First Taste of Bare Feet

The weather has been schizophrenic in Northeast Ohio. We just had a fresh batch of snow last weekend, but yesterday the temperature was in the mid-60s. Today, it's a rainy mess as the temperature is supposed to drop from the 50s to 30s over the course of the day.

Still feeling sick but hoping to dislodge some phlegm, I took advantage of the springlike weather. Dressed in shorts and a T-shirt and wearing my Altra Adams, I headed out for a short, neighborhood run. About a half-mile in, I removed my shoes for the rest of the three-miler.

I have finally realized the true benefit of a shoe that you can roll up into a ball. They're much easier to carry when you decide you didn't need shoes for that run after all.

My feet had been begging for a shoeless run. They had been getting rough on the soles, but afterward they were nice and smooth, the cement acting as a pumice stone.

I was starting to get discouraged that Akron had gotten too liberal, with no one commenting on my lack of footwear, but finally, less than a mile from home, a car passed by and someone yelled something crass in my general direction.

Then, once on my street, a guy I've begun calling our "friendly neighborhood roving rapper" asked if I was OK, and then included me in his impromptu rhymes.

My Achilles tendons, calves and ankles were a bit sore afterward, highlighting the difference between running in minimalist shoes vs. bare feet. You'll never get a shoe that completely replicates the effect of going without. I'm looking forward to fairer weather, when I can get back to some barefoot running.