Relearning to Run - Barefooting

Despite having run in minimalist shoes, or occasionally without shoes, for nearly a year, but I have only just started to really run differently. Almost straight away I stopped landing on my heel, that happens automatically when you don't have big rubber cushions strapped on. I was surprised otherwise at how incredibly resilient my learned patterns of movement are. Despite reading the Running Barefoot guidance I still felt as if I ran in much the same way, only landing mid-foot rather than heel first. I still pushed really hard, and with stiff shoulders, and had a tendency to overstride as I picked up pace, or got tired. Strangely, I relearned most when I decided not to run hard but just to go for a relaxed hour out.


The best way to run, at least my current favourite, is towards dusk and into the dark. Off road. With a head torch. Everyone I've mentioned this to - and it is not many - think that this is insane. However, I have found that it gives several benefits that have helped me to relearn the feeling of running where daylight runs have not. Firstly, as the light fades you have to pay attention to where you are going much more carefully - I have the broken toe that hammered that lesson home hard. Secondly, you have to run slower because you are looking out and its dark, and thirdly, when it starts to get really dark all you see is a circle of world from the head-torch that you are running into, you can't see yourself so you start to notice and rely on your sense of body position.

Its quite addictive running in the dark in the hills on a warm summer's evening. I'm sure that there are many ultra-runners and late night runners who know what I mean. It's not the same on the roads though, as street lights mean you lose the sense of body movement and concentration. The flatter surfaces of roads lighten the mental attention load as you can generally assume flat featureless ground (plus or minus the odd kerb and pothole). This might sound great, but I find the full concentration lets me unhook from thinking about daily life for a bit. I love my job, but sometimes it is good to stop contingency planning and resource allocation!