Why and How I Became a Barefoot Runner?

I came from the sport of Bicycle Road Racing at the International level.

In that season I logged over 750,000 mile of racing and training.

Because of those decades of being bent over my bikes handlebars my body optimized itself for being in that position and not being a “Bi-ped” or person designed for moving gracefully or efficiently across the land. (I mention this because most of you did not grow up running as a natural and daily part of your lives. Most people grow up wearing shoes and moving from chair to chair especially as the decades pile on).

I came to a season 3 years ago where I transitioned to running from cycling and I quickly learned that my feet were so atrophied from being encased in carbon fiber soled shoes the right one had gout and many of it's bones were fusing due to calcification and the left one had no stability at all.

From coping with decades of seasonal crashes and being in a leaning forward position for so many miles my pelvis tilted unnaturally forward at the top and my gluteus and quads were very over developed.

Most short races or criteriums are run in a counter clockwise direction around courses that are less than a mile in diameter for up to 40 miles. These are very high speed races with lots of anaerobic level sprinting in tight packs where elbowing for room to pass with riders all across the road pursing cash prizes for being the first person across the line on any given lap where the winnings can be anything from $25 to $1,200 lots of crashes due to landing on the same side so many times my body had compensated by twisting my pelvis counter clockwise when viewed from above resulting in a timing difference for the nerves firing in my right leg faster than my left creating a timing difference when applying power over the top of the pedal stroke. This added in the wonderful effect up the biomechanical chain of creating a scoliosis spine, a dropped right shoulder and my head literally being a whole inch off centered on my shoulders to the left due to the scoliosis.

Why did I bother to illustrate this?

Because 3 yrs ago after a brand new "Star Wars" grade $10,000 carbon fiber "Wonder Bike" I was breaking in on by taking it down a small mountain grade at 61 mph decided to disintegrate with zero warning (frame exploded out of no where!) leaving me on the asphalt with significant road rash I felt like Forest Gump once he had run back and forth across the USA enough times he just stopped and knew it was time to go home. I knew that I had turned my last pedal. A nice couple in a Honda CRV was kind enough to stop as they witnessed the whole thing happen and they offered the pieces and myself a ride home.

I got a full refund from the manufacturer of that rig and after a week or so of my burns healing I began to get the itch for sweat, lungs full of outdoor air and bumping up against my max heart rate.

A few days later I woke up with the distinct impression I was to go buy a pair of running shoes.... and run again.... Something I had not done since back in my late teens to early 20's in the mid 1970's.

Never the less I immediately loved sweat, breathing deeply and feeling myself moving across the land under my own power again. That quickly evolved into dreams of being able to run as far as I used to be comfortable riding a bike in a day (25-160 miles at a clip was normal) I figured if my engine (heart and lungs) was more than adequate for it all I had to do was get my feet and legs up to that level of adaptedness.
Within a coupe to 3 wks I was running 12-17 miles per day but dealing with chronic knee pain, shin splints, blisters, blue toe nails, foot fungus, back and hip pain, ankle and toe joint pains to name just a few parts that I hobbled home with.

Oh, and my wife who occasionally went out running with me for part of those miles told me I didn't run upright. She said my posture was like an Ape! Hunched over and loping instead of being vertical and graceful. I was both embarrassed and knew something was very wrong but I'd figure it out if I kept stressing my body and allowing it to adapt before going back out to lay up the next layer of adaptation stressing.

Well over a few months of realizing I was also on the hook for replacing $130 shoes every 21-28 days due to my heavy heel striking style which caused the heels to be shot in that little mileage (about 280-325 miles per month) I hated that. After my bike broke I and I took to running one the things I realized I had done over the decades is wasted 100's of 1000's of dollars on bikes and all the gear needed to ride and support them and wished I had all that back and in the bank. I couldn't help but think that being fit should not be a financial drain of any kind.

As my knees and shins got worse I began to research on the internet how others had coped with this stage and gotten to where they now ran at least a marathon or 2 per month or how the 100+ milers (Ultra Runners) seem to do 1-2 of those per month, month after month relatively injury free.

This lead to my meeting a fella out of Huntington Beach called Ken Bob Saxton over the Internet who ran a marathon or 2 a month Barefoot! Ken Bob has his own site dedicated to Barefoot Running at

As we exchanged message through post on his website I eventually got him to agree to a phone call. On that call after sharing my laundry list of symptoms he explained to me that we were never designed to wear modern day running shoes as their design actually had no relevance to how our biomechanics were designed to function. Meaning most people whether walking or running have been "Retrained" to land on their heels when in nature no Native or Natural tribes land on their heels. Instead they land on the balls or the pads of the "mid foot" so that the cantilevered structure of the arch is activated as a natural "leaf spring" not unlike what is found underneath the back axle of most pick up trucks for both suspension, shock absorption and load carrying capacity if you care to get down on your belly and look up under one if you've never done so.

Landing on the heels not only by passes this natural beginning to optimal loading of your weight during the "walking or running gait or movement" It encourages us to over or hyper extend the knee by over activating the "hip flexors" in effect straightening out the upper and lower legs bones to make the knee joints into nothing more than a non cushioning biscuit to be smashed on every heel strike while the shoe makers tell us they have put adequate "Super Duper Star Wars" form and other dinosaur juice based technology into the heel areas to protect us from the "pounding of the pavement" (actually our ignorance and stupidity) This behavior and programming (as it is a form of hypnosis since the soles of our feet were designed to supply us with feed back so that we would constantly adjust our stride, gait, sole firmness, angle of sole contact, feel for the need to lighten the loading of the foot if something potentially injurious were under it and to be more conscious and intentional about where we place our feet or step for more certain and safer footing)

I knew a ton about the biomechanics of Cycling and optimizing ones position on a bike comfortable and relatively injury free mega mileage with very high speed capacity. I had never thought of running in regards to actual biomechanics, efficiency, gait break down and optimization of fluidity during the movement of shifting ones weight from one side of the body to the other at higher and higher speeds.

