Barefoot Running Advice » Beginners' Corner

foot sound

(3 posts)
  • Started 2 months ago by runnergirl
  • Latest reply from pythelico

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  1. runnergirl
    Member

    Ok I've been doing this about a month now, but my feet were slapping and I was told they should be quiet. BUT now my calves are constantly tight! I can run without making a sound but when will my calves loosen up!!

    Posted 2 months ago #

  2. babysteps3446
    Member

    Hey I'm no expert by any means because I have been running bf as long as you, maybe a little longer... I was overcome with sore tight calves for the first few weeks or so. For some reason, I thought when my feet touched the ground my heels could not ever touch. Maybe perhaps thinking how painful it would be to slam my heel down (?) made sure my heels would not touch the the ground. My feet were "quiet" but felt something wasn't quite right. The first thing I did was relax and stop worrying I was doing something wrong, especially being paranoid about the rocks under my heels. As a result, my foot strike got even lighter, but I was landing just a little bit back of the ball of my foot to where I noticed my heel was slightly touching the ground. This stride felt much more natural. Watching my shadow from the sun, also noticed that the up and down movement of my head was gone. Best of all, my calves were not nearly as sore or tight.

    Posted 2 months ago #

  3. pythelico
    Member

    I will say that my right calve is tight after almost every run, but my left is not a problem. I suspect it's because my left calve is better developed due to my stride in shoes (just a guess).

    I've been focused on staying up on my forefoot and, it takes some getting used to. I notice that the faster I go, the more I tend to get my heel closer to the ground with each stride. Like babysteps, my heels touch just briefly and lightly on most strides.

    Coach Sandler made an analogy at one of the clinics where I heard him and it's definitely a good one. When you run barefoot on your forefoot, it's like doing hundreds or more calf raises (depending on how far you run). It's a lot more than most people's calves are used to and you will be sore and tight if you do too much too fast.

    Find the stride and the step that are right for you. Try to run lightly but also, experiment a bit. Have fun with it and try out different things. Pick the one that feels the best to you.

    I'm not an expert either but that's been my approach.

    Good luck and keep it up.

    Kelly

    Posted 2 months ago #

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