"A Bunch of Running Nerds on Their Favorite Shoes"

Interesting list, with people like Magness, Dicharry, and Lieberman:

“I wear a variety of different shoes to mix it up, but all are zero drop, because I’m a forefoot striker and don’t need or want any cushioning on the heel, otherwise I end up running like a ballerina”...

Merrell Vapor Glove vs. Vivobarefoot The One..

The One on left, VG on right.

Nice review: "Barefoot Inclined: Minimalist Showdown: Merrell Vapor Glove vs. Vivobarefoot The One..."

The One looks appealing when compared side-by-side.

There's this, from another review:

"I've had no problems with this design, but the laminate strips near the big toe do wrinkle up a bit during plantar flexion (when you roll up onto your toes). A friend of mine picked up a pair and had some painful rubbing issues there as the "wrinkle" pushed down painfully on her big toe. I've had other shoes that do this at the flexpoint, and I can feel where it happens here but have no issue with it."

But I've had the same thing happen in the VG when worn sockless, so I don't know if this is the dreaded rubbing issue that plagued the early VB shoes...

And when I mentioned niche barefoot-style shoe producers, I forgot to mention VivoBarefoot. I'm wearing a pair of their loafers today. Love 'em.

Thanks to John.

Barefoot Running In NYC and The State Of Barefoot Shoes

Nice!

"Chris Hawson didn't run much in New York City until he took off his shoes. That was three years, and more than 9,000 miles, ago.

"You can blame Chris McDougall and Born to Run for that,” he says while sipping hot chocolate in a coffee shop near the Union Square Paragon Sports where he works as an outerwear buyer. “It was inspirational to me. I didn't treat it as a technique manual, but it set me off on a path.”

"A health scare in 2009 prompted Hawson, now in his mid-50s, to start running a couple of times a week, but he found his IT bands, knees, and shins started to hurt, forcing him to resort to inline skating. Then Hawson, who spent a decade leading bike and ski trips in Northern Scotland, discovered Vibram FiveFingers and ran a few hundred miles during the summer and fall, mixing them in with a couple other pairs of more traditional shoes. But winter came, so he packed the FiveFingers away because of the cold. That plan didn't last long, however, and pretty soon he had ditched conventional shoes entirely."

Read the whole thing.

I went to see In the High Country (a movie about ultra-runner Anton Krupicka) in NYC last night, and Chris was there. (Paragon organized the showing.)

Chris, as the Outdoor story makes clear, is the real deal. I've run with him a couple of time in various McDougall-organized "events". He really does do the bulk of his miles barefoot.

As a buyer at Paragon he had some interesting thoughts on the minimalist shoe market: it's fading. In large part because the minimalist shoes last so long. With no foam to break down, you replace your shoes when they tear, or when the sole wears through. Chis explained that he just tossed a pair of Altras that had 2,500 miles on them, because the sole wore through and he had torn the upper on a rock.

Given that the typical running shoe companies recommend that you replace their products every 300 miles, that's a major difference. He then mentioned that he probably had bought enough pairs of minimalist shoes to last the rest of his life, at that rate. I also have enough to last quite a long time.

Altra Torrin: not minimalist.

He explained that there are no new minimalist shoe designs coming out: even Altra's new line has a lot of cushion built in. We both wondered about the future of Merrell's Vapor Glove, one of my personal favorites. It was nice to see them in Merrell's winter catalog, but I wonder if they'll last through next summer. New Balance's Mimimus line does doesn't seem to be doing well (according to a New Balance store I visited recently), as the most minimal models are falling by the wayside.

Guess it's not too surprising... When Dr. Munson first invented the barefoot-style shoe after World War I, they put millions of them on the feet of American soldiers. They were very popular, but then the whole thing disappeared as generations turned over, and they were forgotten...

Hopefully a few companies will stick with the idea so folks like me and Chris can replace our shoes when we need to.

Luna, Russell, and Skora seem to be pretty committed to the minimalist idea. [P.S. And VivoBarefoot!]

But there's more research coming along showing the clear advantages of barefoot over shod foot-binding, so hopefully the idea will stick around.

After 10 miles running in the snow.

My running rotation has been barefoot, Luna Sandals, Vapor Gloves, and Vibram Fivefinger Speeds. None of them show much wear on the sole. If I do a trail race, I'll wear the Trail Glove, and I wore the Sonic Glove the other day when I did a 10-mile run in the snow. I can't really see any reason why I'd ever want to go back to the sort of sneaker I used to wear.

(Found the Outdoor story via Chris McDougall on Twitter.)

"New Balance HI-REZ Minimus Review"

Wow.

"New Balance really nailed it with the Hi-rez. Putting these on is like putting on a pair of slippers—the mesh lining is soft and comfortable and the uppers contour to your feet with a process the NB marketers have termed “FantomFit.” I generally prefer sock with shoes, but I am comfortable enough going without in these for shorter runs. The toe box is nice and wide, with plenty of room to wiggle your little piggys and the heel cup is pleasantly snug without feeling too tight. There is no noticeable toe spring and the toe box flexes and widens as your foot lands with each step. The lacing system is pretty standard and allows you to cinch things up pretty securely if needed."

They're $120, which is quite a lot more than the $80 Vapor Glove, and the sole looks quite a bit thicker, but if you find the Merrell a bit too narrow, the New Balance Minimus line tends to run a bit wider. I'd have to try it on to tell... But read Tim's entire review over at Birthday Shoes.

I may have to see if the New Balance store has these in stock...

Gordo Goes Head to Head: The Merrell Vapor Glove, Trail Glove, and the Inov8 Bare-XF 210

First 5k, first age-group win.

Gordo is one of the many terrific people I've met through barefoot running. An engineer, he has the discerning and demanding approach to things which that discipline requires. Gordo is a dedicated barefoot runner, but not a zealot. Shoes are tools, and Gordo gets that. But few have met his high standards.

Gordo and I ran the Run for Rwanda 5k a few years back. It was Gordo's first running race, and he ran in bare feet, on asphalt and gravel. As a lark the Race Director had added a barefoot category, to show solidarity with the simultaneous sister race run in Rwanda. Gordo not only won the RD's age-group, but did so in his bare feet, thereby winning the barefoot category too. Flabbergasted doesn't begin to describe the RD's face.

