A few years ago, I was your typical office-worker: stressed out, uneven energy, overweight, and inconsistent complexion. Now I'm just your typical 28-year old urban hunter-gatherer on a quest to be healthy, and having a few adventures along the way. See my full bio.
We're not doing a 5k/10k for the NYC Barefoot Run. Instead, we came up with a new format that we call Run your distance. Each loop of the island is 2.1 miles, and you decide how far you're going to run. Maybe half a loop (1 mile), maybe 10 loops (21 miles). Here's why.
1. Distinctiveness. 5k/10k are same old and everyone does them.
2. Accessibility. Run your distance accommodates total beginners (of which there are many), as well as experienced runners (Jason Robillard has run 100 mile ultramarathons)
3. Mindfulness. Each person has to take responsibility for deciding when to stop. It's your decision. No one is going to tell you when to stop. Which means you have listen to your feet and body. You are responsible for you.
4. It's not about your time. After most races and marathons, conversations are pretty boring: What's your time? Everything reduced to a single time. Look, I'm as competitive as the next guy (more competitive than him, actually), but in pursuit of The Time, too many runners sacrifice their health. It should be about fun and healthy running. With this format, it's hard to compare times when people run different distances.
5. Avoid chronic cardio. I'm not a big fan of chronic cardio. Most cardio (running, cycling, ellipticaling) treats your body like a machine, performing the same motions over and over again. Talk about a recipe for repetitive stress injuries. Your body thrives on variation. When you have a fixed length race (5k/10k), people tend to run at a steady state -- no variation in rhythm, always running in the straightest line possible. Linear. But remove the fixed length race, add in some variable terrain, and suddenly there's less A to B linear thinking. At the start of the race, you may not even know how far you're going to run. I may even include a few stretches where we encourage people to sprint...and walk.
The bottom line: if barefoot running is just normal running with thinner footwear, it's a missed opportunity.
Comments
Great concept! When
Great concept! When I started on the trails I started being much more mindful. And then when I started barefoot, well look out! I feel like Jane running to catch Tarzan and Boy (well, at least it's my hope to run into a guy that looks like Tarzan...). It made me focus on the healthy aspect of a run and the great feeling I get from it. I did a regular marathon once and that was the beginning of running injuries. Which led me to run barefoot and trail run, so I guess it was good for something. My professor studied with Lieberman, and Erwan really does sort of look like Tarzan, so I think the whole thing is HellaCool! TrailGrrl
I find trails to be way more
I find trails to be way more fun too. Much easier to get into a state of flow. Requires more concentration. It's a skill!
Come run with Tarzan...err...Erwan on October 10th.
Are you going to encourage
Are you going to encourage people to stalk and hunt, too?
@ScottMGS -- That post on
@ScottMGS -- That post on MDA incited quite a flame-war, but I thought it contained some useful advice which I've had a great deal of fun incorporating into my runs. It's definitely an effective way of avoiding chronic cardio, though some common sense (don't choose women or do it at night) is required.
I figured that if it was
I figured that if it was built into the run and that if the runners were both stalkers and prey that it could be fun.
I quite liked that post at
I quite liked that post at MDA. Yes, we actually are going to encourage folks to change pace, run in different directions, hunt as a pack, you name it.