Run Backwards Barefoot…Why Bother??

 

I have been incorporating backwards barefoot running into my clinic and personal drills to enhance forward bare-foot running for years.

Why, you ask?

Running bare-foot backwards:

* takes the onus off the quad muscles & onto the calves, hamstrings & gluteals – usually under-utilized in the forward running motion

* forces you more onto the mid-foot re: foot strike

* forces you to drive backward with power by shortening the stride length

* forces you to balance & centre better over the body’s mid-line by taking away your forward field of vision

* forces you to fire the running muscles in the proper sequence consistently

* makes running forward in the squat/scoot almost automatic with less stress on the body, faster forward push & virtually NO running-related injuries

Drills:

* alternate backward & forward running, varying the distance but changing direction quickly & frequently for 3 to 4 mins. x 3 reps

* backward uphill & downhill x 4 reps each way – push both ways with power, staying low & tight thru the core

* backward angled running on a flat area, changing angles quickly & powerfully x 6o sec. reps x 5. This helps strengthen your hip adductor & abductor muscles, critical to keeping your hips square & feet landing in a forward direction whilst bare-foot

Do these 1 to 2 times per week & your bare-foot running efficiency will improve dramatically. As my friends, The Eagles, would sing “take it to the limit…one more time”!!

Coach Jeff

Mississauga Barefoot Runners set Canadian Record!

The setting was the 4th annual Team Unbreakable CameronHelps road race in support of teen suicide prevention. The location was the Port Credit, Ontario, Canada lighthouse on the Credit River & Lake Ontario. The goal (beyond raising funds & awareness for this most important cause) was to set the new Canadian record for the most bare-foot runners completing a road race. The date was Father’s Day, Sunday, June 17 at 9:00 a.m.

The morning broke clear & warm with little wind – perfect for bare-foot running! My TOTTers ‘toed’ the line & ran wonderfully throughout. First in was James who finished in the top 10 of 300+ runners. Mark followed James 2 minutes later & Jack came in 2 minutes after Mark! Shawn came in next followed by Aneta & Tina. Yours truly (coach Jeff) rounded out the 7 bare-footers by running in with young Aneta. To put this into perspective, the previous high for bare-foot runners finishing a Canadian road race was FOUR!! We blew that out of the water – everyone finished strong, injury-free & bare-foot committed. A new Canadian record was in the books!!

Most impressive was 9 yr. old Aneta who had NEVER run 5 kms before & had NEVER run barefoot. She happens to be my neighbour & had been bugging me to show her how to run bare-foot. With her mom’s permission, I said, “ok, join me on Father’s Day”. Well, lo & behold, she showed up, ran the whole way with me in tow & finished in 31:12!! She thought the medal & race T-shirt had to be returned! Ah, the innocence of youth! Also, young Jack (age 15) completed his 1st bare-foot race in fine form. Jack had done some bare-foot hill training with me…but not much! The rest of the team were part of my Transition Running clinic & performed wonderfully. NONE had completed a road race bare-foot &, as a matter of fact, none had run bare-foot prior to my clinic.

Next race, we’ll break 10 in the bare-foot category & continue to grow from there!

 

Neighbourhood Kids Going Barefoot!

 

In my neighbourhood, I’m known as ‘that barefoot guy‘. Not sure if that’s a positive or negative moniker. My guess is a bit of both. Most of the parents look at my bare-foot running, lawn-cutting, gardening, sports playing etc. as “well, as long as it’s only Jeff and not the rest of us”.

The kids, on the other hand, embrace it fully. As a matter of fact, they take pride in showing me how well they can run, jump, skip, play badminton etc. bare-foot – from the 3 to 17 year olds!! The interesting thing is how quickly they adapt especially to bare-foot running. They bang on our front door – barefoot – as say ” look, Jeff. I’m barefoot. Watch this!” as they proceed to race up our driveway, doing handstands, cartwheels, round-offs & flips as they go. Often, they will line up in twos @ the end of a neighbour’s LONG paved driveway wanting me to time them racing bare-foot. All I have to do is mention “quiet feet – I don’t want to hear your feet hitting the pavement” & they immediately brace, flick & push forward whilst getting lower to the ground – a perfect squat/scoot action with no pain & lots of laugthter.

