I hope everyone is enjoying their barefoot accomplishments over the past year. I certainly have enjoyed getting more into barefoot running and also completing my first ever barefoot marathon last month. I was really surprised to be able to continue to keep up my mileage after the race. My secondary goal was to get to 500 miles for the year and with the mild weather in November and early December it wasn't too difficult. I did several longer weekly workouts in early December and peaked with a 12 Miler on 12/12/12.
I may have actually overdone it a little on the 12th, since I had just done a 10 miler on the 10th. Afterward, I had quite a bit of pain in the left foot and sort of gave up on the 500 mile goal even though I only needed another 14 miles at that point. That following Friday on Dec 14, my Dad passed away from a massive heart attack, just a few days shy of his 79th birthday. It hit me like a ton of bricks. Even though Dad had seen his share of health issues over the past several years, he seemed healthier than ever the two times I had just seen him in November. His death came as a big shock to the whole family. It was somewhat cathartic to complete my 14 miles over the next few days to take my mind off everything. I'm sure that Dad is in Heaven and that has definitely made it more bearable. I ran a 10 miler on Dec. 20th, just two days before the funeral which got me just over the 500 mile point. The weather turned snowy the next day, so it has been a good time to take a break from running to rest up and recover. Running is definitely a blessing when going through hard times. The physical activity gives such a needed release of the stress we build up without even realizing it.
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| Uncle Dan with Joshua-2 and Timothy-3mo |
My family is now on a trip out to Virginia to visit my brother-in-law David, his wife Beth and their family. They have two boys, Joshua Jay-2yr, and Timothy Ford-3mo. While here, we have enjoyed travelling out to see Mount Vernon and also visited the Natural History Museum at the Smithsonian. I toyed with the idea of doing a little barefoot running out here, since the weather is so much better than in Indiana which now has about a foot of snow on the ground. But I still haven't run a step and think I will just continue to rest and recover. At this point I'll just save my miles for January...and training for the Mini Marathon...which will be my first Mini in 4 years and of course my first ever barefoot half marathon(unless I get a wild hair and do the Sam Costa in March). It will all depend on how much "hibernating" I do during the next few weeks back in Indiana. The wet salty roads won't be too inviting so I may have even more rest than I really want, but we'll see.
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| Visit to George Washington's home - Mt. Vernon, VA |
I'm not big on making (or keeping) new year's resolutions but I do have a goal of incorporating even longer and more frequent barefoot runs into the schedule. I really enjoyed learning over the past year what the body can really do, and look forward to even more discovery next year. If there are some of you out there who never tried barefooting or tried it-overdid it-and then gave up, I invite you to give it another try this coming year. Just go slow, do small distances and let your body be your guide. Your feet are the two best running coaches you could ever ask for so if you give it a try...LISTEN TO THEM!
Happy Barefooting in 2013,
Barefoot Dan
December Mileage: 60 miles (included two 10s and a 12)
2012 Mileage: 500 miles
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