Trail Runners Outpost

Karl Meltzer's Run on the Pony Express Trail

2010-11-11T07:30:00.000-08:00

This video documents Karl Meltzer's record breaking run on the Pony Express Trail. Not the type of dirt trail most think of when trail running, but an awesome run nonetheless.

Superior Trail Running Tour

2010-11-10T07:26:00.000-08:00

Video showing an Adventure Running Co. trail tour on the Superior Trail in Northern Minnesota.

Superior Trail Tour 2010 from Andy Holak on Vimeo.

West Virginia Mountain Trail Runners

2010-11-09T07:24:00.000-08:00

This is a great video documenting the work that the West Virginia Mountain Trail Runners do to run the Highlands Sky 40 mile trail race and also to maintain trails in federal wilderness areas. The Highlands Sky 40 mile race is one of the few in the nation that runs through federally designated wilderness. The Wilderness Act which created the wilderness preservation system doesn't allow races in wilderness areas. The legislation used to create the new Roaring Plains and Dolly Sods Wilderness Areas specifically allowed the race to continue. This video documents the great work that the West Virginia Mountain Trail Runners do to care for these special trails. You can find out more about WVMTR here as well: http://www.wvmtr.org

New Balance Minumus Line: A Sneak Peak

2010-09-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

Cool video featuring Anton Krupicka and the simplicity of trail running with a sneak peak of the new New Balance Minimus shoe

Great Event Calendar for Upper Midwest Trail Runners

2010-03-31T13:21:00.000-07:00

Check out the Upper Midwest Trail Races blog for a great calendar of trail running events for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, the Dakotas, Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. Very comprehensive and well updated.

The Donner Lake Rim Trail

2010-03-10T06:02:00.000-08:00

From the Truckee Donner Land Trust:

The Donner Lake Rim Trail, a project of the Truckee Donner Land Trust, is almost entirely an all-volunteer effort to build a trail encircling the peaks around Donner Lake. Hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians can enjoy the stunning views of the Lake, Mount Rose and the Pacific Crest from the trail, which will be 23 miles when complete.

Trail runners too!

For more information visit: Truckee Donner Land Trust

Exploring the Donner Lake Rim Trail

2010-03-09T08:01:00.001-08:00

Exploring Donner Lake Rim Trail @ Yahoo! Video

Florida Trail Running

2010-02-01T13:41:00.000-08:00

Check out this great resource for Florida trail runners - Florida Trail Running

Humans Were Born To Run Barefoot

2010-01-28T07:53:00.000-08:00

Article from National Public Radio. Here's the NPR Link to the All Things Considered audio of the program about barefoot running.

January 27, 2010

Humans are excellent two-legged walkers. It's one of the things that make us such successful creatures.

And there are some scientists who say we're naturally born runners as well, that our bodies evolved to run. Now, anthropologist Dan Lieberman, one of the proponents of the "human runner" school, concludes that we do it better without shoes.

He says human ancestors needed to run well — both away from big animals and after small, tasty ones, for example. He based that view on fossil bones. But lately he's been studying runners — living ones.

Video: A Look At Running With And Without Shoes

Shoes Or No Shoes, That Is The Question

It started at a lecture he gave before the Boston Marathon. A barefoot runner — someone who runs long distances without shoes — peppered the professor with questions he couldn't answer. So Lieberman took him to his lab at Harvard University. He had him run over a flat metal plate that measures the collisional force of a footfall. Lieberman says runners generate a lot of collisional force.

"Most runners, when they land and they heel-strike — they land on their heel — they generate this sudden impulse, this sharp spike of force. So it's like someone hitting you on the heel with a hammer, about 1 1/2 to 3 times your body weight," he says.

Benton et. al.

Most shod runners land on their heels, which generates a sudden, sharp spike of force. Barefoot runners land farther forward, closer to the ball of their foot, which exerts much less force in comparison.

But Lieberman was surprised by the extremely low force readings made by the barefoot runner.

"He ran across the force plate, and he didn't have [a high spike], and I thought, gee, that's really amazing, and it kind of makes sense because that spike of force hurts, and I wonder if other barefoot runners do that."

So Lieberman tested several groups of runners: Kenyans who'd been walking and running barefoot all their lives; Americans who grew up walking and running in shoes; and some who had switched from shoes to running barefoot.

On The Ball

Lieberman found that runners in shoes usually landed heel-first. Barefoot runners landed farther forward, either on the ball of their foot or somewhere in the middle of the foot, and then the heel came down — much less collisional force.

And people who switched from shoes to barefoot running eventually, without prompting, adopted the barefoot style. Lieberman, who runs marathons himself, says the reason is simple.

"It's pain avoidance. It's very easy to do. I mean, your body naturally tells you what to do," he says.

Running shoes dampen the shock of a heel-first landing, so that's probably why shod people run that way, Lieberman says.

But is that the most efficient way to run? Lieberman thinks not.

"Turns out that the way in which barefoot runners run seems to store up more energy," he says.

More Spring Out Of The Step

To understand how that works, I talked to anthropologist Brian Richmond at George Washington University. He points out that the human foot has an arch with ligaments inside that stretch and contract with every footfall.

"It allows the arch of the foot and the calf muscles to act as a better spring and to store up energy, and then give it back in the beginning of the next step," Richmond says.

Think of a compressed mattress spring pushed down and then released. Richmond agrees with Lieberman that the front-first landing of barefoot running probably capitalizes on that spring mechanism more than heel-first landing — it gets more spring out of the spring.

Richmond, in fact, has discovered fossilized footprints dating back 1 1/2 million years. Those human ancestors who left them had an arch. They were walking when they left the prints, but Richmond suspects that when they ran, they landed front-first.

"It looks like this is how our ancestors have been running for a million years or more," he says. "It's only been in the last 10,000 years that we've had any kind of shoes, really."

Lieberman published his findings in the journal Nature. He received research funding from a company that makes "minimal" shoes, which mimic barefoot conditions, but he adds that he received no personal income from the company. He also says he's not taking sides over which style of running is better or safer.

"I mean, I think we have to be really, really careful about what we do and don't know. We have not done any injury studies; this is not an injury study," he says. That's next.

How to transition to running in minimalist shoes

2010-01-21T07:19:00.000-08:00

I’ve had several questions about my minimalist transition, how to’s, etc. So I thought I’d look back and try to put it in a generalized “how-to” post, based on my experience. With the benefit of hindsight, I put it into a generic 8 week program to be full time in a minimalist shoe in 2 months. I personally made the full transition in 6 weeks, but please keep in mind, I’m an ultrarunner and typically run a minimum of 2000 miles a year, compete in a least 6 ultramarathon races per year and have been doing this for nearly a decade. So, my transition may be a bit quicker than most. However, if you spend time barefoot and re-learn your proper running stride (barefoot), listen to your body and don’t overdue it giving your body time to adapt, I truly believe you can do this. And, it won’t take as long as you might think. Happy natural running!

Read the rest of the article on Jeff Brownings blog!

Why expensive trainers could be worse than useless

2010-01-12T12:05:00.001-08:00

Western runners, of whom 90 per cent suffer injuries every year, would be better off leaving their sneakers at home, and running barefoot.

By Chris McDougall

Published: 7:00AM GMT 12 Jan 2010

(photo by Luis Escobar)

Science and sceptical runners are catching up with something the Tarahumara Indians have known for ever: your naked feet are fine on their own. According to a growing body of clinical research, those expensive running shoes you've been relying on may be worse than useless: they could be causing the very injuries they're supposed to prevent.

Perhaps the best research in the field has been going on for hundreds of years in a maze of canyons in northern Mexico. There, the reclusive Tarahumara tribe routinely engage in races of 150 miles or more, the equivalent of running the London Marathon six times in the same day.

Despite this extreme mileage, as I learnt during several treks into the canyons, the Tarahumara are somehow immune to the injuries that plague the rest of the running world.

Out here in the non-Tarahumara world, where we have access to the best in sports medicine, training innovations and footwear, up to 90 per cent of all marathoners are injured every year.

The Tarahumara, by contrast, remain spry and healthy deep into old age. I saw numerous men

and women in their seventies loping up steep, cliffside switchbacks on their way to villages 30 miles away. Back in 1994, a Tarahumara man ventured out of the canyons to compete against an elite field of runners at the Leadville Trail Ultramarathon, a 100-mile race through the Rocky Mountains. He wore homemade sandals. He was 55 years old. He won.

So how do the Tarahumara protect their legs from all that pounding? Simple – they don't. They

don't protect and, most critically, they don't pound. When the Tarahumara aren't barefoot, they wear nothing more cushioned than thin, hard sandals fashioned from discarded tire treads and leather thongs. In place of artificial shock

absorption, they rely on an ancient running technique that creates a naturally gentle landing. Unlike the vast majority of modern runners, who come down heavily on their foam-covered heels and roll forward off their toes, the Tarahumara land lightly on their forefeet and bend their knees, as you would if you jumped from a chair.

This ingenious, easy-to-learn style could have a profound effect on runners, not to mention the multi-billion dollar running-shoe industry. Ever since Nike created the modern running shoe in the Seventies, new joggers have been repeatedly warned that their first step should be through the door of a speciality store. Without proper footwear, they're told, crippling injuries are inevitable. Take this recent comment by Dr Lewis G Maharam, "the world's premier running physician" as he's known, and medical director for the New York City Marathon. "In 95 per cent of the population or higher, running barefoot will land you in my office," Maharam said. That's because only "a very small number of people are biomechanically perfect."

Shortly before the New York City Marathon, David Willey, the editor of Runner's World magazine, broadcast a similarly dire warning on the radio. "If a lot of runners or all the runners out there in America did that tomorrow [ran without shoes], the vast majority of them would get hurt very quickly and would have to stop running for a long time." And why? Because, Willey said, "the vast majority of people are not blessed in that way. They've got some biomechanical inefficiencies."

This logic has at least one major flaw: the vast majority of runners, "blessed" or otherwise, are getting hurt anyway. The injury rate among all runners has hovered somewhere between 60 and 80 per cent for the past 40 years. You'd expect casualties to decrease as technology improved, but you'd be wrong: there are more heel and Achilles' tendon injuries now than ever, even though Adidas sells a trainer with a microprocessor in the sole to customise cushioning, and Asics spent $3 million, and eight years – three more than it took the Manhattan Project to create the first atomic bomb – to invent the awe-inspiring "Kinsei", a shoe that boasts "multi-angled forefoot gel pods" and an "infinitely adaptable heel component".

Astonishingly, there's no evidence that any of this technology does anything, which may explain why Nike ads never explain what, exactly, those $190 shoes are supposed to do. In a 2008 research paper for the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Dr Craig Richards, a physician at the University of Newcastle in Australia, revealed that after scouring 30 years' worth of studies, he couldn't find a single one that demonstrated that running shoes made you less prone to injury.

So if shoes aren't the solution, could they be the problem? That's what Dr Daniel Lieberman, the head of the evolutionary anthropology department at Harvard, began to wonder. Humans, after all, are the only creatures that voluntarily cover their feet, and we're also the only creatures known to suffer from corns, bunions, hammer-toes and heel pain.

Last spring, Lieberman recruited Harvard students for an experiment: he had them kick off their sneakers and run every day in either bare feet or wearing a thin, rubber foot-glove called the Vibram Fivefingers. The results were remarkable. Once their shoes were taken away, the students instinctively stopped clumping down on their heels. Instead, they began landing lightly on the balls of their feet, keeping their feet beneath their hips and bending at the knees and ankles. Without knowing it, they were mirroring the Tarahumara.

Lieberman was so taken by his discovery that before long, he was startling undergraduates by loping past them in bare feet for miles at a time through the streets of suburban Boston.

In Germany, meanwhile, the world's leading researcher in human connective tissue, Dr Robert Schleip at the University of Ulm, began a similar experiment to see whether he could end his own battle with plantar fasciitis, a vexing heel pain that is almost impossible to cure fully.

"If you encase the foot in thick shoes," Schleip says, "you not only lose ground awareness, you limit your natural elasticity." Schleip began slipping out of his shoes to run barefoot through the parks of Berlin. Soon, his heel pain vanished, never to return.

So harmful are running shoes that you're better off walking in high heels. That's the conclusion of a study published this month in PM&R, the journal for the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. A team of researchers put 68 young adult runners on a treadmill, and found that they suffered 38 per cent more twisting in their knees and ankles when wearing shoes than they did in bare feet.

"Remarkably, the effect of running shoes on knee joint torques," the lead researcher said, "is even greater than the effect that was reported earlier of high-heeled shoes during walking."

Similarly, a study in The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness in March 2009 found that even when running on hard surfaces, barefoot runners experience less impact than runners with shoes because – as the Harvard students discovered – they naturally take shorter strides and bend their knees and ankles. No one needed to feed those numbers to Abebe Bikila, the two-time Olympic champion, or Zola Budd, who held the

5,000 metre world record and competed for Britain in the 1984 Los Angeles Games: both preferred running in bare feet.

Sceptics like to argue that runners bring injuries on themselves by doing their miles on hard, man-made surfaces and being less athletic than marathoners of yore. That reasoning ignores the fact that barefoot humans got along quite well on hard terrain for two million years, running on cement-like surfaces like the sun-baked African savannah, the beaten-dirt trails of the Amazon, and the stony canyons of Mexico.

When it comes to novices, no one has more experience than the military and less margin for error. For centuries, armies have had to train out-of-shape recruits to cover marathon distances on their feet. Rather than dispensing plush trainers, the military took another route. As described in the classic military text The Soldier's Foot and the Military Shoe, all new recruits are taught to land lightly on the balls of their feet. They keep their feet under their hips, swinging their legs in a quick, light shuffle to a beat of 180 strides per minute – which, not surprisingly, exactly matches the ancient running rhythm of the Tarahumara.

Running Shoes More Damaging Than High Heels?

2010-01-07T07:41:00.000-08:00

The following is an article from the New Zealand Herald.  Interestingly, we're not barefoot runners here but we are forefoot runners and try to use minimal shoes.  This barefoot running phenomenon is very interesting and instructional so we enjoy reporting on it.  Many people are looking at barefoot running as an option so we hope we can provide some insight here to help people determine if it is right for them.

From the New Zealand Herald:

The average running shoe used by millions of jogging enthusiasts does more damage to the joints than tottering along in a pair of high heels, researchers have found.

Although running shoes protect the foot by cushioning the impact, they impose greater stress on the joints in the ankle, knee and hip than running barefoot, they say.  The finding will dismay the tens of thousands of runners in training for the London marathon next April, many of whom will have spent large sums on state-of-the-art running shoes.

The researchers tested 68 adults of both sexes who were observed running on a treadmill, wearing a typical running shoe "selected for its neutral classification and design characteristics typical of most running footwear" and barefoot.  They measured the forces ("torque") exerted and found they were 54 per cent greater at the hip, 36 per cent higher at the knee and 38 per cent higher at the ankle than when running barefoot.  Writing in the journal of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, they say the construction of modern running shoes provides good support and protection of the foot itself but neglects the effects on the joints.

The authors from JKM Technologies, manufacturers of footwear, and the department of physical medicine at the University of Virginia, say: "Remarkably, the effect of running shoes on knee joint torques during running (36 - 38 per cent increase) that the authors observed here is even greater than the effect that was reported earlier of high-heeled shoes during walking (20 -26 per cent increase)."

"Considering that lower extremity joint loading is of a significantly greater magnitude during running than is experienced during walking, the current findings indeed represent substantial biomechanical changes."

What is needed, they say, is a footwear design that reduces forces on the joints to that of barefoot running, while still cushioning the feet as traditional shoes do.

Inspirational Video "Race for the Soul" Available Online

2010-01-06T06:57:00.000-08:00

"Race for the Soul", an inspirational video about the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, a 100 mile trail race in California, is now available for viewing online. The video is available on YouTube in six installments. Check it out below:

12 Step Program to Run Barefoot

2010-01-05T06:45:00.000-08:00

This information is from Clynton Taylor's website http://www.runningquest.net which has some great information on barefoot running and other running related concerns.

From Clyton Taylor:

Introduction

This program is based upon the experience of barefoot runners and coaches and my personal experience. It has not been endorsed by any medical or sports professional. It is not designed to take the place of medical advice. As with any running program, listen to your body and stop and assess if you experience discomfort.

