Category Archives: Born to Run

June 17, 2012 · 3:12 PM

Book Review: “Eat and Run: My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness” by Scott Jurek

When I first heard about Scott Jurek’s new book called Eat and Run: My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness a few months ago, I immediately jumped online and pre-ordered my copy. Scott is an ultramarathon legend, who happens to be vegan, and the subject of food as it relates to running is a big passion of mine. So one mention of the title of the book and I knew I had to read it. The book finally arrived about two weeks ago (release date was June 5th) and I devoured it in about a week. It was a quick read with a lot of great stories and insights from Scott himself.

The book is essentially a story of his life until present. Scott talks about how he came into running, how he transitioned to ultrarunning, and how his transition from a meat-and-potatoes diet to vegetarianism to veganism ultimately transformed his running. After the chapters on Scott’s early life, each chapter of the book is devoted to some of the ultramarathons he has run (including the Copper Canyon ultra that was chronicled in Born to Run). Sprinkled throughout are stories about how his diet changed his running performance, helped him recover faster, and just feel better overall. At the end of every chapter is also a recipe. Most of them sound quite good and I plan on trying many of them.

What I love most about this book is that Scott doesn’t push veganism on the reader. He talks about how it helped him personally, but it’s not something that he preaches about or tries to convince the reader that they need to do. At the end of the book he even mentions that veganism is what works for him, but maybe a different diet has the same beneficial effects on someone else. Diet can be a very personal and individual thing and everyone has different needs.

I also love how Scott didn’t listen to everyone who told him that runners cannot and should not live a vegan (or even vegetarian) lifestyle because they need the protein and iron that comes from eating meat, poultry, and fish. Scott was very smart about making the transition from a meat-and-potatoes diet to veganism, he did his research, and he was (and is) very cautious about the nutrients he needs and gets and he makes it work. If you do it the right way, there is absolutely nothing wrong with combining running and veganism. And he proves that.

I really liked this book and would definitely recommend it to anyone who has a passion for running and eating. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever met a runner who isn’t also passionate about food.

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Filed under Book Review, Born to Run, Scott Jurek, Vegetarian/Vegan Diet

March 25, 2011 · 7:29 AM

Book Review: Born to Run

It’s not very often that a captivating non-fiction story about running comes along. Most books related to running are, after all, how-to books. For the reader who wants something different, something other than a book about anatomy, nutrition, or training plans, Born to Run is the perfect answer.

Born to Run is a page-turner written by Christopher McDougall about the Tarahumara people, ultramarathon races, and his quest to answer a question about why his foot hurt. McDougall set out on an adventure to find the Tarahumara tribe, an indigenous population in Northern Mexico known to run incredible distances, in hopes of discovering their secrets to remaining injury-free. Along this adventure, McDougall discusses the history of running footwear, recaps some past ultramarathons such as the Leadville 100, and takes the reader on a journey of organizing his own ultramarathon in the Copper Canyons where the Tarahumara live.

Born to Run was very inspirational for me. Every time I picked it up I wanted to go for a run. And far. It was also very motivational. It made me want to become a better runner and a healthier runner. And it transformed me into thinking that barefoot running was a dumb fad with no reasoning behind it to really understanding it and being open to trying it. It was educational and explained the history of running shoes, how they evolved into what they are now, and why it is important to take them off once in a while. Also discussed in the book is the Tarahumara diet, which incorporates a lot of pinole and chia. I would be lying if I told you that I didn’t go out and buy chia seeds, which I now incorporate into smoothies and salads. The pinole I have not tried yet, but I have found several recipes for making it and even using it to make energy bars that are good for consuming on long runs. Born to Run has become so popular that Matt Frazier is publishing a book of pinole and chia recipes targeted towards runners.

I think that we are entering a time when runners are discovering that sometimes too much technology can be a bad thing. They are stripping off their shoes, looking for more natural products and experiences, and getting back to the roots of mankind when running shoes and energy gels didn’t exist. The Tarahumara, after all, are living on the sides of mountains, wearing thin pieces of rubber for shoes, eating food from the earth, and running 100 miles a day doing it. They are proof that we don’t need anything fancy to run and I think that notion is resonating with a lot of runners today.