So when Gordo has an opinion on something, it's usually a good idea to listen. Below is a review that he posted of a couple of my favorites shoes, and a third shoe.

---

Garden of the Gods

I got my new Merrell Vapor Gloves a couple of days ago and decided to run over to Garden of the Gods and do a little bouldering on sandstone friction slabs. I went for a little run first, of course. ;)

First, my impressions. I love the Vapors. They are the shoe I expected when Merrell announced the Barefoot line. They are so close to perfect that any complaints I have are quibbles. I ordered both 10 and 10.5s. When I tried on the size 10s, my first thought was "I shouldn't have bothered with the other size." Then I started getting pickier. The rubber toe cap that wraps over the top of the shoe (one of my pet peeves – who the heck runs on the tops of their feet?) was hitting one of my big toes when I walked. Annoying. I tried them on with the neoprene socks I wear for canyoneering. Hmmm, these are now pretty darn tight across the midfoot. So I tried on the 10.5s. And never looked back. They're wider through the midfoot, don't hit my toe funny, let my toes splay, etc. The heel cup is exactly what I like; minimal and clean. The construction is typical Merrell, which is to say very high quality.

I ran three miles of moderate trail in the Vapor Gloves and then switched to the Inov-8 XF-210s (size 11). They felt somewhat tight and pushed against my left little toe in an annoying way. When I took the insoles out, they were fine. I really disliked the big padded heel cup. The ground feel was similar to the Vapor Gloves, as was the traction on dirt, gravel, and rock. I didn't notice the strange flex pattern [reported in another review] at all, they're quite flexible under the BOF and stiff elsewhere. I have no idea what this is supposed to buy you, it's the BOF that gets the heavy loading when you run. I didn't run in the Trail Gloves over that section, but from what I recall, their traction is about the same but the ground feel is much less. [These are the v1 TGs, there's a v2 out soon.] All three shoes felt like too much shoe for the trail, but this is a trail that I regularly run barefoot. It's moderately rough sandstone, which tends to be barefoot friendly.

Next, I headed over to a friction slab for the main event, testing stickiness. I found a smooth, low-angle slab close to the ground and went for a little traverse in the Vapor Gloves. They didn't work as well as I might have hoped, but they weren't awful with my heels down. About what I expected. When I placed my feet sideways, the shoe rolled and slipped badly (Duh). Next up, the XF-210s with the "sticky" rubber. This was a major disappointment. I don't know what Inov-8 is smoking, but their sticky rubber did no better than that on the VG. If that's their sticky rubber, I want nothing to do with the regular stuff. Sideways, with the insole in, they were much better. No surprise. Next up, the Trail Gloves (original, size 10.5). The first thing I noticed was that putting the left shoe on was a bit difficult. OK. Then the right, which I had modified a year or so ago. I could barely get the sucker on and it was so tight that it became uncomfortable in minutes. Off I went across the slab. Exactly the same performance as the other two with heels down and the same as the Inov-8 sideways. It's clear that I'm going to have to extend the cut in the upper much farther toward my ankle on the right shoe if I'm to keep wearing them.

To say I was disappointed is an understatement. The Merrells performed exactly as expected, so the disappointment was entirely with the Inov-8s. I'm really glad I only paid $55 (delivered) for them and have a couple of trips coming up this summer that should reduce their life by half. To be fair, they aren't a bad shoe if you don't care about traction and your feet are narrow.

On the way back to the car, I ran across some 3 - 4" crushed rock half embedded in the ground with a scattering of 1" crushed rock on top where the park is trying to control erosion. Hmmm. On went the VGs. I could run comfortably and carefree across the stuff. Cool. Inov-8, up next, performed at the same level. I really couldn't tell much difference feel-wise. Trail Gloves (these are going to kick ass, right?) Wrong. They were a little better than the other two shoes, but not nearly enough to outweigh their negatives - the extra cushion, pointy toe box, and the stiff, rockered forefoot. Then, for calibration, I ran the section barefoot. I know, I know. ;) I slowed considerably, had to pick my way, and experienced enough pain that I stopped half way through the section. I guess shoes do have a use or two. ;)

Conclusions: The Vapor Glove is a fabulous shoe. Merrell hit this one out of the park. If they ever get discontinued, I'm going to pull a Harry and fill the closet. Seriously. It's enough shoe to just blast over moderate/moderate plus trails and thin and flexible enough to feel like I'm not running in combat boots. The lack of any real cleats will be the biggest limiting factor, closely followed by probably not quite enough protection on really sharp rocks. The Inov-8 wasn't bad, but it wasn't particularly good, either. Middle of the road, if it fits you and it's cheap, go for it. The sticky rubber is strictly marketing BS. The original Trail Glove, for reference and calibration to my tastes, is both too much shoe and too little shoe at the same time. It's too thick and stiff to be a real minimal shoe but it doesn't have the cleats necessary to be a real trail shoe. Neither fish nor fowl. Not recommended. I'll be interested in trying on the TG2 to see if the improvements make enough of a difference to put it back on my short list. But if they don't have better cleats, that's not going to matter. The Vapor Glove is all the shoe I need for anything that the original Trail Glove can handle.

Caveats: I have fairly narrow US10.5D feet that are pretty thick. Think bricks with toes. If you have wide feet, none of these shoes will work for you. The Vapor Gloves are the widest. I normally run moderate/moderate plus trails barefoot, so I tend to automatically place my feet. I did try to intentionally land on some of the pointy rocks in the challenging section, but I may not have succeeded very well. I might be pretty hard wired at this point to avoid such stupidity. You may or may not be able to run carefree across similar terrain. If you try it and it sucks, it's not my fault. ;) I could feel my feet getting pretty worked. If your feet aren't stupid strong, best not to try a rough trail ultra in them.

— Gordo

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Originally posted here. Scroll down at that link for the discussion; reposted with permission, lightly edited.

I'll observe that there's only one truism about the perfect shoe: my perfect shoe isn't your perfect shoe. I continue to love my original Trail Gloves, but I'm not Gordo, and he's not me. :) Nice to see we both agree 100% on the Vapor Glove. And it's a shame that Inov-8 continues to disappoint. I have friends that swear by them, but I just don't see it, personally.