As part of my quest to become a runner once again, I decided I needed to learn to run barefoot. The benefits to doing so are numerous. I began to read up on others’ experiences with beginning to run barefoot.

There are many tips out there on how to run barefoot, with more being offered up on a daily basis. The growing success of the book Born to Run is certainly fueling this, as are folks’ positive experiences with running barefoot. Some of these tips can be confusing or downright contradictory to one another, though, which can kill curiosity and interest in giving it a try. Or worse yet, people end up injuring themselves and giving up. The confusion can make putting a barefoot running program together for yourself rather difficult.

After reading many of the tips and personal experiences out there and trying barefoot running myself, I realized nothing – at least what I saw – quite met my needs. I wanted a simple, easy-to-follow program; a system of guidelines based on the tips from the best barefoot runners and personal experiences alike. So I decided to put together what I’ve learned into a barefoot running program of my own. I am sharing this program with you for two main reasons:

Since I had the need for such a program I figured others might as well. I want to help others enjoy the benefits of barefoot running while avoiding the pitfalls.
As is the case with any activity, if we share knowledge with one another around barefoot running, we all stand to benefit. I want to continue to learn tips and tricks from fellow runners so I can get better and pass them on at the same time.

Now, I’m no expert – not a doctor, a running coach, or even an experienced marathon runner. In fact, I’m a relative newbie when it comes to running (I’ve had a number of setbacks that has stopped me from running my first marathon). What I offer here, though, comes from reading hundreds of posts, articles, and research reports about running barefoot.

In creating a barefoot running program for myself, I chose a common model for weaning ourselves off of a bad habit: a 12-step program. As has been outlined in previous posts of mine and in a number of articles lately by the national media and in Born to Run, running shoes can be quite addictive, and harmful.

But I’m not here to bitch, complain, or toss blame around (I’ll leave that for other posts!). My goal with this post is to help you begin to enjoy the benefits that come from at least including some barefoot running in your training program. And who knows, in the process you might even be convinced that running barefoot is right for you like I’ve found. But that’s a decision you need to make for yourself.

A Note For Experienced Runners

Running barefoot can be particularly difficult for experienced runners. The usual feedback of fatigue – aerobic overload – won’t work. Your foot and calf muscles will likely fatigue before you’ve even broken a sweat. I’m sure this program will look incredibly slow to you. However, I’ve seen many runners try and run barefoot too far too soon and suffer for it. Take it slowly and you’ll have the best experience over the long haul. Fortunately, you don’t have to stop your regular running to begin to practice some barefoot running.

12 Step Program to Run Barefoot

Guidelines

Be patient and stay committed. Your body will thank you.

Take a break for a day after every barefoot running experience. This will enable you to assess how you are doing and give your muscles a rest if you experience some soreness.

Each step builds on the work done in the previous one. Skip any step and you will risk hurting yourself.

The program is on the long side. This is to help you avoid sore muscles or worse, injuries from over-worked calves and foot muscles. If you do feel significant pain, go back a step until the pain subsides.

The program is designed to help you transition to barefoot running from regular running without making you stop. You can add this program on top of your existing running plan until you reach your desired barefoot distance.

The program is designed for runners at every level, though it should not take the place of a beginner running program.

These steps are designed to help you transition from running in shoes to barefoot, but will also work to transition to minimal shoes, though it is recommended that you do some barefoot running to learn the right form.

I. Prepare Your Body

Running barefoot is perhaps one of the most natural things you can do. However, it’s not something you can start doing immediately (unless you’re a child or walk around barefoot at least a few hours a day). You need to prepare your body. Running barefoot will require the use of a number of muscles in your feet and legs that have been dormant for years – ever since you began wearing shoes. You will need to prepare by exercising these muscles.
Please note that the following steps can be added to an existing training program – you do not need to stop running in shoes all together, though that wouldn’t be a bad idea.

1. Walk barefoot in the house.

Take your shoes off (well, that was pretty obvious!). Walk barefoot in the house while you go about your normal activities.
2 hours everyday for 1 week

2. Walk barefoot outside.

Walk outside on a soft surface like grass, soft dirt, or firm sand. This will start to get your foot used to different surfaces and work new muscles. It’s not unusual for your feet to feel quite sensitive at this stage. There are thousands of nerve endings in your foot, and they’ve been covered up for awhile. But you’d be surprised at how quickly your feet will once again become accustomed to a variety of surfaces.
30 minutes everyday for 1 week

3. Perform feet, leg, and breathing exercises.

Ok, you don’t have to get quite as limber as the woman in the photograph above, but you do need to stretch and work out your feet and leg muscles to prepare them for new use. Continue to walk around barefoot in the house and outside. Add some specific exercises into your workouts. Choose exercises that target your calves and feet. Squats, heel raises, and jumping lightly on the balls of your feet are particularly good for this. Jumping rope hits all the right muscles, too.

As is the case with any sort of running, it is very important to run relaxed. If you are tense, you will experience pain and possible injury. Practice breathing with your abdominal muscles going out when you breathe in, and pulling in when you breathe out. Focus on relaxation while you breathe.
30 minutes each day for 1 week

II. Learn the Stride

You are now ready to try barefoot running. The key is to take it slowly. One of the biggest mistakes people make when giving barefoot running a try is to overdo it. Another frequent mistake is thinking that it’s all about the lack of shoes (or at least wearing minimal shoes). In truth, the lack of shoes are only a small part of what running barefoot is all about. When running barefoot, the biggest change is often in form. With most people, the whole body will need to move differently. To run successfully, you will need to learn this form (see graphic below for more details).

Proper form: Land on your forefoot, below your center of gravity, then quickly bounce your heel down on the ground and up off again. Your foot should kick back high behind you. Lean forward slightly and keep both knees bent at all times. Your stride will be shorter and your cadence higher. Keep your body relaxed at all time.

The good news is that your body already knows how to run properly – you just have to let it show the proper form to you. With a little practice and patience, you’ll get it.

Note: while you can still run in a barefoot manner with some minimal shoes on (like Vivo Barefoot, Vibram Five Fingers, or FeelMax), you should first run completely barefoot to learn the proper form. Even 3mm of covering under your foot and mere ounces of weight can block some necessary stimulatory feedback.

4. Run 100 feet on grass.

Some people will tell you to only run barefoot on a hard surface (Chris McDougall, the author of Born to Run, and Barefoot Ted, for example). They recommend this not because they want you to hurt your feet, but because grass still provides you with too much freedom to run incorrectly – heel first.

While this is true, I suggest that you start running on grass because you need to strengthen your foot muscles. The muscles in your arch, among others, have probably atrophied considerably over the years in their “shoe casts.” Barefoot is not just about proper form, it’s also about using all of your muscles. The problem with telling folks to immediately go to concrete or some other hard surface is that too often, people suffer from sore feet, then they give up. Spending some time running on the grass will help you strengthen these muscles first and enjoy some of the immediate benefits of running barefoot.

Note: You should run at a much slower pace than you are used to during this phase.
3 days for 1 week

5. Run 20 feet on a hard surface.

Your first run on a hard surface barefoot should be very brief – think feet, not miles. Seek out a hard to semi-hard surface, like packed dirt or clay, or even asphalt. On grass, you might have gotten away with landing on your heel. Do this just once on a hard surface and you’ll quickly learn not to do it! There’s no room for error when you’re on a hard surface. As Christopher McDougall, author of Born to Run, explains, “Running barefoot on a hard surface will make you run correctly.”

Focus on landing under your center of gravity, touching your heel down briefly. Your cadence will be higher and your heels will likely kick up higher behind you as well.
3 days for 1 week

6. Run 100 feet on a hard surface.

After you’ve included some barefoot running into your routine, you can up the distance to around 100 feet. I know, you are dying to go further. But your calves and feet will thank you for continued patience.
3 days for 1 week

III. Increase the Distance

Now that your body has learned the correct stride and can do it naturally on any surface, it’s time to slowly begin to introduce longer distances to your barefoot running plan. If you want to run in minimal footwear, now would be an ok time to try it. Make sure you read about the different types of running shoes out there first (post). If at any point you experience pain, and it does not subside during your rest day, go back a step for a week.

7. Run 500 feet.

It’s now time to begin to increase your distance with every run. Start by running about 500 feet. If that goes well, continue to increase your distance each day by 500 feet or so.
3 days for 1 week

8. Run 1 mile.

You have now reached an important milestone, quite literally. Start by running a mile. Remember to take it slowly. Stay loose. Breathe. If 1 mile goes well, you can increase by a tenth to a quarter of a mile with every run.
3 days a week for 2 weeks

9. Run 2 miles.

Start out by running 2 miles, then increase your distance by a quarter of a mile with each run.
3 days a week for 2 weeks

IV. Maintain Yourself

Congratulations! You are running barefoot and no doubt reaping many benefits for it. These final three steps focus on helping you stay well and injury free while further building up your strength. If at any point you experience pain, and it does not subside during your rest day, go back a step for a week.

10. Run 5 miles.

Continue to increase your distance. Make sure that if you fatigue, your stride does not suffer. Keep focused on lifting your knees, treading gently, and landing beneath your center of gravity throughout your run.
3 days a week for 1 month

11. Run 8+ miles.

Continue to increase your distance. And it’s ok to smile while you run – that’s the way it’s meant to be!
3 days a week for 1 month

12. Teach someone else to run barefoot.

One of the best ways to learn something well is to teach it. Find someone who’s curious about and interested in trying out barefoot running. Pass on your learnings and create a plan with them. Commit to being their coach and cheerleader for the next 12 weeks. You will not only find it enjoyable and rewarding, you will continue to better your own stride by watching and giving feedback to your new barefoot running buddy.
1 day a week forever!

Benefits of Barefoot Running

2010-01-04T11:53:00.000-08:00

This is from Clynton Taylor's very nice running website http://www.runningquest.net

It’s All So Confusing!

The world of running, and especially running shoes, can be a confusing one. And now that many of us are considering running with minimal shoes (shoes that are close to running barefoot), it can become overwhelming. I’ve done a fair amount of research over the past month or so and want to provide you with what I’ve learned. Hopefully this will bring some clarity to you as well.

My aim with this post is twofold. First, I want to clearly outline the benefits of running barefoot, or at least with minimal shoes. Second, I want to provide you with a list of minimal shoes that are currently on the market. I hope this will help you save some time, or at least amuse you while you’re here. As always, please provide feedback and additional content you feel I should include on the page in the Comment section below.

A Running Reframe

As many of you are aware, I’ve been on a quest to be a runner for a number of years now. I run for a few months, then suffer a major setback, the latest of which is a large disc herniation (L5-S1). The near constant pain with this last injury has kept me at home for a few months now, and obviously off the trails. Without the ability to run (for a lot of the time it was quite difficult to even walk), I began doing the only thing I could: reading about running and watching running movies. Oh, and living vicariously through all of you, who are out there doing awesome running.

Lying in bed, dreaming of the day I could once again run (hopefully pain free this time!), I learned a lot. Then, as anyone who’s been in contact with me will know, I discovered the book Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, and devoured it. To say the book changed my life is no overstatement. It altered the way I think of running and eating. Heck, it even changed the way I think about the meaning of life! Chris describes how we, as humans, are intricately designed for endurance running, like no other animal on the planet. This not only gives me solid hope that I will run again, it also makes me confident that I will be able to reach my ultimate goal, to be able to run long distances (ultramarathons). Instead of being gripped by fear and loathing when I think of running, brought on by years of over-doing it and suffering injuries (both physical and emotional), I now feel a sense of joy. I visualize the human body doing what it’s meant to do: fluidly moving across the plains and up mountains, hair blowing in the wind, sun dancing off of the leaves and petals, eagles soaring overhead… (ok, maybe some of this euphoric vision is induced by narcotic pain killers , but not all of it). I now get that running is a part of living, and living is a part of running.

Less Is More

This profound realization, that all of us are born to run, is coupled with the biggest reframe I have experienced in my life: When it comes to running shoes, less is more. I was incredibly skeptical at first when I encountered the notion of running close to barefoot. I first heard of Nike’s Free running shoes a couple of years ago. I instantly dismissed the product, classifying them as corporate America’s lame attempt to capitalize on a small, niche group of hippies. Well, if you’ve read Born to Run or my previous post, The Sole of the Problem, you will realize that I wasn’t completely wrong. Nike and other shoe companies are trying to make money from foot problems they mostly created with thick, cushioned soles. If you look back at recent history, people didn’t suffer much, if any, plantar fasciitis before Nike created what we now know and wear as running shoes.

These and other insights based in data and introduced to me in Born to Run completely flipped upside down what I thought were running truths. I’ve come to realize that barefoot running and running in minimal shoes is not just something that hippies do as a stand against the way most of the world views life. Indeed, many of the top endurance runners and college running coaches have been practicing and espousing the virtues of barefoot training routines for years (Anton Krupicka is perhaps the most successful barefoot/minimal runner today – he just broke what many thought was an unbreakable record at the White River 50 mile race). They espouse barefoot running because research and personal experience has proven to them that feet and legs work best when they are in contact with the ground, unimpeded by large, clunky, and heavy running shoes.

A growing body of scientific research shows that runners experience less injuries and faster times when they run barefoot or with minimal padding. In fact, research published in Sports Science in 2001 by Michael Warburtin points out that, “Laboratory studies show that the energy cost of running is reduced by about 4% when the feet are not shod.” Translate the energy saved into time over a run and you are going to experience a personal record. Add the reduced chance you’ll suffer an injury and it’s a big win for us runners.

The Benefits of Running Barefoot

Based on what I’ve read so far, there are three key benefits to running barefoot at least some of the time, and avoiding thick running shoes at all times. They are:

Shock Absorbtion: Thick, heavily-padded running shoes that we have come to rely on allow you to land on the heels of your feet, so you do. This causes all sorts of shock damage to the foot, leg, and even the rest of the body on up. To understand the danger in this, imagine you’re on the roof of your house. Now jump off and land on the heels of your feet. Ouch, right?! It’s no different landing on your heel thousands of time every run. In contrast, landing on your forefoot softens your whole landing. Your feet and legs flex like a car’s shock absorber and naturally absorb much of the impact.
Lighter Strike: It’s hard to wrap our brains around this next reason for running barefoot, yet research (some of which was conducted by Nike) shows that our bodies, inherently seeking feedback,strike the ground harder the more padding we have on our feet. The foot has over seven thousand nerve endings in it, and each one needs to feel the body strike the ground. If you are barefoot, those nerve endings get the feedback they need with a light strike. However, if you are wearing a thick shoe, your body needs to strike harder in order to feel the ground through the padding. It’s the opposite of what we’ve been taught, but the more padding you wear under your feet, the harder your foot pounds the ground. If you run barefoot, you will naturally run light like a cat. And that’s better for your whole body.
Muscle Strength: There are literally thousands of muscles in each foot, yet most of them aren’t used when we’re wearing arch-supporting shoes. The best example I’ve heard to explain why supporting the foot is bad, is that of wearing a cast. I remember when I broke my arms and wore a solid cast for six weeks. Besides the smell, what I remember most is how small and limp my arm was when they cut the cast off. I could barely lift a pen with my arm! While not as extreme a situation, when your feet are constantly held in place by shoes, the muscles atrophy. It’s quite simple, when your foot muscles are strong from use, you run more powerfully and swiftly. And when you run barefoot, all of your muscles get a chance to do what they are designed to do.

Other reasons for running barefoot include running with a shorter, more healthy gait, literally being in better touch with your surroundings, and not depriving yourself of the physical pleasures that come with being barefoot (is there anyone who doesn’t enjoy walking barefoot on grass?). The fact is that the foot’s an incredible system, capable of doing anything that we need it to. I think Ted McDonald (a.k.a. Barefoot Ted) said it best: Our feet, eyes, and mind are an incredible set of tools, if we just use them.

I decided that the best thing for me is to run barefoot some of the time, and the rest of the time to run in minimal footwear. I chose a pair of black Vibram Five Finger KSOs. I am sure, after ample practice, feet can handle any surface. However, I want to give my feet a little stronger protection against puncture wounds. I will post a review of my Vibram Five Fingers a little later on, once I am able to run again. I have to say, though, that walking in them is very enjoyable.

