An Experiment: Is Barefoot Running All It's Cracked Up to Be?

My girlfriend, Lisa, and I have just started barefoot running after reading a book about the sport. As two people in fairly good shape, we had a bit of a head start, but it is taking some time to adapt. I hope to give updates every week or so on our progress so others can decide if they want to try it out.

So far:

Last Sunday, we started out on a normal run, but about a mile and a half from the end, we decided that we wanted to try out barefoot running. We are reading the book Born to Run, and they make it sound very appealing, and healthy, in the book.

We took off our shoes, and it was great. We were running on a path near our house that is concrete, not asphalt, so the friction isn't as bad. We didn't have any problems. The main thing we figured out pretty quickly is that your stride changes significantly as soon as the shoes come off. You start to cushion yourself not with extreme amounts of shoe padding, but by landing softly on the outside edge or the ball of your foot instead of your heel.

Our total run that day was about an hour.

Three days later, we tried it again. This time we were ready to really commit, and ditched our shoes at the very beginning of the run. We only totaled a little under three miles, but we found out another benefit of barefoot running, you get the most amazing calf workout imaginable. By the end, both of us had completely toasted our calves.

I also found out that what looks like a clean path can hold hidden dangers. When I got home, I found a small piece of glass in the sole of my foot. It was no big deal after I removed it, but it made us start thinking about how to protect our feet from friction and sharp objects without abandoning the barefoot principle.

On Youtube that night, we found a video that shows you how to make very thin sandals that don't change how your feet hit the ground, but afford a little protection from road hazards. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF6aGK5AhpA They also sell kits to make your own, but we plan to get an old bike tire to accomplish our goal.

Today, we ran again. This time we made it about four miles on the same path. The longer distance increased the toll of friction on our soles, and both of us are ready to have a pair of sandals to protect ourselves. Lisa also found another small glass shard in her foot. Interestingly, neither of us are much phased by that fact, we just want to take a little more precaution.

As summer comes near and it will be light out later, we'll probably start to look for paths that will be a little more foot friendly and fun to run on.

How do we feel?

Both of us are loving our new hobby. The evidence is out there that it can be much better for your feet and joints, and so far we agree. I usually have arch pain that nags at me, but that has disappeared over the last week.

Not only does it seem better for us, it also feels pretty badass to be running with the minimal amount of gear possible.

Note to self...Travel is Misery

I just got back from another grueling day of airline travel. There's really no way to make solo travel fun, I have discovered through careful planning, research, and experimentation. I have tried getting enough sleep the night before, sleeping on the plane, drinking coffee, dressing down, dressing up, talking, reading, listening to headphones.

Nothing works. I always arrive mildly disoriented, more tired no matter how much sleep I got, and annoyed as hell. 

Is teleporter research getting any funding in the stimulus bill? As a country, we need to get our priorities in order and work on what really matters.

Enough Already About Your Misgivings...

I had another one of those conversations this weekend that have become all too familiar. It goes mainly like this, "What are you doing next year? Any Plans?" and they'll answer with whatever they're doing. I'll say, "I'm doing Teach for America in Denver." They follow with with, "Denver is a great city, you'll fit right in there!"

The next stage varies from person to person. Having many friends similar to myself, a lot of them will say they either looked into TFA or even applied. Some don't. And then comes the part I love to hate, the almost inevitable "I'm not really a fan of Teach for America's methods, but I'm sure you'll do great because you're not like the rest of them." 

Now what exactly does that mean? Here's what it sounds like, "I'm making a generalization based on a couple of things I've heard or read, or even based on nothing. I like you, so I'll pretend you don't qualify for my generalization." 

When people tell me they got into Harvard, or got a job on Wall Street, or don't have a job, I congratulate them on their accomplishment and tell them something nice like, "That's a great accomplishment," or "That will be a great change from being a poor college student." I don't say "I dislike your grad school or job, but I won't hold it against you." Come on people, get a little class.

