Barefoot Running Movie Giveaway Winner!

The winner of my giveaway of the film Barefoot Running by Michael Sandler is user "Chris at Barefoot beginner." Shoot me your shipping information via email, Chris, and I will get it out to you as soon as possible. I hope you learn from and enjoy it.

Thank you to everyone who entered. I hope I can do more of these in the near future.

Minimalist Shoe Hack - Skora Base

I recently posted my review of the Skora Base, a really neat shoe concept with a flaw that made it a real challenge for me to wear and enjoy. This is largely due to my oddly long, skinny feet. I also previewed how I went about solving this problem.

Well, here is the full explanation of how I solved my quandary of the overly loose velcro strap.... in picture form.

Putting my newly-acquired sewing skills into practice. I simply doubled over about 1/2 an inch worth of strap material to shorten its overall length.

The aftermath: you can see my understated handiwork on the portion of the X-strap on the outside of each foot. The shoe fits much, much better now with the tighter range of adjustment.

Close-up. This was the cleaner of the two sewing hacks.

More close-up. Not bad, eh?

The machine tracked a bit off for this side (yeah, it was.... uh.... the machine! that's it, the machine goofed up.). Either way, it still works and is almost unnoticeable.

Good look at both shoes together. You can see the difference.  :(

All buttoned down in "on my foot" mode. Fits perfectly with the velcro portion fully... er, velc'd? Cro'd? With all the hooks on the one part hooked into the loops on the other part. 

Other side.

You can see that tightening the straps did not cause the upper to wrinkle too awful badly. That was a concern when I started, but it is not noticeable during normal wear. 

So there it is. I took my Skora Bases from almost unwearable for running on my skinny foot to delightfully snug. Also, I discovered that these shoes work better with a medium-to-thick sock than they do sockless. They are going to be my winter shoe of choice.

Next up: The thumb holes on my rad Mizuno WP (windproof) soft shell jacket are tiny - apparently designed for tiny Japanese runners. I have fatty American thumbs. How will I go about fixing this one? Maybe then I'l channel my inner Krupicka and start hacking away at my New Balance MT 100s that see no use these days.

Reminder to all readers: my giveaway of Michael Sandler's Barefoot Running movie ends tomorrow evening! Check out this post see how to enter. Stay tuned, and until then, happy running!

Movie Review and Giveaway: Michael Sandler's Barefoot Running

Oh, boy! The "trend" that is barefoot running has officially hit the small screen. The authors of the book Barefoot Running: How to Run Light and Free by Getting in Touch With the Earth are now the stars of the informational movie by the same name. Barefoot Running is available now on DVD from the RunBare website: a fantastic, well-designed resource for all things barefoot.

The movie.

After a representative for Michael Sandler (it may have actually been Michael, I have no idea) touched base with me about the upcoming release of his movie a few weeks ago, I was pretty stoked to see Michael spreading the good news of barefoot running in an other-than-text media. Obviously video can touch a different audience than books can because of the time and effort one must invest into reading. (I teach 7th grade reading and English; I know a thing or two about this.) I was fortunate enough to get a chance to see the film and have a copy to give away!

Here is a preview from the website:

I thought I might give a breakdown of the information you will find in this video with a short review/critique. After all, why would you visit my blog if you didn't care what I thought, right? The list below is a summary of the content of the video. It contains information on:
- Michael and Jessica's personal barefoot running stories: their respective history and how they discovered the joy of running shoeless.
- The biomechanics of barefoot running with practical tips and shoutouts to Barefoot Ted, Christopher MacDougall, and Dr. Daniel Lieberman of the Harvard Biomechanics lab
The instructional portion contained info about:
- Posture
- Core engagement
- "The String" ala Danny Dreyer/Chi Running
- Arm positioning
- The "Controlled fall" idea
- Definite forefoot strike instruction; without heel touching but sometimes "brushing" the ground
- Lots of borrowed/synthesized material from various sources (POSE, etc.)
- Grounding - a bit hokey and hippy-ish, but whatever.
- Pre-run meditation "listening to your body" - "syncing with nature"
- Great foot strengthening and warm-up drills
- Pretty, natural feet, wider forefoot for yoga platform
- Form drills: "pelvis to neutral," etc. - one of the video's biggest strengths
- Err on the easy side - never to the point of blistering
- Foam roller and ball technique (tennis)

Barefoot Running is a great resource that all avid barefooters should take a look at, but it is best as an introduction to running without shoes. Michael and Jessica's personalities are hilarious (they are huge nerds; I identify with that), and the instruction has an overall very hippy-esque taste to it. Regardless, there is a ton of great instruction on how to transition properly to running roads and trails with the least possible separation between you and nature.