Minimal Shoes

There are numerous running shoes out there, and a growing number of shoes that claim to be like running barefeet. Many companies, including Nike, are trying to jump on the barefoot bandwagon. Be wary of marketing spin. Don’t purchase any shoes without doing your research and ideally giving them a test run first.

Before we look at some specific shoes, let’s review a couple of definitions. First, barefoot running is just that, running with nothing on the feet, even socks. Running in minimal shoes means wearing something on your feet yet still allowing them to flex as they would if they were completely sod-free (no significant padding or arch support).

Here are some shoes I consider to be minimal:

Vibram Five Fingers
KSO model shown, 5.7 oz
You either love the way they look, or you think they’re the nastiest things to hit the footwear world since plantar warts. If you get past their look, though, you realize they are damn close to going barefoot. The reviews from all sorts of folks are quite positive. I love how I can feel the warmth on the sidewalk in the sun, then the coolness of the grass in the shade. I also like that people look at me in a peculiar way (though I don’t get many stares as I am in Northern California, after all).
> Birthday Shoes is a blog by Justin Owens. An advocate of Vibram Five Fingers himself, the site covers all things Vibram five fingers. There are numerous reviews on his site of all of VFFs.
> Barefoot Ted has recently reviewed the new Vibram Five Finger Treks which are made of kangaroo skin which provides a little more insulation.

FeelMax
Panka model shown, 4.2 oz
Feelmax, a Finnish company, makes a full range of minimal shoes. Of all the minimal shoes I’ve seen, the Feelmax are likely to be the best for colder temperatures (excluding the Vibram Five Finger Treks, due out in September 2009). And since they come in a variety of browns and blacks, they likely provide the best chance to get away with wearing minimal shoes in casual business settings.
> Barefoot Runner has a review posted of the Planka.

Vivo Barefoot by Terra Plana
Root Sport Leather model shown.
These are arguably the most beautiful minimal shoes out there. They are at once fashionable and functional (though I have not tried a pair on). Of all of the minimal shoes I’ve seen, these win hands down for aesthetics (I drool over the keyboard every time I see them). The Root Sport Leather model also comes in white and green. An added bonus is that the shoes are made of much recycled material. Their running specific shoe which will be called E V O comes out later this year and will surely be a strong contender.
> Living Barefoot took the Acqua’s for a spin and wrote up a review.

Asics Running Flats
Budokan model shown
Asics creates some running flats and minimal shoes for martial artists that could also be used for running. You will have to take each shoe case by case and try them on to determine if there is too much padding or arch support. Note that many of the big running shoe companies also create their own version of a racing flat.

Feiyue
Lo model shown
This Chinese brand with it’s origins in 1920s Beijing became popular with parkour enthusiasts (an adventurous form of urban running and jumping first popularized in France) in France in 2006. The shoes are loved for their functionality and heritage, and of late, as a fashion statement. They have little to no padding, much like a classic Converse.

Skora Footwear
While this company hasn’t launched a product yet (website says they will in 2010), it’s sure to be a very compelling one. Being developed by the folks behind Barefoot Running, the “shoe” will certainly be extremely minimal, and quite likely like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Can’t wait to learn more!

Other Shoes

Other shoes that claim to be all about the bare foot, but I’m not sure whether they would actually be good or not, due to too much padding and support:

Nike Free
The story of how Nike tried to make money off of the foot problems they helped create in the first place is well documented in Born to Run. It’s incredible to me that they call these shoes barefoot, since they are very thick in the heel. Even on their blog, the header photo shoes a person striking heel first. It just seems like marketing fluff, to me.

Newton Running
The heels of Newton shoes are still too thick, but the design of the shoe does promote forefoot running, as the company actively does.

Ecco Biom
Ecco, a Danish company best known for their comfortable shoes, have teamed up with triathlete Torbjorn Sindballe to create the Biom. While the shoe looks interesting, you can quickly tell that it still provides too much support. While all of the marketing talks about the foot’s natural movement, they say that the shoe is a “replica of the human foot.” Too bad you have to pay $170 to get a replica of something you already have.

inov8 Racing Flats
f-lite 250 Racing Flat shown
inov8 is an English company founded on the philosophy that the bare foot is an incredible system to begin with. They claim that the inov8 shoes allow the foot to flex like it does barefoot. It’s hard to believe, though, that you would receive full flex in these shoes, but maybe I’m wrong. It weighs just under 9 ounces (or 250 grams, hence the name).

Teva Ultralites
X-1 Evolution model shown, 10 oz
Teva, of course, began by making sandals for active use, including water activities. They now carry a full line of shoes for outdoor activities. Their heel is still quite large to be good for you.

New Balance
.

New Balance Trail Runners
MR790 model shown, 5 oz
Owners of these trail running shoes are very enthusiastic about them, talking about how light and thin they are. However, you can see they still have quite a lot of height in the heals, and per the New Balance website, the shoe still contains a log of cushioning.

Lost California Runner Found Near Mt. Tam

2009-12-28T07:50:00.000-08:00

The lost trailrunner did a few things right that helped him survive his ordeal. Among them, remember to always tell someone where you're going and also stay put once you realize you're lost and the sun goes down.

Trail runner rescued during stormy night near Mt. Tam

Brent Ainsworth

Posted: 12/27/2009 03:38:44 PM PST

A man who went for an afternoon run Saturday in a wooded area south of Fairfax was found

muddy, wet and shivering uncontrollably at 11:15 p.m. by three members of the Marin County Sheriff's search and rescue unit.

Guy Stark, 50, of Concord, had become lost and disoriented while running on Cataract Trail near Alpine Dam in the Marin Municipal Water District watershed, said Michael St. John, the search and rescue unit leader.

On Sunday, Stark had nothing but thanks for his rescuers.

"I was really happy to hear a human voice," he said. "I was amazed. I had given up hope. I don't know if I could have survived the night."

Four MMWD rangers and 34 search-and-rescue members hunted for Stark after his family reported him missing at 9 p.m. A command post was set up at Sky Oaks Ranger Station on the north side of Mount Tamalpais. Rescuers with all-terrain vehicles, a boat team and nine trail assignment teams combed the area as temperatures dipped into the low 40s.

At 11:15 p.m., Stark was found on the Helen Markt Trail on the southeast side of Alpine Lake. St. John said he was hypothermic to the point of uncontrolled shivering and was "very much in need of rescue." He was able to walk out with the assistance of the team.

"He was probably only a quarter or half a mile from his car as the crow flies," St. John said.

St. John said Stark did some smart things, such as letting his family know where he was going and hunkering down on a trail after it became dark rather than wandering. However, he left his hooded sweatshirt, cell phone and a hand warmer in his car, thinking he wouldn't need them.

He was wearing running shorts and a lightweight running shirt and had no food or water. He told rescuers that he had never before run in Marin County.

Stark had parked his car at the Cataract Creek Trailhead and started his run at about 2 p.m. He got lost - blaming his sketchy map and sub-par signage - as daylight faded and decided to stay put because of near-zero visibility.

Stark told rescuers that a shelter he'd built next to the trail worked well during the first splash of rain but not so later on. Along with the cloudbursts, thunder and lightning, Stark said he was spooked by thoughts of unwanted visitors.

"At first I was thinking about mountain lions, so I got a big stick," he said. "Then I convinced myself that the cats wouldn't be out in the rain looking for food. Plus it's hard for them to smell anything in the rain, so I started calming myself down."

A few minutes after an intense shower, he heard voices. It was search-and-rescue team leader John Channell with teens Chris Ottoboni and Ben Cook.

"I didn't think anybody was coming out because it was treacherous and rocky and slippery," Stark said. "When I first heard them, I thought they were partiers or campers because I was sure that nobody would risk their own lives to come out here looking for me. They deserve a lot of credit."

Good Trail Running Resources

2009-12-23T06:37:00.000-08:00

This is from iRunFar.com:

What Are Your Favorite Trail Running and Ultrarunning Resources?

We've got a simple question for you today: What are your favorite trail running and ultrarunning resources? Are you a print person who can't wait for the mailman to deliver the latest issue of Trail Runner Magazine or UltraRunning magazine? Are you the social sort who relies on personal blogs, the Ultra listserv, or Facebook? Are websites your thing, you internet junkie, you?! Regardless, please leave a comment to share you favorite sources of trail running and ultrarunning info. We'll get you started with a few of our own!

Magazines
Trail Runner Magazine - Simply the best trail running magazine in the US. It's page host a wide variety of interesting stories ranging from the growth of ultraunning to pre-race sex. Yes, it's One Dirty Magazine.

UltraRunning - What Trail Runner Magazine is to trail running, UltraRunning is to ultrarunning... that is THE magazine on the subject. It's a repository of race reports, but there's also plenty of other content if results aren't your thing.

Running Times - Adam Chase has been bringing together great trail running content in RT's Trails section for more or less a decade. As a bonus, Running Times has the best running training advice of any running mag out there.

Honorable Mention: Trail-magazine IS in German, but you don't need to read German to enjoy the trail porn worthy images in this e-magazine. We can't help but enjoy reading Outside's Buyers Guides.

Social Media (New and Old)
Ultra Listserv - The ultra list might be older than the internet itself... or at least it seems that way. Regardless, it and its archive are great resources for aspiring and experienced ultrarunners alike. Be aware that the List serves up an enormous volume of email on everything ultrarunning. We'd suggest setting up a separate Gmail account if you subscribe. (If you want to know more about the Ultra List, check out Endurance Planet's podcast on the subject.)

Facebook - Facebook has become ubiquitous enough that we feel comfortable mentioning it. While there are a ton of trail running and ultrarunning resources on Facebook, our favorites are Salomon Running for its witty discussion points and Trail Runner Magazine, which mixes informative posts with discussion starters.

Blogs - We're not going to list our favorite personal running blogs. Instead, we mention them generally. They run the gambit from informative to inspirational. Heck, we challenge you to go read a new personal running blog today. Looking for leads, check out our blogroll.

Websites

TrailrunningSoul.com - Trail Running Soul has long been aggregating lots of trail running news stories, gear reviews, and even some video. It's updated quite frequently and recently there's been more original content.

Run100s.com - It's where we go when we're looking for info on a North American 100 mile race.

RealEndurance.com - Real Endurance has a fairly comprehensive ultrarunning calendar that's sortable every which was and a pretty hefty trail running blogroll. The only question with Real Endurance is can you find the good stuff among the volume.

Trail Runners Outpost would like to add:

Multidays.com offers race listings and information about multi-day racing.

A Trail Runners Blog is also a very good site for trail running info and interviews with cool people.

Also, a couple of sites that have race listings and offer online registration that are really good:

Ultra Signup and RunRace.net

Wrap Up
Ok, now that we've shared a few of our favorite trail running and ultrarunning resources, we'd love for you to do the same. Throw out a couple of your favorite websites, blogs, magazines, whatever. Not in North America? Even better! Tell us where the great info is overseas!

Cool New Balance Ad with some Really Fast Trail Runners

2009-12-16T07:59:00.000-08:00

Video of North Face Endurance Challenge Champion Caitlin Smith

2009-12-14T09:33:00.001-08:00

XTERRA Trail Running World Championship Half Marathon Video

2009-12-11T08:30:00.000-08:00

Video from the 2009 XTERRA Trail Running World Championship in Hawaii.

One Mile with Two of the Fastest Trail Runners in the World

2009-12-09T06:59:00.001-08:00

Video detailing one mile with two of the fastest trail runners in the world - Uli Stiedl and Geoff Roes at the 2009 North Face Challenge Championship race in Marin County, CA. Winner takes home $10,000. And yes, that uphill they're running at the start of the video is pretty steep.

Barefoot Running Shoes

2009-12-08T05:09:00.000-08:00

Dr. Jenny Sanders interview with Podiatry Today.

Have you seen an increased demand for shoes that simulate barefoot running?

Yes. Questions about barefoot running seem to parallel the introduction of new barefoot running shoes into the marketplace. The most common I’ve seen in my practice include NikeFree, Vibram Five Fingers and Newton Running.

NikeFree was the first introduced in 2004. At the time, Nike who was sponsoring Stanford’s track team discovered that some of their training had been done barefoot. Stanford’s coach at the time, Vin Lananna felt that barefoot training reduced injuries and improved foot and ankle strength. Seizing an opportunity, NikeFree was developed. Basically it has a soft, non-supportive cloth upper with a wide, cushioned midsole having deep grooves to enhance flexibility.

A little slower to catch on has been Vibram Five Fingers, which were introduced in 2005. Vibram originally designed these to be worn while yachting and was surprised initially that anyone would want to run in them. Once they discovered this however, this shoe with individual toes became mainstream.

Newton Running was developed in 2007 and is similar to NikeFree in appearance but provides more forefoot cushion. It was designed by Runners and is heavily endorsed by runners. The shoes are expensive and cost between $150-$200.

Other than the debut of a new barefoot running type shoes, Christopher McDougall’s recently released book entitled Born to Run, has re-ignited the barefoot running controversy.

Chris is an ultrarunner and writer for Men’s Health. His book is a page turning, entertaining read about his own personal journey of barefoot ultrarunning, which started, with the simple question of “why does my foot hurt?”

It chronicles Chris’s introduction, training and subsequent 50-mile treacherous run with the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico’s Copper Canyon. The Tarahumara are a legendary tribe known to run hundreds of miles at a time while only wearing sandals. In it he vilifies running shoe companies, podiatrists, sports medicine specialists and orthotics as the cause of running injuries. Looking below the surface however, I was able to appreciate the book for it’s historical accounting of barefoot running, ultrarunning and Chris’s analysis of running form. I also think it will stimulate conversation and better scientific research into the question is there an optimal running form and is it the same for everyone and every foot type?

In regard to shoes that simulate barefoot running, what in your clinical opinion are the biomechanical strengths and weaknesses of these shoes in comparison to conventional running shoes?

Barefoot running shoes are designed to promote forefoot contact over heel contact. This does two things. One, it reduces the impact of heel strike, improving shock absorption throughout the midfoot and forefoot. Two, it alters the center of gravity forward with the feet being better centered below the hip, which is a much more stable alignment.

My problem with barefoot running shoes isn’t with the biomechanics of the design but rather the concern that runners will see this as the newest fad and train without proper conditioning or assessment. It doesn’t matter whether you are wearing NikeFree 5.0 or Nike Zoom Structure Triax +12. If the running shoe isn’t a match to your foot type and running biomechanics, injuries will occur.

I also think in addition to shoes, too many runners have not been adequately coached in proper form. The best running shoe design in the world coupled with poor running form has little chance of benefiting a runner. ChiRunning, Pose Tech Training and Evolution running are all running methods which simulate barefoot running form and are often helpful in reducing or eliminating injury.

Are there other considerations Podiatrists should keep in mind when asked for recommendations of these shoes by patients? Are there certain foot types that would prohibit use of these shoes?

When asked by patients about barefoot running I say it may have a place in an overall training strategy, but based on most of the patient’s pathology I see coming through the door, few would benefit from this as a primary treatment. In fact I have taken quite a few runners out of these styles of shoes because they caused injury. It amazes me that so many experienced runners (triathletes, marathoners, ultrarunners) who presumably know everything about their running are oftentimes clueless when it comes to their shoes. They are sponsored by a particular shoe company consequently have to wear that company’s shoe and no one has really ever analyzed whether it’s right for them or not. Or, they have run in the same shoe for the past 10 years but never realized that the shoe design has changed so dramatically during a version change, that in spite of the name being the same it’s not the same shoe.

In your experience in treating athletes, are there particular brands of these shoes that simulate barefoot running that you have found to be effective?

The few patients I have who use these types of shoes as well as readers of my blog find that Vibram Five Fingers are really the only shoe that simulate the true feel and biomechanics of barefoot running. NikeFree and Newton Running seem to be losing ground in the battle of barefoot running shoes. However, I’m sure as time goes on, more and more shoe companies will jump on the barefoot running bandwagon and incorporate even more designs and styles into their manufacturing lines.

Is Barefoot Running Beneficial Or Detrimental?

