MANILA, Philippines - I ran my first barefoot race more than two years ago. It was at the 2009 Kenny’s Urbanite Run at The Fort, and I was nervous at what I was about to attempt. I had ditched my tried-and-tested motion control running shoes and instead, I was relying on the experiences of a man who called himself Barefoot Ted. Ted was straight out of the pages of Born to Run, a book about the fabled Tarahumara runners written by Christopher McDougall. Its premise was outrageous. It claimed that shoe technology was a modern myth, and that the fastest runners in the world ran more efficiently in flat sandals or huaraches. Sometimes they even ran fully barefoot.
Was there any truth to the story? I was about to find out.
Thirty-nine years ago, I was born with feet that were as flat as an iron. In the ’70s, that meant customized corrective boots, artificial supports for retail shoes, and instructions to never let me go barefoot. In hindsight, none of these apparently worked because my feet continued hurting during PE and sports. Running was particularly agonizing, and as much as I enjoyed it, the pain eventually made me give it up.
Things changed in 2007 when I was diagnosed as pre-hypertensive and put on a diet of pills. After suffering grogginess and various side effects, I decided to make a deal with my doctor. I asked for three months to clean up my diet and engage in a sport — any sport — that would bring down my blood pressure and improve my cholesterol levels. I started going to the gym and hit the streets for short runs.
I started doing 5K around the village, followed by 10K runs with friends, eventually joining various races. I was average at best, neither fast nor inclined to do long distances. I blamed the pain. Despite wearing the latest in motion-control shoe technology, my flat feet still ached. I resorted to foot baths and icing my knees after every run which provided some relief. Still, I resolved to challenge myself more and sign up for a half-marathon. I accepted a friend’s invitation to join Globe’s first Run for Home race in 2009 and began to train in earnest.
It was a disaster. Although I finished in just slightly over 2:30, I was practically limping at the finish line. I woke up the following day with plantar fasciitis, shin splints, and a sore back, forcing me to take the day off.
Stuck in bed, I spent the day researching on running injuries and alternative running techniques. I eventually found myself in Ted McDonald’s Google group for minimalist runners. Ted had an interesting pitch. He claimed that barefoot running wasn’t about pushing through pain to gain speed or endurance. It was about returning to a naturalist form of running, of re-training our feet to be the strong, sophisticated appendages they are that connect us to the ground and allow us to be intimately aware of our environment.
Ted listed three training goals for a successful transition to minimalist running:
1. Gentle & silent mid-foot landings.
2. A quicker cadence through shorter strides and slightly bent knees for natural shock absorption.
3. An upright posture with your core engaged, belly button pulled into the spine with no bending at the waist.
So a month later, I found myself at the Kenny’s Urbanite Run with less than 4mm of padding under my feet and curious stares from fellow runners who mistook my shoes for toe socks.
An hour and seven minutes later, I was done.
Crossing the finish line was almost anti-climactic. All I felt was some soreness along my calves but none of the piercing pain that I had almost grown accustomed to when finishing a race. And it was the most fun I’d had running. Ever.
Things moved quickly after that. I became fully committed to barefoot running and, together with Dindo Magallanes and Mike Logico, organized a Facebook community called Barefoot Running Philippines for like-minded Pinoys. We now have nearly 1,200 members from all over the country.
Today, my running mileage is 25-percent pure barefoot. The rest of the time, I’m in minimalist shoes like Merrell’s Barefoot Trail Glove, which I like because of the extra-wide toe box. I’ve finished three marathons injury-free with no plantar or ITB problems and am looking forward to my first ultramarathon in 2012.
Barefoot running, in my opinion, is here to stay. Judging by the interest online and offline, it is a movement that will continue to grow and influence the way we run in the years to come.