Barefoot Josh's Merrell Vapor Glove Review

The Last Review:

"I have no idea how my last three less-than-glowing reviews of their products were received by Merrell; I hope they were at least entertained and appreciated my candor. I like to think that maybe in some way my criticisms were helpful. Probably not, but weirder things have happened I suppose. From my perspective, I really appreciate the risk they’ve taken by listening to and applying the opinions and ideas of people who think shoes are pointless much/most of the time. I also appreciate their efforts to educate runners on gentle running form, and their initiatives to get people active and outside. Of course, I’m also really happy they made the Vapor Glove."

Josh, I think they listened.

My Merrell Vapor Glove Review

"The perfect running shoe should be something like a heavy-duty ballet slipper - simply an extra layer of protective material around the foot, like a glove." — Gordon Pirie

Originally this was going to be a "first impressions" post, but I didn't get around to it. At this point, from the time the shoe fairy dropped this off at my house to now, I've spent enough time in them to feel that I've got a solid opinion.

Fresh from the Shoe Fairy...

We in the minimalist (barefoot) shoe community have oft noted how silly shoe companies are to offer their wares at the end of the winter, for the spring and summer running season.  We need these for the winter!  When it's warm out, who needs shoes?  Happily, there's still some winter left, and so to differentiate my review, I used these for some winter runs and activities.

Tough Glove on left, Vapor Glove on right

The first thing you note when you hold these shoes is how light they are.  The first thing you notice when you put them on is how little effect they have on your foot.  In the picture to the right, you can see the difference in the toe between my old pair of Tough Gloves (like the Trail Glove, but in leather: one of the shoes I regularly wear to the office), and the Vapor Glove.  The older shoe has a more tapered toe, this is especially evident in the line from the ball of the foot to the big toe.  But there's also a lot more room on the outside of the shoe for your toes to spread out. Room for your toes to splay is one of the required features for a proper barefoot-style shoe, in my opinion.

The upper material is a light mesh, which breathes well enough that you can can feel the draft as you're walking around the house. The lacing system is also excellent, and an improvement over the Trail Glove, as it's wider, making them easier to get on. In fact, I've found that once I've laced them up I can slip them on and off my sock-covered foot like a slipper, while still having my foot located well enough that I can run up and down hills without slipping around. This might not appeal to everyone, but I think it's terrific.

After a run. Those are my footprints from the run...

My first run in them was the morning after they arrived. Happily, we'd just gotten a few inches of snow over night, so the conditions were perfect, with temps in the high twenties. So I donned my favorite summer-weight socks, and off I went.  My feet were a bit chilly at first, but after a few minutes they warmed up nicely.  The thin sole combined with the light wool sock offers just enough insulation to insulate the foot from the cold ground, and once I'd warmed up, my feet were toasty, while being well-ventilated from the mesh.  Perfect for a winter running shoe, in other words.

Vibram Newporter ice-compound sole

And suprisingly, they have excellent traction in the snow.  The first real minimalist shoe that I got was the Russell Mocassin protoype.  I used (and still use) those for running in really cold, snowy conditions, and one of the things that made those shoes excellent was the sole, which was made originally for people working on slippery kitchen floors.  Russell made my shoe with a softer ice-compound version, and those have been my favorite winter shoe when I'm not wearing ski boots ever since. I'm wearing them now, in fact.

Vapor Glove sole

And now along comes the Vapor Glove.  While I probably won't be wearing these to run up and down snow-covered mountains in Vermont (I'd use the Russells or Merrell's excellent Sonic Glove soft-shell sneaker), these did just fine, and as you can see, the sole is quite similar, sort of a Newporter-lite.

I've done several more runs in these, up to 10 miles, both with and without socks. Mostly not in the snow.  While I think the idea of a sockless shoe that won't cause any chafing or blistering is a bit of a chimera, so far I've not had any problems.  Knock on wood.

8 inches, he's ready to go - and barefoot!

The sole is thin enough that you can feel pebbles through it, but offers enough protection that the pebbles don't hurt.  On this morning's run in 8 inches of snow (the roads were mostly plowed) I could feel the salt crystals as I ran down the road.  Needless to say, my feet were a bit chilly while running through the deep snow, but were fine once I got to the plowed bits. (I wore this sock for this morning's run.)  I decided to run one of the hilliest routes around my house.  Traction was excellent.  My feet slipped a few times, but it was never anything that made me feel like I might fall.  They are outstanding in the snow!

To really test the Vapor Glove as a winter minimalist shoe, I decided to continue wearing them when I got back from my run to clear the driveway.  I used my barely-adequate push snowblower which tested the traction of my Vapor Gloves far more than my run did. I tried to keep my feet out of the deepest snow, but didn't entirely succeed, and the entire enterprise wound up taking over an hour, in temps in the high 20s. The Vapor Glove did surprisingly well: while my fingers got cold, my feet remained reasonably warm, although the socks did get pretty well soaked. Yes, I have excellent circulation in my feet. No, these will not be my snow-blowing shoes in the future, but it was an excellent experiment.

I've also worn these to work on Friday, and to the gym a number of times.  They were fine in both situations, and unlike Vibrams, do not draw any attention, while offering a similar level of protection and feel.

Needless to say, while close-fitting, they have no arch support; barely any structure at all, in fact, and hardly any cushion underfoot.

The shoe that the Vapor Glove most reminds me of is the VivoBarefoot Ultra, without the quirks that make that shoe less-than-perfect.  And while these shoes did yeoman's work in the snow, practically speaking, they're not a winter shoe.  They will give my beloved Vibram Speeds tough competition when I start doing some road races this spring.  That's going to be a really tough choice, as I think the Vapor Gloves could be worn sockless in a race, while the Vibrams are a little too scratchy...

I've come to realize that this is Pirie's dream shoe, without requiring his caveat: "Unfortunately, the ideal running shoe is not offered by most major manufacturers." It is now, and Merrell's a class act as companies, and shoe companies, go.  If Merrell's somewhat narrow last fits your foot, this shoe is a real winner.

P.S.: Here's an excellent Merrell promotional video for the Vapor Glove, featuring a cut-away shoe, which really gives you an idea of how radically minimal this shoe actually is.



P.P.S. Thanks to Patrick's comment, a note on sizing. In my experience the Vapor Glove has sizing that is similar to the Road Glove, but about 1/2 size off the Trail Glove. So I wear a 9.5 in the Trail Glove, but a 9 in the Road Glove and the Vapor Glove. Unlike the Road Glove, the Vapor Glove does not have anything under your arch, so there is not the same amount of arch support that you find in the Road Glove.