Now on to business! Here's how the giveaway will work; you must complete one of these steps for one entry with the possibility of completing all three for a total of three! (confusing, I know).
- Post below in the comments = 1 entry
- Post a link to my blog on Facebook = 1 entry
- Do something creative to get people to visit here and post up (anything goes)= 1 entry

*Update: Tweet a link with the hashtag "#unshod" and consider that an extra entry! Contest ends on Friday, October 14.

Let me know in the comments which you have done. Enjoy, and best of luck.

Minimalist Shoe Review: Skora Base

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about how Skora, a newcomer to the shoe market, is one of the "next big things" in minimalist running. A representative from Skora was kind enough to contact me and ask if I would like to review a pair of their Base model (that's the actual name; it doesn't mean is has roll up windows and no air conditioning), and I was happy to oblige.

I was feeling a bit adventurous when placing my order, so I decided to go for the yellow colorway. Warning: in the pictures on Skora's website and elsewhere, the color is listed simply as yellow, and the pictures look like a pale canary. This is just a tad misleading because this yellow shoe is freaking retina-searing, fluorescent highlighter yellow. This is not a complaint; I needed a high-visibility shoe in my arsenal. It's just something to be mindful of when ordering yours. Note: The color is not accurate in my pictures either. The flash washes them out a bit. They are seriously bright.

First Impressions
Out of the box, the Base looks really well constructed with sharp design and high-quality materials. Putting on the shoe initially proved rather quick and easy - exactly what you would hope for and expect from a shoe that appears to be marketed directly at the triathlon crowd. The interior lining of the shoe is a perforated synthetic material which provides sufficient comfort for sockless wear. The insole is removable, of course, which allows for better ground feel and more room on the interior of the shoe. A bit puzzling is the design of said removable insole with its reverse dimpling. It feels like a golf ball turned inside out which I didn't find especially comfortable, but it was not even noticeable walking around. The upper, overall, is more structured than many of its competitors, but I don't necessarily see this as a negative. Weight is also on par with the competition - slightly better than the Altra Instinct.

Pretty sweet looking shoe.

A laminated toe cap of sorts. I assume this is to prevent excessive wear from toes contacting the roof of the toe box.

Insole in.

Without insole - smooth as butta.

You cannot see the reverse dimpling here, but it's there.

The insole is contoured, but I had no discomfort in my arch from it at all. No support, thank goodness.

Fit
One of the most prominent features of the Base is the X-style velcro strap. I like this idea a lot, and it really sets the shoe apart aesthetically from other minimalist offerings. However, as attractive and clever as it may be, this was my first indication that fit issues would plague my experience with Skora's shoe. Full disclosure: I have a long, thin foot except at my toes. I prefer a slim-fitting shoe through the arch with a super-wide toe box. The Base is the exact opposite. While the toe box on the Base is respectable for a traditional shoe, it is not sufficiently roomy for my preferences. I would place it somewhere between my Mizuno Wave Musha 2s and the New Balance Minimus Trail (MT10). The width of the ankle and arch portion of the shoe, however, is crazy wide on my foot - a size 11.5. To make the problem  a bit worse - and this is an issue with many shoes that feature velcro closures - there is not sufficient adjustment to fully tighten the shoe. The velcro strip on the shoe is too short/not low enough to cinch the shoe down.

You can get a good look at the toe box width ratio to the rest of the shoe in this pic.

This is the adjustment strap in the "fully taut" position. I'm not sure why shoe companies do this, but Skora is certainly not the only one.

Here you can see the strap adjusted to the "neutral" position. Notice the slack.

Slack.

Rear adjustment strap provides a surprising amount of fit modification.

All is not lost, though. There is an elastic adjustment strap on the back of the shoe to allow wearers to tweak the fit a bit, but this didn't fully resolve the issue for me. Instead, I took matters into my own hands.

My handiwork. I will post another pic later.