2009-12-07T07:59:00.000-08:00

Video of Trans Zion Traverse

2009-12-05T07:04:00.000-08:00

Video of Jared Campbell and Karl Meltzer's 2008 Zion Traverse Adventure:

Jared Campbell's and Christian Johnson's Recent FKT on Trans Zion Traverse

2009-12-04T07:01:00.000-08:00

From Jared Campbell's blog:

Spectacular view from the West Rim Trail, looking West

Two weekends ago Mindy and I had a few dreamy days in Zion National Park. The weather was perfect for running and the forecast was more of the same through the following weekend. So, on a whim I decided to get off my lazy butt and run the Trans Zion Traverse (TZT). With just a few emails I had two good friends, Jay Aldous and Christian Johnson, sign up for the journey. Christian’s experience of Zion thus far had been the standard tourist trails and sites so I was excited to show him this incredible run. Plus, he’s running the HURT 100 in January so this would make for a great training run for him.

Jay Aldous in Hop Valley

After stuffing ourselves with a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner Mindy and I hopped in the car and drove down to Cedar City where we quietly snuck into the hotel room that Christian and Jay were staying in. At 6AM we woke to some fine gas-station coffee compliments of Jay, quickly packed our stuff, and headed out, bound for the Kolob entrance of Zion National Park. Just after 7:00 AM we left Lee’s Pass down the La Verkin Creek Trail. We reached the Kolob Arch trail intersection in about an hour and started the small climb up into Hop Valley. We were moving quite well and enjoying good conversation. Jay shared some stories of his past endurance activities, which really are amazing. For example, back when I was in diapers, Jay was into REALLY long distance cycling. He tackled a circumnavigation of the lower 48 United States, and then moved on to set the record (which stood for 18 years!) for circumnavigating…. the entire globe! Something like 13,000 miles in 100 days. Jay is an amazing guy. And, at 48 years old, this year he pulled off a 22:03 at the Wasatch 100 after taking a 26 year hiatus from the race.

Christian and I have done several small runs together in the past few years and is the kind of guy that I knew I’d enjoy being with on a longer adventure. He is one of the nicest guys I’ve met and is an incredibly talented runner. In just a few years of trail running he has climbed to the top! Like Jay, he also has a background in road riding, but fell in love with the simplicity of trail running. I’m excited to watch Christian crush it at the up-coming H.U.R.T. 100 in January, where I predict Christian to go sub-24 at this brutally hard course.

So, needless to say I was in great company. I was incredibly excited for this run, but was honestly quite ill-prepared given how little and how inconsistently I had been running in the past few months. So, I’d have to “BS” this one.

As we settled into the northern end of Hop Valley, the temperature dropped to somewhere in the high 20s (guess). The river was frozen and the sand frosted on-top. This really is a nice and peaceful section of the run, very flat with beautiful view all around. We made good time down the river valley and then made quick work of the climb up and out of it, finally seeing the sun for the first time of the day. We hit the Hop Valley TH and then shifted to the Connector Trail. The Connector Trail was in far better condition that when I did this run about a year and a half ago. We followed it perfectly this time.

Partway up the climb, where it angles towards Pine Valley Peak, we ran into Mindy who was coming down the trail. She informed us that she couldn’t get into the West Rim TH due to the road being closed so she went to the Wildcat TH instead. This meant that we’d get an extra 1.8 mile out-n-back to the car and would have to take extra food with us to make it 31.7 miles to the end. No big deal, but it did cost us about 15 minutes. After fueling up we took off, bound for Wildcat Canyon.

The climb to Wildcat Canyon is low-angled and actually quite enjoyable for several miles. It was at this point that we saw an incredible heard of roughly 50 Elk. We startled them and they took off making the ground shake as they ran up the hillside. We watched in amazement and part of me wished that they’d let me join them, but no such luck. We pressed on to the traverse down to a dry Wildcat Canyon river and then the small climb up to the West Rim TH. Christian and I had pulled ahead of Jay a bit in the last mile or two and we knew something wasn’t right. We waited and he caught up with us and explained that he just wasn’t feeling on today and that we should go ahead with out him. Sometimes you got it and sometimes you don’t. So, Christian and I pressed on heading south-bound on the West Rim Trail.

We did the 5 miles to Potato Hollow in about 45 minutes, moving at a nice clip on the easy rolling hills. The view starts to get really tasty at this point. Whenever I look west from this vantage point I feel as if I’m at an ice-cream parlor and I want a bit of everything. Left and Right forks of North Creek, Ivins Mountain, Inclined Temple…. they all look so good.

As we continued on I pointed out the start of Heaps Canyon, the backsides the Patriarchs, Behunin Canyon, and thought back to the many great adventures I’ve had here in the past few years. The descent from here is awesome and the view just continue to get better and better. Eventually Telephone Canyon comes into view on the left, a canyon that my uncle Ron descended just one week ago. Next, the Imlay Sneak route leaves the West Rim Trail to my left, another great adventure comes to mind. Nearly every step of this trail has fond memories tied to it for me.

It is at this point that one thing changes very quickly…. the number of people! As we crested the next hill, Angel’s Landing comes into view, perhaps one of the coolest trails in the world so I can’t fault the droves of people trying to hike it. We encounter hundreds and hundreds of people and 2 guys immediately jump on our tail as they’re curious why we’re running downhill so fast. We explain that we’ve already logged quite a few miles today and that our objective is to run across the entire National Park in record time. They tell us that they’re marathon runners and are pretty amazed at what we’re doing. It was fun to chat with them for a bit, but both Christian and I were running on empty (dehydrated) and it quickly became too much conversation. So we put the throttle down a bit and left them behind. I had poorly judged the time to run the W. Rim Trail section and had consequently run out of water and I could feel it. So, when I got to the Grotto Aid Station (i.e. spigot) I had to go through the usual routine to “come back”.

After some salt, water, and calories we were on our way running the road up to Weeping Rock where we dropped a gear or two for the climb. Christian pulled on the climb up the many switchbacks while my body re-equilibrated again. At a low-point physically we ran into Mindy who was running the East Rim Trail into the park, which lifted my spirits greatly. One gel and one Mindy encounter and I felt great again! We grinded up to the top of the plateau and then onto Stave Springs. Just a few hundred yards after the Spring and I stopped dead in my tracks as there was a beautiful Bighorn Sheep just 50′ ahead, staring us down. We watched in amazement of this great animal. He came towards us a bit and then decided to leave the trail we were on. wow!

Christian at the end of our great Trans-Zion Run

Eventually we reached the high-point where we put it in high gear and ran to the end. 9:08 was our official time, good for a new FKT (Fastest Known time), but one that won’t last long. What a great adventure. We jumped in the car (which Mindy had left for us) and drove into Springdale where we had pizza and beer with Jay and Mindy.

Life is sweet. Another stellar adventure in Zion.

New Trails: Pine Ridge Trail, Nebraska

2009-11-05T07:11:00.001-08:00

If you're looking for a new trail to explore in a relatively unexplored part of our country, check out the Pine Ridge Trail in Nebraska. When most people think of Nebraska, they don't think of pine trees and hills. The Pine Ridge Trail might just change your perception of trail running in Nebraska.

From the Pine Ridge Trails brochure:

"The Great Plains’ ocean of rolling, grassy swales and farmland erupt abruptly into the rugged country called the Pine Ridge. This unexpected region owns an uncommon diversity of plant and animal life. The timbered canyons and open parks mix western and eastern plants, grazed pastures and sprawling timberlands. While the Ridge is not wilderness, it is still wild. The Pine Ridge Trail gives hikers and horseback riders panoramic views of the varied terrain, flora and fauna."

The Pine Ridge Trail is presently 27 miles long and designed to eventually extend 52 miles in length and connect Chadron, NE to Crawford, NE. Along the 27 mile trail are numerous other single track routes that all together add up to over 100 miles of single track trail through the Pine Hills of Nebraska. Find yourself a map and get out there an explore this hidden gem.

At Trail Runners Outpost we'll be regularly posting information about relatively unknown trails in lesser traveled locations. So, if you're traveling or if you live in these areas, we hope we can point you towards some great new trails for trail running adventures.

Palmiero-Winters Setting Trail Records on Prosthetic Leg

2009-11-04T09:23:00.000-08:00

Great article on Amy Palmiero-Winters from the Milwaukee Journal

Ultra runner takes pain in stride on prosthetic leg

By Tom Held of the Journal Sentinel

Posted: Nov. 2, 2009

With her incomparable standards, Amy Palmiero-Winters rated her 50-mile run in the North Face Endurance Challenge in southern Wisconsin as very successful and relatively easy.

The 37-year-old from Hicksville, N.Y., set yet another unofficial record for 50 miles.

More important, she finished without blood dripping down her prosthetic left leg.

That represented a vast improvement in pace and discomfort from her first outing in a 50-mile trail ultra, in May, when Palmiero-Winters struggled to the finish line in Bear Mountain, N.Y., just 30 seconds before the 13-hour cutoff time, and "bloody as hell," in the words of the race director

Since then, with a series of awe-inspiring runs, Palmiero-Winters has not merely set records but created them, in categories for amputee runners that few ever pondered.

Her run on the Ice Age Trail on Oct. 24 established a new standard for 50 miles - 8 hours 43 minutes - breaking by nearly 90 minutes the unofficial record she set in September, in the North Face Endurance race in Washington, D.C.

In between, on Oct. 11, she became the first female amputee to finish a 100-mile ultra on the road, the 10th annual Heartland "Spirit of the Prairie" Endurance Run.

Palmiero-Winters was the fastest female in that race, with one sound leg or two.

"She's pushed the envelope way past what is conceived by the public," said Erik Schaffer, president of the high-tech prosthetic company A Step Ahead.

"She's setting a new first every time," Schaffer said. "There have been people with prosthetics who have done some long runs, but nobody is close to her worst time. We're trying to track it, but there's nobody doing what she's doing."

Her performances on the road have been mind-boggling. Her determination on the trails has been nearly incomprehensible.

Running on steep hills covered with rocks, roots and leaves, Palmiero-Winters has almost no margin for error. The ideal landing area on the narrow, hook-shaped blade that serves as her left foot is roughly one inch square.

Without an ankle, heel or calf muscle to absorb the impact, the shock of each hard step travels through the prosthetic into the tibia, fibula and patellar tendon in what remains of her leg, cut off about 3 inches below the knee.

Painful chafing

"If I step on a rock on the front of my running foot, it will hyperextend my knee backward," she said. "If I step on the back, it will throw my knee forward. And it's the same if I step on a rock to the right or the left of the foot. It throws me to the inside or the outside of the prosthetic leg.

"All that twisting and turning and rocks kind of throws you around inside the prosthetic. That alone creates a lot of pain."

As she runs, the size and shape of her shortened limb changes and loosens in the specially fitted carbon fiber socket. That causes the chafing, blistering, tearing and bone bruising that Palmiero-Winters suffered in New York.

"I have no idea how she was running," said Nick Moore, director of the five races that make up the North Face Endurance Challenge series. "It was impressive. She has unbelievable fortitude."

Eyes on Olympics

Mental toughness and a high threshold for pain have helped Palmiero-Winters run beyond what anyone with a prosthetic has done before. Her natural running ability puts her among the best runners in any category, and she expects to compete with them at the sport's highest levels.

Among her goals is the Badwater Ultramarathon, the 135-mile race through the blistering heat of Death Valley.

Before that attempt, Schaffer will have to tweak the ultra runner's custom-designed prosthetic to stop the heat transfer that burned her limb during an unofficial Badwater venture this year.

With a personal best of 3:06 in the 2006 Chicago Marathon, Palmiero-Winters holds onto the dream of qualifying for the Olympic marathon trials. USA Track & Field officials have said she would be allowed to compete in the qualifying trials if she can reach the entry standard.

Her immediate focus remains on ultras and the trails, where her love of running has been rekindled.

Stacking ultras in a remarkable run, Palmiero-Winters plans to finish the North Face Endurance series in San Francisco in December. Her next race will be her first 100-mile attempt in the woods, the Ozark Trail Endurance Run on Saturday.

Those are all races, distances and challenges that Palmiero-Winters never contemplated as a young runner with two sound legs.

She took the sport less than seriously, even after running a 3:16 in the Boston Marathon in 1993. A year later, a car hit Palmiero-Winters while she rode her Harley-Davidson motorcycle near her hometown of Meadville, Pa., Her left foot was crushed.

Showing what would become familiar fortitude, she ran the Columbus Marathon with the damaged foot in 1995, but the injuries required more than two dozen surgeries and eventually amputation, in 1997.

'A second chance'

That ended her running pursuits for more than five years but eventually brought an improved perspective and motivation.

"I didn't realize until after I lost my leg that I have a great natural talent and I never took advantage of it," Palmiero-Winters said. "When I woke up that one day, and realized, instead of losing my life, I lost my leg . . . it was about time I put the most effort I can into the things that I do.

"I did get a second chance."

She soon rekindled the desire to run.

"The feeling I get from running has never changed," said Palmiero-Winters, a single mother of two - Carson, 6, and Madalynn, 4.

"Running makes me happy and proud of who I am. Overall, it makes me a better person.

"I have two little kids. When I go home, I sure like that they think they have the world's fastest mommy."

A welder by trade, Palmiero-Winters now works with A Step Ahead, based in New York, and has started a nonprofit organization, ASPIRE, to help children and young adults who have lost limbs.

Those children, and her own, provide the inspiration that carries Palmiero-Winters through painful miles.

Thinks about backers

"For me to get through what I have to get through, and I do it every single race, I think of the people who support me and the people who stand behind me," she said.

"If I'm running one mile and something hurts, I'll think about my kids and how they cheer for me and their smiles. And the next miles, I'll think about one of the little kids I coach, who always says 'Remember the little engine who could,' and the next mile think of my godson, Drake, and then my little buddy Jake who's missing both his legs at his knee.

"At the prosthetic company, I'll think about the guy in the back and the guy who makes my leg and how hard they work so I can do what I do. I think about everybody in my life, and I get strength from them."

The Human Body is Built for Distance

2009-10-27T08:59:00.000-07:00

Another interesting article from the New York Times addressing how the human body is designed for distance running.

The Human Body Is Built for Distance

By TARA PARKER-POPE

Does running a marathon push the body further than it is meant to go?

The conventional wisdom is that distance running leads to debilitating wear and tear, especially

on the joints. But that hasn’t stopped runners from flocking to starting lines in record numbers.

Last year in the United States, 425,000 marathoners crossed the finish line, an increase of 20 percent from the beginning of the decade, Running USA says. Next week about 40,000 people will take part in the New York City Marathon. Injury rates have also climbed, with some studies reporting that 90 percent of those who train for the 26.2-mile race sustain injuries in the process.

But now a best-selling book has reframed the debate about the wisdom of distance running. In “Born to Run” (Knopf), Christopher McDougall, an avid runner who had been vexed by injuries, explores the world of the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico, a tribe known for running extraordinary distances in nothing but thin-soled sandals.

Mr. McDougall makes the case that running isn’t inherently risky. Instead, he argues that the

commercialization of urban marathons encourages overzealous training, while the promotion of high-tech shoes has led to poor running form and a rash of injuries.

“The sense of distance running being crazy is something new to late-20th-century America,” Mr. McDougall told me. “It’s only recently that running has become associated with pain and injury.”

The scientific evidence supports the notion that humans evolved to be runners. In a 2007 paper in the journal Sports Medicine, Daniel E. Lieberman, a Harvard evolutionary biologist, and Dennis M. Bramble, a biologist at the University of Utah, wrote that several characteristics unique to humans suggested endurance running played an important role in our evolution.

Most mammals can sprint faster than humans - having four legs gives them the advantage. But

when it comes to long distances, humans can outrun almost any animal. Because we cool by sweating rather than panting, we can stay cool at speeds and distances that would overheat other animals. On a hot day, the two scientists wrote, a human could even outrun a horse in a 26.2-mile marathon.

Why would evolution favor the distance runner? The prevailing theory is that endurance running allowed primitive humans to incorporate meat into their diet. They may have watched the sky for scavenging birds and then run long distances to reach a fresh kill and steal the meat from whatever animal was there first.

Other research suggests that before the development of slingshots or bows, early hunters

engaged in persistence hunting, chasing an animal for hours until it overheated, making it easy to kill at close range. A 2006 report in the journal Current Anthropology documents persistence hunting among modern hunter-gatherers, including the Bushmen in Africa.

“Ancient humans exploited the fact that humans are good runners in the heat,” Dr. Bramble said. “We have such a great cooling system” - many sweat glands, little body hair.