P.P.P.S. 2013-03-16. So, joke's on me. I went out for a nice, long run with my dog today, without checking the weather. 15 miles, 1/2 rocky, gnarly trail, the other road. Half-way through the temperature drops, and it starts snowing. Did I mention I did not check the weather?

I was wearing the Vapor Gloves with no socks (I had a pair in my pocket, just in case) shorts, an IceBreaker wool T, and a wind-breaker. Happily I had a fleece headband/ear-warmer.

By the time I got home, my hands were so cold they had trouble moving. But my feet were fine! And I never needed to put the socks on. It didn't occur to me until I got home that I should have put the socks on my hands...

They passed the trail-run test with flying colors. Enough feedback to make you watch your step, but enough protection so that you can keep up the pace, and obviously they kept my feet off the cold, wet ground.

These are magnificent shoes.

Oh, and 15 miles; no socks; no blisters or abrasions. I find that you want to tie them loose toward the bottom, and snug toward the top. Did Merrell find the chimera?

P.P.P.P.S. OK, I did another 15 mile run. Got an abrasion on top of the first metatarsal head on each foot. So much for the perfect, sock-free shoe. Although this has been the best sock-free shoe I've ever experienced. So kudos to Merrell, even if they've not found the Chimera.

Barefoot Jason's Merrell Vapor Glove Review

Do you think he likes these shoes? He seems a little equivocal...

Thoughts on the Ancestral Health Symposium 2012

Last year I missed the opportunity to attend the first AHS, in Los Angeles. I have a certain visceral opposition to LA, for no good reason (I once spent a night there when I missed a connecting flight, and that's my entire exposure to the place). I spent the rest of the year regretting that, especially after hearing what a great event it was.

AHS 2012

So this year I rectified my error, made easier by the fact that they held it at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, 140 miles from my house.

I was a little apprehensive heading up there as I was unsure how valuable this event would turn out to be, as I do spend a fair bit of time reading about all this stuff. What would I learn? Where would I eat dinner? All sorts of concerns...

All of which were totally unfounded. What a terrific event, what a terrific bunch of people. The event reminded me very much of the early meetings of the World Wide Web Artists' Consortium in 1994 and '95 in New York. The WWWAC helped to creat the Internet that we all take for granted today, as it was the focus of early web development in NYC. Just like then, at AHS you got the feeling that you were in on a Great Truth, and that all that remained was to let the world in on it, and thereby change everything. I don't doubt for a minute that AHS will help this to happen, just as the WWWAC did. It's a great feeling to be at the early stage of a revolution like this.

The symposium was organized into sessions, held in what seemed to be rapid-fire order. The first day only contained one track, but the second and third had dual tracks, which got annoying when you wanted to attend two simultaneously, or even worse, when you started chatting with someone and then realized you'd missed the first 10 minutes of your next session.

Dan Lieberman of Harvard was the keynote speaker, opening the symposium with a terrifically funny (as usual: he's wasted on Harvard, he should do stand-up comedy) overview of human evolution and evolutionary adaptation, setting the stage for all the sessions to follow. I understand the sessions are all to be posted on the 'net, I highly recommend watching them: access will be free. Some of them were breathtaking, some left me with tears in my eyes, like Joel Salatin's ringing cry to take back our freedom to feed ourselves, and Terry Wahls' account of her recovery from multiple sclerosis. A few annoyed me, like Dr. James O'Keefe's misconceived but well-meaning account of the cardiovascular dangers of marathon running, but all that I attended were very informative and led by intelligent and well-spoken presenters.

When Robb Wolf describes John Welbourn as large, he's wrong. The dude's enormous, and he gave a fascinating discussion of how some athletes he's working with have become world record holders while eating a low-carb paleo diet. Carbohydrates appear to be seriously over-rated...

Joel Salatin closed the first day. What a speaker! It felt like a revival meeting, and he was the preacher of real food and the good life. He also explained how much more productive his holistic approach to farming is, and touched on how impossible it is to do with government meddling. He got a resounding standing ovation.

Prof. Lieberman led a barefoot run along the Charles River the morning of the second day, which offered a rare opportunity to have a guided tour through Cambridge by a leading scientist. Lieberman's a fast runner! The easy, conversational portion of the run was at a quick pace, and at the end he announced that we were going to to "strides", "at the end, when they have the most benefit!" I kept up for a bit, but my poor aerobic fitness allowed the professor to leave me in the dust. Happily Ben Greenfield, a Maffetone disciple and triathlete, completely understood, and promised he'd never tell Phil that I exceeded my MAF HR. (I had to stop at the beginning of the run and turn off the audible alert on the Garmin.) Too funny.

The only negative thing about barefoot running is that the range of adaptation is narrow: the fact that I can run 6 miles around my roads didn't mean that I could run 6 miles on the rougher roads and paved trails of Cambridge, and my feet were tingling for the next two days.

Professor Lieberman was kind enough to offer me a tour of the Mecca of barefoot-running science: his lab at Harvard. I got to see the famous treadmill, some of his new gadgets for measuring runners, and an interesting explanation of how difficult it is to measure many of the things that may lead to running injury. Mathematical correction of jiggling is a major undertaking, it turns out. We also went looking for Eskimo teeth, but only found a few cavemen.

A few scientists and doctors recounted their research testing ketogenic diets on cancer progression (very promising) and epilepsy (the best treatment approach by far). Nevertheless, institutions are very reluctant to fund or even allow these studies; insurance companies are reluctant to pay for them, despite being more effective and less expensive; and one doctor described the need to refer to these diets as "therapies" to get them through the morass of bureaucracy...

Outside the sessions...

P.S.

Oh, and God, I got to meet Stephan Guyenet and thank him for probably saving my life. I wouldn't be typing this, or enjoying a symptom-free existance right now, if it wasn't for his incredibly level-headed and well-reasoned blog, and for all the hard work he's done. Thanks again, Stephan. I had the additional pleasure of standing around with drinks in our hands talking with him and Prof. Lieberman about teeth. Moments like that made this whole thing worthwhile. And I'm really looking forward to what he produces in his professional career.

End P.S.