If you are looking for a good, well-written, and inspirational book about running, I would definitely recommend Born to Run. It is captivating, so even though it is 304 pages, it is a quick read. And I guarantee you that it will make you want to rip off your shoes and run 50 miles through the mountains. Okay, maybe not so hard core. Maybe you just want to run down the street barefoot.

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Filed under Barefoot Running, Book Review, Born to Run, Runner's Anatomy, Running Injuries

March 18, 2011 · 7:30 AM

My Take on Barefoot/Minimalist Running

I have to be honest. When barefoot running started becoming popular last year, I thought it was a stupid fad that would disappear as soon as it arrived. I had absolutely no interest in trying it and was one of those people giving funny looks to passersby wearing Vibram FiveFingers. I am still not convinced that it isn’t a fad that will disappear in a few years, but I’m at least now open to trying it and listening to the reasons behind the practice. It took a lot of convincing, however, to get me to this point.

Probably the most influential factor in changing my mind was the book Born to Run. If you’ve read it, you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you haven’t read it, I will be writing a book review of it shortly. Basically the book is about the Tarahumara, an indigenous population in Northern Mexico renowned for their long distance running ability (over 400 miles at a time). They do not wear, and have never worn, running shoes and yet are very rarely injured. After reading the book, I did a little more research on the benefits of barefoot running (which I will get to in a minute) and decided it might be beneficial to incorporate into my training. But I still wasn’t ready to make the leap.

I was then pushed over the edge when I attended the Good Form Running clinic I wrote about a few days ago. One of the keys to good form and injury prevention is mid-foot striking, and barefoot running is a great way to train your body and mind to do that. Shoes make it extremely easy to heal-stike, which is why most runners today are heal-strikers. But with no shoes on, or minimalist shoes such as Vibram FiveFingers, you are forced to strike the ground with your mid-food because of shock absorption. With no shoes on, there is no shock absorption in your heals and it would hurt your feet, knees, and whole body if you landed heal first for more than a few steps. If you can train your body to strike with the mid-foot while running barefoot, or wearing minimalist shoes, it becomes a lot easier to be a mid-foot striker while wearing your regular running shoes.

Okay, so now to the benefits of barefoot running:

  • It strengthens the foot muscles, tendons, and ligaments, which reduces the risk of injury.
  • It helps stretch and lengthen the Achilles tendon and calf muscles, which may reduce injuries.
  • It helps runners learn to land on the forefoot or mid-foot rather than the heel. Landing on the heel is essential putting on the breaks every step while mid-foot landing is much more efficient.
  • It helps improve balance as you activate and strengthen the smaller muscles in the feet, ankles, legs, and hips.

So while I’m struggling to come back from this injury, I am motivated to try everything I can to stay injury-free and become an overall stronger runner. All of the events and research I described above led me to conclude that I should give in and give barefoot running a try. Since I do my running along the canal path, which is mostly gravel, I decided that I really should have some form of foot protection from rocks, glass, etc. So, I decided to go with the Vibram FiveFingers. There are also other brands of minimalist shoes out there, such as Nike Free, New Balance Minimus, and several others, all of which cost around $100.

The only way that barefoot running can be done safely and effectively is to ease into it VERY slowly. I will definitely not be replacing my Sauconys full-time, but instead will be using the Vibrams as a supplement. I will start with a few minutes of running in them several times per week and imagine I will eventually work my way up to 3 miles in them. I do not have any goals of running more than 3 miles at a time in the Vibrams because I think that might increase the risk of injury. There is a fine line between using them as a tool to benefit your running and overdoing it and risking more injuries. Ideally I would like to run 3 miles once or twice per week in them.  But first I have to focus on the baby steps and simply work my way up to 5 minutes at a time.

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Filed under Barefoot Running, Born to Run, Marathon Training, Minimalist Running, Running Form, Running Injuries, Vibram FiveFingers