There is other evidence that evolution favored endurance running. A study in The Journal of Experimental Biology last February showed that the short toes of the human foot allowed for more efficient running, compared with longer-toed animals. Increasing toe length as little as 20 percent doubles the mechanical work of the foot. Even the fact that the big toe is straight, rather than to the side, suggests that our feet evolved for running.

“The big toe is lined up with the rest, not divergent, the way you see with apes and our closest nonrunning relatives,” Dr. Bramble said. “It’s the main push-off in running: the last thing to leave the ground is that big toe.”

Springlike ligaments and tendons in the feet and legs are crucial for running. (Our close relatives the chimpanzee and the ape don’t have them.) A narrow waist and a midsection that can turn allow us to swing our arms and prevent us from zigzagging on the trail. Humans also have a far more developed sense of balance, an advantage that keeps the head stable as we run. And most humans can store about 20 miles’ worth of glycogen in their muscles.

And the gluteus maximus, the largest muscle in the human body, is primarily engaged only during running. “Your butt is a running muscle; you barely use it when you walk,” Dr. Lieberman said. “There are so many features in our bodies from our heads to our toes that make us good at running.”

So if we’re born to run, why are runners so often injured? A combination of factors is likely to play a role, experts say. Exercise early in life can affect the development of tendons and muscles, but many people don’t start running until adulthood, so their bodies may not be as well developed for distance. Running on only artificial surfaces and in high-tech shoes can change the biomechanics of running, increasing the risks of injury.

What’s the solution? Slower, easier training over a long period would most likely help; so would brief walk breaks, which mimic the behavior of the persistence hunter. And running on a variety of surfaces and in simpler shoes with less cushioning can restore natural running form.

Mr. McDougall says that while researching his book, he corrected his form and stopped using thickly cushioned shoes. He has run without injury for three years.

Black Hills Runners Club

2009-10-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

South Dakota has some great trail running opportunities, and the Black Hills Runners Club has taken advantage of these great running trails by hosting their first Black Hills Runners Club Trail Running Series. Unfortunately the series is wrapping up, but there is still time to run the last race in the series, the South Dakota Trail Championship on November 7.

The Black Hills Runners Club is an active running club that promotes running in the Black Hills area of South Dakota. The Black Hills is home to many scenic and fun single track trails for running including the 100 mile long Centennial Trail that runs from Wind Cave National Park in the south to Bear Butte in the north and traverses the length of the Black Hills. The Black Hills Runners Club is now taking advantage of these great trails by offering a trail running series on various trails throughout the Black Hills. Stay tuned for more information about the 2010 trail running series and consider a trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota for some awesome trail running through the scenic and historic Black Hills.

South Dakota Trail Running Championships

2009-10-09T06:31:00.001-07:00

Below is an advertisement for the 2009 South Dakota Trail Running Championships taking place on November 7th 2009 at the Storm Mountain Trailhead. For more information check out http://www.bhrctrails.com/SDTC.html

Insight from New Balance About the Development of Their New MT100 Shoe

2009-10-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

Below is some really interesting insight from Byran Gothie, New Balance Outdoor Project Manager, into the development of the New Balance MT100 shoe. It appears that NB really took real trail runners advice and experience into account when developing this shoe. We may have to give this shoe a try...

We tried not to treat the 100 as a direct update to the 790 but instead a new shoe to our lightweight trail category. We did start with the 790 though to figure out how we could build a better shoe. In addition, we added ultra trail runners Anton Krupicka and Kyle Skaags to our Outdoor Ambassador Team around the time we started looking into an update. The first thing we did was look at shoes they ran in for high wear areas. The attached image shows how we built the outsole specifically around the high wear areas of an ultra runner’s efficient gait. The lateral mid/forefoot has been built up the most to provide support to the highest wear area. The midfoot/heel is actually ground contact so that there is a smooth transition or just a contact point. The heel has been designed specifically for braking, as we found that the only time they landed on their heels was when they needed some control going downhill. The heel and forefoot heights are the same as the 790, 18mm in the heel and 8mm in the forefoot.

Anton and Klye then came out to our sports testing lab in our Lawrence office where we ran them through a bunch of tests like force plates and motion capture. This helped to validate our theory and solidify our work on the midsole/outsole.

Harakiri Mountain Run

2009-10-07T07:23:00.000-07:00

Video of a cool mountain race in Europe.

Good Morning America Interview with Lost California Runner

2009-10-01T07:37:00.000-07:00

Lost California Runner Wishes She Had Done Some Things Differently

2009-09-30T07:42:00.000-07:00

This CNN article describes some of the mistakes the lost California runner made prior to leaving for her fateful run.

By Ashley Fantz

CNN

(CNN) -- The California runner who was lost in a forest for three days without water had barely a few hours to go before she would have died, her doctor said Thursday.

Runner Maria "Gina" Natero-Armenta, 36, survived for three days without water in a California forest.

Maria "Gina" Natero-Armento, 36, not only survived 72 hours with only a slice of apple in her stomach and a little bit of water for nourishment, she also has only one functioning kidney, Dr. Derrick Hong said.

He spoke with CNN on Thursday afternoon, along with Natero-Armento and her husband, Armando Armento, in a conference call interview from her room at Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, California.

Natero-Armento is no amateur when it comes to distance or mountain running. She's one of the top female finishers in a San Diego 100-mile race and an experienced ultrarunner with top times in other 100-mile and 50-mile races. Her body was unusually strong to begin with, but she also has one kidney -- the other doesn't function because of a congenital disorder.

"This is extraordinary," Hung said.

She said she had planned a simple eight-mile run, a small fraction of what the ultrarunner usually tackles in a sport that challenges competitors to run at least farther than a 26.2-mile marathon. She is among the majority of ultrarunners who like doing 100-mile races.

She set out from her Oceanside home at 5:30 a.m. Sunday to meet Fidel Diaz, her running partner and brother-in-law, who is also a serious ultrarunner. They planned to run along a trail in the the Cleveland National Forest near San Diego.

She brought along two water bottles and wore a Camelpak, a backpack that can be filled with water. That was plenty of water for an eight-mile outing. She didn't bring food with her, but Natero-Armento said she ate a piece of apple before she started, and that was the only food in her stomach.

Natero-Armento said she did several things that were out of character that day, and she wishes she had been more prepared.

"I am very careful usually, but that particular day, I was not," she said. "I normally, the night before the long runs, I have everything ready. And this night, I had nothing ready, and it was just a mistake."

She usually wears a Garmin GPS watch, a sophisticated device that runners use to find out where they are, the distance they have traveled, calories burned and altitude.

"I didn't have my Garmin and wasn't wearing a watch," she said. "I don't know. I always carry food with me, and I didn't have nearly enough."

"I always carry my phone with me, and I didn't have my phone with me, and that really was a big mistake," she said. Feeling antsy to just get on the trail and run, she wasn't thinking deliberately. "I just wanted to get going that day; get some fresh air and go for a run. I hurried up."

Natero-Armento and Diaz began running about 6:30 a.m. Sunday, she said. She lost track of as much as eight hours, she said, as she and Diaz became lost. By then, she was dehydrated and disoriented.

And Natero-Armento said she also made another, more serious bad decision. At some point in the run, Diaz had become ill. Ultrarunning is a sport in which some participants sometimes push themselves way too hard.

"[He was] pretty much beside me or in front of me, but I do know that I was insisting on keeping going since I was OK," she said. "He doesn't eat or drink much ever [when out on runs], so I know he can handle that."

She said that she kept going because she'd seen him run hard while sick -- also not uncommon in 50- and 100-mile races -- and that she figured he could handle it if she pushed him.

She said they became separated as they two were going over a rugged hill.

"We had separated because we were going through a hill quite a while and had to go through brush, and that's how I have a lot of scrapes. So that was very difficult," she said. "[We] crawl under and break branches, and that was the only way we were going to get out of there, according to Fidel. So I don't think he was able to see that I was not there anymore."

She said that Diaz was in front of her. He would shout to her so they knew the other one was close by: He shouted to her, and she shouted back. Then, at one point, she couldn't hear him anymore.

"When I called him and he didn't answer, at this point, I lost a little bit of control," she said.

Night turned into day. She had no water or food, and she didn't try to eat anything. She became disoriented but had the wherewithal to know that she was completely out of fuel. She didn't have the strength to keep walking, so she climbed into a ravine, believing that would be the safest place.

Diaz was not available for an interview Thursday.

He was found Wednesday several hours before she was. It's not clear why he was lost for so long and where, for days, he had traveled in the forest.

Rather than ask for water, law enforcement said, Diaz asked how Natero-Armento was doing and if someone had found her.

"I really had to, from the beginning, accept that I was not capable of getting out of there, there was no where to go," she said, recalling her hours in the ravine, thinking about her husband and her family. She told herself she would live.

"I knew what I had to do."

The experience has not scared her away from distance running on trails. When her kidney is strong again, she will be back, running

The Search for the Lost California Runner

2009-09-29T07:45:00.000-07:00

Video of the search for the lost California runner Maria “Gina” Natera-Armenta:

California Trail Runner Lost...and Found!

2009-09-28T07:22:00.000-07:00

A California trail runner was lost in the mountains for more than 3 days. She was recently found and rescued and is now recovering in a California hospital. Many lessons can be learned from this incident about trail running safety.

Ultrarunner tells Register she was prepared to die

Woman lost for days in forest was severely dehydrated when found

By GREG HARDESTY, KIMBERLY EDDS and SALVADOR HERNANDEZ

The Orange County Register

CLEVELAND NATIONAL FOREST – After three days in the rugged Cleveland National Forest, veteran ultrarunner Maria “Gina” Natera-Armenta said she was prepared to die after becoming separated from her running partner and becoming stuck in a steep, rocky area with no way out – and no food or water in temperatures that soared past 100.

In an exclusive interview with The Orange County Register in her hospital room Wednesday afternoon, Natera-Armenta detailed her ordeal, which began around 7 a.m. Sunday morning during a routine mountain run with her brother-in-law, and ended when she was spotted from the air by searchers Wednesday afternoon.

Her sometime running partner, Fidel Diaz, 53, was found early Wednesday morning, wandering around the Lazy W Ranch looking for her – shaken and dazed, but coherent and not suffering any serious injuries.

But it wasn’t until hours later that Natera-Armenta showed up – after a helicopter spotted her in a remote, rocky section by a waterfall, where steep slopes prevented her from climbing out.

More than a dozen of her trail-running friends had joined search-and-rescue teams scouring the mountains for her – never giving up hope they would find a runner known for her tenacious, never-die spirit.

The sound of a sheriff’s helicopter hovering above her about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday compelled the desperately weak Natera-Armenta out from under some large boulders she had been using to shield herself from the heat and the sun.

Severely dehydrated, she had her last sip of water at 2 p.m. Sunday – and her last bit of food, a piece of peanut-butter sandwich, at 4 p.m. that day.

Natera-Armenta, 36, waved her arms as the blades of the chopper roared.

“The sound was right on top of me,” she recalled, sipping iced water from a straw in her bed at Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo as electrolytes were pumped into her veins. Her skin was darkened and her cheeks were hollow.

“I thought, ‘Where did that come from? They can see me. There’s no way.’”

Natera-Armenta’s kidneys were failing. Her blood was becoming too concentrated, rushing to her brain and away from her skin and muscles – reducing her to a feeble state.

She had suffered severe diarrhea for at least two days, and while stranded had started her menstrual cycle – further depleting her weakening body.

Doctors at Mission Hospital said the endurance athlete, who has been a serious trail runner for about three years, wouldn’t have survived another day in the forest without food or water.

When rescued, her dehydration level was 10 percent to 15 percent, said her physician, Dr. Mike Ritter.

Fifteen percent is considered fatal.

Other than scratches and abrasions that mostly were on her legs, she suffered no other injuries and is expected to fully recover.

“I thought I was going to die, but I was prepared,” Natera-Armenta said.

She had already started to say her goodbyes, she told a Register reporter.

“I said goodbye to everybody,” she said. “I kept thinking, ‘I hope I don’t make them too sad.’”

When her husband, Armando Armenta, walked into her hospital room, he kissed her on the forehead.

“I love you,” he told her.

“What happened?” she asked.

“You tell me. What did you do for three days in the mountains?”

It started off as a routine run, she explained – in the Lazy W Ranch off Ortega Highway where single-track trails snake up unforgiving ridges. Natera-Armenta has raced distances up to 100 miles in remote, punishing mountain trails.

She had eaten a snack at 5 a.m. at her Oceanside home before driving up to San Juan Capistrano to car-pool into the trailhead with Diaz.

Not having slept well in recent days, and not feeling her best, Natera-Armenta said she had planned to run for only about two hours – 10 or so miles, at her typical pace.

She carried with her two hand-held bottles of water – a total of more than 40 ounces – and about 30 ounces on her back in a hydration pack.

Soon into the run, she and Diaz got separated, she said.

He had started off running fast and got well ahead of her, but soon he started vomiting, and she eventually passed him.

Diaz and Natera-Armenta, although very familiar with the two main trails in the area, the Los Piños and San Juan trails, was heading up the rugged and steep Hot Springs trail.

She said she had never been on that trail. It is unclear how familiar Diaz is with it. He was not immediately available for an interview. Also unclear is why Diaz was not able to summon help earlier. He told authorities he had gotten lost after the two separated at around 4 p.m. Sunday.

At one point, Natera-Armenta said she lost a water bottle as she climbed up a steep section. The bottle fell down a ravine and she thought it would be unsafe to try to retrieve it.

She kept climbing – not wanting to retrace her steps because the trail, she said, was a “mess.”

Eventually, she found herself near a dry waterfall, surrounded by steep slopes teeming with thick, dry brush.

“I got myself in trouble,” she said.

She was too weak to climb out, she said. She found shade under rocks and trees.

Not having much of a choice, she decided to stay put – and pray she’d be found.

“I knew I couldn’t get back the same way,” she said. “I just knew I had to stay strong.”

Night came. She struggled to sleep. She fell in and out of dreams.

The next day came, and then the next.

Natera-Armenta said she had three different spots where she would rest under the shade of rocks.

She concentrated on conserving her energy.

“I asked myself, ‘Am I going to die today, or try to save as much energy as possible?’”

Day 4 came – Wednesday

Still alone.

Natera-Armento said she mostly thought of her husband a lot – and inconsequential things like favorite TV shows.

About two dozen of her running friends joined search-and-rescue teams at daybreak Wednesday to look for her.

Although her husband had reported her missing Monday night, the car she and Diaz had used was not found until late Tuesday afternoon.

At some point while stuck in the mountains, Natera-Armenta took off her soiled blue running shorts.

Strong winds blew them away, silently sending them down a slope.

She was too weak to retrieve them.

When rescuers found her, Natera-Armenta was wearing only her running shirt, shoes and socks.

She said that by Wednesday – hours before she was found -- she had given up hope of surviving.

She had toyed, for a moment, with the thought of jumping off a boulder to her death – not believing she could survive another night.

But she hung tough.

The sound of chopper blades slicing through the hot air brought her to her feet.

She waved at her rescuers.

Soon, she was recovering in the hospital – her fingernails thick with dirt, but her smile intact.

During her bedside interview, Natera-Armenta was animated at times, but felt dizzy and weak at other times.

She repeatedly said “I’m sorry” to visiting relatives, and even managed to crack a few jokes.

“I just feel like I’m always a troublemaker,” she said to a sister, Alma, of Garden Grove.

“Oh my God. My sister, my little sister,” Alma said after hugging her. “You have a nice tan.”

“I’m so stinky,” Natera-Armenta said. “I feel so bad.”

“Don’t worry,” Alma told her. “You’ll get pretty again.”

When a nurse asked Natera-Armenta what she wanted to eat, she said, “coconut water.”

The hospital, the nurse politely told her, didn’t have that.

When a nurse brought Natera-Armenta a plate of food, her husband lifted a fork to her mouth and gave his wife the first food she had had in 72 hours.

A forkful of salmon.

The Barefoot Runner

2009-09-19T07:00:00.000-07:00

Could Barefoot Running Save Your Knees?

2009-09-18T14:10:00.001-07:00

Great article from Paul Scott on Minnpost.com

Could barefoot running save the knee?

