Cold Feet

So my intention for the last week has been to go outside and run completely barefoot in an attempt to strengthen my feet.  I have been doing some research on how to ease into minimalistic running and that was a suggestion that made sense to me.  Run only as far as your bare feet can tolerate so you don't overdo it.  I just couldn't quite get myself to get out the door though, especially when I remembered my walk from last week!   

I went for a 2 mile walk in my VFF's last Thursday afternoon around Wright Park- it was a beautiful, crisp day and I took advantage of a free hour before work.  As I wandered through the park, talking to squirrels and people watching I realized that my toes were pretty cold.  Then they became painfully cold...then numb and I couldn't feel them anymore.  They were like little frozen sticks.  I am not a fan of being cold! 

I didn't buy socks to wear with my Vibram's because they felt too "bunchy" when I tried them on.  I might be willing to get past that if it means I can retain sensation in my toes when I am outside!  It also might make a difference when I am actually running too- I wasn't exactly generating any extra body heat just walking.  I guess I will find out soon enough.

So I compromised with myself and did my barefoot run on my treadmill this morning.  I did a 10 minute walking warm-up, a 10 minute run then a 5 minute cool down.  All while just wearing some socks!  It was such a cool sensation to run barefoot.  You can feel every time you break form or step down heavy and correct it with the next step you take.  I think I am going to enjoy this new way of running a lot.  I will be adding 5 minutes to each run this week, then next week I will switch to the VFF's and should be able to start doing longer distances.

I have officially put a race on my calendar.  I will be running the 2010 Santa Runs Tacoma- Frosty's 5K on December 18th.  It will be my first race in my VFF's so that is exciting!  Cynthia is running with me and we are going to be dressing up.  We haven't picked our costume yet but we have a few ideas.  I can't wait!  This is the longest I have gone between races since June! 
www.santarunstacoma.com

The holidays are in full swing at our house!  We put our tree up a couple of weekends ago and decorated our gingerbread house.  I somehow managed to get Christmas cards addressed and in the mail today.  I haven't started my shopping yet- I probably need to get on that!  I love driving around and seeing all the pretty lights and listening to the kids ooohhs and aaaahhs over them.  I also love watching old holiday movies and listening to Christmas music.  The holidays are a hectic time, just remember to actually take time to enjoy them!     

I will leave you with a picture of a lego vehicle my daughter built the other day.  I especially like the 4 heads on the back with a walkie talkie in the middle.  She explained to me that they were "extras".  Oh good, you never know when you might need an extra head!  And don't forget the 4 extra bodies too.   Just in case.