New shoes! A step towards barefoot running

Actually, they're not that new any more, but they still make me smile like new shoes do ;)

At the beginning of May, I was lucky enough to be sent a pair of trainers to review from Merrell's new range of "barefoot" shoes (apologies for the contradiction of that term!).  I received the Barefoot Run Bare Access Arcs which are essentially transitional shoes for someone (like me) new to the barefoot party, still needing a bit of cushioning.

Just out of the box

 I've been thinking about getting some barefoot shoes for ages , but haven't taken the plunge since trying on some Newtons and finding them pretty uncomfortable, so was excited to see what these shoes were like.

Now, unfortunately I'm very shallow, and the looks of a shoe are always important, so I was very pleased when I opened the box and got these out, especially as I didn't know which colour I was going to get.  They do look a bit unusual as they are very wide at the front (to allow your feet and toes to move in a natural way when you run) but I loved them straight away, still do, and have had a few comments about them from people which have all been positive! 

Anyway...before I go on, here's the official blurb about them from the Merrell website:

For distance runners and those new on the path to barefoot running, our Bare Access Arc 0mm drop running shoe gives you a barefoot feel, with added toe to heel cushioning. Still allowing your foot to land flat and follow its own natural motion, its cushioning protects from sustained impacts due to longer runs or a new barefoot training program.

UPPER / LINING 

• Barefoot strobel construction offers flexibility and comfort with Synthetic leather and mesh upper

• DWR-treated upper repels water and resists staining and Lycra® neoprene lining for padded comfort treated with Aegis® antimicrobial solution 

MIDSOLE / OUTSOLE
• 8mm M Bound™ allows for cushioned entry into Bareform™ movement
• 0mm ball to heel drop keeps you connected to your terrain
 • Natural flex outsole with 2.5mm lug depth allows for dynamic foot movement

Anyway, back to what I think ;) I was impressed with how immediately comfortable they were.  Although I run in traditional supportive shoes with a big heel drop, I spend a lot of my time in flip flops or flat ballet pumps, and so wearing a barefoot feel shoe wasn't a complete shock to my feet but wearing a fully enclosed shoe that had such a wide toe-box was a real revelation.  I have wide feet, and to put shoes on and not feel any constriction at all was brilliant. They're also cut low around the ankle and suit my feet really well.

I knew I wasn't going to run in the Merrells straight away and decided to just use them for walking around to start with, to allow my body to get used to them.  I definitely felt the difference - my feet and legs ached a bit after wearing them all day, but I'm pretty sure that's just because my muscles were working in a different way. 

They've now become my choice of every day trainer, and I'm an absolute convert to the barefoot style - even if I haven't yet moved away from the supportive trainers for running,  I can really recognise the benefit of spending time in a more naturally styled shoe.

The shoes at 4 weeks old
with my startling white reflective legs ;) 

The only negative I've found with my new Merrells is that although I'd ordered a size 8 (in normal shoes I'm a 7) they came up pretty short, and they're not quite long enough for me - my big toe just catches the inside end seam on the top of the shoe, and bizarrely, although I really like these shoes, I still haven't been for a run in them.  I've been telling myself that's because they're short and I'll end up hurting my toes but I think it's just because I've not been brave enough - with all the recent marathons I've had and the upcoming ultras, I've been worried in case I inadvertently did too much in the shoes and hurt my legs/feet, and jeopardised my training. 

However, I've become such a fan, that after my ultras are finished, and I've got a bit of window with my training schedule, I'm going to fork out for a pair in a bigger size, and actually try running....

Letting my body recover

A couple of days ago, the awesome Jerry Smallwood (who's running the 145mi GUCR this weekend and who knows what he's talking about) commented on my last blog post which I'd written about whether I was going to pull out of my next scheduled marathon - this is what he said:

• "I think that I can read between the lines and your heart is not fully into this one. It is a nice idea but you have done a lot in the past 2 months and I honestly think your body needs a rest. They say that a marathon will stay in the legs of a runner for at least 6 weeks after and event and you have done so terribly well of recent."

It seems that Jerry knew how my body would be coping with my 3 marathons in 6 weeks better than me.  Turns out he was entirely right and after last night's run, I definitely need some rest.  I was about 15 minutes into a lovely 6 mile run home from the train station, when my leg essentially disintegrated below me...lots of pain in my hamstring, glutes, calf and shin. After a bit of stretching and massaging my leg by the side of the road (which prompted lots of odd looks and a few beeps from passing cars) I ran on for a bit, but after a few minutes the pain and weakness throughout my leg came back.  I took to twitter to vent my frustration, and got lots of encouraging support back (as always, thank-you everyone!) but then jogged slowly home, having to stop often, so took some photos on the way with my phone, which unfortunately isn't advanced enough to capture just how beautiful the light was last night but I thought I'd share anyway.

The trip back home took forever, and although when I got there I changed into my compression tights, and spent a long time with a pack of frozen peas, waking up this morning I have a kind of dull permanent ache in my hamstring and glute. 

Needless to say I'll rest for the next couple of days, and try and get a sports massage tomorrow which will hopefully help, and, although I had already decided not to run it, this is the nail in the coffin for my participation in the Roadrunner Marathon on Monday.

A few other photos from last night:

My 17 lap marathon dilemma

Yesterday, we went to the newly built Cyclopark in Kent, for a Skyride event. 

The Cyclopark is a venue that houses various cycle tracks - BMX, mountain biking, road cycling and has a big kids play area, cafe etc.  As this was a Skyride event, it was free to get in, and there was a wide variety of people who came along - lots of famillies with young children, teenagers on their BMXs, couples like me and Francis on mountain bikes (although in hindsight I should have taken my road bike) and club cyclists in their co-ordinated lycra outfits. 