I met too many other people to recount here, but have a few thoughts in general. It was an incredibly healthy-looking crowd. But the game I played was to ask the people I met how they'd gotten into the paleo/ancestral health scene. Most recounted some story of health issues that the medical establishment had been unable to resolve, which abated once a healthy diet (meaning one in opposition to the government regulations) had been adopted. Terry Wahls is the most extreme, but many of the rest of us had similar experiences. Considering how many of these people have intractable, incurable conditions of one sort or another, they're looking terrific and acting like they're the happiest people on the planet. Oh, and a couple of years after getting out of her wheelchair poor Dr. Wahls showed up to AHS with her arm in a sling. She broke it falling off her bicycle.

I've also never seen so many people with minimalist, or no, shoes on. Lunas were a popular option (Prof. Lieberman and John Durant wore them for part of our run, as did I, Ben ran the whole thing in his bare feet.), Vibrams, VivoBarefoot, New Balance Minimi (suitable, since their HQ is in Boston), Skora, Merrel and again, too many others to recount, including some I didn't recognize. It's hard to believe that two years ago it was hard to find a minimalist option. Now I couldn't keep track of them all. Happily, there were many doctors in attendence. While one cardiologist did explain the many difficulties in changing the "standard of care" in our bureaucratic, sclerotic medical system, one hopes that a grass root effort like this one can upend the medical establishment's understanding of the relationship between diet and chronic illness, and offer help to the many people who are ill-served by the current regime.

Tower of low-carb power

Of course the closing ceremony was the Barefoot Banquet, held at the Charles Hotel just down the street from the law school. As with all the rest of the sessions, all the food was paleo, so folks like Dr. Wahls and me could eat without concern, and enjoy the famed NorCal Margarita. Some of us seemed to enjoy them a bit too much. ;) The funniest moment of the evening was when they brought out the grass-fed, gluten-free sliders. So many buns were left over that some enterprising folk built a fort out of them. What a terrific time.

And then, to top it off, I gave John Durant a ride back toward NYC to save him from a long bus ride, and got to hear all about the book he's working on. It sounds terrific, I'm quite excited to read the whole thing.

I think this alliance of scientists, doctors, patients, and athletes have a real chance to change the world. What exciting times.

And a side note: the conference was organized by volunteers. I've been to expensive, professional conferences that weren't this well organized, and certainly not this cheerful or thoughtful. Bravo to all involved.

P.S. Here's a roundup of recaps of AHS12 if you're interested.

How To Train For And Run A 100-Mile Race

Sounds like good advice to me. From Jason Robillard, who has run enough ultras to be a certifiable nutter. :)

Pretty Strong

Great video from Merrell.



I've raced Emily, and she kicked my butt. She's definitely pretty strong. ;)

Maffetone Method Update

I'm surprised.  As I wrote back in November:

"...I've been following most of the recommendations on diet and barefoot-style running for long enough (and before reading the book) that I'm a big fan. The one part the book added for me was a detailed explanation of Dr. Phil's 180-formula for training intensity. I'm now using this as my guide, and have definitely noticed benefits so far. It's not magic, but it's definitely improved my training in the few months I've been using it. I hope to continue through the winter, and start seeing the benefits of this approach come spring...."

I haven't followed his protocol diligently, except that I diligently did runs using his 180 formula. I also did some anaerobic mountain biking, one of which resulted in a pulled calf muscle that sidelined me for a couple of months. If I was diligent, I wouldn't have interspersed anaerobic activity in what I was hoping would be a base-building period. I never did a Maximum Aerobic Fitness test, as Maffetone suggests, for two reasons.  One, I find the notion of testing and tracking my fitness annoying.  Two, he suggests regular MAF tests to reassure you that you're making progress, since other evidence may be slim at first, and you may need some reassurance that you're improving.  Since I buy into his approach whole-heartedly (so to speak), I didn't need the reassurance.

I ran from 1 to 2 and back.

Well, I'm running again, and have done a few runs in Vermont up and down a mountain. 

I decided this past weekend to do a long, slow run with the heart-rate monitor, to get back in the protocol.  (Not up and down the mountain, this time.)  I haven't used the HRM since the fall, and the strap appeared to be dead at the beginning of the run.  Then I realized that I didn't really have enough time to do a long run.  (No, this was not incredibly well planned...)  So I decided to do a tempo run.  As I was running along I noticed that the HRM was in fact working, as it was telling me that I was exceeding my MAF heart rate.  Sigh; so I decided to continue at the tempo pace, and compare the results to the Paine to Pain (P2P) race I had done in October, since I had HR data from that race.

So here's the data, by mile:

	Paine to Pain			Tempo
Mile	Pace	HR		Pace	HR
1	8:08.2	170		8:57.9	183
2	9:23.2	181		9:51.3	166
3	8:53.9	182		7:52.6	168
4	9:49.4	178		9:21.2	163
5	8:35.6	179		8:05.9	166

Now, there are a few caveats.  First, the HRM was nonfunctional for some part of mile one, and seemed to start working by showing a rate of 199.  So the HR data for mile one is useless.  Second, I had my dog along on the tempo run, and he kept stopping to pee and other doggie business, which always messes up my pace, and causes my HR to rise.  Third, the Tempo course had much steeper hills than the P2P course did.  Mile 2 was partly a rough uphill trail section; mile 3 (I think) includes both a steep downhill and a 21% grade uphill that I ran at a heart rate of 180-181; and the end of mile 5 is also uphill.
But all those caveats should have made for a worse pace and HR, and for the most part, both were better.  Much better.  The usable HR data show an average improvement of 14 beats per minute.  The pace data isn't really comparable, since the P2P data is from the first few miles of a longer run, but I'm still happy with it.

As I said at the opening, I'm surprised.  I'd been under the impression, based on my runs in the fall prior to the injury, that Maffetone's protocol hadn't been working all that well for me.  But clearly it has.

Perhaps the long break allowed for the physiological changes to occur, or perhaps it was just that I stopped watching the pot?

At any rate, I'll clearly continue...

(I did the P2P wearing Merrell Barefoot Trail Gloves, and the Tempo run wearing Vibram FiveFinger Speeds.)

"Calling All The Ladies!"

