Building A Better Bumblebee

Low HR Run: 45 minutes (3.35 miles)

Weather: Clear and cold. 22 degrees (no wind) Gear: Sandals with wool toe socks, Capeline base, long-sleeved tech T, pullover, jacket, tights, wind pants, knit hat, gloves.

My first run with my training partner in months, and we picked a cold day for it. It was 22 degrees, but at least the wind was calm -- forecasts had called for a wind chill in the single digits. I had just about the right level of clothing for the weather, and my experiment of lightweight wool toe socks with my Lunas seemed to work.



The tips of my toes were cold for about 20 minutes but warmed up and were fine afterwards. A heavier weight sock might have had them warmer earlier, but maybe not.

We stretched the run out to 45 minutes, and I tried to keep my HR in the proper zone. That wasn't easy with all the clothing and conversation, but it was close enough. Our pace was in the 11s, but we walked a couple of times, putting the splits in the 12-minute range, but it felt easy and relaxed despite the cold conditions. I'll take that as a good sign.

Also, I was happy to discover that the socks didn't cause problems with the sandals, and that it's feeling more natural running in them. That's a very good sign.

Walked first and last 5 minutes. Average HR for entire run: 132

Barefoot Run: 30 minutes (2.34 miles)

Weather: Sunny, chilly. 49 in the sun, unmelted ice in the shade. Gear: Bare feet, shorts, long-sleeved T, jacket.

I wanted to get out today after yesterday's slightly longer run for a "recovery" barefoot run. I waited until it had warmed up a bit (it was 23 this morning) and was able to enjoy going out without being ridiculously bundled up.

I went barefoot to make sure my sandal runs are reinforcing the proper mechanics, and because, well, why not?


Found a nice spot for a post-run cool down.

The run went pretty well. My legs and feet wanted to go faster than my HR would allow, and I ended up cheating it a bit. Ah well, as long as I don't make it a habit. I did walk my HR down a couple of times when it got too far up.

Walked first and last 5 minutes. Average HR for entire run: 133

I can envision you trying to get going on that ice much like Fred Flintstone.

It looks like those feet were made for trail running, barefoot.  Wide, stable forefoot.  Toes capable of moving small rocks out of the way.  Are there suction cups on the bottom for climbing sheer cliffs?

ounce wrote:I can envision you trying to get going on that ice much like Fred Flintstone.

Yabba-dabba-do! Luckily, I had to go looking for a patch of ice.

Tom H wrote:It looks like those feet were made for trail running, barefoot.  Wide, stable forefoot.  Toes capable of moving small rocks out of the way.  Are there suction cups on the bottom for climbing sheer cliffs?

Hm. Not quite, though I have run non-rocky trails barefoot... and it feels fantastic.

My feet get cold every time I scroll by that picture.  Why subject yourself to this?!  Glad to see you've strung together two runs with no disasters.  It's about time you catch a break.

Mike MacLellan wrote:My feet get cold every time I scroll by that picture.  Why subject yourself to this?!  Glad to see you've strung together two runs with no disasters.  It's about time you catch a break.

My feet were nice and warm by that point, Mike. The ice actually felt pretty good for the time I was standing on it. (Why? Well, for one thing, bare footing is fun. But more so, it is working to build foot strength and coordination that I need.)

Thanks on the good wishes. I'm making a point of easing into this (for a change) in the hope that I can stay healthy while rebuilding my fitness. Better a slow build than a boom-and-bust, methinks.

Walk: 2.3 miles

Weather: Partly cloudy, breezy, chilly. 42 degrees

Third day in a row of activity, today doing a couple of miles walking during lunch. I'm hoping to get this habit back again, both for boosting fitness and burning calories. I'm also learning how to walk in these barefoot-inspired shoes. It feels a little awkward at the moment, but I think that's a good sign -- because it's forcing my body to do it right.

You call that chilly

Jim Lentz wrote:You call that chilly

Cold wind. Not like what they're having in much of the rest of the country, which I believe is technically classified as:

"Too #$@%*! cold for %^&#@!*$ November!!"

Supposed to warm up in the next few days but I think the COLD sunny dry days are going to be replaced by cold wet icy days on our side of the hill. I hope you just get rain...I know how ice affects driving in your area!

Great to see you've strung together a couple nice runs but barefoot...in the ice????

nkrichards wrote:Supposed to warm up in the next few days but I think the COLD sunny dry days are going to be replaced by cold wet icy days on our side of the hill.  I hope you just get rain...I know how ice affects driving in your area!

Great to see you've strung together a couple nice runs but barefoot...in the ice????

