Pre- and Post-run Routines

[Pjruns2]

Thanks Dama,
I am going to start that routine tonight. If it doesn't work for the dry skin, then I'll just stick my feet in my salad for dressing.

 

[Agnesd]

Olive oil is a good if not even better altrnative than the other stuff you were using.
I used either oilve or coconut oil.
Try using the oil faithfully for at least two weeks and see if that makes a diference. Which it should.

I second the coconut oil. Olive oil is good too, but I feel like the coconut oil is less messy. Another good one is 100% Shea butter - it doesn't have any cr*p in it either, and is much less messy than the oils.

 

[Pjruns2]

I second the coconut oil. Olive oil is good too, but I feel like the coconut oil is less messy. Another good one is 100% Shea butter - it doesn't have any cr*p in it either, and is much less messy than the oils.

Thanks, I know the oils do get messy and I really don't like sleeping with socks on. I'll try the 100% Shea butter

 

[scedastic]

pre run: roll out calves. nothing else seems to need it. start slow like a turtle, then go to fast turtle speed, then that's my speed.

post run: depends. if the morning is hectic, nothing but shower and go. if not, and my calves are super tight, then i'll roll. if i have plenty of time, i do strength trainign and try to keep moving around doing something rather than sitting. seems to keep me looser.

after long runs, i sometimes ice my calves at some point.

also, my rule is any run of at least 10 miles means i get a bubble bath at some point that night or the next night. Nothing to do with recovery, I don't think, but somehow that's when i decide I 'deserve' a bubble bath.

 

[shaunmac]

Nothing but walking a few blocks before and after the run to warm up and cool down. Don't have time for any fancy massages, rolling or lubing up the feet.

 

[Barefoot Dama]

Nothing but walking a few blocks before and after the run to warm up and cool down. Don't have time for any fancy massages, rolling or lubing up the feet.

No one has the time we just make it happen, if we really need to. Just sayi'n

 

[Barefoot Dama]

Thanks Dama,
I am going to start that routine tonight. If it doesn't work for the dry skin, then I'll just stick my feet in my salad for dressing.

Sounds good as long as you don't start licking your feet.

 

[Mike R]

No warm-up before I run. A couple minutes of stretching after my run. Before a race, I'll run about a mile to get to my second wind.

 

[Pjruns2]

Sounds good as long as you don't start licking your feet.

In order to do that, we'd have to go back to the stretching conversation. I put olive oil on last night and some short socks my wife had. I threw all of mine out with my running shoes about 3 years ago. I woke up about a zillion times, nightmares, sweating...finally took off the socks and fell back to sleep about 5 minutes before my alarm went off.

 

[Bare Lee]

In order to do that, we'd have to go back to the stretching conversation. I put olive oil on last night and some short socks my wife had. I threw all of mine out with my running shoes about 3 years ago. I woke up about a zillion times, nightmares, sweating...finally took off the socks and fell back to sleep about 5 minutes before my alarm went off.

Half the reason I'm a barefooter is because I get 'hot foot.' I can't stand socks unless I have shoes on outside and it's below freezing. And even in the middle of winter I'll often stick my feet out from under the covers while sleeping. The other half is that I like the tactile stimulation.

As for my (evolving) routine, I massage and roll the whole leg and foot before I run, and do a little light stretching of everything--legs, back, arms ... everything. Then sometimes midway through a longer run (plus five miles), I like to find a chest-high wall or rail and stick my foot up on it and stretch out the hammies, calves, and glutes, and then I stretch the quads and massage my front lower leg a bit too. This really refreshes me, and actually seems to increase my springiness, and my pace often increases a bit afterwards too. I call it the run-stretch-run method, adapted from Jeff Galloway's run-walk-run method. Then once home I massage and roll my legs really good and stretch a bit more, and then the next day while doing weights I do more of the same. I also have a sprinter stick and trigger wheel in my office for occasional light massaging of the lower leg and foot during the work day.

Besides curing me of top-of-the-foot-pain and helping me run longer at a decent pace, this routine helps me stay limber, which is especially important now as the effects of aging are starting to make me creakier. It makes sense to resist this process, the same as I resist losing strength and stamina by lifting weights and running.

As for the whole stretching is for bozos thing, well, I've concluded that stretching may not be for everyone, but not stretching because some sloganeering chiropractor says you shouldn't, really is for bozos, especially if you know you benefit from it. Then again, complaining about this just reinforces the simple-minded marketing technique's (ironic) efficacy in drawing web traffic. My bad.

I don't know anything about lotions, oils, or butters. My heels crack once or twice a year, but I figure this is just part of being a barefooter. I bought a pumice stone, but rarely use it.

 

[scedastic]

I don't know anything about lotions, oils, or butters. My heels crack once or twice a year, but I figure this is just part of being a barefooter. I bought a pumice stone, but rarely use it.

My heels just cracked last week some time, I think it was from all the swimming in chlorinated pools and the drying effects of cooler weather. It was painful enough that walking stung without socks on.
After several days of putting on lotion and socks just before bed, the pain is gone and the heels are better.
I only leave the socks on my feet in bed for a little while----no need to keep them on all night once the lotion sinks in.