By Paul Scott

Several years ago, during a grateful stretch of employment after the birth of my first child, I got an assignment from a glossy and hip national magazine to review trail running shoes. I had reviewed cologne and grooming supplies, but had never before reviewed high-end sports footwear.

I was promptly shipped more a dozen pairs of high-performance shoes, really gorgeous stuff, the very best brands, retailing $60 to $120 a pair. My closet was suddenly ridiculous, and I took the job very seriously, lacing up every pair and heading out to test the shoes through snow and rain and mud.

Eventually I picked out a best of the batch, and did my best to justify the call in print, but when it was all said and done I had a hard time knowing why. I think I chose one shoe over another because of the way the shoe performed, but I may have also really liked the way it looked. Part of me wondered if the whole thing wasn’t a bunch of b.s.
Maybe I wasn't cut out for shoe reviewing (they never called again). Then again, maybe I wasright. A revolt over whether we should wear running shoes has taken on momentum lately. It first began in the late 1980s, when a study found that the more your shoes cost, the higher the injury rate. That could mean a lot of things, of course -- maybe people who pay more for their running shoes run more aggressively, and thus get injured more, for example. But another study published during that time suggested barefoot runners get injured less because their arches adapted to better deflect impact forces.

A lack of evidence
Lately, nothing less than the great running-shoe value system has come under question. You know that advice you get in the shoe store -- that to prevent injury, people whose feet turn from side to side, or pronate, should wear "stabilizing" shoes, while everyone else should wear "cushioning" shoes? It turns out no one has ever proven that notion, according to a survey of the literature recently published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

That study was highlighted in a recent article in the New York Times on the phenomenon of shoeless running, a trend that has given rise to shoes (such as Vibram FiveFingers) specifically designed for shoeless runners. (What’s next, guitars for playing air-guitar? Umm, skip that ... .) "Born to Run," a new book by magazine writer and runner Christopher McDougall, examines the question in even greater depth.

The proponents of shoeless running argue that it helps protect injuries to the foot, lower leg and ankle, but given that the entire leg from the foot through the hip is a linked system, I’m hoping it won’t be long until they discover that shoeless running has benefits for the region home to the most vexing of running injuries, the knee.

Irene Davis, PhD, a researcher at the University of Delaware, past president of the American Society of Biomechanics, and newly converted barefoot runner, has measured impact forces with and without running shoes. Though anecdotal observations are many, she says, "unfortunately there’s not a lot of concrete evidence that suggests that when you run barefoot you get injured less."

A question of landings
Davis says it's possible that barefoot running is smarter, however, and the issue comes down to the biomechanics of how runners land. Most runners (80 percent) run with a rear-foot strike pattern, landing on their heels and rolling through to push off from the balls of their feet. She says running shoes cushion the heels during this pattern, "but you have a quick rise to impact peak" running heel-first. In runners with a forefoot or mid-foot strike pattern, on the other hand, "[their] peak becomes attenuated," Davis says. We all have a pattern we are born with, but necessity requires barefoot runners to change to a mid-foot pattern. "When you barefoot run you can’t land on your heel," she says. "It hurts. Go out and try it."

Davis doesn’t know whether barefoot running will protect the knees, but says it would appear to reduce the forces on the tibia, and "that’s probably going to be good for the knee." Diabetics and people with arthritic conditions need to keep their running shoes on, she says. Others can take off their shoes, but need to start small. "I did it slowly," she says. "I started at a quarter of a mile, then moved it up to a third of a mile, and then a half a mile."

'A natural pumice stone'
She says her feet have actually become softer in the process. "I’m a girl," she says, "so my worry was I didn’t want calluses. The pavement serves as a natural pumice stone."

Ironically, grass is more dangerous for shoeless runners than paved paths. "The problem with grass is you don’t know what’s underneath it." Pavement resembles hard-packed natural running surfaces in places like Copper Canyon, Mexico. More important, pavement is hard, and in terms of biomechanical re-education a hard surface is the whole point of taking the pillows off your feet in the first place. Hard surfaces force you to land even smarter than you would on grass. "When you run on pavement you’ve got to cushion more." With your body.

Freelancer Paul Scott, of Rochester, writes frequently about health and fitness for various media. Susan Perry is on vacation.

New Trail for the Boundary Waters

2009-09-12T07:04:00.000-07:00

The Superior National Forest is developing a new trail in the Boundary Waters area that will link into the renowned Kekekabic Trail. The new trail will create a loop route off of the Kekekabic Trail that will loop back to Round Lake before entering the wilderness area. USFS crews used explosives Thursday (9/10/09)to help clear the new portion of the new Centennial Trail. From the Forest Service:

The Gunflint Ranger District is creating a new hiking trail this year. It’s just one of the many ways we’re celebrating the 100th anniversary of President Theodore Roosevelt proclaiming 644,114 acres in northeastern Minnesota as part of the national forest system effectively giving birth to the Superior National Forest.

The Centennial Trail will be a loop trail of 3.3 miles. It will incorporate 1.2 miles of the Kekekabic Trail and a new section, currently under construction, which will connect to the Port Arthur Railroad bed built in the early 1890's. After the Ham Lake Fire, several of the old mine pits and railroad beds were exposed and that's how Tom Kaffine, Forestry Technician and wilderness guru, came up with the idea of this historical trail.

The Centennial Trail will have some beautiful overlooks. Clearing the area has already begun and the Smokejumper Trail Association will be here to help complete the task.

Great Trail Running Commercial from Timberland

2009-09-11T08:07:00.000-07:00

Here's a great commercial from Timberland for their new line of trail running shoes.

"If you're not fast...You're food!"

Colorado Trail Running Video

2009-09-10T09:25:00.000-07:00

Video of a great trail running trip on the Colorado Trail.

Midwest Trail Running Overlooked?

2009-09-08T08:58:00.000-07:00

As trail and ultramarathon runners based in the Upper Midwest, it seems that our region is often overlooked. Both the right and left coasts and the Rocky Mountains seem to get most of the attention when it comes to trail running and ultrarunning. There are many big races on both coasts and in the mountain states and if you look at any of the major trail running or ultrarunning teams, they are almost exclusively runners from the left and right coast and mountain states.

Take a look at the relatively large La Sportiva Mountain Running team and you'll see that there isn't one runner from the Midwest (o.k. so we don't have "mountains" in the Midwest, but there are runners in the Midwest that could compete with many of the runners on the La Sportiva team in a mountain race and there are many great ambassadors of the sport of trail running here in the Midwest as well, and a few people might even wear La Sportivas around here). Montrail, another large team of trail and ultrarunners, also doesn't have a single Midwest runner on their list of sponsored athletes. It appears, that of the major trail running teams, that only Inov-8 (with 2 out of another relatively large team) and Patagonia with Mark Godale from Ohio have a runner from Midwest on their team. The new Vasque trail running team does include one member from the Midwest as well.

Why would the major players in trail and ultramarathon running ignore a large portion of the country by not including an ambassador or team member from the Midwest? Could it be that there aren't very many trail or ultramarathon races in the Midwest? Looking at what's out there, this wouldn't seem to be the case. The Midwest offers a large slate of very popular and longstanding trail and ultramarathon races. The Ice Age 50 miler in Southern Wisconsin is one of the largest and oldest trail ultramarathons in the nation. The 31 year old 7 mile Living History Farms Cross-Country Race in Iowa (essentially a trail running race) is the largest off-road trail race in North America with a race limit of 7,500 runners. Large metropolitan areas around Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis and St. Louis have large and vibrant ultramarathon and trail running communities. While the Western region (essentially the Rocky Mountains west - a huge area) does boast the greatest number of trail runners according to the 2006 Outdoor Industry Foundation Outdoor Recreation Participation Study, the Upper Midwest has essentially the same number of trail running participants as other regions of the country.

While the Midwest may not have the number of trails that the Western region has, there are a number of great long-distance trails as well as regional trails. Among the long trails, the Midwest boasts the Superior Hiking Trail, the Ice Age Trail, the Ozark Highlands Trail, the Ozark Trail, the Buckeye Trail, the Centennial Trail, the Maah Daah Hey Trail, and the Michigan Shore-to-Shore Trail among others. There are also very good trail systems in and around many Midwestern communities. Duluth, MN was named one of the top trail towns the first year that TrailRunner magazine named their top trail towns and Marquette, MI was also named a top trail town last year. Both communities have an amazing amount of beautiful trails with splendid views and lots of hills right out their backdoor (literally).

The Midwest has also produced some very good runners that can compete in the larger trail races throughout the country. It seems that these teams would want to see their colors at races located in the Midwest. Having a runner wearing a team uniform at some Midwest races would seem to be a way for these companies that support trail running teams to reach out to an entire market segment or area that is relatively untapped. A company that recruits a couple of

Midwest runners that will run more races in the region and know the people in the area running communities would likely claim a foothold in the Midwest market that the other teams ignoring the region might not be able to make. From a business standpoint, including a couple of Midwest runners on the major trail running teams would seem to make sense.

There's absolutely nothing like running in the Western mountains, through the Sierra Nevada, along the Pacific Coast, among the Cascades or through the Rocky Mountains. The Appalachians and the mountains of the East are also unparalelled in their beauty and uniqueness. But, the

Midwest is also home to many trail and ultra runners and has it's own special beauty from the "Sawtooth Mountains" overlooking the largest freshwater lake in the world, to the many lakes and pine needle covered trails of the Boundary Waters country, to the bluffs and ridges overlooking the Mighty Mississippi River, and the prairies and badlands of the plains. The Midwest

has a lot to offer trail runners and those that support trail runners. There beautiful places to run trails everywhere you look on this continent and there are trail runners in every nook and cranny as well. Come on over and check it out. You might like what you see!

This Trail Running Video is REALLY Good

2009-09-03T06:53:00.000-07:00

This will be the last video I post of the Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc, but this one is REALLY good! As a trail runner, if this video doesn't make you want to run this race someday, I don't know what will. Breathtaking!

Another Inspiring Trail Running Video

2009-09-02T06:45:00.000-07:00

Here's another inspiring trail running video from Matt Hart set in the Cascade Mountains of the Pacific Northwest. Watch it, and then get out there on the trails for a run!

Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc

2009-08-31T08:28:00.001-07:00

The Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc (UTMB), one of the world's most spectacular and most popular trail races concluded over this past weekend. Almost 2,400 runners toed the line in Chamonix, France for this 100 mile circumnavigation around the highest mountain in Western Europe, Mt. Blanc. The trail race circles the Mont Blanc massif, cutting through Les Houches, St Gervais, Les Contamines, Courmayeur, Champex, Trient, Vallorcine and La Flegere before returning to Chamonix. It is a spectacular course through the Alps showcasing jagged mountain ridges, deep valleys, alpine scenery and quaint mountain villages. It's also one of the most difficult trail races in the world featuring almost 31,000 feet of elevation gain. While it doesn't have the altitude that the Hardrock 100 in Silverton, CO has, it boasts nearly as much elevation gain as Hardrock (33,000 feet). It would be difficult to say there is a trail running race anywhere in the world as challenging as Hardrock, but UTMB comes pretty close (the Barkley races notwithstanding).

With nearly 2,400 competitors, you're pretty likely to have a good race on your hands. UTMB usually doesn't disappoint. American favorite Scott Jurek challenged for the lead early but couldn't hold the pace and dropped back to finish a still solid 19th overall. Spanish runner Kilian Jornet, regarded as the best trail runner in Europe, won the race in a spectacular time of 21 hours, 33 minutes, 19 seconds. French runner Sebastian Chaigneau finished second while Japanese runner Tsuyoshi Kakuraki rounded out the podium in third.

The real story for the Americans was runner Krissy Moehl who would go on to win the women's race in course record time and place 11th overall. It was the highest finish for a woman in course history. Moehl held off last year's UTMB champion Lizzy Hawker of Great Britain and third place finisher Monica Aguilera Viladomiu from Spain.

Other American runners also ran very well at UTMB including Joe Grant (20th), Topher Gaylord (24th), Tim Englund (86th) and Mark Gilligan (160th). There were 1,382 finishers.

To find some good articles on the race, please go to:

http://www.chamonet.com/whats_new_article.php?id_whats_new=5179&id_back=1

http://trailrunningsoul.com/trs/2009/08/31/jornet-and-moehl-2009-tnf-utmb-winners

Check out a video of the event:

You must have Javascript enabled.

Video produced by Chamonet.Com

Ultrarunning Video

2009-08-28T07:05:00.001-07:00

This video has been floating around the internet for a while now, but I still enjoy watching it every once in a while. It captures the essence of trail running and ultrarunning very well. Matt Hart did a great job putting this video together. Check it out:

UltraRunning from Matt Hart on Vimeo.

Colorado Trail

2009-08-27T05:00:00.000-07:00

As dedicated trail runners, we love discovering new trails and running adventures. We prefer running these new trails, but we also love uncovering new trails, researching them, hearing about other runners adventures and planning our next trip. We'll share new trails on Trail Runners Outpost when we find them and tell you about some of our experiences running them.

We recently returned from a 5 day 80 mile running trip on the Colorado Trail. We ran from the Gold Hill Trailhead near Frisco/Breckenridge to the Mount Massive Trailhead near Leadville. On our final day we ran to the top of Mt. Elbert - the highest peak in Colorado and 2nd highest in the lower 48 states at 14,433 feet. This segment of the Colorado Trail was spectacular with an amazing amount of variety from rushing creek valleys to high alpine ridge running. On the first day we went over the Tenmile Range and experienced some sublime ridge running. The second day took us over Searle and Kokomo Pass and amazing fields of wildflowers. The alpine traverse between Searle and Kokomo Pass at over 12,000 feet was spectacular. The third day took us through the beautiful Holy Cross Wilderness area with high mountain lakes and rugged alpine terrain. On the fourth day we ran through the Mt. Massive Wilderness Area and on some sweet rolling singletrack through thick pine forests.

Our trip on the Colorado Trail was just a small sampling of the wonders this trail offers. The Colorado Trail runs from Denver to Durango and covers nearly 500 miles. The trail is divided into 28 segments, each making a great daily running adventure. Six designated wilderness areas are crossed and it climbs over several high mountain passes.

Over the years many runners have run the entire trail from end to end. The Colorado Trail makes a great running adventure with good access points along the trail for support. The fastest known time for covering the entire length of the Colorado Trail is held by trail runner Paul Pomeroy. He completed the entire length of the trail running from east to west in 8 days, 12 hours and 15 minutes. Pomeroy also has the fastest known time for the unsupported run of the Colorado Trail in 14 days, 9 hours, 30 minutes. We recommend taking your time and enjoying each days run on the trail.

Adventure Running Co. offers a 5 day fully supported run on the Colorado Trail. This is a great way to run a beautiful section of the Colorado Trail, enjoy full support including gear transport and meals, relax after a beautiful day of running and make some great new running friends.

To learn more about the Colorado Trail and begin planning your own adventure, check out the Colorado Trail Foundation website. The Colorado Trail Foundation also has a great guideboo k covering the entire trail.

Endurance Running Hypothesis

2009-08-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

Obviously I'm very intrigued by the Endurance Running Hypothesis as it's apparently referred to. As a long distance trail runner, I like the idea that humans have adapted themselves to be long distance runners. When people look at you strangely upon hearing that you run long distance races on trails, you can feel satisfied knowing that you're only doing what the human body was so beautifully designed to do. Whether you believe our bodies evolved this way or were created this way, it's nice to know that we are all born to run.

Here are some more interesting articles about the Endurance Running Hypothesis:

http://discovermagazine.com/2006/may/tramps-like-us/article_view?b_start:int=0&-C=

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/02/runningtoes/

http://discardedlies.com/entry/?47390_more-evidence-that-human-beings-were-designed-for-endurance-running-

Humans Hot, Sweaty, Natural Born Runners

2009-08-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

Another good article about the Running Man(Human) Theory.

Just days before Monday’s 111th running of the Boston Marathon, Lieberman presented his theories of the importance of running to ancestral humans to explain why we’re the only species that voluntarily runs extraordinarily long distances, such as the 26.2 miles in the marathon.

The talk, “Why Humans Run: The Biology and Evolution of Marathon Running,” was delivered at the Geological Lecture Hall as part of the Harvard Museum of Natural History’s spring lecture series, “Evolution Matters.”

