I Was Born to Run -- But I Don't Feel Like It.

In a way, Christopher McDougall is responsible for sparking my interest in evolutionary fitness and Paleo nutrition. Even though his focus is on barefoot running, McDougall's book, "Born to Run," presented a compelling argument that applies equally to running and eating:

If hunter-gatherers (both ancient and modern) can run/eat/live more healthfully than their "civilized" counterparts who heel-strike in cushioned running shoes and fatten up on super-refined low-fat junk, why the hell do we think that these modern conveniences are so great for us?



I read "Born to Run" in the fall of 2009, when I was still in my first round of P90X. The book didn't just get M and me out of our chunky cross-trainers and into Vibram FiveFingers and Terra Plana Vivo Barefoot shoes -- it made me think about fitness and nutrition in an entirely new way. The transition wasn't always smooth -- remember how I said I'd never give up grains? -- but McDougall's book opened a new door for me.

It's a little disheartening, then, to see that there's some internecine warfare a-brewin' between the barefoot endurance running camp and the disciples of Art De Vany's "less is more" approach. The former say that humans are built to run long distances; the latter say that endurance running is a recipe for disaster. But I see more similarities than differences: Both espouse a philosophy of going back to evolutionary basics, and eschewing the crutches of Western civilization that turn out to be more harmful than helpful. John Durant has a nice write-up that tries to reconcile the two viewpoints, but for me, it boils down to this:

If you're someone who loves endurance running, go for it (provided you're not in footwear with a big-ass cushioned heel). But while humans may be "born to run," I'm not planning to go on any super-long runs because: (1) I'm lucky enough to have access to grassfed meat and wild game without having to engage in persistence hunting, (2) I get bored easily, and (3) endurance running ain't necessary -- or even optimal -- for fitness. Analogy: Just 'cause the Masai can thrive on milk and blood doesn't mean I need to get in touch with my inner vampire to eat healthfully. Just as with Paleo nutrition, the way we run should be based on "a logical framework applied to modern humans -- not a historical reenactment."

Okay. Getting off my soapbox now.

Check It Out: The Barefoot Running Book

It's been a while since Jason Robillard was kind enough to send me a review copy of "The Barefoot Running Book: A Practical Guide to the Art & Science of Barefoot & Minimalist Shoe Running" -- an excellent primer on running unshod.* My review, however, has been delayed -- and not because it took me a long time to get through the slim, 61-page volume. The truth: I'd wanted to try out Jason's running program before writing about it, but with CrossFit dominating my exercise time of late, I've not been doing much running (outside of my WODs). I'm feeling slightly guilty about writing about something I've not managed to put into practice lately. But my feelings of guilt over procrastination finally prevailed over my feelings of guilt over not doing more barefoot running, so at long last, here's my review.

In a nutshell: Regardless of whether you're a lapsed, current or prospective runner, you'll find a lot of useful information about barefoot running crammed into Jason's book. And if you're serious about running without footwear, Jason's book may just be the best single resource on how to transition from a tentative barefoot walker to an expert barefoot runner.

In case you're not familiar with Jason Robillard, he's a Michigan-based teacher, author and ultramarathoner (who somehow also finds the time to run the Barefoot Running University website, a motherlode of resources on footwear-free running). Here's how he describes his running workouts:

I routinely train on a variety of terrain, including asphalt roads, concrete sidewalks, sandy beaches, woodchip trails, dirt trails, and a few other varied surfaces. I train in a variety of conditions, ranging from the heat of summer to the bitter cold of winter. So far, I've been able to run in snow as long as the temperature stays above 20 degrees. My training mileage peaks around 100 miles per week about a month before major goal races. Almost all of this training is done barefoot.

In his book, Jason covers virtually anything one could ever ask about barefoot running (including which minimalist shoes to buy, and how to handle everything from blisters and bad weather to cross-training and hecklers). The book is organized according to a 12-week, four-stage training progression: "Pre-Running," "Starting to Run Barefoot," "Intermediate Barefoot Running," and "Advanced Barefoot Running." In each chapter, Jason gradually adds layers of technical skills and training concepts in bite-sized chunks, and before you know it, you've added fartleks and hill training to your shoe-free runs.

And unlike a lot of barefoot gurus who may come across to some as crazy-eyed, bearded hippie cultists, Jason is anything but. His everyman persona is reassuring even to those who find the concept of running without shoes faddish and bizarre. Plus, Jason's writing style is entertainingly wry and engaging: Instead of a dry instruction manual, "The Barefoot Running Book" reads like a casual (but super-informative) dinner conversation, sprinkled with lines like "[t]here is as much research supporting the use of modern running shoes as there is supporting the existence of unicorns, Sasquatch and funny Pauly Shore movies."

Jason lays out a structured training plan for those who are curious and intrepid enough to venture out without shoes, but instead of focusing solely on different activities to master, he takes frequent breaks to educate readers about concepts to keep in mind while running barefoot. (My favorite: "Run Like a Ninja.")

Finally, it's kind of awesome that Jason gives a shout-out to his local CrossFit affiliate in the final pages of his book, and shares a number of CrossFit moves that add variety and intensity to his training. (With the exception of Olympic lifting, I try to do just about all of my CrossFit workouts in Vibram FiveFingers or barefoot, and I definitely recommend giving it a shot.)

