Osteopathy. Get your body fixed.

I am back to it. And more than happy about it. After many months on and off, after many runs with soles, after many knee issues, wearing a knee cap (that felt good by the way), I am happy to run again, every day, and without any problem. Why and what was the issue? Well, eventually, after so many small knee issues, I decided to see an osteopath. That was amazing! The manipulator immediately identified that the problem was not located on the knee, but in the foot. He unblocked the bones of the foot and asked me to go back to run barefoot immediately. That was great. Remember that I was thinking about surgery, suggested by a few doctors (with title those). It is amazing how some people with legitimity can decide without much thinking some traumatic intervention that would not be needed. I strongly recommend to any one to see alternatives before taking big decisions like this.

Anyway, the point is that I am now back to full running with my 5f's and really happy about it.

On hollidays, I have run more for more than one week every day, alternating between 35' and 65' everyday without any knee problem anymore. The issue was indeed really in the foot and it took very simple manipulation from someone with the right knowledge to notice. Great and running barefoot is really another sensation.

After couple of years, more than three in fact, I am now running regularly fully bf and I estimate that I have eventually done a successfull transition to bf running. In addition to the other advices, 7mm, take it easy, the last and an important one, is also to get your body fixed.

By the way, two aspects I need to mention.
First, I went to see someone formed at the Poyet school. That was important. Loved it, and I strongly recommend it. I don't know if you can find one easily but I really loved it.
Second, I need to mention that he, the manipulator, knew the whole barefoot running trend and was very positive about it. He is a professional and totaly in favor of bf running. This is to counter those legal issue that vibram had recently (see previous posts).

I am thinking about running the Seville marathon barefoot this year. We shall see.

Get your body fixed, keep running.

feels good!

It feels so good.
I just love to run with my 5Fs. They are extremely light, it feels so natural to run. But may be the most important is right after running.
With shoes, I used to feel destroyed, pretty hurt in the lower articulations, knees and hips. General bad feeling all around the body.
With my 5Fs, I just feel good all over. A few hours after the run, I actually feel like I want to go back again. It feels really really good after the run.
I am getting more and more addicted to my 5Fs.
Hope you enjoy them too.

Running for a healthier life

Recent study demonstrate that running regularly has positive effect on your becoming older.
In their study,Ortega et al., Plos One 2014 compared the metabolic effects of running regularly versus walking. They found a positive correlation between mitigation of the age-related deterioration of walking economy. Interestingly, walking for exercise appears to have minimal effect on the same parameters. The authors measured walking economy using expired gas analysis and walking mechanics via ground reaction forces during the last 2 minutes of each 5 minute trial. A a greater metabolic cost (worse economy) compared to young adults is a distinctive characteristic of impaired walking performance among older adults, which itself is a key predictor of morbidity among older adults. This analysis only add to the wealth of other that show the positive effect of moving regularly on life expectancy and quality. Doint exercise lengthen your life, delay dependency arrival. All this translate into an important of economical cost that is not spent by public health system.

Back to running 2014

Back to regular running.
Almost holidays in Belgium. Perfect weather, unlike Sevilla.
Have been running 55' and 65'. No problem. After one week in Germany, where I was swimming and climbing, I am back to running every day. Twice 55' so far, Tuesday, Wednesday. Have been using the knee protection just in case, more prevention than anything else. Alternatively on left and right knee.
I have learned from bare foot running to have shorter but faster strides, but always below the breast. And I do wear bf shoes every day now. Just love my bf shoes.
Another 55' on Thursday. All good.
Friday no time, stayed with children.
65' on Saturday and 63' on Sunday, no problem.

Ran 30' barefoot in Sevilla 09/08/14
Ran 50' barefoot in Menorca 15/08/14

Have been running mostly barefoot ever since then in Sevilla. The weather is now perfect for that.
Run in Tournai, BE 1h, Bruxelles, forest de Soigne 1h, then again in Tournai.

All go so far.

Conclusion I

That's it, I am back from injuries and now I know what and why. The real trick is to run below your body. What I mean is that you don't want your feet to pass in front of your torso. Keep your steps shorts. More rapid if you want but short, below your body.

I am just back from a long knee problems, see some previous posts. But after close to two years of ons and offs, I am now back to long runs. Well, all shod, of course, but I ran twice 90' without any problem. The only trick is to keep your feet below your body, really. I even bought myself one of those knee pads to hold it together. But what really made if for me what to stay with short strides, may be faster, but short. Don't bring your feet in front of you. And land on the heel.

So, of course, that's what bf running do for you, it forces you not to land on the heel. Just try it once and you will see. I promise you will not do it twice. However, I already wasted my body quite a lot. I cut my Achilles tendon, twice in fact, and had various knee injuries due to skiing. So I guess that all together that doesn't help with the quite traumatic bf running.

I am not done with bf though. I am actually anxious to leave my soled shoes at home and grab my 5fs. But I will wait a while. I will first do a couple of long runs, coupled with speed training before I go back to bf. I do love it though. But again, you have to take it easy, go slow.

And definitively, keep your feet below your body. Enjoy your next run.

Running in the heat

New job, new city, new running schedule
38 Degres 30'
42 Degres 36'
Back to shoes, not knee pain but knee feeling and no shoes in belgium.
3 more in Belgium, 45, 50, 55.
Now back to the heat, 1h02' at 8am. Not so hot, but already heat.
Now with shoes, better knee, but more general less precise feeling, more disperse. Unclear.

Back to one hour. Feel very good in the legs, in the body in general.
What I will do now is to alternate 1/2h bf with 1h shod.
Knee problem probably due to cut Achilles tendon.
Just ran 30' bf. Feels great.
Went twice to 1h shod, then 30' bf, everyday.
1h shod again. Ok. So far, so good, but beginning to feel the knees. Not sure what to do at that stage. Knee is still not OK, and clearly feeling worst after running bf. In addition, I just started again to play in-line roller hockey. Thus, I will keep the running low for a while.

The dildo works (at least that's what she sais)!

So, after five sessions of dildoing, I can say that my knee is much better.

Apparently, my muscles were too stiff and needed some relaxing and to recover their tonus, responsiveness. Interestingly, this explanation given to my by the practitioner is completely different from the one provided by the doctor, which was that I was getting old and my knee lubricant had lost its fluidity, was becoming more solid.
Whoever is right, I don't care. What I can say is that knee and muscles are much better now. Interestingly, my dildo practitioner also said, that in order to prevent this type of problem, I should stretch more. That is indeed true. I had considerably reduced and even stopped stretching in the last year. I did that because it kind of didn't feel good any more. Now, I can stretch much better. So did I stop because I was stiff or what I stiff because I stopped stretching, I don't know, but it indeed seems to be related.

What I can not believe is that I lost more than a year and 2 half marathon, at least 1 triathlon because of this. If I had gone to see this doctor last year, ...

But you know what it is, you always feel like it will go away alone, that you can do better by yourself, ....

Damn, we should all go to the doctor more often. In fact as soon as you feel something.

Anyway, as a dear friend of mine would say, a little dildoing from time to time can bring big satisfactions in life.

Don't be afraid, try it!