Cursed Realm of the Faceless Ghost

April 25, 2024

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Location:

Provo,UT,

Member Since:

Apr 07, 2010

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

5K - 17:11 (Cougar Run)

10K - 34:35 (Deseret News)

15K - 57:33 (Utah Running Club)

1/2 - 1:22:26 (Mountain View Trail)

50K - 4:22:31 (Sapper Joe)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Sub-2:45 at Saint George Marathon

Win the Antelope Island half marathon

Long-Term Running Goals:

I'd like to run the Angeles Crest 100 at some point. And I'd still like to go sub-4 at a trail 50k. Other than that, I'm open to suggestions.

https://www.strava.com/athletes/4808912

Personal:

I was a competitive cyclist for years. In 2009, after racing in the Tour of Utah, I decided I had plateaued as a cyclist--I could continue to improve, but I wouldn't break through to a new level. So, I started looking for a new challenge.

I thought that challenge would be mountain biking, but I'm a terrible bike handler. I married Catherine in January 2010 and a couple of weeks later I entered the SLTC Winter Training Series with her. A couple of weeks after that I decided I'd like to run ultras, so I signed up for a couple of 50Ks to get started.

Those first races came and went, with varying results. I was looking forward to running more and possibly pushing into the longer distances, but I injured my knee in June 2010 and I've never been consistently healthy since.

I started law school in August 2010, which meant less time for training. In June 2011, Baby Elliott was born, which meant even less time for training. But she's worth it.

Baby Nora joined us in October 2013, with the same effect on training as Elliott (who, incidentally, is no longer a baby).

I (finally) finished school in April 2014 and now I'm an evil corporate lawyer in Salt Lake. I have no illusions that I'll ever get back into the shape that I once was, but I'm perfectly at peace with that. I still have many goals to accomplish and many years in which to do it.

Click to donate

to Ukraine's Armed Forces

Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00

Wed, Apr 06, 2011

Total Distance

4.00

Here's a story that helps explain why I'm prone to overuse injuries. During our run on Friday, Jun and I talked about switching to a midfoot stride as a possible solution to my knee problems. I'd though of that before (a great deal, in fact), so when Aaron K. suggested the same thing on my blog yesterday, I was all ears (especially since he seems to have had such great success with the switch). So, I was determined to run my entire ten miles yesterday without hitting my heels. After about six miles my calves and ankles were starting to hurt. By eight miles they were screaming. Even so, I refused to listen to my body and quit, pressing on until the end, when my calves and ankles were in absolute agony.

Anyways, I'm not injured as a result of my stubborness. Just very sore. The plus side is that because of the soreness, I decided to cross train instead of run today. So even if the whole forefoot thing doesn't benefit my knee directly, it may end up doing so indirectly by forcing me not to run for a day or two. Good deal.

One hour on the stair machine. Law and Order Special Victims Unit sucks.

Brooks Launch Miles: 4.00

Weight: 166.00

Comments

From jun on Thu, Apr 07, 2011 at 10:46:36 from 66.239.250.209

yeah, the transition is slow, but the long term benefits are huge. And any of the LandO shows suck.

From Aaron Kennard on Thu, Apr 07, 2011 at 15:48:40 from 98.245.117.176

hahahahaha. Yeah...10 miles on your toes out the gate is not the recommend approach...necessarily.

You really should transition into it. Also, studying more information on form, like at http://barefootrunning.com/. Also, even more highly recommended is http://www.chirunning.com/. They aren't so focused on barefoot, as they are on form. In fact the book doesn't even talk about running bare foot.

Not sure if I understood what you meant by 'not hitting my heals', but not letting your heals ever touch the ground is not recommended :) Maybe you just meant, not letting your heals touch the ground first. My heals almost always touch the ground with each step, just not first. Unless its super steep incline.

From peaks on Thu, Apr 07, 2011 at 15:50:59 from 173.165.132.1

i went to a Runners Corner running clinic at BYU last night. they mentioned the same thing (minus your ankle pain), when you adjust your running style to their "correct" method you're going to feel it in your calves for a while. if you haven't been to one of those classes you should check it out, it was very helpful for me! The class was about 2 hours and they video tape & analyze your running form all for $5. I'm not sure how often they have the classes....

From Chad Robinson on Thu, Apr 07, 2011 at 15:56:50 from 67.136.62.186

I second what Aaron said. You are going to damage your achiles, feet or calves if you go at it to hard. Finding a zero-drop shoe will make the transition easier. I used racing flats and then Vibrams. And yes, your heals to hit the ground but it is a tap/touch not a strike. Just remember that all the forces of running are still there, they are just being absorbed by different parts of your body (ankles, feet, calves ect).

From Faceless Ghost on Fri, Apr 08, 2011 at 01:54:12 from 98.202.112.51

Everyone is right about the easing in thing. Unfortunately, I have a tendency to finish what I start, even when I know better. I should have backed off when things started to hurt, but I pushed on stubbornly, so I guess I got what I deserved.

To clarify--when I say I didn't touch my heels, I mean I didn't pound them. Had I run otherwise, I think I'd be even more sore than I am now :)

Aaron--thanks for those links. I'll definitely check them out.

From Faceless Ghost on Fri, Apr 08, 2011 at 01:55:44 from 98.202.112.51

Chad-- I actually ordered some xc flats this week. 2E, so they fit like a normal running shoe. They came today, and I can't wait to run in them when my leg stops hurting.

From Chad Robinson on Fri, Apr 08, 2011 at 02:14:06 from 208.110.158.185

I love running in flats. Somehow they always make you feel fast. Good luck and try to be patient.

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