"Calling all of the ladies, women, girls. Where are you? If I started this blog by calling you to a girls night out for a happy hour, a social group run or a coffee chat amongst friends…would you come? I bet so! So I beg the question now…where are you when we want to talk and try minimalist/barefoot running and working out? We all like to get our sweat on. So why not learn about a healthier way to move? If you are skeptical, that’s totally cool, but I challenge you (like any fun runner would) to read on."Emily put together the Merrell Barefoot session in NYC a while ago. While she tried to get a decent female participation, she only got a few. The ratio was probably 7/8 to 1. It's pretty clearly still a male-dominated movement, for whatever reason.

Seems like a worthy effort to me. Please click on the link at the top of this post and see what she's got to say.

BTW, Emily does public relations for Merrell and a few other Wolverine shoe products.  I've run a couple of races with Emily and her family: they're all wearing minimalist shoes, and the first race I ran with her, she finished fourth among the ladies.

She's the real deal, not just a PR "flack".  As are all the folks at Merrell, in my experience.

Best Sellers In Men's Running Shoes

At Amazon, no minimalist shoes until no. 17, the Merrell Barefoot Trail Glove.  Next it's the Tough Glove at 44, and Vibram FiveFingers KSO at 50.  (I'm skipping the New Balance Minimus MT10 at 47, because it's got a heel rise.)

Still a long way to go...

Merrell Barefoot Road Glove Review

Christian's right on this:

"In fact, I think there are a ton of people out there who are looking for a Trail Glove, but for roads. So much in fact, that unless something really drastic happens this shoe is very likely going to be the biggest minimal shoe of 2012."

Run the Farm Race Report

Muscoot Farm

What a great race.  The farm in "Run the Farm" is the Muscoot farm, a county park in Westchester County, NY.  The creators of the terrific Leatherman's Loop race also run this one, and it shows.

I ran Leatherman's Loop this spring, and it was the most fun race I've done.  Never got around to writing a race report, however.  Micah True (Caballo Blanco) also ran the race, along with a whole bunch of other lunatics.  You've got to love a race with a mariachi band at the bottom of the toughest hill...

Leatherman's is a 10k, this was only a 5 miler, but the relationship between the two race becomes clear as soon as you start running.  These are real trail races, the terrain is difficult, injury is a real possibility, and the folks who lay out the trail like steep hills.  Godino's Grind, named for the founder, was the worst of the lot, and I walked the bulk of that hill, as did most folks I saw. 

I like to run hills, and I live in a hilly area on top of a hill, so most of my regular runs are hill runs.  The problem this creates for me is that I pass people going up and down hills, and get passed on the flats.  This race, therefore, was tailor-made for me: there were no flats.  It was all up and down hill; I don't think there was a single flat stretch in the entire course.  Pretty cool stuff!



Hope with her medal

 They also had a kids' mile race prior to the start of the 5 milers. They had 320 kids race!  100 under 6 years old!  All the kids got a terrific medal. Hope ran her first race, and I hope will want to do another.  Emily Snayd, who put together the Merrell Barefoot event in NYC was also there with her family.  She ran with her kids, and her husband ran the five-miler.  In the Merrell Barefoot Sonic Glove.  Merrell eats their own food.

Minimalist running really pays off in a trail race.  Trail running barefoot-style teaches you to be light on your feet, and keeping your feet under your center of gravity reduces the chance of slipping out.  Which, in my book, means I could pass everyone when they slowed down for stone walls and muddy stream crossings.  I just bounded across, not needing to slow down, since slipping and falling was not something I was really concerned about.  The only time I've fallen since going fully minimalist two years ago was when I've stubbed toes or tried to slow myself by using my heels. 

Again the Merrell Barefoot Trail Glove was my shoe of choice, and again it was flawless.  Love those shoes.  Hope wore the Pace Glove.  While the TGs are my favorite trail racing shoe, I don't run in them much other than that.  So the poor things go from muddy races to the washing machine, and then off to the next race.  They still look brand new when they come out of the washing machine.  I felt slightly guilty putting on spotless shoes this morning, but I got over it.  I've still not gotten a single blister from them.

For fueling, I did my usual drill of coffee with grass-fed cream, and nothing else.  This time I also skipped dinner the night before, having only a small piece of meat at a party I went to.  Lots of energy during the race (more on that below) and wasn't even thirsty afterward.  This is the first race I've run where I got to the finish line and wasn't the least bit interested in water.

A few notes on training for the race.  I didn't.  In fact, one could argue that I counter-trained.   Last Saturday I ran 11 miles barefoot at my Maffetone heart rate.  Then on Sunday I went mountain biking with a bunch of cross-country racers.  I didn't even bring the HRM along for that one, as it was a social ride, and I'm not going to let trying to train to be a better runner rule my life.  So I rode hard, the dog ran hard, and we both crashed in the afternoon.  (The dog also did the 11 mile run, also barefoot.)  I managed to get a little running in during the week, and decided, against all good planning, to repeat the 11-miler the day before the race.  Yeah, I know.  But I had no chance of winning it, so who really cared. 

One of the things Lee Saxby had told me to focus on was pressing the big toe when running.  This worked miracles on my weak foot, clearing up the pain in that foot in a few days.  And last week I focused on this during the run.  This week, of course, I forgot, and overdid it on the second toe on the good foot.  I may have pulled the tendon under the second toe, or something, but it's not happy.  Pressing the big toe down is the only thing that helps.

So I arrived at the race limping and having done 11 miles the day before.  At a slow Maffetone pace, but still.  Brilliant planning.  I decided to give it my all, what ever little bit that happened to be.



So off we went. (Yes, they started the race with a cow bell.) I'm pretty sure we ran up hill for the first 2.5 miles.  There were a couple of downhills, but that was only so you could run up the other side.  I started off strong, and pretty quickly started working my way through the crowd.

I never stopped working my way through the crowd.  Typically I find a pace group, run with them for most of the race, and then crap out and get passed at the end.  This time I expected the same thing to happen.  Oh, and I'd forgotten to bring my Garmin, so I had no idea where I was in the race.  But, I had decided to give it my all.  I kept passing people, picking them off on the single track.  I got passed myself a few times, but the pooped feeling never arrived.  In fact I ran a hard race at the end against a woman I'd been switching places with for the second half of the race.  I decided there was no way she was going to beat me, and put the hammer down.  I crossed the finish line at a dead sprint, with that woman right behind me.