While more than a million humans run marathons voluntarily each year, most animals we consider excellent runners — antelopes and cheetahs, for example — are built for speed, not endurance. Even nature’s best animal distance runners — such as horses and dogs — will run similar distances only if forced to do so, and the startling evidence is that humans are better at it, Lieberman said.

Modern humans and their immediate ancestors such as Homo erectus sport several adaptations that make humans, instead of some ferocious, furry, or fleet creature, the animal world’s best distance runners.

“Humans are terrible athletes in terms of power and speed, but we’re phenomenal at slow and steady. We’re the tortoises of the animal kingdom,” Lieberman said.

That evidence belies the long and firmly held belief that humans are the animal world’s biggest wimps and, if not for our big brains and advanced weapons, we’d be forced to subsist on fruits and vegetables, always in danger of being gobbled up by fiercer predators.

The problem with that theory, Lieberman said, is that we began adding meat to our diets around 2.6 million years ago, long before we developed advanced weapons like the bow and arrow, which was developed as recently as 50,000 years ago.

While some of our ancestors’ meat-eating may have been due to scavenging, Lieberman said the appearance about 2 million years ago of physical adaptations that have no impact on walking but that make humans better endurance runners provide evidence that early scavengers became running hunters.

Specifically, we developed long, springy tendons in our legs and feet that function like large elastics, storing energy and releasing it with each running stride, reducing the amount of energy it takes to take another step. There are also several adaptations to help keep our bodies stable as we run, such as the way we counterbalance each step with an arm swing, our large butt muscles that hold our upper bodies upright, and an elastic ligament in our neck to help keep our head steady.

Even the human waist, thinner and more flexible than that of our primate relatives allows us to twist our upper bodies as we run to counterbalance the slightly-off-center forces exerted as we stride with each leg.

Once humans start running, it only takes a bit more energy for us to run faster, Lieberman said. Other animals, on the other hand, expend a lot more energy as they speed up, particularly when they switch from a trot to a gallop, which most animals cannot maintain over long distances.

Though those adaptations make humans and our immediate ancestors better runners, it is our ability to run in the heat that Lieberman said may have made the real difference in our ability to procure game.

Humans, he said, have several adaptations that help us dump the enormous amounts of heat generated by running. These adaptations include our hairlessness, our ability to sweat, and the fact that we breathe through our mouths when we run, which not only allows us to take bigger breaths, but also helps dump heat.

“We can run in conditions that no other animal can run in,” Lieberman said.

While animals get rid of excess heat by panting, they can’t pant when they gallop, Lieberman said. That means that to run a prey animal into the ground, ancient humans didn’t have to run further than the animal could trot and didn’t have to run faster than the animal could gallop. All they had to do is to run faster, for longer periods of time, than the slowest speed at which the animal started to gallop.

All together, Lieberman said, these adaptations allowed us to relentlessly pursue game in the hottest part of the day when most animals rest. Lieberman said humans likely practiced persistence hunting, chasing a game animal during the heat of the day, making it run faster than it could maintain, tracking and flushing it if it tried to rest, and repeating the process until the animal literally overheated and collapsed.

Most animals would develop hyperthermia — heat stroke in humans — after about 10 to 15 kilometers, he said.

By the end of the process, Lieberman said, even humans with their crude early weapons could have overcome stronger and more dangerous prey. Adding credence to the theory, Lieberman said, is the fact that some aboriginal humans still practice persistence hunting today, and it remains an effective technique. It requires very minimal technology, has a high success rate, and yields a lot of meat.

Lieberman said he envisions an evolutionary scenario where humans began eating meat as scavengers. Over time, evolution favored scavenging humans who could run faster to the site of a kill and eventually allowed us to evolve into persistence hunters. Evolution likely continued to favor better runners until projectile weapons made running less important relatively recently in our history.

“Endurance running is part of a suite of shifts that made Homo [the genus that includes modern people] human,” Lieberman said.

Source: Harvard University

Another Born to Run book review and Video Clip

2009-08-22T08:00:00.000-07:00

Another book review of Born to Run and provides some additional insight into the book. Also a brief video clip of Christopher McDougall explaining why he was born to run.

By Andrew Welsh-Huggins/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Posted Jul 12, 2009 @ 10:27 AM

"Born to Run"
By Christopher McDougall
Alfred A. Knopf

Why wear shoes when you run?

Whether you're a weekend jogger or serious marathoner, the answer's easy, right? We wear shoes to protect our feet and provide the cushioning necessary for an activity that puts enormous pressure on vulnerable joints.

Yet if that's the case, Christopher McDougall argues in his new book, "Born to Run," why has the rate of running injuries increased even as shoes provide ever more padding?

One tidbit sure to stop a few people in their tracks: Studies show that the more expensive your running shoe, the more likely you are to be injured.

McDougall, a runner who beat his own chronic injuries, makes a compelling case that ditching those pricey running shoes in favor of bare feet, or at least far more basic running apparel, may be the kindest thing you ever do for your body.

But McDougall's book is far more than a treatise on what runners should - or shouldn't - wear on their feet. He uses an extended portrait of one of the world's least known cultures, the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico's Copper Canyons, to put modern American running under an exacting magnifying glass.

"Born to Run" starts with a simple question he kept asking his doctors: "How come my foot hurts?"

Their response: Your foot hurts because you run, and running is one of the most stressful things you can do to the human body.

McDougall's not satisfied, however, and so we get our introduction to the Tarahumara Indians, a retiring tribe renowned for their members' ability to run long distances - really long distances, 50 and 60 miles at a time - in little more than sandals. No $150 running shoes, no bottles of sports drink strategically placed along their running routes, no stretching.

Above all, no injuries.

The Tarahumara channel our evolutionary ability, unique in the animal world, to run long distances without overheating. It's a skill that came in handy when the earliest humans chased down prey that might have had the upper hand - or leg - at shorter distances, but were outmatched the longer the hunt went on.

McDougall, a former Associated Press reporter who covered the war in Rwanda, travels to Mexico where he meets some of the best Tarahumara runners. Along the way, we encounter America's top ultramarathoners, those runners who turn their noses up at the paltry 26.2 miles of a traditional marathon and regularly race distances of 50 to 100 miles or more.

McDougall has a knack for storytelling, and the stories of these amazing runners and their races make some of the most entertaining reading of the book.

McDougall uses these tales to pose tough questions about the state of U.S. running. Why is it, he asks, that in the early 1980s a single track club in Boston boasted half a dozen world-class marathoners alone, and yet less than 20 years later, not a single American man could meet the Olympic marathon qualifying time?

The solution to this puzzle is complicated, but McDougall places a big chunk of the blame on the influence of money, especially the billion-dollar running shoe industry.

Lost in the financial greening of the sport: the feeling experienced by anyone who ever dashed around the backyard as a child.

"That was the real secret of the Tarahumara: they'd never forgotten what it felt like to love running," McDougall writes. "They remembered that running was mankind's first fine art, our original act of inspired creation."

Born to Run book review

2009-08-21T11:28:00.000-07:00

Having recently finished reading Chris McDougall's book Born to Run, a brief book review seems to be in order. First of all, this book is simply a really enjoyable read. It was one of the most enjoyable non-fiction books I've read in a long time. Now, I've heard people say that there is quite a bit of embellishment in this book, which may be true, but it's still a very enjoyable read. The characters are well developed and fun, the story is very interesting and there is something to be learned within. Whether all the characters behaved exactly as described in the book is irrelevant, it's a fun read based on actual events.

I had been firmly in the low profile, minimal shoe camp prior to reading the book, so this was no startling revelation. However, McDougall develops the argument for minimalist running shoes very effectively. As even Barefoot Ted (one of the main characters of the book) will admit, if it 'aint broke don't try to fix it, for many runners, it still makes sense to strive for a more minimal shoe. Learning to run more on the forefoot and dispensing with heel-striking has helped me run faster with less effort and with fewer injuries. If you're a consistently injured trail runner looking for answers, it might be worth looking at more minimal shoes and working on your form a bit. A little barefoot running on soft surfaces thrown in at the end of a trail run will also help strengthen your feet and improve your form.

I was also very intrigued by the chapter which addresses human physiology and our natural traits designed to allow us to excel at long distance running over rugged trails. Mcdougall covers this theory in great detail in the book. Briefly, humans possess several adaptations that make us natural born distance runners. We are hairless and are one of the few animals that sweat, allowing us to cool our bodies effectively during long runs. We also developed long, springy tendons in our legs and feet that function like large elastics, storing energy and releasing it with each running stride, reducing the amount of energy it takes to take another step. Our bodies are also adapted to counterbalance each step with an arm swing, and our large butt muscles hold our upper bodies upright while an elastic ligament in our neck is designed to help keep our head steady. There are other adaptations that are addressed in the book. A good discussion of this theory can be found here http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/the_running_man_revisited/

Overall, if you enjoy running and are looking for a fun end of the summer read, you should pick up a copy of Born to Run. Our copy is getting haggard as we shuffle it around to all of our friends, runner and non-runner alike. They all seem to enjoy it.

See Chris McDougall on the Daily Show

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Christopher McDougall

www.thedailyshow.com

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Avoiding Ankle Sprains

2009-08-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

In keeping with our recent discussion on ankle sprains, here's an article from Trailrunner magazine which addresses ways to prevent and cope with ankle sprains. Add this information to yesterday's post.

Get Twisted (or Not) How to prevent and cope with ankle sprains By April Rose Ferrentino

You're cruising along a beautiful singletrack, enjoying your elevated heart rate and a great view, when suddenly you lose your footing. Ouch! Along most trail runners' favorite routes lie such potentially ankle-turning hazards as roots, rocks and quick descents. A brief moment of not paying attention to where you're stepping is all it takes to disrupt the ankle's delicate balance. Even worse, injured ankles remain weakened for an average of six months. And up to 80 percent of all ankle sprains stem from previous injuries. Athletes who have an injury-weakened ankle joint are about 10 times as likely to suffer a repeat injury than those who don't. Twelve to 20 percent of all sports injuries are ankle sprains. The ankle's physiology is one reason why inversion injuries are so common. The inside of the ankle is much more stable than the outside, especially when the toe is pointed (plantar flexed). The good news is that you can quickly and easily determine if your ankles are weak, and take precautions to keep them healthy. Are You at Risk? According to head athletic trainer at Boston College, Bert Lenz, "The most common type of ankle sprain seen in sport involves the ligaments on the lateral [outside] aspect of the ankle. Injury to these ligaments most often occurs with a 'rolling' of the ankle inwards, or an inversion mechanism, such as simply stepping on a rock while running. This type of inversion action to the ankle can damage one or all three of these ligaments in differing degrees." Sports medicine professionals define dysfunction resulting from ankle inversion injuries as a reduction in proprioception, or knowing where your ankle is in space and what it is doing. If your brain isn't aware of how your ankle should react, you're much more likely to trip over a log or roll your ankle in a downhill divot. So how do you know if you have a weak or "dysfunctional" ankle? According to a study published by T. H. Trojan and D. B. McKeag in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the simple "single-leg balance test" is a reliable way to predict the possibility of future ankle sprains. To perform the single-leg balance test, stand barefoot on a flat surface. Stand on one foot with the opposite leg bent and not touching the weight-bearing leg. Focus the eyes on a target, then close them for 10 seconds. If you sense any imbalance, the test is failed. If the foot moves on the floor, the arms move, the legs touch or a foot touches down the test is failed. A failed test suggests the individual is more susceptible to ankle sprains and injuries. Further, according to Trojan and McKeag, athletes who failed the single-leg balance test but taped their ankles were less likely to sustain ankle sprains than those who didn't. An Ounce (or Two) of Prevention So here's the damage control. If you have a weak or dysfunctional ankle, you can reduce the likelihood of injury, and re-injury, by taping, bracing, stretching and strengthening the joint in question. If you're planning on taping your ankles, see a physical therapist or an athletic trainer who can show you how. Ankle braces are easily found in your local drug store and can effectively fortify vulnerable joints. Another ankle-saving consideration is in selecting the proper shoes. Jason McGrath, USATF Level 2 Track Coach, decorated ultra trail runner, and shoe expert suggests trail-specific shoes that are neutral and low to the ground. Most running shoes suitable for pavement are well cushioned; however, a thick midsole means that your feet are farther from the ground, causing less stability and increasing the probability of rolling an ankle. McGrath also warns strongly wearing "stability" shoes, common on the road-shoe market. These shoes contain medial posting, or a separate material lining the instep that prevents overpronation of the foot. When running on uneven terrain these shoes place more stress on the physiologically weaker lateral (outside) portion of the ankle, making it more likely to roll. In the meantime, you will also want to add ankle strength and flexibility exercises to your workout regimen. Stay Supple Stretching the ankle is important to restore and maintain its range of motion. The following exercises will get you back on the trail. 1. Calf stretch–Sit on the ground with both legs straight out in front of you. Loop a jump rope around one foot and pull the toes back toward the knee as far as you can without the rope's help. Make sure the knee remains straight. Then gently pull back on the rope to assist the stretch and hold for approximately two to three seconds. Perform this stretch another six to 10 times on each leg. 2. Tibialis anterior stretch–Sit down on a chair with your left ankle resting on the opposite knee (the actual ankle bone should be about two inches off the thigh). Point the toe as much as you can on its own, then grasp the toe with your right hand and gently pull it toward you on your right side. Hold this stretch for two to three seconds and repeat six to 10 times for both legs. 3. Ankle everter stretch–In the same position as the previous stretch, grasp the forefoot with your hands and from the ankle, rotate the foot inward towards you so that the sole of your foot is pointing up. Assist with the hands at the end and hold for two to three seconds. Repeat six to 10 times on both sides. 4. Ankle inverter stretch–In your chair, raise one leg so that one foot remains on the floor and the heel of the other foot is in your chair in front of your buttock. Rotate this foot outward and gently assist it with your hands placed on the forefoot. Hold for two to three seconds and repeat six to 10 times on both sides. 5. Range of motion practice–Lift one foot into the air and draw circles with your toes for 30 seconds in each direction on both sides. Stay Strong Strengthening the ankle muscles (NOTE: the muscles around the ankle, these exercises help primarily with proprioception which will help you avoid ankle sprains) will provide greater stability and reduce the likelihood of re-injury. The following exercises can be easily performed anywhere. 1. Towel scrunches–Sitting in the chair, place a hand towel underneath your forefoot and your heel placed firmly on the floor behind it. Use your toes to scrunch the towel as far as possible. Repeat three times on both sides. 2. Towel scoops–Again, in your chair, keeping your heel on the ground and your forefoot on the towel, scoop your forefoot toward the midline of your body, straighten and repeat until you have passed the towel from outside your foot to the inside. 3. Towel push-aways–In the same position, with the heel on the floor off the towel, push your forefoot away from your body, straighten and repeat until the towel has moved from the inside of the foot to the opposite side. 4. Calf raises–Stand with the ball of your foot on a step and hold onto a railing for balance. With a straight knee and the non-exercising leg bent at the knee, raise yourself by pointing the toe of the exercising leg. Repeat 10 times on each leg. 4. Heel walking–raise your toes in the air and walk only on the heels of your feet for 15 to 20 yards. 5. Wobble board-An oval-shaped board that pivots freely over a hard cylinder or ball, the wobble board works great for training proprioception. Stabilizing on the board may feel difficult at first, but most people progress quickly. Stand on the board and try to rotate it three times around in each direction. Then try to tap down in the four directions North, South, East, West consecutively. Try to balance on the board with no parts touching the ground for as long as you can. This will strengthen ankle muscles, and improve proprioception. Recovery Road In the event that you do sprain your ankle on the trail, here are a few tips to get yourself back in action fast. Everyone's doctor suggests RICE immediately following an ankle. RICE stands for Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation and is the old standby for athletic injuries. In the article "Management of Ankle Sprains," authors Michael W. Wolfe M.D., Tim L. Uhl PhD., ATC, Carl G. Mattacola PhD., ATC, and Leland C. McKluskey M.D. emphasize the importance of stretching and exercises (see sidebars) to maintain range of motion during the initial icing stage immediately after injury. Compression using an elastic bandage alleviates swelling in the area. According to a study by Bleakley, McDonough and MacAuley in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the best way to ice an ankle sprain is in 10-minute intervals, alternating with gentle stretches. This procedure may be repeated every two hours, and was shown to significantly reduce the pain felt on activity within the first week of injury. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) also alleviate swelling and pain. After pain and swelling are gone, begin a stretching and strengthening routine, taking care to tape or brace your ankle before hitting the trails. Support Group Ankle braces, which both compress the ankle and improve joint stability, are easier to use than traditional taping methods, generally comfortable to run in (although they may not fit well in all running shoes) and washable. A couple of proven products are: Body Glove Ankle Support (www.bodyglove.com) Stromgren Supports Double Strap Ankle Support 325 (www.stromgren.com) EDITOR'S NOTE: Definitely include the ASO ankle brace mentioned in the previous post here. RICE 101 REST: Stop running immediately after ankle injury occurs. ICE: Apply ice for 10 minutes, stretch for 10 minutes, re-apply ice for 10 minutes and repeat every two hours until swelling subsides. COMPRESS: Cut a U-shape out of a wad of gauze. Place the bottom of the U underneath the bone on the outside of your ankle ("ankle bone," or malleus) so that the bone is surrounded on both sides and underneath by gauze. Hold this in place and wrap an elastic bandage toe to mid calf around the ankle. Otherwise use an ankle brace. ELEVATE: Lie or sit down, relax and place the injured ankle no lower than six inches above the heart until swelling subsides.

