Run Brian, Run

I was not born a runner nor am I much of an athlete. Due to a high cholesterol level I started an exercise regiment that includes a treadmill and weights. For over a year I have been doing my best to get up every morning at 4:30am to get to the gym for a solid workout before work.

Most days I spend 1/2 hour to 45 minutes on the treadmill. I began my treadmill regiment with a brisk walk but this past year was inspired to begin running. The inspiration came from volunteering at a charity run for a friends non-profit organization. Being a part of this run and meeting the people who were running in the event made me want to run.

This past week was the first time I moved the running from the treadmill to the road. My route covers a hair over three miles. Two of which are on the road and one is through the nature park on unpaved paths. So far so good. Both times I ended up in the rain which to my surprise I actually enjoyed. I know it'll beat running in the heat of summer.

One of the other things that we saw at the charity race that inspired me was a family of barefoot runners. The dad was totally barefoot pushing a running stroller with two kids. The mom however had some of the funkiest shoes I've ever laid eyes on. This week I picked up a pair. I am going to give barefoot running a try.

These are the Vibram Five Fingers. My first worry about these shoes was the loss of cushion and what that would mean to my untrained older joints. After reading numerous articles and reviews about barefoot running and these shoes in particular I decided it was worth trying.

Yesterday's run went very well. As many of the articles warned, I feel some new muscles that were not being worked previously. What I noticed running in these shoes was the loss of cushion, which concerned me, was replaced with the feel of the road and trail which was exhilarating. Instead of my feet being isolated they were free.

I've got a long road ahead as I train my old body to do something it hasn't done much of before but I am excited about it. Gotta run!