On the Road and Trail
Running in the Base took a bit of getting used to. The knobby rubber outsole and thin midsole is a bit on the rigid side, but I have noticed a good deal of break-in over the time I've worn them. There was an initial *clip-clop* that worked out of the shoe within the first 20 miles. The fit and construction of the shoe, with my foot shape, make it great for running on hard surfaces and little else. I would be hesitant to suggest the Base for running on technical trails because of the slop in the fit; the shoe moves around a lot on my foot if I have to cut or torque in them. I just can't cinch them down like I would want. For casual wear, the Base is fantastic. The yellow is extremely eye-catching, but I am fine with that. It matches my personality, and I am more confident in low-light out there on the roads. There is also prominent toe spring present in the Base, which may bother some. I have never had a problem with it.

Very well designed sole. The rubber outsole has proven quite durable. The little island in the heel felt a bit annoying initially, though.

Toe spring.

Notice the curvature of the sole. Toe spring does not bother me, but some people don't dig it.

The Verdict
The Base is an excellent first effort from an upstart company with tons of promise. The shoe certainly has its flaws: it's bit traditional in the toe box and wide in the rest of the shoe with limited and flawed adjustability, but its positives certainly outweigh its negatives. If you are a wide-footed runner or triathlete looking for a shoe as a first foray into minimalism, I would definitely recommend the Base. They go for $110. Check them out at Skora's official website.

Pull me up, Scotty.

A very popular topic amongst my running friends is cross-training. Crossfit seems to be the flavor du jour, and I believe that is for very good reason. It's built upon what I believe is a solid philosophy of interval circuits, and it is "open source" to meet the needs of the widest possible variety of fitness levels. My local gym, however, is a nearly 30-minute drive from my home and is crazy expensive! What's a lowly barefoot runner living on teacher pay to do?

Well, I have been slowly collecting items and evolving my garage into a training grounds to deal with my lack of overall strength without having to pay outrageous gym fees. My intention is to create a versatile space with the necessary tools for total-body workout of various designs while keeping costs way down and not taking over my parking/workspace. This is my favorite tool.

My hangboard is mounted on 1/2" plywood above the steps down to my garage. It's a perfect location where I can't help but see it every time I leave the house.

Wider shot from the garage entrance. Please ignore the clutter. It's quite a bit better now.

I've had my training board for a while, but I just put it up (with the help my my bro, Wesley) in our house recently. My lovely wife bought it for me for Fathers' Day a couple years ago, and it unfortunately sat after we moved. In the last six or so weeks, I have gone from a feeble two - maybe three - pull ups to a solid twelve dead-hangers. Since starting, I have seen consistent improvement in my overall upper body strength, shoulder development, grip strength, and core stability. Perhaps the area that I have seen the most drastic difference is my recovery: I can do sets of pull ups now where just a few weeks ago I would eek out three or four reps and that was it for the rest of the day...maybe two days. Push ups are also easier which I suspect is a result of both shoulder and core strength.

My training has consisted of simply executing as many good-form pull ups as possible every time I walk out the door. When I reach failure, I just hang there until my grip is exhausted. Sophisticated, I know. Every once in a while, maybe once/week, I have been integrating sets of pull ups into a complete workout. That's it. I have just begun trying some of the more advanced elements on the board: L-hangs and leg raises (core-specific workouts) and some of the smaller holds. I shall have an iron grip and a six pack!!! My goal is 20 pull ups before the Summer is over.

Oh, and I don't kip. Kipping is for losers. :)

Here is the link to the board I have. It goes for about $80 at Backcountry.com which is retail. In my opinion, this is a much better tool than a pull up bar. It is more versatile, practical, and real-world applicable. I like it!

The Next Big Thing - Products to get excited about: Part 1 - Skora

So, barefoot running as a movement is officially having a serious impact on major shoe design throughout the industry. "Barefoot" and minimalist shoes are now making up a significant percentage of overall running shoe sales in the U.S., and all indications are that the trend is only going to increase. The fact that some of the big boys (New Balance, Merrell, Nike!, etc.) are on board with increasingly minimal footwear is great news for gear junkies like myself, but I get really fired up by the smaller, innovative upstart companies that are pushing the envelope in innovation and design. I most recently reviewed the exquisite, ultra-minimalist Altra Adam and found a new favorite road shoe.

All the pretty colors!