Barefoot on ice? Goodness, no! It was dry pavement, and about 40 out, when I did my barefoot run. But it's been spending a lot of time below freezing around here, so the ice in the gutter from a neighbor washing his car a few days ago was still there. It was irresistible for a foot selfie.

Can you imagine how slippery it'd be to run on ice? No, thank you.

Hope you warm up a bit and avoid the ice. Folks lose their minds on ice in Greater PDX, but ice in Central Oregon is scary. Be safe!

Mark B wrote:

Jim Lentz wrote:You call that chilly

Cold wind. Not like what they're having in much of the rest of the country, which I believe is technically classified as:

"Too #$@%*! cold for %^&#@!*$ November!!"

I agree with Jim.  I wear shorts in 40F weather!

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:

Mark B wrote:

Jim Lentz wrote:You call that chilly

Cold wind. Not like what they're having in much of the rest of the country, which I believe is technically classified as:

"Too #$@%*! cold for %^&#@!*$ November!!"

I agree with Jim.  I wear shorts in 40F weather!

*Sigh*

I guess I brought this on myself. Temperatures in the 40 aren't particularly "chilly" by North Dakota standards, but they require more gear than just a thin T-shirt. (I often wear shorts when it's in the 40s, too.) And what feels chilly in the fall can feel balmy come February. (And I really was talking more about a cold wind than the air temperature...)

Anyway, I'll try to be sensitive to readers who live in parts of the country previously under a continental ice sheet.

BTW, Michele, does your house by the lake get lake-effect snow? Because it sounds particularly bad right now, as in, so much snow you can't find your house under it all. Now that is winter.

Good news is that I live on the west side of Cleveland and not the east side towards Eire, PA and Buffalo, NY.  We only have about 2" left of what fell last week and in the past few days we have only had flurries.  

I also just checked the webcam, and believe it or not they only received 6" in Chautauqua, so nothing like the 6 feet just 25 miles NNE outside Buffalo.  I saw photos from Depew (where the Buffalo airport is located) of an underpass on I90 and the snow was half way up the concrete walls - or about 4 feet.  I also heard that there were only a handful of spectators at last nights Sabres game and that one Sabres player was actually a healthy scratch because he could not get to the arena due to the snow.

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Good news is that I live on the west side of Cleveland and not the east side towards Eire, PA and Buffalo, NY.  We only have about 2" left of what fell last week and in the past few days we have only had flurries.  

I also just checked the webcam, and believe it or not they only received 6" in Chautauqua, so nothing like the 6 feet just 25 miles NNE outside Buffalo.  I saw photos from Depew (where the Buffalo airport is located) of an underpass on I90 and the snow was half way up the concrete walls - or about 4 feet.  I also heard that there were only a handful of spectators at last nights Sabres game and that one Sabres player was actually a healthy scratch because he could not get to the arena due to the snow.

Good news! You picked the right end of the lake.

I used to ski a lot, so I'm used to giant snowdrifts... but not ones that pile up in a couple of days and bury the whole neighborhood. That's just crazy.

BTW, what's the texture of lake effect snow? Powdery? Wet? It looks pretty dry in the photos I've seen.

Mark B wrote:

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Good news is that I live on the west side of Cleveland and not the east side towards Eire, PA and Buffalo, NY.  We only have about 2" left of what fell last week and in the past few days we have only had flurries.  

I also just checked the webcam, and believe it or not they only received 6" in Chautauqua, so nothing like the 6 feet just 25 miles NNE outside Buffalo.  I saw photos from Depew (where the Buffalo airport is located) of an underpass on I90 and the snow was half way up the concrete walls - or about 4 feet.  I also heard that there were only a handful of spectators at last nights Sabres game and that one Sabres player was actually a healthy scratch because he could not get to the arena due to the snow.

Good news! You picked the right end of the lake.

I used to ski a lot, so I'm used to giant snowdrifts... but not ones that pile up in a couple of days and bury the whole neighborhood. That's just crazy.

BTW, what's the texture of lake effect snow? Powdery? Wet? It looks pretty dry in the photos I've seen.

White.

ounce wrote:

Mark B wrote:

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Good news is that I live on the west side of Cleveland and not the east side towards Eire, PA and Buffalo, NY.  We only have about 2" left of what fell last week and in the past few days we have only had flurries.  

I also just checked the webcam, and believe it or not they only received 6" in Chautauqua, so nothing like the 6 feet just 25 miles NNE outside Buffalo.  I saw photos from Depew (where the Buffalo airport is located) of an underpass on I90 and the snow was half way up the concrete walls - or about 4 feet.  I also heard that there were only a handful of spectators at last nights Sabres game and that one Sabres player was actually a healthy scratch because he could not get to the arena due to the snow.

Good news! You picked the right end of the lake.

