Barefoot running: Is this new trend healthy?
Over the weekend, I attended a talk/workshop on barefoot running with Barefoot Ken Bob of http://thebarefootrunning.com
About 10 years ago, when I started reading Dr. Phil Maffetone’s books on fitness and nutrition, one of his chapters on running shoes really intrigued me. He made the point that we have been conditioned to believe that we need shoes with lots of extra padding, as the shoe companies (and running community in general) would have us believe. He pointed out that the Kenyans had very few running injuries, until shoe companies began to pay them to wear their shoes and compete at the elite level.
Maffetone recommended ditching your $125 Nike’s for a pair of cheap Keds shoes that have no padding. He stated that ideally, we should all run barefoot, but that it’s just not practical.
After accepting Maffetone’s ideas I initially started buying running shoes that had minimal padding. But I slowly drifted back into believing the mainstream viewpoint that we need more cushion and we need to spend the money on shoes (and replace them every 6 months!).
A brand new Harvard study shoes that running with shoes changes our gait, and we end up running more heel-to-toe. This causes various problems such as shin splints that the barefoot runners, by landing more on their mid-foot, do not experience. While there is no study that proves running shoes cause injuries, there is also no study that proves running shoes actually prevent injuries!
At the clinic, I asked Ken Bob about switching from running shoes to the Vibram’s 5-Fingers as a transition to barefoot running. He said I have it backwards. First, experience barefoot running and allow your feet to get used to actually touching the ground and conforming with various surfaces. Then, if you want to go to back to a little protection, feel free to wear the Vibrams shoes. That makes sense to me, as we do have a lot of nerve endings at the end of our feet that don’t get ground exposure very often!
So my plan is to ease into barefoot running. I’m going to do some short weekly runs on the beach on the harder packed sand with bare feet. My longer runs (4-5 miles) I will continue to use my running shoes until I feel I have built up my feet a few times in the sand. Then I will start with a couple of miles running barefoot on harder surfaces, and go from there.
I can’t wait to get back to basics with my running and cut down or eliminate injuries!
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Exercise your way to your perfect body?
Yesterday, Wes and I interviewed Mark Sissons of marksdailyapple.com.
Wow, was this an insightful interview!
Mark has a very non-mainstream take on fitness, but one that is backed by evidence and facts.
The thing that I am coming to grips with is the idea that doing long distance endurance events is completely unnecessary in achieving a fit body, and is even unhealthy in some areas!
His blog post on Chronic Cardio delves into this. While I definitely agree with Mark, that 80% of fat loss has to do with what we put in our mouths (aside from the psychology aspect). However, I’ve been doing long distance swimming for several years now, and for the past 3 years I’ve done a few half marathons.
I’m not ready to drop my entire exercise routine just yet. I really love swimming for 45 minutes to an hour a few times a week, and there’s nothing like going for a 4-5 mile jog by the beach to me. But I’m really excited about incorporating some of Mark’s suggestions in the way of some of the short sprint workouts. And, this information he presents about saving tons of time and being in as good or BETTER shape really intrigues me.
Here’s a sample of Mark’s beach sprint routine:
I’m imagining days of doing 5-15 minute workouts vs. spending 1 hour or more! And, his proof is in the pudding. He’s in his late 50’s and has the body of someone in their 20’s!
How’s your workout routine going? Does this type of exercise interest you?
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Is Wine Low Carb?
On Friday night, I threw a party and the beverage of choice I served was wine. Also, last week someone tweeted me with the question, “Is 
wine a low carb drink?”
So it’s time to do a blog post!
The answer to the question is, yes, most wines are low carb drinks, particularly in comparison to beer in general. For example, a typical 3 oz glass of red wine has about .5g of carbohydrates! Some of the sweeter white wines are a bit more problematic, with up to about 6g of carbs per serving.
However, it’s not really the carbs but the alcohol that’s the issue with wine.
Here’s what Dr. Atkins had to say about alcohol on his low carb diet:
“Here’s the problem with all alcoholic beverages, and the reason I recommend refraining from alcohol consumption on the diet. Alcohol, whenever taken in, is the first fuel to burn. While that’s going on, your body will not burn fat. This does not stop the weight loss, it simply postpones it, since the alcohol does not store as glycogen, you immediately go back into ketosis/lipolysis after the alcohol is used up.
If you must drink alcohol, wine is an acceptable addition to levels beyond the Induction diet. If wine does not suit your taste, straight liquor such as scotch, rye, vodka, and gin would be appropriate, as long as the mixer is sugarless; this means no juice, tonic water; or non-diet soda. Seltzer and diet soda are appropriate.”
If weight loss or fat loss is your goal, red wine is certainly far better than drinking a sugary (or corn syrupy) margarita, but keep in mind the 2-week plan (either in Atkins’ diet or the one in the Healthy Mind Fit Body book): you may consider cutting it out just for this period. One thing that I noticed after I cut way down on my carbs was that I could no longer tolerate a lot of alcohol. If I go beyond one or two glasses of wine, I start to feel crappy- which is a good incentive to keep alcohol in moderation!
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Guilt free brownies?
I was in Trader Joe’s the other day and it smelled like yummy chocolate. The sample they were giving away that day was “Guilt-Free 
Brownies”. Was this one of the carb substitute products we just mentioned on the podcast with Low Carb Lindsey, as well as the last one with Jimmy Moore? I was excited!
Only to find out, “guilt-free” means no FAT! UGGGG!!! Brownies are by no means a health food, but what better way to make them even less healthy and with less taste than to take out the fat! Just for kicks, I checked out the box mix. 26g of carbohydrates per serving!
I have to wonder if we’ve finally jumped the shark in terms of the low fat craze. A fat free desert is actually worse for you than eating one with all the fat calories. I thought we learned this back in the days when “Snackwells” (fat free cookies) finally lose their popularity.
Unfortunately, “guilt” and eating fat still go together when it comes to the demands of the mainstream public. Otherwise, chains like Trader Joe’s would have no reason to carry such a useless item!
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Eating healthy in busy times
I’m as busy as ever, going through a product launch this week and next, as well as several other things going on in my personal life. 
Suddenly, I haven’t had time to prepare meals or even go grocery shopping! I’ve missed several workouts lately (which usually never happens), and have been sedentary (at my computer a lot). What can I do to keep healthy and fit with little time? Here’s what I’ve done right:
1. I’ve avoided doing the fast food thing. As tempting as it is, fast food I know is a health sinker. I’ve gone with berries and nuts over sausage McMuffins on my busiest days.
2. Every day I try to move as much as possible. Even as I am missing workouts, I’m still squeezing in a 15 minute walk or just parking further away from the store when I run errands.
3. I’ve made grocery shopping a priority. Without groceries, I go hungry while I’m working at home. This leads to needing to go out to eat. Even if it’s healthy food I’m getting out, I will likely overeat since I didn’t have my nuts and other snacks on hand.
What I’ve done wrong:
1. I have not used my time wisely. During busy times it’s good to get workouts in in the morning. I have been waking up early and getting right to work. Bad.
2. I have been getting erratic sleep. I’ll sleep 8 hours one night then 5 the next. This isn’t good for mental or physical health! Good to get to bed early during stressful times.
I can’t wait to get through the next couple of weeks, but in the mean time, life must be enjoyed as much as possible with a healthy mind and a fit body!
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