iRun/iRead and Ep 75 of the Runner's Round Table

Most podcasts are set up as a host (one, two, or an ensemble cast) who covers some topic (news, reviews, etc.) in a familiar format (something akin to a radio show with intros, outros, segments, etc.) One running podcast which breaks that format is the Runner's Round Table. This show is more of a populist creation where someone comes up with a topic and volunteers to moderate a panel discussion held over the internet with each person calling in to a central number. Additionally, the audience can watch/participate live during the recording on a chat channel, or sometimes just calling in themselves.

I bring up RRT as an alternative to other podcasts if you are looking for a new place to branch out in consuming content about running. I especially wanted to mention episode 75 featuring Grant, Vicky, Joe, and Toni talking about the iRun magazine and the accompanying iRead program. I'll let you listen to the show for their discussion of those, the part of the episode I wanted to discuss here is their review of Born to Runand the accompanying question of barefoot running.

I really appreciated how well the panel disagreed on the book, its tone, and the "fad" of barefoot running. While I greatly enjoyed the book, it was great to hear a point of view from someone who didn't like the book. The panel also did a great job of putting into words, my thoughts about the barefoot running phenomenon. To summarize some of their points:

1. The Tarahumara don't actually run barefoot, they have makeshift sandals to protect the bottom of their feet.
2. The effect of barefoot running/minimalist shoe training can be largely duplicated with a conscious effort at better mid/forefoot striking and form.
3. Amateur runners who never received formal coaching (ie: were not runners in high school/college) are frequently coached to "find their own form" and assume that whatever they do is "best for them".
4. Alternatively, amateur runners might well benefit from formal (even if brief) coaching.
5. If you are not having knee/back/other pains and injuries in standard shoes, you may not derive any benefit from barefoot/minimalist running.
6. Maybe you don't need to always run barefoot/minimalist, but doing so as part of core training will help to keep propriceptive and balance muscles in the calf and ankle strong.

Anyway, the panel is not a group of scientists and there is no hard evidence discussed in the show, but I thought it was a great discussion. If you have heard about barefoot/minimalist and are considering it, I would check out this episode as a great review of differing opinions on the subject and see how you think it might work with your training.

Entertainment on the Road

I've mentioned before that one of my favorite distractions, especially on the long runs, are audiobooks. I get some as gifts (Born to Run) and there is always Audible.com (although I really hate DRM). I found this website today, (http://www.booksshouldbefree.com/) which has got more free material than I could probably ever listen to. Enjoy and I'll see you out on the road!

REVIEW: Born to Run

Just like most of us, Christopher McDougall got injured when he ran. His feet hurt, his knees hurt, he tried lots of fancy expensive shoes, he had gait tests done to figure out if he pronates, and so on. Doctors told him to stop running; it’s not natural and humans weren’t meant to do it.

In the quest to find answers about why this is, McDougall went on an incredible journey that he chronicles in his book “Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greastest Race the World has never seen”. In it he travels to the deserts and mountains of Mexico in search of an ancient tribe of people (the Tarahumara) and a mysterious man named Caballo Blanco.

McDougall’s writing style can be a little distracting because while the book does loosely follow the timeline of Caballo Blanco, the story jumps around from time to time and he goes off on some incredible tangents and side stories. All the material is very interesting and by the end it is clear McDougall is using the timeline to build suspense to the grand finale race that the book closes with.

The book mixes journalism, science, the history of running, incredible anecdotes, evolutionary theory, and just a dash of controversy over corporate America. As a doctor/scientist/runner, I found the review of contemporary scientific literature on running and evolution to be the most interesting content. He references paper I covered a couple months ago about Distance Running and the Evolution of Homo, but goes into the background of the authors and how the paper came to be. The science definitely challenged my understanding of running and made me think twice about what my next shoe purchase will be. (Vibram?)

I highly recommend the book, which spans 9 CD’s if you buy the audiobook version.

If you have already read the book and want to indulge more into the history, images, and people in the book, Caballo actually has an incredible website with touching photos and TONS of info. He doesn't have any fancy Web 2.0 eyecandy, flash animations, or rounded corners, but it's a touching addition to Manuel Luna, Caballo, Scott, Jen and the Bonehead, Ted and all the others.

Links:

US News and World Report review

Barefoot Ted, one of the book's characters

Caballo Blanco

Scott Jurek