With a market so newly-flooded with intriguing minimalist shoes, one may ask where a smaller company fits into the picture. Skora, a complete newcomer, appears to be aiming at becoming the Apple or Volkswagen of the running shoe world. Their product line, currently consisting of the asymmetrically-laced Form and the criss-crossed-with-velcro-straps Base road running models, boasts high-quality materials, innovative and unique designs, a "connected" running experience, and a fetching aesthetic. For a complete list of features, check out the tech section of Skora's website. The combination of these factors really sets Skora apart from the field, and their prices reflect it ($125-$195). If the shoes are as good as they claim, however, I believe the prices will prove quite reasonable. I would expect the Base to appeal greatly to the triathlon crowd which would put it in direct competition with another boutique-cum-heavy-hitter Newton. The Form is a bit harder to categorize, but its appeal to minimalists is already clear simply based on its zero-drop, proprioception-focused construction, which is still quite rare especially in such a neat looking package. I hope to be able to review one or both of the Skora models in the near future to bring everyone the full picture with a feature-by-feature breakdown. *fingers crossed*

Interesting marketing angle. Oddly enough, Skora's shoe might just be a preview of the future of running shoes - making minimalism the new normal. I dig it.

The two flagships. Note the prices.

One item that Skora has unquestionably gotten 100% right is the educational side of the running equation. Skora seems to have taken cues from the likes of Merrell and VIVOBAREFOOT by rolling out instructional materials that teach good running form. The fact that the majority of runners transitioning to minimalist shoes that have not run barefoot/minimalist before are going to have to drastically change how they run is embraced by Skora. Their method: "The Three Rs." They stand for reconnect, reposition, and rhythm.


Related anecdote: I remember being a teenager watching videos of skateboarders shredding a session down an entire city block and getting completely pumped to go ride my skateboard. As I matured, I recognized in myself a love  of watching videos of athletes doing athletic things athletically because it always motivates the heck out of me. Runners with strong form now top the list (followed by rock climbers/boulderers; I could watch that crap all day!). If you suffer from the same tendencies, here's a bit of motivation from Skora to give you that push off the couch. Enjoy!

For more info on form, products, and pricing, check out RunReal.com or Skorarunning.com.  

Sidelined!

Okay, so I just realized that it has been two months since my last post. That's unacceptable, but there is a reason. I'll explain. Warning, it's depressing, (at least to me), but maybe some of you can sympathize.

My last post explained how I was jumping into a marathon totally unprepared because I was getting free entry and I'm a cheapskate that cannot pass up a deal like that. Well, the race entry fell through, so my weekend running partner, Richard, and I ran over 20 miles that Saturday to commemorate the race. I had been battling some intermittent illiotibial band issues for a couple months at this point due to increasingly long weekend runs, but the issues seemed to come and go without much of a clear pattern. I ran about seven of those 20 miles on that Saturday morning barefoot and felt pretty good at the end despite being completely spent - the kind of tired you feel when you know you are getting good training. It might be important to not that this was the longest distance I had ever run... by far! Prior to this run, I had never gone more than 14 miles in training.

For those that don't know what the heck I'm talking about, this is a sinewy, muscly diagram. (medicinenet.com)

As the next week progressed, I just focused on resting and letting my body heal. On my next run, I could tell all was not well. I got a nasty tightness in one hip/upper-outside thigh, then the other in the same place starting around mile two that didn't go away. I stopped and stretched at a few points which helped a bit but didn't resolve it. After our run, I was concerned even though my legs felt alright. I enjoyed the rest of my Saturday on the couch until I tried to get up. Yeouch! The outside of my thighs and knees were wound tighter than a snare drum and hurt like the dickens! I knew immediately what it was due to my previous ITB bouts, but this was altogether different. The severity was several times that of previous attacks, and I have been basically forced to shut it down since then.

In the weeks following, I have tried to run distances up to five miles. Each one has been shorter than the last, and each one has been interrupted and/or followed by a bout out ITB flare up. I have essentially no choice but to completely stop running for the foreseeable future, and I will work toward rehab, healing and strengthening in the interim. Right now, I plan to spend a lot of time on my bicycle, do lots of squats and lunges, and utilize the heck out of my foam roller.

This photo depicts a very unrealistic foam rolling exercise. Why is it unrealistic, you ask?  Because the lady  is smiling. This hurts like hell!!!!