Goofy picture

 The Maffetone heart-rate training I've been doing seems to be paying off.  I've never had that kind of energy in a race before, and it was all hills!  The results haven't been posted yet, but Emily told me I finished pretty early in the crowd.  We'll see.  But this was the first race I've ever done where I felt better at the end of the race than I did at the beginning.  Legs feel great.  Even the second toe feels OK, as I was focusing on the toe-press for the entire race this time.  That was easy, as it hurt when I didn't.

So a great race, and after the Paine to Pain half marathon of a few weeks ago, I'm feeling pretty good about my training approach.

Oh yeah, no crash after the race, and absolutely no carb cravings.  The fat-burning approach seems to be working so far.

And the nice thing about running these small local trail races: I ran into a family we're good friends with.  Dad ran, Mom ran the race with the kids, who did really well.  It's a great sport.

P.S.  Results are out.  I ran a 9:13 pace, which compares with the 9:06 I ran in the recent Paine to Pain half.  I would like to have seen a faster number, but then it was a much hillier course.  Tough to compare one trail race to another else, since the courses are so unique.  But what's important is feeling so great during the race.

Oh, and pressing the big toe as I'm walking around has got the sore second toe almost back to normal.

P.P.S. Here's the elevation profile for Paine to Pain:

Paine to Pain Half Marathon Elevation Profile

And here's Run the Farm:

Run the Farm Elevation Profile

So I guess 7 seconds/mile pace difference isn't all that bad...

Paine to Pain Trail Half Marathon Report, Mark II

Last year I ran this race, hence the "Mark II" on this report title, and quite enjoyed it.  I just re-read that report, and have nothing to add to the first few paragraphs as an introduction to this race, so I'll repeat them here:

Thomas Paine

"First, let me say what a great, well-run race this was. The course was terrific and well-marked, the volunteers were enthusiastic and numerous, and they even had cheerleaders at the start and the finish. Race Director Eric Turkewitz and his team deserve a ton of credit for putting this race together. I really can't think of one thing wrong with the race today, they even arranged for perfect weather.

"The course starts next to Thomas Paine's cottage, in New Rochelle, NY, heads up a hill, and then follows the Colonial Greenway trail, ending on the track at the high school near to the start. The first mile or so gets you up and over a ridge between one drainage and another on roads, and then you hit the Leatherstocking trail, a windy, rocky single-track through Westchester County. From there the balance of the trail is on bridle paths that wind near the Hutchinson Parkway back to New Rochelle. It's a nice course, and, as the RD put it: 'Hilly, for Westchester. This isn't the mountains.'

"Most of my report on this is about my personal progress, with some race details thrown in, so bear with me if you're still reading. ;)..."

This year the weather was perfect, but it rained several hours before the race started, and for several days before.  So the trail was quite muddy.  Which didn't seem to hold anyone back (the winning time was 1:21), but definitely made for a more interesting run, especially in the single-track sections, and across the wet, muddy wooden bridges.

Last year I ran this race in my New Balance MT101s, and was left with a serious case of IT band syndrome in my "bad" leg, which took about 6 weeks to recover.  I've spent most of the last year working on that leg, and today was my big test of what, if any progress I have made.  I'll note that to conduct this experiment in the most scientific manner possible, I should have worn my MT101s again (I'd worn the MT100 on the training run for the half last year, so that would have been an acceptable substitute); but I decided that I really wasn't in the mood for a long rehab again, since all my previous knee-related running injuries had occurred in those shoes.  So I passed on "science": I couldn't get the experiment past the ethical review board.  Self-mutilation is generally frowned upon, after all.

Very well used

I ran instead in my Merrell Barefoot Trail Gloves, the shoe I wish had existed when I bought and modified my MTs.  As usual, they were excellent.  I'll post something seperately on that.

As far as the race goes: last year my knee gave way at about the 6 mile mark, leaving me limping for the next 7 miles.  I must have been limping pretty quickly, or, more likely, ran far too fast in the first part of the race.  Injuries aside, I somehow managed to eke out a 2:06:26 time, which was pretty decent for my first trail half, and about 10 minutes slower than my first road half, the Brooklyn Half.

This year as I looked at my Garmin and saw I'd passed the five-mile mark I felt a twinge in my right IT Band again.  Hypochondria is a very real thing, apparently.  I quickly decided that this was entirely a function of an over-active imagination, and it promptly went away.  And never reoccured.

I wound up finishing in 1:59:25, a result I'm very happy with, especially given the tougher conditions.  I ran a smarter race, I think.  I'd also like to note that the Maffetone training I've been doing seem to have paid dividends.  I've not blogged about it yet, but I've been pursuing this for the last couple of months, and running almost entirely at slow speeds does indeed seem to improve your results in races; at least it doesn't impede it.

I'd like to thank Lee Saxby.  His tip on pressing down with the big toe when running was continuosly on my mind during this run.  I think I may have over done it a bit, as I started to get some soreness at the first metatarsal head during the run, but I eased off on the press a bit, and was fine.  I still have a little lingering soreness there, but consider that a minor inconvenience.  Changing your gait is never trivial, and doing it during a race fraught with hazard.  But it was an excellent tip and I'm enjoying the easiest post-race recovery I've ever had.  My legs feel great; sore, of course, but I spent most of Sunday after the race on my feet.  I have no discomfort whatsoever in my knees or my metatarsal-cuboid joint, which has been plagueing me for a few months.  That's a good result!

Barefoot-style running, which I'm starting to take for granted, really pays off in a race like this.  With good form little slips are not a concern, and as little slips were a constant for a good part of this, you can keep up a quicker pace with more confidence that you're not going to wipe out.  Ankle-turns are also not a concern, and finishing with your joints in tip-top shape is a nice benefit.

I also did a much better job of pacing myself during the race.  The Garmin was invaluable for that, and I backed off a number of times early in the race, and when walking up hills, to keep my legs in reserve and my heart rate down.  Thanks to some of Krupicka's latest blog posts, I didn't feel a desire to run up all the hills, especially later in the race.  I had a good bit of energy for a quick last mile, which is usually where I struggle. 

