Minimalist/Barefoot Seminar!

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As most of you know, I have been running in my Vibram Bikilas for awhile now and absolutely love them! When I'm not in the Bikilas, I have been running in the Pearl Izumi isoTransition shoe and have so far not had any more IT band flareups!!  Woohoo!!

Last night I was able to go to a minimalist/barefoot seminar held at a local running shop.  I got there right when it was supposed to start and I was surprised at how many people there were!  It was pretty packed, which was awesome!  I got some food, sat down, then looked across the way and saw someone that looked really familiar!  I immediately knew who it was and went over to introduce myself!  It was none other than Jill from Run With Jill!  I was so excited to finally meet her!  I moved my stuff to sit by her and we chatted for awhile before the discussion started!  She is so nice, like I knew she would be, and I'm hoping to be able to ride with her (and maybe do some barefoot running!) some time this summer! :)

Jill and me after the discussion

The cool thing about this event was that we got to listen to a panel of experts talk about their insights and advice on how to responsively integrate minimalist running into your training.  

The panel consisted of:

*  Michael Sandler, author of "Barefoot Running"
*  Thomas Howell, author of "The complete Idiot's Guide to Barefoot Running"
*  Dr. John Hill, Professor CU Sports Medicine, medical director of Leadville 100, ultra marathoner
*  Spencer White, director of Saucony Human Performance and Innovation Lab

I'm really glad I was able to go to this discussion.  Although I already knew a lot of the information they presented, it was good to hear their insights into the whole barefoot/minimalist movement.  Basically, here are the main points that I took away from the discussion:

1.  When you first start out, do NOT run any longer than 200yards.  GRADUALLY increase your mileage (200yds, 300yds, etc..).

2.  If your feet/calves start hurting, STOP and put your normal shoes on to finish your run.  LISTENING to your body is key to making the transition work!

3.  One thing I found very interesting was about efficiency.  It was found that the way your foot lands (heel/mid/forefoot) is not as important for efficiency as you would think.  Instead, having a strong CORE which allows you to have a good running form is what really matters for becoming a more efficient runner.
    ** At one point, Michael had us all stand up and get into the "proper" running position.  Basically, you want your shoulders back, arms close to your sides with a 90degree bend in your elbows, chest out and open, arms swinging front to back (not side to side or across your body).   In order to assume this position over a long run, you REALLY need to have a strong core.








Overall, it was a great discussion and I'm glad I was able to go!  I learned some great things, met Jill, AND I ended up winning a raffle prize!!
I got Michael's book, which I had him sign!  Woohoo!!!

Oh, and I got to see the new minimalist shoe from Saucony, the Hattori:

It was sooo light and flexible and I wish I would have had time to try it on!  It comes in some pretty cool colors too! :)

So, do any of you wear minimalist shoes?  If so, what is your favorite??  

I RAN 4.5 MILES!!

Can I get a WOOT WOOT!!

HAPPY after my run.  And check out my new headphones...review coming soon! :)

So, I know 4.5miles is not a long distance, but for me, being able to run longer than 1 mile without pain is AWESOME!  You all know that I've been dealing with this nasty IT band injury since January.  I've been to my PT, done the exercises, and focused on strengthening the areas my PT felt were weak.  I have really been taking it easy on my runs, doing a RULK (run/walk) combo for each one, and running at a pace A LOT slower than my pre-injury days.  I started by doing .5M walk/.5M run, then increased it to .25M walk, .75Mrun, then increased it from there.
FINALLY, on Saturday I did a RULK of .25M walk/1.5M run and kept going until I reached the 4.5M run mark.  I felt awesome and almost back to normal again, but didn't want to push it.  I still have a lot of my fitness, but it's amazing how much "running" fitness you lose when you don't run on a regular basis.  The last thing I want to do is run too far, too soon and cause the IT to flare up again.

I don't know what exactly helped my IT band heal.  But, here are the things I think helped ME:
*  Taking a much needed rest from training.  I'll be the first to admit that I was totally overtrained when I did the AZ marathon.  My body was tired and I didn't listen.  Lesson learned!!
*  Strength exercises to strengthen my hips/glutes.  I really think the combo of my PT exercises and the TRX really helped.
* SLOWING down.  After the AZ marathon I tried running again at my normal pace and paid for it big time.  I think as runners, pace is such a big thing sometimes.  But, what I learned is that what really matters is that you're running at a pace that is working for you and not going to cause injuries.
*  My VFF Bikilas.  I started running in my VFF Bikilas again.  I started every RULK I did in my Bikilas and have now worked up to wearing them for 1.5M!  They are awesome and I love the way I feel when I run in them.

*  Running in a minimalist shoe.  I wish I could wear my Bikilas all the time, but my body is not ready for that yet.  So, the next best thing for me is running in a pair of minimalist shoes.  I absolutely love these shoes.  They are the isoTransition from Pearl Izumi and they are awesome!  They are meant to be worn sockless, but I'm not quite ready to experiment with that yet.  Plus, last time I tried that I got a huge blister!  I need to concentrate on getting my running back, so socks it is!