If only ALL of us could experience this youthful exuberance toward a natural, safe way of moving! Here’s to YOU getting the neighbourhood kids barefoot!!

Coach Jeff

Off-Road Power Drills to Prep for Barefoot Running

My advanced runners are put through a series of power drills – all done barefoot, of course – to better prepare their feet for the rigors of running barefoot on all types of terrain. IF you have been progressing through my earlier drills, you should be ready to meld in the following:

* 1-legged 5-point burpees with explosive knee lift to chest x 15 reps. Alternate legs each rep

* 1-legged diamond squat jumps x 5 reps/leg

* Sumo Squat power jumps x 45 secs

* 2 bench hand supported double leg thrust through x 60 secs

Do this every other day away from your running. Build speed into the drill vs. adding quantity. Time efficiency is the key!

Coach Jeff

Race Day in Streetsville, ON Canada!

The 8:00 a.m. start didn’t intimidate my 10 and 12 year old TOTT runners in the Streetsville Bread & Honey 5 & 15 km Road Race.

In perfect conditions, James and I (him in Nike Frees, me barefoot as usual) covered the 1st 4 kms together – this being his 1st EVER 5 km race. We’d trained for this BUT racing it is a different animal. In spite of severe allergies, James soldiered on with NO stopping! I left him with 1 km to go and according to his parents, he finished as we discussed…strong! Just an amazing result for a special young lad…

From there, I raced at a 4:30/km to catch my 12 and 13 year old TOTTers (Owen & Patrick) at the 7 km mark. Patrick’s mom, Louise, was also running with them. We held their pace till the 10 km mark where I said “time to hammer, lads” and dropped to a 4:15/km pace to the finish. The lads came in at 90 minutes – this was Owen’s 1st 15 km race & Patrick’s 3rd. They were barely breathing hard & looked fresh enough to go another 15 kms! I told them ‘no prisoners’ in their next race. Pedal to the metal throughout.

Apparently, there was 1 other barefooter in the 15 km race but I didn’t see him. Also, one of my adult TOTTers (Anthony Semchek) completed the 5K race barefoot – the 1st time he’s ever done that!

There seems to be hope that barefoot running in Canada (at least in the warmer weather!) is catching on. There should be 6 of my Transition clinic members doing the CameronHelps 5 km Race in Port Credit, Mississauga on Father’s day totally BAREFOOT. I’ll blog the results post race.

As for the coach, it was a case of negative split followed by negative split! :)) Even at 4:15/km, I never felt stressed. My feet were barely caressing the pavement – I simply DOMINATED the portions of the course that I raced. This sets me up well to FULLY race the Toronto Scotia 1/2 barefoot in October/12.

If you want to run strong & injury-free, get the hell out of the ‘coffins‘! The slapping on the pavement from the ‘masses’ this morning almost KILLED me!

Coach Jeff

Upcoming Clinics From Team Over The Top: Coach Jeff!

 

Make sure you register for 1 or both of the following clinics:

1. the TOTT summer Gym Barefoot Training for Runners. It’s at the Cawthra Pool Exercise Room in Port Credit (please refer to flyer in previous blog for more details)

* you can reserve & pay on-line via coach Jeff or pay on Day one (Thurs., July 5) but book in advance

* this is an 8 week session on Thursday during the summer

* cost is $130.00/person

2. the Transition Running Clinic beginning Monday, July 9 till Monday, Sept. 3 @ Runners’ Mark (see flyer in earlier blog).

* register & pay via coach Jeff directly or register @ Runners’ Mark store in Port Credit (289)813-9999 or via wendy@runnersmark.com

* this is a clinic geared toward teaching you the squat/scoot technique of safe, efficient, powerful mid-foot barefoot/minimalist running

* you progress to running farther faster with less stress on your running joints, ligaments, tendons

* cost is $199.00 per person

Don’t delay. These usually fill up quickly. If you want to be coached by one of the best in the barefoot/minimalist/squat-scoot world, register now!!

Coach Jeff