 

[Bare Lee]

My heels just cracked last week some time, I think it was from all the swimming in chlorinated pools and the drying effects of cooler weather. It was painful enough that walking stung without socks on.
After several days of putting on lotion and socks just before bed, the pain is gone and the heels are better.
I only leave the socks on my feet in bed for a little while----no need to keep them on all night once the lotion sinks in.

Hmnn, maybe I'll give it a try. It can be painful for me too. If nothing else, it'll get my wife to roll her beautiful eyes at my barefootedness one more time.

 

[Barefoot Dama]

In order to do that, we'd have to go back to the stretching conversation. I put olive oil on last night and some short socks my wife had. I threw all of mine out with my running shoes about 3 years ago. I woke up about a zillion times, nightmares, sweating...finally took off the socks and fell back to sleep about 5 minutes before my alarm went off.

I usually take my socks of before going to bed. I only use the socks right after I oil my feet and leave them on up until I go to bed.
I too, don't like wearing anything at night.

 

[Zetti]

My heels crack once or twice a year, but I figure this is just part of being a barefooter. I bought a pumice stone, but rarely use it.

concrete can be a pretty effective pumice stone as well

I too, don't like wearing anything at night.

as for Damas comment....I think these type of comments are best addressed in the pub

 

[NickW]

I don't know anything about lotions, oils, or butters. My heels crack once or twice a year, but I figure this is just part of being a barefooter. I bought a pumice stone, but rarely use it.

Lee, I don't know anything about lotions, oils or butters either. You know it's funny, I never use any of that crap and my feet are smooth as a babies butt. My wife on the other hand uses that crap all the time and her feet are horribly pokey and dry, I actually have to make sure there are covers between her feet and me because they hurt and will wake me up in the middle of the night if she accidentally bumps me with them. Seems the more she works on her feet the worse they get...

 

[Bare Lee]

Lee, I don't know anything about lotions, oils or butters either. You know it's funny, I never use any of that crap and my feet are smooth as a babies butt. My wife on the other hand uses that crap all the time and her feet are horribly pokey and dry, I actually have to make sure there are covers between her feet and me because they hurt and will wake me up in the middle of the night if she accidentally bumps me with them. Seems the more she works on her feet the worse they get...

Yah, for me it's the walking that produces the callus, er, I mean plantar development, on the back edge of the heel. The forefoot and toe and bottom of the heel calluses are nice and smooth. Mostly this happens in the spring when I'm building my walking calluses back up again. Even last winter, when I ran barefoot for the first time, I still needed to build up the heel in the spring because I didn't do any barefoot walking in the winter. Well, wait a minute, there was one day in January when I walked when it was something like 50F coming back from day care. In Africa it's a big sin to have cracked heels, so my wife gives me a lot of grief.

 

[Pjruns2]

I too, don't like wearing anything at night.

Well...Who would expect anything different when coming from a BF'r?

 

[Barefoot Bone Rod]

Over the years I've queried folks who run about whether they stretch or not, and the majority say they do not. Early on in life I determined with much experimentation that I definitely benefit from a stretching routine prior to a vigorous workout. This always perplexed me. My theory is that genetics plays into this. A while back I researched into the human genome project and found some information that seemed to support the theory. I don't remember all the details, but there are a few key genes having to do with the stucture/function/metabolism of connective tissue cells, for which there are polymorphic variants that may predispose for fibromyalgia type tendencies, and me thinks these are the same folks who really benefit from the stretching. Interesting topic....

BR

 

[Barefoot Bone Rod]

Oh... I forgot to mention, somewhere around a year and half ago, after reading about many studies done on stretching, I transitioned from static streching to doing a dynamic stretching warm up before my runs. My current routine varies from 7 to 15 minutes. I do a circuit of forward and reverse arm circles, full leg swings, windmills, plank backward leg kicks, arm crosses, walking lunge-to-toe-touches, squat-push-ups, spread-eagle-alternating lunges, some jumping jacks, and my favorite which I came up with on my own is downward-dog-calf pumps.

BR

 

[Bare Lee]

Over the years I've queried folks who run about whether they stretch or not, and the majority say they do not. Early on in life I determined with much experimentation that I definitely benefit from a stretching routine prior to a vigorous workout. This always perplexed me. My theory is that genetics plays into this. A while back I researched into the human genome project and found some information that seemed to support the theory. I don't remember all the details, but there are a few key genes having to do with the stucture/function/metabolism of connective tissue cells, for which there are polymorphic variants that may predispose for fibromyalgia type tendencies, and me thinks these are the same folks who really benefit from the stretching. Interesting topic....

BR

I think you're onto something there BBR, and I like the way you talk. I've always been pretty stretchy, and used to be able to do the splits. In fact, I probably still could if I worked my way into it for a few months. And it would be great to put my foot up above my head with a good high kick again. Hmnn, maybe I should include some karate strikes and kicks into my workout routine. That would count as dynamic stretching, right? Then I could do dynamic stretching in addition to static stretching, rolling, and trigger point massaging and have all my bases covered. Oh wait, I gave my heavy bag to my nephew. Oh but wait, I don't think he ever uses it . . . or I guess I could just practice forms, then it's almost like dynamic yoga. I could be a barefoot dynamic yoga HIIT runner -- BFDYHIITR -- if I combined this practice with my interval run day.