EDITOR'S NOTE: And...contrast baths!

The Dreaded Ankle Sprain

2009-08-19T07:41:00.000-07:00

So far, 2009 has been a year for ankle sprains. Prior to this year, it had been almost a decade since I had really torn up my ankle. Training for the Western States 100 in 2000, I stepped on a rock while bombing downhill and tore just about every ligament and tendon in my right ankle. It was a severe sprain that ended up keeping me out of Western States that year and took a long time to heal.

Since then, I'd been pretty much ankle sprain free until this year. Back in April I sprained my ankle bad enough to keep me from running home. No fractures were discovered and the ankle healed up quickly, allowing me to race a trail 50K two weeks after the sprain. Fast forward to last night: another ankle sprain on the same ankle (the right one that was sprained severely back in 2000). This time I was able to run home on the ankle and it doesn't seem to be as swollen. It does however hurt today and it feels a bit different than the last sprain.

I actually believe that my ankle is stronger since the first sprain I suffered in 2000. Perhaps "stronger" isn't exactly the correct term. From what I understand, the ankle doesn't really get stronger when you exercise it after a sprain. Since there aren't any muscles in the ankle, you can't really make the ankle "stronger." You can strengthen the muscles around the ankle (primarily the calf muscles), but this doesn't really make your ankle more stable. What you're doing when you do balancing exercises after a sprain is improving your proprioception. In other words, you're retraining those nerves that were also torn during your sprain to fire signals to your brain that your ankle is inverting and that you need to make an adjustment to catch yourself before it turns all the way over. Training these nerves to fire efficiently is critical to avoiding future sprains.

Since my severe ankle sprain in 2000, I've run almost exclusively trails. I believe that this has naturally made my ankles "stronger" by training them to adjust to uneven surfaces, up, down and around rocks and roots. Trail running naturally improved my proprioception helping me to avoid ankle sprains.

So, now that I have the sprain, what do I do? With the last sprain, after icing for the first 24 hours, I believe contrast baths helped the injury heal much more quickly. Contrast baths involve immersing your foot and ankle in alternating hot and cold water. The water should be as hot and as cold as you can tolerate. Basically what you do is fill two buckets with water, one with cold and one with hot. Start by dipping your injured ankle in the cold water for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Immediately transfer the foot into the hot water for 1-2 minutes. Then back to the cold water for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Repeat this procedure for 5-10 transfers or about 15-20 minutes total. Always end your contrast bath in the cold water. While your foot is in the water, keep it moving, rotate left and right and spell out the alphabet with your toes. Try to do this at least two times per day. The contrast of hot-cold creates a pumping of the blood in and out of the body part to promote healing.

It's also important to remain active on the ankle when the pain and swelling subside. Active recovery is much more effective that just sitting around doing nothing because it also promotes blood flow through the injured limb.

To protect my ankle on trail runs as soon as the pain subsides enough for me to run, I often use an ankle brace for a couple of weeks after the sprain. My favorite ankle brace is the ASO brace. This brace locks the ankle in tightly yet is small and light enough to fit easily into a running shoe. It's definitely the most comfortable and effective ankle brace I've ever used.

Once you're comfortable running trails again and the ankle is healed, get rid of the ankle brace and start naturally "strengthening" the ankle and improving proprioception with trail running. Pay attention to where your foot lands and don't daydream too much. It seems my ankle sprains occur when I'm daydreaming and not paying attention to the trail. And, it's usually those places where the trail is less rocky and technical that you sprain your ankle because you're not paying as much attention.

Why did I sprain my ankle this year after nearly a decade of ankle sprain free running? I'm not really sure other than I may be daydreaming more lately. Run carefully out there!

Spotlight on Trail Running

2009-08-18T07:02:00.000-07:00

By Leigh Brown Perkins
Her Sports + Fitness

When she trained for her third Tour du Mont Blanc ultra marathon last summer, Chlo Lanthier-Brandner never was spotted running the roads near her home in Whistler, British Columbia. She was always deep in the woods, blazing up and down old logging trails.

"All of my runs are on trails," Lanthier-Brandner says. "I forget I'm running."

Elite runners are not the only ones lured by trails. More than 5.7 million Americans consider themselves avid trail runners, an increase of 36 percent in the last five years, according to the Outdoor Industry Association. Another 37 million runners hit the trails a few times a year.

Nancy Hobbs, founder of the All-American Trail Running Association and co-author of The Ultimate Guide to Trail Running, explains the growing interest in trail running this way: "There's a real spiritual component to being on the trail. It provides a great physical challenge but in a serene, forgiving environment."

Trail running makes demands on a wider range of muscles than road running, without the repetition injuries of pounding pavement. Ankles, hips, inner and outer thighs and core muscles are engaged for balance. Trails more fully engage the quads, increasing leg strength. Taking on ascents and descents builds stamina, and difficult climbs sharpen mental focus.

Trail-Running Tips

Follow these tips for happy trails wherever you run.

1. Run tall. Running, especially uphill, can be exhausting, but if you bend under the effort it's more difficult for the lungs to do their thing. On the uphill, keep an eye at the crest or a few yards ahead, not at your feet. If you're gasping, slow down and pump your arms a little, or if you need to, walk, while keeping your posture tall. Even elite runners will walk a steep hill.

2. Shorten your stride on the way up. And plant your entire foot; climbing on your toes kills your calf muscles. Jump over obstacles. Stepping up on unsteady rocks and roots is not only tiring, it can be hazardous.

3. Be loose on the downhill. Stop braking and allow yourself to fly a little, throwing your arms to the side. But don't flail. If you lose control, slalom from side to side like a skier. Don't lean back or dig in your heels to brake (a guaranteed butt slide). Instead, land quickly and lightly.

4. Plot your moves. View the trail like a chessboard. Plan your steps around bumps, dips, soft sand and fallen trees yards before you reach them.

5. Focus on time, not distance. Don't expect to match your road PR. "Out-and-back routes are great because you can cover the same distance a little bit faster on the way back," Lanthier-Brandner says.

6. Diminish your risks. Run in pairs or let someone know where you're going and when you'll be back. Take plenty of fuel and fluid, a lightweight jacket and a cell phone, which won't always get a signal in the mountains, but might. Uphill runners yield to downhill runners. Yell "trail" well in advance of passing another runner or hiker.

7. Find your balance. Slippery downhills let you know what your legs are made of. Build them up between trail runs with weighted squats and lunges, and build your balance using wobble boards (check out www.performbetter.com for balance gear).

8. Keep your bearings. Things look different coming back than going. Pause to look around when two or more paths diverge from the one you're on. Look at trail signs and identify rocks, trees or landmarks on the horizon.

9. Leave no trace. Even in races, trail runners stow empty wrappers and wouldn't dream of dropping cups like road racers. Stay on marked trails, don't cut switchbacks and go through, not around, puddles to prevent erosion.

10. Feel like a kid again. Crank it on the downhill, hoot and holler, jump into a stream. "Trail running is a chance to get down and dirty, to grab hold of our authentic selves," says trail running coach and sports psychologist Terri Schneider. It'll make all those miles during freezing winters on the treadmill so worth it.

Trail Gear

Essential gear for a trail runner doesn't have to be anything fancier than a crusty pair of trail shoes, an old race tee and socks that will never be white again. But a few other purchases will get you running wild.

Shoes. Your favorite brand of road shoe won't necessarily manufacture a good trail runner, or a trail runner that works best for you. Trail running shoes sit lower than road shoes, with a harder midsole to take the impact of the trail. They provide greater ankle support to prevent rolling and more lateral support and flexibility for uneven terrain. They have sturdier, stickier treads. Runners who face stream-crossings or mud should wear trail shoes with drainage holes, waterproof uppers and laces that won't stretch when wet.

Apparel. Trail runners take layering seriously since weather at altitude can change instantly. When the temperature begins to cool, start layering with a running tank, then a long-sleeve tee, both made of a wicking fabric. A breathable, hooded jacket is vital. In warmer weather, stick with loose, wicking shorts. In cold weather opt for snag-proof tights.

Gloves. Wipeouts happen. Lightweight gloves protect hands from gravel burns, stray brambles and chilly air.

Socks. Find what works for you: wool blends, layered micro fiber, toe socks. If you blister, turn them inside out. Go with gray, brown or black.

Hydro packs. Dehydration happens quickly at altitude so carry water. Hydration packs are necessary for longer runs; bottle belts for shorter trails. Buy packs that are sized for women, with lots of pockets to stash energy gels, bars and a cell phone.

Freelance writer Leigh Brown Perkins lives and runs trails in horizontal south Florida, where a drawbridge is as close as she gets to altitude.

6 reasons why trail running will make you a better runner

2009-08-17T06:48:00.000-07:00

Boston Triathlon Examiner Claire Lunardoni

Add a few trail runs to your schedule, and all the power and good technique that you developed on the trails will have you running faster. Here's what you're missing if you never run on trails:

Trails make you strong. The terrain around roads has been flattened out to accommodate houses, mini malls, and parking lots. Trails have hills as nature intended them, as steep as they darned well please. Having to run up a few 20% grades will give you a great hill workout without boring repetitions, and give you the aerobic capacity of a steam engine. Also, since trails are riddled with rocks, roots, twists, and turns, balance comes into play much more than on the road. Don't be surprised if after a trail run, muscles are sore that you didn't even know you had.
Trails are injury prevention. Although you might turn an ankle in the woods or get a boo-boo on your knee, trail running will probably prevent more injuries in the long run than it causes. First of all, you are always using your muscles slightly differently on the uneven terrain, helping to prevent repetitive stress injuries and strengthening muscles and muscle fibers that are neglected on the road. Having legs that are strong all-around will make them practically bullet-proof to most repetitive stress injuries. Also, the soft surfaces on the trails give your legs respite from the hard pounding on the pavement.
Trails give you a break. You need to add variety to your routine to keep from plateauing or simply getting stale. You can't get bored on the trails like you can on the road, because the second you zone out you'll be eating dirt. I do most of my trail running on the same 5.5-mile loop, but I never get tired of it because there is always so much to think about. The scenery changes from day to day, and it seems to become a whole new trail every few months. Since you have so many obstacles (hills, rocks, roots, slippery descents), trails also give you a break from thinking about your pace, and shake up a stale routine. Eventually you'll learn to stop looking down at your watch (because that's a great way to get a branch to the face), and just enjoy the ride.
Trails are cool. With the 90º heat that we've been... enjoying/suffering through (take your pick)... these past few weeks, I don't need to tell you how nice it is to get off the steaming hot pavement. Heat can not only ruin a tough workout, but it can also be dangerous. Trails are generally around water and shaded by trees, which cuts the heat down considerably and gives you a chance to get in a tough workout on a hot day. Even if you are not running on a shaded trail, sunny trails are cooler than the road where the tarmac soaks up the heat and radiates it back into the air even deep into the night.
Trails can be long. There's a reason why there aren't many 100-mile road races. You can get away with running much, much longer on the trails than on the road because of the slower pace and soft surfaces. Try doing all or part of your next long run on the trails and your muscles will probably feel fatigued, but your knees, shins, feet, and other problem areas will probably feel better. You will also recover more quickly from a long trail run than a road run. If you really start getting into trail running, try a trail race. You'll find that trail runners are a laid-back and welcoming group (which can be refreshing if you hang out around tri-geeks too much). Trail races tend to be longer than road races, and can even be substituted for a long training run if you wish.
Trails make you pick your feet up. Have you ever noticed the people around you in a race shuffling their feet, and then seen your race photos and found that you were one of them? Picking your feet up (knee drive) is a key part of running faster, but it's usually one of the first things that falls apart when you're tired from riding your bike or just running for too long. Trail running will teach you to pick your feet up even when you're tired. If you don't pick your feet up on the trails, eventually you're going to go ass over teakettle and wind up with a pine needle sandwich. When picking your feet up becomes a habit, it will translate to better running form off road as well as on.

Trail Runners Outpost

Karl Meltzer's Run on the Pony Express Trail

Superior Trail Running Tour

West Virginia Mountain Trail Runners

New Balance Minumus Line: A Sneak Peak

Great Event Calendar for Upper Midwest Trail Runners

The Donner Lake Rim Trail

Exploring the Donner Lake Rim Trail

Florida Trail Running

Humans Were Born To Run Barefoot

Video: A Look At Running With And Without Shoes

How to transition to running in minimalist shoes

Why expensive trainers could be worse than useless

Running Shoes More Damaging Than High Heels?

Inspirational Video "Race for the Soul" Available Online

12 Step Program to Run Barefoot

This information is from Clynton Taylor's website http://www.runningquest.net which has some great information on barefoot running and other running related concerns.

Introduction

A Note For Experienced Runners

12 Step Program to Run Barefoot

Guidelines

I. Prepare Your Body

1. Walk barefoot in the house.

2. Walk barefoot outside.

3. Perform feet, leg, and breathing exercises.

II. Learn the Stride

4. Run 100 feet on grass.

5. Run 20 feet on a hard surface.

6. Run 100 feet on a hard surface.

III. Increase the Distance

7. Run 500 feet.

8. Run 1 mile.

9. Run 2 miles.

IV. Maintain Yourself

10. Run 5 miles.

11. Run 8+ miles.

12. Teach someone else to run barefoot.

Benefits of Barefoot Running

This is from Clynton Taylor's very nice running website http://www.runningquest.net

It’s All So Confusing!

A Running Reframe

Less Is More

The Benefits of Running Barefoot

Minimal Shoes

Other Shoes

Lost California Runner Found Near Mt. Tam

The lost trailrunner did a few things right that helped him survive his ordeal. Among them, remember to always tell someone where you're going and also stay put once you realize you're lost and the sun goes down.

Trail runner rescued during stormy night near Mt. Tam

Good Trail Running Resources

Cool New Balance Ad with some Really Fast Trail Runners

Video of North Face Endurance Challenge Champion Caitlin Smith

XTERRA Trail Running World Championship Half Marathon Video

One Mile with Two of the Fastest Trail Runners in the World

Barefoot Running Shoes

Is Barefoot Running Beneficial Or Detrimental?

More reading about the barefoot running debate. From Podiatry Today.

Video of Trans Zion Traverse

Jared Campbell's and Christian Johnson's Recent FKT on Trans Zion Traverse

New Trails: Pine Ridge Trail, Nebraska

Palmiero-Winters Setting Trail Records on Prosthetic Leg

The Human Body is Built for Distance

Black Hills Runners Club

South Dakota Trail Running Championships

Insight from New Balance About the Development of Their New MT100 Shoe

Harakiri Mountain Run

Good Morning America Interview with Lost California Runner

Lost California Runner Wishes She Had Done Some Things Differently

The Search for the Lost California Runner

California Trail Runner Lost...and Found!

The Barefoot Runner

Could Barefoot Running Save Your Knees?

New Trail for the Boundary Waters

Great Trail Running Commercial from Timberland

Colorado Trail Running Video

Midwest Trail Running Overlooked?

This Trail Running Video is REALLY Good

Another Inspiring Trail Running Video

More Videos of UTMB Course

Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc

Ultrarunning Video