Hopefully, I'll be able to continue increasing my mileage without pain.  My training for IMAZ officially starts on Sunday, so I am just ecstatic that I'm finally getting better!!  Woohoo! :)

On a side note, I know today is supposed to be a Tasty Tuesday post, but I was just too excited about being able to run!!  I promise I'll get some Vegetarian and Humpastry Day recipes posted soon!

A Rulk

I have created a new word:  Rulk.  What is a rulk?
 Here is my definition:
1.  A mixture of running and walking.  So, instead of saying, I'm going to walk 2 min then run 2 min., you can just say, "I'm going to rulk for 2 minutes."
2.  What happens when you start out running, but end up having to walk.

This was what my car said the temperature was outside today when I decided to head out for a run.

67 degrees in March!  Woohoo!  March is typically our snowiest month, so this was awesome!

I decided to put on my new shoes from Pearl Izumi.  I give you the isoTransitions (review coming soon):

I drove to the Highline Canal, my favorite running trail, and headed out on my run.  It was absolutely beautiful out and it was so nice to be able to run outside again.  I didn't know how my knee would do, but I was hopeful.

I was taking it really easy, feeling good, enjoying the sunshine, when all of a sudden I got a twinge of pain in my knee.  I looked at my Garmin, and this is what I saw:

 I only made it 1.71 miles.  :(    Oh, and my new shoes, which are designed to be worn sockless, started to give me a nice blister on the back of my left heel.  Ugh!  I don't know what I was thinking!!  I should have used bodyglide or something, but I was just so excited to get out I didn't think about it.  Lesson learned!

So, I had a little pity party, said a few words, then decided to make the best of the situation.  Since I couldn't run, I decided I would just walk the rest of the way back to my car and just enjoy the beautiful day.  It is not often that I actually get to SLOW down and just enjoy my surroundings.  

I took my shoes off and walked 1.71miles back to my car.  Although my knee was hurting, I couldn't help but run short sections while I was barefoot.  So, I rulked it.  Yes, there were little pebbles that hurt like hell on the bottoms of my feet, but for the most part, it was AWESOME!

I know I wasn't able to run today, and I was pretty disappointed.  But, I am hopeful that if I keep up with my stretching and foam rolling, this annoying ITB issue will heal.  All I can do is hope.    

Going barefoot and Triple Threat Scones!

I got up early today to do a quick 30min. run before my kiddos and husband woke up. We finally got a new treadmill (yes, I said "treadmill"). Our old one was always referred to as a "dreadmill" so I'm happy to say my run was actually enjoyable. It has a built in MP3 player with speakers so I was able to listen to my favorite tunes while I ran without worrying about headphones..yippee! :)

Oh, and here's the best part..I did the last 5 minutes of my run barefoot! After reading "Born To Run" I've been doing a lot of research about barefoot running. It just seems to make sense to me. While I don't think I'll ever be a true barefoot runner (let's face it, rocks hurt when you step on them!), I am interested in transitioning to a more minimalist running shoe. Anyways, I decided to take my shoes off and just see what happens. It actually felt great! I did notice my form change, in a good way, but that was to be expected. The only downside was that during the last minute I got some hotspots on parts of my feet. It felt like if I kept running I would eventually get big ol' blisters there, which I didn't want to do. So, 5 minutes ended up being the perfect amount of time to try it out. Eventually, I want to get a pair of lightweight trainers to transition from my cushioned shoes. But, they're just not part of our budget right now...maybe Santa will bring me a pair for Christmas! :)

I had some extra time after my run so I decided to make some scones for breakfast. The original recipe came from www.choosecherries.com, but I modified it a bit to fit our lifestyle. They turned out super yummy! In fact, my boys (4 and 2)loved them and kept asking for more!

Here are the ingredients:
* 2C flour (I used a mix of white and wheat)
* 1/3C sugar
* 1tsp. baking powder
* 1/4tsp. baking soda
* 1/2tsp. salt
* 6Tbl. unsalted butter, frozen (I used the Earth Balance brand)
* 1/2C plain yogurt/sour cream (I use a soy yogurt called Silk Live!)
* 1 egg (We don't eat eggs, so I use a combination of 1Tbl. ground flax mixed w/ 3Tbl. water. Mix together and let sit for a couple of minutes)
* 1/3C dried tart cherries, chopped
* 1/3C dried cranberries, chopped
* 1/4C dried blueberries

Directions:
1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 400 degrees
2. In a bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Grate butter into flour mixture on the large holes of a grater; use your fingers to work in buter (the mixture should resemble coarse meal).







3. Add in the berries

4. In a small bowl, whisk yogurt and flax mixture until smooth.





5. Using a fork, still in yogurt mixture into the flour mixture until large dough clumps form. Use your hands to press the dough against the bowl into a ball. (The dough will be sticky in places, and there may not seem to be enough liquid, but as you press, the dough will come together.)
6. Place on a lightly floured surface (I put it right onto my baking stone) and pat into a 7-8" circle about 3/4" thick.


7. Use a knife to cut into 8 triangles. Place them 1" apart.



8. Bake until golden, about 15-17 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve warm! Enjoy!