Additionally my training and racing nutrition plan since going 'paleo' and low-carb has been to exercise in a fasted condition.  As usual, my pre-race nutrition was a large cup of coffee with some cream.  I started obsessing over carbs in the latter part of the race, but when I finished, that largely evaporated.  More hypochondira, most likely.  I had a shot-glass sized fruit smoothy at the finish line, and an apple, and felt fine.  No post-race crash, either, which has also been a regular and unwelcome part of the routine.  Hopefully the combination of a low-carb diet and Maffetone training are improving my abilities as a fat-burner; again, it certainly didn't impede my performance.

I'd set a lofty goal of 1:45 and a negative split.  I came pretty close to a negative split, but not my time goal.  Nevertheless the race was a good and satisfying improvement.  Hopefully I'll be able to put my half-marathon injury streak behind me, and move on to a marathon.

Thanks to my friends at the Huaraches group for all their advice and assistance.

Mile	Pace	HR
1	08:08.2	170
2	09:23.2	181
3	08:53.9	182
4	09:49.4	178
5	08:35.6	179
6	09:02.3	178
7	09:44.1	178
8	08:53.6	179
9	09:49.3	177
10	08:50.6	176
11	09:21.0	174
12	09:41.4	173
13	08:51.2	179
1st 7 miles, Avg	09:05.3	178
Total Avg	09:09.5	177

Merrell Barefoot Road Glove Review

Nice.  I'm looking forward to trying them out.  Jason's having a lot of fun as an insider. ;)

The Fungus Among Us

John Atkinson, and snacks.

Saturday found me in Warren, VT, at Sugarbush Resort's famous Fungi Fest.  (It's not really famous, but I like the alliteration.)

The Fungi Fest comprises a talk by Sugarbush employee John Atkinson, then a walk through the woods at the resort looking for mushrooms, a discussion of the various mushrooms found, and then a dinner featuring mushrooms John found in the woods around the resort.

It was really a terrific event, enjoyed by all attendees, including my 8 and 12-year-old daughters.  It was a pretty good event for both of the topics of this blog, healthy diets and barefoot-style running.

One of the most important things one can do to get your feet ready for barefoot running is barefoot hiking, IMHO.  Both Barefoot Ted and Ken Bob were big barefoot hikers before they tried running.  Barefoot hiking is a much more difficult activity for the muscles of the feet than barefoot running is: I've gotten cramps on three-mile barefoot hikes that I'd run in Vibrams with no problem at all.

On this short hike we showed up in Vibrams, Merrells, VivoBarefoots, and me in my bare feet.

No one batted an eye when we were standing around during John's talk and I was not wearing shoes.  When we walked off to go to the hike, one woman asked me if I was going to do the hike barefoot.  "I am," I replied.  "Are you a barefoot runner?"  "I am", I said again.  She seemed quite excited, as if she'd seen a rare species of bird.  It was very funny.  John turned to me and asked me if I was planning on hiking in my bare feet, and he seemed somewhat skeptical.  I told him I'd brought along a pair of shoes, just in case, and he seemed satisfied with that answer.

So we tromped around near a stream, mostly off the trail.  Stream crossings are, of course, easy when you're not wearing shoes.  Happily my feet have gotten to the point where walking around in a forest was not a problem.  I even spotted some broken glass, which I carefully stepped around.  It was much more pleasant walking around the forest floor than on the rocky trail, but the smooth asphalt while walking back across the parking lot was of course the easiest surface of all.

Everyone else was wearing either trail running sneakers or hiking boots.  Several people came up afterward and mentioned how impressive they thought it was that I had done the whole thing barefoot.  It's pretty amusing, as they one thing that always surprises me about these barefoot hikes is how well my feet handle them, and how uneventful they are.

We found enough mushrooms to completely cover a large table, and John pointed out the few that he thought were definitively non-toxic.  Some folks took those mushrooms home in doggie-bags.  Most of the mushrooms were classed as toxic, which is a good reminder of how difficult being a hunter-gatherer was, and a good indication of the importance of a conservative attitude when gathering mushrooms.  John's attitude was not to eat anything that he couldn't confidently ID, and no one argued the point.
Dinner was delicious, at Sugarbush's Timbers restaraunt.  The woman I sat next to at dinner was gluten-free and on the paleo diet.  She and her husband were reformed pesce-vegetarians who'd now adopted the paleo diet, and he is a neurologist, so we had quite a bit to discuss.  Dinner was gluten-free, happily, and the restaraunt (where we've eaten before), was willing to swap out the beer that was included in the menu for a nice Cabernet Franc.

All in all a great little paleo-friendly event. 

Oh, and I did put the Vibram FiveFingers Treks that I'd brought along as fall-back shoes on for dinner.  I didn't want to cause a stir, and certainly after walking around in the woods for a bit my feet were pretty dirty, although no more so than any of the shoes everyone else was wearing.

P.S.  One of the reasons I went around on this hike was to try and open my older daughter's horizons.  She may well be allergic to all vegetables, and is mycophobic.  Up until Saturday.  She decided she liked the chantarelles, so it was a huge win.

Also, apparently the connective tissue in mushrooms in chitin, not cellulose.  Humans can digest chitin, but cannot digest cellulose.  It's an interesting factoid, although I don't know how useful it is.

I've always loved mushrooms, myself.

The Munson Last

M-42 Service Shoe, Munson Last

Unfortunately, it's now largely forgotten:

"...Red Wing began fulfilling military needs with the onset of World War I, manufacturing in 1918 the regulation Munson U.S. Army Last, designed to "fit all feet" with maximum comfort and durability. After the war, the Munson remained a top seller and influenced other popular shoe designs for over 50 years...."

Of all my minimalist shoes, the most comfortable single-toe shoes are the Munson Last shoes from Russell Moccasin.  I'm interested to see if the new New Balance line gets it right, Merrell is almost there.

(What's a last?)

P.S. God bless the Japanese: A reproduction Munson Last GI Boot is available:

"We are now pleased to announce the release of 'M-42 Service Shoes, Type II'. Our M-42 Service shoes have been reproduced authentically to WWII Original M-42 Service shoes at all the details. Besides, we're proud of making the Shoes with full copied WWII Shoe Lasts which is well known as 'Dr. Munson's Shoe Last'. We surely believe in that you'll appreciate for the good fitting of the WWII Shoe Lasts which was developed by Dr. Munson almost 100 years ago."

P.P.S.  The reproductions are $565!!!  Wow.