I know Teach for America is hard; I know TFA hires a lot of people without teaching experience, like me; I also know that they slam us with a lot of prep work in the short time we have and all their studies show that TFA teachers have great results in the classroom. Get over it: We didn't get a four-year teaching degree, but we still have a lot to offer these kids. A lot of schools just have a hard time finding teachers, and we make it a little easier. 

Funny note: As this particular conversation progressed, the girl with whom I was chatting told me, "I don't think they adequately prepare people to teach, that's why I'm starting an NGO called 'Educators for America.'" Really, Educators for America? She went on to describe a program nearly identical to Teach for America. Good for her, it sounds like a great program, but honestly, any differences were very minor. Why be a hater?

Law School Update

I'm now at 4-1-4, overall. BU waitlisted me and Colorado accepted me today. Colorado also invited me to an open house--a nice gesture--on Friday. In Colorado. Now, pray tell, what is the point of inviting someone in Boston to an event three days later? 

I'm glad I got in, don't get me wrong. Colorado is a great school that I'm lucky to be accepted to. It's also nice to get an ego boost after a period of one rejection and four consecutive waitlists. Applying to law school is very much a test of one's character, questioning your security, confidence, and most of all, patience. 

Just a note for anyone considering law school--all my reaches have been rejections or waitlists so far. I don't know the likelihood of getting in off waitlists, but I now know the likelihood of getting into a better school than expected is not very high. Even places that gave me fee waivers (free applications) have put me on waitlists. 

I've got two more to go--BC and Stanford. It would be nice to be accepted by my alma mater, but I'm really not holding my breath on Stanford after all these other quasi-denials. 

Thank God I got Teach for America. That's all I have to say. I'm so glad not to be forced to wait in tense expectation to be accepted from a waitlist while paying huge deposits to hold my spot at another school. 

PS. It was really sad to turn down Lewis and Clark today. They were so amazing every time that I talked to them, and really presented their case much better than any other school applied to. They had a beautiful, informative guidebook and friendly admissions staff. They offered me a lot of money. At least I'll have the chance to apply again in a couple years if I decide law school is the path that interests me most.

I've got a follower!

It seemed an appropriate time to make a new post, now that I have a follower. I would like to personally thank Joe Sasanuma for taking that honor...

Oh, I guess I should also thank him for being a great help during the process of choosing and then applying to law schools. I went through a relatively successful search and destroy process in which I killed 11 law school applications in fulfilling my mission. (Yeah, I know that metaphor really makes no sense.) I'm 3-1-3, with 5 abstaining right now, which is far from a perfect record, but far better off than I would be without the help of Joe, the pre-law advisor, and a few others. 

Senior year--supposed to be a breeze, but almost completely tainted by the search for something meaningful to do afterwards. I spent so many hours preparing for the LSAT and taking it twice, re-writing my personal statement for a total of about 15 printed drafts (not counting all the edits in between), visiting law schools, and then eventually applying and interviewing with Teach for America. 

Why, oh why, did I apply to law school. That was a big whoops. I started out by thanking Joe for his help, which I still stand by, but I should have listened a little more to him and all the others who told me to make sure it was what I wanted before I applied. After a couple of law-related courses, a job offer, and some hard thinking, I still believe that some day I'll end up in a law school somewhere, but that day is not yet. I just wish I'd figured that out hundreds of hours and dollars sooner. 

I am excited to be in Denver, teaching for America for the next two years. It also has been a difficult process, but at least I reached the goal of getting something of a life plan together. 

More to come.

Volcano climbing

Yeah we climbed that! Pete and I, with the help of our trusty guide, Luis, made it to the top of that beast and all the way down in just two days. It was an amazing view from the top, and really cool to climb our first volcano. It was my first time using crampons and an ice axe, too, which made it feel even more legit. Some people act like it's no big deal to climb a 12,600 ft. tall mountain if you don't have to do actual rock climbing, but it's a hell of a physical undertaking.

Besides, I'm graduating in a month, which will give me a lot more time (and money) to take on bigger and better adventures and eventually become a "real" mountain climber.

I wrote an article about my trip to Patagonia with some more great pictures of the area. It's on a site where anyone can write articles.

http://hubpages.com/hub/See-Patagonia-in-3-Weeks-Heres-How