Filed Under (Races, Road Running) by Matt on 07-12-2010
After a long hiatus from running any races, I’ve decided to register for the Polar Bear 5K to be held on January 22, 2011 in Marietta, GA. I’ve been forced indoors by my schedule and the cold weather, so I needed some new motivation to keep pushing myself with my running. Now that I’ve spent money, hopefully I’ll stick to my training plan. We’ll see if $20 is enough to keep me from blowing it off…
It has been a year since purchasing my Brooks Adrenaline GTS 9 and my foot was starting to hurt 
while running, so I went to the New Balance store in Alpharetta/Norcross this Saturday and got refitted for shoes (similar to Big Peach Running Co “Fit Process”).
After trying on several shoes and going for quick jogs around the store and along the sidewalk outside, I ended up with the New Balance MR1012 Running Shoe
. It is a model on the higher end of motion control. I am also going to try some Aetrex inserts to better help my lack of arches.
We’ll see how it goes tomorrow when I go for a run for them the first time.
Well, this morning I got up at 5:00 AM to make it down to Atlanta for this year’s O’Highlands Jig & Jog 5K in Virginia Highlands. My 5K PR is from this course last year.
I was not hoping to set a new PR, just push myself again to run through it the entire time. Well, they made it easy for us because the course was short.
I crossed the finish line in 24:57. I hit the 2 mile marker slightly past 18:00, so there is no way I went from a 9 min mile age down to under 7. I also recalled a painful hill last year. Well, in talking with a friend who ran, a group of girls came up, having overheard us, and we discussed it being a short race. The group consensus was .25-.5 miles too short.
When they announced the winners, the director said something about not being able to drive the motorcycle, implying that the lead bike misdirected the path of the runners. A Google search found another blogger posting it as 2.67 based on his GPS. I just pulled up MapMyRun.com, found the missing hill, and it comes in at 0.43 distance skipped, so that matches a 2.67 mile course.
So, although it was not a 5K, it was a race on a relatively hilly course. I guess we’ll chalk the cost up to the t-shirt, since no one can honestly mark their times down as a new PR (although I am sure some might).
2.67 miles – 24:57
I’ve read a lot of interesting articles on barefoot running over the past six months. Some have been better than others, actually seeking out opinions from both sides of actual doctors and educated researchers. Others have simply been rants and raves.
The gist of it is that we are built to run barefoot, but shoe companies have kept up from doing so for decades as they continue to come up with “better” shoes to “correct” the problems that we have with our strides. Some people will benefit from running barefoot, but there are dangers to doing so. Namely, there are things on the road (sharp rocks, glass, etc) that our shoes can help protect our feet, protection that barefoot running simply cannot provide. The other danger is that we can injure our feet by thinking we can simply take our current shoe-wearing miles and switch right over to going barefoot for the same distances. In reality, we need to adjust, as muscles we do not fully use in shoes are utilized when running barefoot.
It would seem that Vibram Five Fingers (VFFs) are a nice “happy medium.” They provide you with as close to a “barefoot” experience as you can get while still providing you mild protection from road debris and from stubbing your toes. At less than $100 for most pairs, they are also less than many running shoes offered today.
I just ordered a pair of VFFs online. Once they arrive, I am not sure that I will be hitting the pavement in them right away (or possibly ever). Instead, I am going to use them for weight training, as I think they will provide me with an opportunity to strengthen the stabilizing muscles in my feet for any exercise where I am standing, from the obvious squats and deadlifts all the way to bicep curls or tricep rope pulldowns. I may also wear them around the office (if work doesn’t mind).
We’ll see how I like them. Who knows, maybe I’ll end up running in them after all?
Don’t forget that tomorrow, Wednesday, June 3, 2009, is National Running Day.
Lace up your shoes and hit the pavement or your favorite trail.
National Running Day.
Berry College, the world’s largest college campus, offers numerous opportunities for outdoor enthusiasts to walk, hike, run and bike through the 28,000 acres of the campus.
There are many fire roads in addition to the mapped out trails, ranging from paved roads to wooded adventures.
The college offers a Hiking & Running Trail Map. In addition to this map, you may find others and more details about the campus on the Berry College – Recreation page.