If you're mesmerized by Christopher McDougall's "Born to Run" and contemplating going barefoot on your training runs, I can't think of a better starting point than "The Barefoot Running Book."

*Full disclosure: Yes, I got a free review copy of the book from Jason, but trust me: My review is unbiased. When it comes to criticism, I'm not known to hold back, but I would have given "The Barefoot Running Book" a thumbs-up even if I'd just happened across it on Amazon.)

8,000 Calories a Day

Legendary ultrarunner Scott Jurek (whom you may remember from Christopher McDougall's "Born to Run") somehow manages to eat up to 8,000 calories a day on a vegan diet.

“The first thing to worry about isn’t so much what you eat, but how much you eat. You have to take the time to sit at the table and make sure your calorie count is high enough. And when you’re a vegan, to increase your calories as you increase training you need more food. This isn’t an elimination diet but an inclusion diet.”
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He focuses on three main meals. Breakfast is key: it might be a 1,000-calorie smoothie, with oil, almonds, bananas, blueberries, salt, vanilla, dried coconut, a few dates and maybe brown rice protein powder. Unless he is doing a long run, which for him is seven hours, or about 50 miles, he eats after his first workout. Lunch and dinner are huge salads, whole grains, potatoes and sweet potatoes, and usually beans of some sort or a tempeh-tofu combination.

“None of this is weird,” he said. “If you go back 300 or 400 years, meat was reserved for special occasions, and those people were working hard. Remember, almost every long-distance runner turns into a vegan while they’re racing, anyway — you can’t digest fat or protein very well.”

In case you're keeping score, Jurek ingests fewer calories than Michael Phelps, but more than Rex Ryan.

And "none of this is weird"?

Check It Out: Born to Run

I recently read Christopher McDougall's "Born to Run," a firsthand nonfiction account of a 50-mile race pitting elite American ultramarathoners against the "Running People" -- the Tarahumara Indians in the Copper Canyons of Mexico -- a tribe renowned for running with great speed over incredible distances in nothing more than thin-soled handmade sandals. The New York Times recently wrote about the book's central theses that (1) running is core to the path that human evolution took, and (2) therefore, it does not pose serious risk of injury if done properly:

“The sense of distance running being crazy is something new to late-20th-century America,” Mr. McDougall told me. “It’s only recently that running has become associated with pain and injury.”

The scientific evidence supports the notion that humans evolved to be runners. In a 2007 paper in the journal Sports Medicine, Daniel E. Lieberman, a Harvard evolutionary biologist, and Dennis M. Bramble, a biologist at the University of Utah, wrote that several characteristics unique to humans suggested endurance running played an important role in our evolution.

Most mammals can sprint faster than humans — having four legs gives them the advantage. But when it comes to long distances, humans can outrun almost any animal. Because we cool by sweating rather than panting, we can stay cool at speeds and distances that would overheat other animals. On a hot day, the two scientists wrote, a human could even outrun a horse in a 26.2-mile marathon.

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So if we’re born to run, why are runners so often injured? A combination of factors is likely to play a role, experts say. Exercise early in life can affect the development of tendons and muscles, but many people don’t start running until adulthood, so their bodies may not be as well developed for distance. Running on only artificial surfaces and in high-tech shoes can change the biomechanics of running, increasing the risks of injury.

What’s the solution? Slower, easier training over a long period would most likely help; so would brief walk breaks, which mimic the behavior of the persistence hunter. And running on a variety of surfaces and in simpler shoes with less cushioning can restore natural running form.

(Despite my antiseptic write-up here, "Born to Run" presents a suspenseful tale and is a fun, exciting read, filled with bizarre characters and fascinating asides. Even if you're skeptical about McDougall's conclusions, I recommend it highly.)

After yesterday's flirtation with running, and given that I was too sore today for any resistance exercises, I decided to just go out and run, using the techniques McDougall described in his book (which are very similar to those detailed in "Chi Running," another terrific running book I read a few years ago).

I borrowed M's iPod, put on some music, and took off. I ran up the Ka'anapali beachfront path north to Honokowai, past a busy farmer's market and a bunch of tired looking resorts, and then turned around and headed back south for a few miles, criss-crossing more resorts, the beach, a golf course and a bunch of hotels.

After about an hour and fifteen minutes, I realized I wasn't tired or even out of breath. And although I've been a severe overpronator for as long as I can remember, my bothersome right knee didn't ache in the slightest. This isn't to say I didn't break a sweat -- I ran at a fairly brisk pace, and my perspiration was heavy enough to drown an unfortunate bug that landed on my shoulder. Even when I used to regularly run, I never ran eight miles on a hot day without feeling at least a little winded. But today, I felt like I could have easily kept going -- except for the fact that I had to head back to the resort to take the kids to the pool.

(By the way, when I say "take the kids to the pool," I literally mean "take my two boys to the kiddie pool to splash around and play on the waterslide" -- not "take a huge dump.")

Perhaps it's P90X that's responsible for getting me to the point where I feel like I can run forever, or maybe it's the new running technique. It's likely both. But whatever the reason, I'm just glad to be running again without pain.