sonic massager that was my mum's; I might give that a go too.
 
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Instant huaraches! Made from a rubber car mat left over from an old car and a couple of bootlaces I handwove a while back on an Inkle loom. The laces are only just long enough, so I may weave some longer ones. I followed an Instructible. I hate flip flops but these don't feel like that between my toes. I haven't yet removed the 100's of tiny nubs on the inner sole - actually, it feels quite pleasant rather like one of those reflexology sandals.
 
Just another hint Spinningwoman, if you are having some pain or numbness between your toes from your laces (they look really narrow) try a wider lace, such as a half inch flat ribbon that you would be able to find at a fabric store. This will help tremendously. I have this problem with laces sometimes so I am very picky about what I wear.
 
Yes, actually I had intended to use some nice 1/2 inch straps I wove but couldn't find them, so I just used those laces. I would prefer the look of wider straps, and in any case when you like weaving narrow bands it is great to find another use for them! The world only needs so many woven luggage straps or iPod lanyards<g>!
But actually, I didn't find the laces cut in or felt uncomfortable. It was just walking on the knot I didn't like.