I used to ski a lot, so I'm used to giant snowdrifts... but not ones that pile up in a couple of days and bury the whole neighborhood. That's just crazy.

BTW, what's the texture of lake effect snow? Powdery? Wet? It looks pretty dry in the photos I've seen.

White.

Ah, Texans.

FWIW, I did a bit of research and it appears that, due to the extreme cold air that creates lake effect snow, it has a very low moisture content, which means it's quite light and fluffy. Which would be handy if you've got 10 feet of it on the roof of your house...

Exactly - it is very light and wispy.  Blows and drifts easily - good though for XC skiing.

It's snowed here about an inch at most, and mostly isn't sticking.  I think being on the west side of the lake helps Chicago get less snow.  
I'm the only one who didn't cringe when I saw the feet on the ice picture.  I thought, "I bet that feels really good after a workout!"

Question for you re LHR running: is it typical that your pace has to slow slightly (i.e. 0.1-.03 mph slower) as you continue running at that heart rate?  I hope that starts to go away!

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Exactly - it is very light and wispy.  Blows and drifts easily - good though for XC skiing.

Yes, great for skiing. Lousy for snowballs. I'd say it'd be easier for shoveling, but when there's that much? You need a backhoe.

Penelope wrote:It's snowed here about an inch at most, and mostly isn't sticking.  I think being on the west side of the lake helps Chicago get less snow.  
I'm the only one who didn't cringe when I saw the feet on the ice picture.  I thought, "I bet that feels really good after a workout!"

Question for you re LHR running: is it typical that your pace has to slow slightly (i.e. 0.1-.03 mph slower) as you continue running at that heart rate?  I hope that starts to go away!

The ice under the feet actually did feel good, Kathy, though I didn't linger overlong...

It is to be totally expected that your pace will slow progressively when you're doing low HR training. It can drop quite a ways over the course of a few miles when you start. It can get disheartening, but it's important to slow down and keep the HR where it belongs. It's still working.

One of the first indicators that low HR training is working is that the pace fall-off gets smaller and smaller in the later miles. It lets you go farther in the same time period, which is a great encouragement. As this happens, you'll noticed that your pace in the early miles starts to pick up, as well. That's when it really gets exciting.

One last thing: If you haven't done a MAF test yet, you really ought to. It will allow you to set a baseline from which you can objectively measure future gains. Just remember to use the same general course (whether it's a track, or the treadmill) so you can compare apples to apples over time.

Low HR Run: 30 minutes (2.26 miles)

Weather: Mostly cloudy, damp. 42-44 degrees. Gear: Lunas, shorts, long-sleeved T, jacket.

I did some calf and core work yesterday, but didn't walk, so I decided to see if I can manage runs on both Thursday and Friday. This is Day 1. I opted for my running sandals and decided to head out on one of my normal routes rather than do laps around the block. I'm confident that the Lunas are going to work for me, so it's time to head out.

I must have been a little excited, because I was zipping along in the 9s at first before my HR caught on and caught up. then I had to slow down a bit. The hilly nature of the first mile from my house had something to do with it, too.

The sandals worked great. I'm still learning how to manage downhills in them, but the flats are starting to work better. It feels different than running in shoes - more like going barefoot - and it seems to be encouraging the form I'm after.

Walked first and last 5 minutes. Average HR for the entire run: 124 (note, HR before I started was 56)

I wrote:... I decided to see if I can manage runs on both Thursday and Friday. This is Day 1

And this is not Day 2.

The one thing about running barefoot or in near-barefoot sandals is that your body gets the maximum stimulus possible. Now, that's actually a very good thing, because it'll help me get stronger and faster and more enduring as I progress, but it also means I have to pay close attention to my body and allow that progress to happen s-l-o-w-l-y.

There's a term Barefoot Ken Bob (the guy who wrote this book on barefooting) likes to use: Barefoot Over Exuberance Syndrome. It feels so good and is so fun that you do to much, too soon, and end up injured. That's the last thing I need right now, so I listened to my body and took a rest day.

But that doesn't mean I liked it.

IwannarunoverhillanddaleandsweatandmarvelatthegloryofcreationandIwanttodoitNOW!

Whew. Okay. Got that off my chest. Maybe patience will come a little easier now. Maybe.

Mark B wrote:

Whew. Okay. Got that off my chest. Maybe patience will come a little easier now. Maybe.

Good luck with that, getting it off your chest so that patience comes easier .

Tom H wrote:

Mark B wrote:

Whew. Okay. Got that off my chest. Maybe patience will come a little easier now. Maybe.

Good luck with that, getting it off your chest so that patience comes easier .

Yeah, it'll probably work about as well as it usually does.