4 miles, 1.4 BAREFOOT! Hahahaha! Running barefoot for the very first time in my life brought the biggest smile to my face I've had all day. It feels good! It took me about a quarter mile to really start getting into it, and not run so gingerly, but then, it was all good news! I could feel that there were muscles in my feet and lower leg that I don't normally use. By the end of the first mile, I could tell that I had modified my gait. It seemed like I was much more forward, putting more weight on the balls of my feet, and my foot does its own little push-off. After 1.4 I put my shoes on. I still felt myself running a little differently. One interesting thing is that after running barefoot, my shoes felt much tighter. I think it is because of increased circulation in my feet. I wonder if this is part of the reason that barefoot running is supposed to prevent injury. I've got to try it again tomorrow. The only bad thing is that there is an occasional little rock that I'd step on. Ow. This was the most exhilarating run I've had in a long time. I was planning on stopping at 3, but I just didn't want to, so I tacked on another mile. |