A 4 Miler

Well, I did my first 4 mile run in the Hattori's.  Overall it felt very good and I didn't have many problems with the shoes.  My right knee did start bothering me, but I think it is from the volleyball that I play on Monday nights.  A few weeks ago, I strained the knee and it has been bothering me some on my runs, but it usually worked its self out in the first half mile or so.

One thing I did change is I added a pair of socks.  On my first 3 mile run in the shoes, I developed a hot spot on the side of my foot and by the time I finished the run, I had a small blister on the inside of my left foot.  To avoid the same issues on this run, I added a thin pair of socks (Balega Running) to the mix.  I also threw on some body glide to help reduce the friction.  The overall effect was that I didn't have any problems with hot spots.  My plan is to increase my mileage this week and next week I will cut back to give my body a rest.  Hopefully I can do a 5 mile run next Sunday.

New minimalist shoes

My new Hattori's

Well, I received my new Saucony Hattori Running Shoe's in the mail yesterday and I had to give them a try.  I went on a short 2 mile run and I have to say they felt pretty good.

 

I've run on the VIVOBAREFOOT EVO for the last 2 months and while they are a good shoe, the fit has been less than stellar.  At first, they rubbed the until of my toes to the point that I would get blisters even on a half mile run.  As my feet adjusted to that and I was able to run farther, the shoes started to give me blisters on my arches.  The constant issues I have had have lead me to try a different shoe.

Front Shot

The Saucony is a very light minimalist running shoe.  It is a zero rise shoe meaning that the thickness at the heel is the same as at the ball of the foot.  The material is much lighter than the Vivo's.  The toe box is covered with a this mesh like material that should be breathable. The adjustment of the shoe comes from two Velcro straps over the arch of the foot and at the back around the Achilles. 

The initial feel of the Hattori's was great.  The shoes fits very well around my foot.  The shoe has a wide toe box, but it runs just a tad short.  My big toe is at the front of the shoe an on my initial run it did not seem to bother me. Over the 2 miles that I ran, the shoe felt good and did not move around much.  I did not have any friction spots on the top of my toes or around my ankle that the Evo's definitely exhibited.  Towards the end of my run, the top of my foot was slightly irritated, but I'm not sure if it will be a persistent problem. 

Overall, my first impression of the Hattori Running Shoe is very positive.  I'll try to provide more feedback after I put a few more miles on them.

From the side

Barefoot Running

Here I am, after an extended hiatus. With my shoulder injury, I was not able to do much in the way of exercise.  Luckily, the pain was also a good appetite suppressant so I actually lost weight during the process.  With my body sidelined, I decided to try out barefoot running.  It also helped that I found a pair of VIVOBAREFOOT Men's EVO Shoes on sale through the Clymb.

When you make the switch to barefoot running, everyone says to take it easy and start slowly with low mileage.  Well, I took that into consideration when I headed out for my first walk in them, 3 miles round trip to the park with my youngest.  Needless to say, I got back to the house with blisters on both feet, not only on the back of my Achilles tendon, but also the tops of both second toes.  After getting the shoes off, I started looking around the web and found that many have a problem with blisters on the tops due to the stiff upper.

Since my first outing, I have put in smaller runs starting around .25 miles.  The longest run I have done with them is around 2 miles, but I do not seem to have a problem with blisters during the shorter runs.  I plan to increase my mileage over the next few weeks and will update you on the progress.

Overall, I'm still undecided on barefoot running.  I have not been able to run for any long distances to really test the effect on my body.  I do believe that it helps form in that it teaches a person how to avoid heel strikes when running.

Third Monday

Image courtesy of http://sportsmedicine.about.com/

I know it's Tuesday, but I measured myself yesterday. Here are my stats:


Weight: 209

BF%: 20.1%

Fat mass: 42.009lbs

TI: 165

So, I fell off the diet this week.  I have injured my rotator cuff and back and the pain involved helped me lose my appetite.  I didn't really eat much of anything, leading to 6lbs of weight loss, but only 2lbs of fat.  With the injury, I won't be doing much exercise for the next week or so at the minimum.

Adams trail-a-bike

Got it set up.

Second Monday

Image courtesy of linear-software.com

Here are my stats:

Weight: 216

BF%: 20.3%

Fat mass: 43.848lbs

TI: 164.25

I forgot to save my individual inch measurements.  I think the gain was in my thighs, but I think I have standardized the measurement better using body landmarks, we'll see.

Back to Running

I put in slightly over 9 miles in this week, two nights of Volleyball, and rode the bike for a whopping 20 minutes. I did pick up a used Adams Trail-A-Bike and plan to get out with the kids a little more once my shims arrive.   Tomorrow is my measurement day.