Running like the Wind and Vibram Running Shoes

It still blows my mind how well I am running. I am a sporadic pretty much non-runner due to a fractured back 14 years ago. The pain is gone now, thanks to food and healing. When stress from Ryan’s layoff hit me last fall, I ran, and it was amazing how easy it was. Surely, I thought, it was adrenalin from the stress. Then I ran again a few months later just because. It was easy again. I was so confused. Before the back fracture, at age 29, I could run 10 miles and bench press 120 pounds. The running was drudgery, but I could do it. I am no slouch now, but not nearly as “fit” as I was then. So why the heck was I running so well??? Better at almost 44 than when I was 29, taking on sizeable hills in North Carolina instead of the flatlands in Florida.

Finally I got a copy of Christopher McDougall’s Born to Run. It turns out that I have naturally been doing things right. I eat right (no processed foods and lots of good fat and healing foods among other things). I was doing 100 squats and 100 lunges during my unchallenging walks to spice them up. As an added bonus, I was too broke to buy new walking/running shoes. It turns out that the flatter and more blown out the shoes the better according to McDougall. What a score!

The past few weeks I have been running once a week (usually on Sunday) just to see if I can hit an off week. There have been no off weeks. Today was phenomenal. Now I am wondering what kind of mileage I really can do. I have no expectations and my wonder and puzzlement remain because I am violating every understanding I have of running. I am much older, I don’t run regularly, the terrain is tougher and I am running better than ever. What do I do with that?! Next week I will plot a five mile run and see what happens.  

Now for the Vibrams Vibram Five Fingers: Discover the Barefooting Alternative. Vibram shoes are a significant part of McDougall’s Born to Run. My husband Ryan spent his birthday money to purchase a pair for me yesterday. They are fabulous! Your feet are so free. My feet are out of shape. Ten minutes yesterday in the grocery store with the Vibrams, and the balls of my feet and my quads were hurting. Today I wore them to an Art Museum event for 3 hours, and my calves were pretty sore. Vibram says to start slowly in these shoes, as our feet are very out of shape due to a lifetime of arch support, pronation correction and other “improvements.” I hope to try a run in them in the next one to two months. They are supposed to be the bomb once you are tough enough.