For a cyclist, there are very good facilities at the Cyclopark: the road track is pretty fast with a couple of inclines to make sure you're putting in some effort, the BMX area is a proper track, with a racing starting gate, and according to Francis the moutain biking section has areas with lots of rocks inthe way so it's good for all abilities,  but it is still a very new venue - the big trees that in the artist's impression of the track (above) are still meter high saplings, and everything is a bit dusty and bare, with no shade anywhere, and the only view is over the motorway! I've stolen a video that Maidstoneonbike (sorry, thank-you!) posted on YouTube so you can see what it's like....

So, it was fine for cycling, and we enjoyed ourselves to the extent that we have signed up as members and will go back to cycle at the park again.  The problem I have is that I am due to run a marathon there on Monday 4th June...17 laps of the road cycling track for the Kent Roadrunner Marathon.

This would be my 4th marathon in the last 8 weeks so it's certainly not a goal race, and I always knew that running so many laps would be hard, but having seen just how uninspiring the venue is, I am really thinking about whether this is something I want to do at all.  I only booked this marathon as part of the training for the ultra, and although I suppose that psychologically it would be great training to complete such a mind-numbing course, I'm wondering if I'm losing sight of what running marathons is about...you know, enjoying the experience...and thinking that maybe it's not worth going to a race that I'm pretty sure I'm not going to enjoy.

Comparison of the London Marathon 2012 medal &
the Roadrunner medal

So, what do you think? Should I blow off this race? I'd still get my mileage in for the week with unsupported long runs but it would mean not turning up to a race - a DNS - which I've only done once before because I had bronchitis - and it would also mean missing out on the fantastic super-sized medal they're offering for getting round the full 17 laps....

My Marathon RelayGB experience

With my all important medal,  and
the support crew's camper van in the background

I keep trying to write a blog post about my Marathon RelayGB run on Monday but I'm finding it very hard. I want to come up with a detailed but coherent account, so I can really explain how amazing the whole thing was, but so much happened, I'm not quite sure how to put it altogether. So for now, I'll just share a few of the photos, and the brief entries I added to dailymile.com when I got home on Monday afternoon so you can get a feel of what I have (very proudly) been involved in.

RelayGB leg: Chelmsford to Dagenham 

28.6 mi in 4hrs 14mins at 08:53 pace

Today was my leg of the Marathon RelayGB event, the second to last leg of the whole thing, which has seen a 24/7 relay being run around the whole of the UK.
http://www.relaygb.org/Home/Index/161   
I was awake at 3.30am this morning, and out of the house at 4.30am to get to my leg to start on time. Of the four people who were meant to be running, only I turned up, so I got to run the whole marathon on my own, with the full attention of the support crew, who couldn't have been more amazing at getting me to Dagenham in Monday morning rush hour traffic. We did take a couple of wrong turns, hence the increased mileage, but this is, by far, the best event I have ever done. It's nothing like a normal marathon, all on open unmarked roads, having to wait for traffic lights to change and cars to pass so I could cross the road, but running on open roads with a support car behind me, protecting me from other traffic made me feel like a celebrity runner, and to meet the guys who have been around Britain making this event possible was privilege. My Garmin had been playing up during the run, so it's only now, that I've got home, that I've been able to see the official time and distance. Couldn't be happier :)

Final mile of the RelayGB
1.22mi

After my leg finished, we drove to the end in one of the support cars, and met up with a load of other runners from other stages of the event, and about 30 of us ran the last mile to the finish line. Perfect end to a perfect day :)

Some more photos....

Running on the main roads with the support crew
protecting me from passing traffic

Finished!
So happy to see the Asda car park &
Steve (who's shaking my hand).
Still clutching the Powerade I started
the run with. Who needs gels?! ;)

The amazing support crew who helped me through my leg.
I love 'em all - my heroes!

The last mile that we all ran together in Wandsworth Park, bringing me up to 30 miles for the day :)

New shoes & fixing my blisters

In my last post, you found me recovering from the Halstead Marathon, which had given me really bad blisters, and I was planning to buy some new shoes to try and avoid it from happening again.  It's only just over a week later, and quite a lot has happened....

1) I bought the new trainers. I went to Run and Become, a shop near Victoria in London, and was very pleased to receive the most excellent service and advice, and came away with a pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 12 in a size larger than I usually wear, and in their limited edition, patriotic colours. 

I was also really impressed with the knowledge of the assistant who helped me, the questions she asked, and the information she was able to give me, and also really liked the vibe of the place - by the till were little motivational phrase cards - I brought home the one below.  Anyway, I took my new shoes home without the box, and ran back from the station, doing 6 miles straight off and they were great and have been since.  A really successful buy :)  

  

   

2) Before they got better, my blisters got worse, they burst and got infected.  I couldn't run for three days, and was walking with a limp.  With antibiotic cream and a lot of TLC including changing dressings twice a day, they healed, just in time!  I should have taken out shares in Boots with the money I was spending in there on first-aid kit ;)

3) As well as the new shoes, I've invested in some very cute Injinji toed-socks (which were recommended by someone who read my blog) to try and protect my toes from any new blistering (which arrived last night but I'm yet to try them out) and also some moleskin tape, which seems pretty sturdy for also protecting my feet.

4) And the biggest news....I've run another marathon! Well, a marathon plus a couple of miles, as part of the Marathon RelayGB event...but that is important enough for it's own post, coming soon! :)