Ken Bob Saxton in all his simple wisdom shared with me a single sentence that forever changed how I looked at running.

He said, "Barefoot Running FORCES CORRECT BIOMECHANICS." Within seconds of hearing that statement it hit me like a ton of bricks why all those years of paying for Chiropractic treatments, working out at the gym, seeing various doctors about foot, leg, hip, back and neck pains was a huge waste of time and money and why not even the Chiropractor could give me a viable or straight answer as to why they could "crack me" back into correct alignment but could not teach me one thing I could do on my own to retrain my body to stay stacked up properly so I didn't need them or the MD's dumb ass suggestions of replacing knee joints, or the nutritionist suggestions of taking supplements to support the joints and such. Totally bogus paths to permanent and sustainable health for the rest of my life!

No needless to say within a couple of days of pondering this totally out of left field idea of heading out the door without my "Foot Condoms" I woke bolt up in bed at 130am one night with the distinct impression I was to go out for night time run of perhaps 10-12 miles as the pain in my knees and shins was down to "tolerable". So I got dressed and slipped on my Camel Bak on to have a place for my keys and bit of water and headed out the door. I didn’t get 10 feet down the sidewalk approaching where it curved around the end of my garage when I heard as if there was someone on the roof of my garage, “Lose the Shoes!” I spun around triggering the motion detection lights on the front of our garage and looked up. No one there! I thought, “I must not be fully awake and am having an awake dream bleeding through out here!” Pondered that for another second and went to set into a running gallop only to hear it just as loud again! I spun around looking towards the house expecting to see someone who would bust out laughing after having successfully pulled a very funny prank on old serious Erskien! Nothing! No one! At this point I look to the sky and state, “Is that you Lord?” Knowing full well in my soul I prayed for more guidance on navigating and mastering the mind field running had unveiled that I was taking more hits than I thought I could endure through.

So in a split second I felt confirmed that this nonsensical suggestion was of Divine Origin and I knew that so many forks in the roads of my life where I thought that direction was not logical had in fact turned into blessings in disguise. I took my Asics Star Wars shoes off with their Super Duper Super Feet orthotics and stuffed them into the outer pockets of my Camel Bak as I didn’t know how far I could go without them or if I’d reach a point where I’d had enough barefooting but still want to go more miles.

So off I went….

It took me all of about 50 ft on the cool smooth concrete sidewalks to find myself feeling “Giddy” (That joyous feeling that makes a plan face develop a smile for no definable reason other than the feeling to smile just flood upward out of the soul like a well that just became a geyser of pure fresh cold water!)

Suddenly I was so happy I literally did just begin smiling and could feel it and KNEW beyond a shadow of a doubt that the end of my “Valley of the Shadows” journey through what seemed link endless and deepening pain was coming to a close! Adding to the joy was the realization and confirmation that God had heard my prayers and actually waited for me to become humbled enough to ask for “His WILL for my Life” over my own (how to run in shoes or according to mans way over what he built this “Space Suit” called a body to do by NATURE.

Nonetheless, that day began my Barefoot Running Adventure into a realm of Running that is invisible to those who only know it through the filter called shoes. I’ve logged over 6800 miles in the last 3 yrs or so and I can tell you there were many miles and months of discomfort, aches, pains and bruises to endure but not one moment did I ponder going back to shoes or riding my bike. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that this was a Divinely Inspired Path for me and that my traveling this path would become a liberating and healing path for literally millions of others to discover the most obvious yet hidden door to healthy mobility, fitness, inspiration and sanity built right into the very fabric of life there is.

I did reach a point where my soles were so bruised from rocks and pebbles (the gritty kind that’s everywhere here in Southern California) that I realized I could not go back to my “jacked up back end squishy running mattress shoes” so I got a pair of Vibram Five Fingers(basically a soft rubber casting of the sole of your feet with a Lycra top and they have toes like gloves so your toes can spread out naturally. The soles are cut with “S” shaped lines to make them extremely flexible in all directions for a much closer to barefoot feeling but with enough rubber to mute some of the feed back normal to going pure Barefoot.

I have since found an much cheaper and simpler “Minimalist Sort of Shoe” called Huaraches made by Invisible Shoe owned and run by Steven Sashen of Colorado that I like a lot more than the Vibram’s as they are open, lighter, do not rub against the toe nails in the latter miles of long runs and as mentioned are much cheaper. I am most impressed with how much they mute out gravel and grit on top of concrete or hard packed trails yet give me plenty of feed back about pressure or loading of the foot parts, natural flexibility of the whole foot, quietness and how well they cling to the soles despite being held on by merely pieces of rope! I am finding that on days when speed is the priority the Huaraches are what I prefer. On days when just cruising miles and being more intimately involved in what and where I step are OK I go completely Barefoot. Due to the light weight of the Huaraches I am more likely to bring them along in my Camel Bak’s outer pocket for extreme surfaces, latter miles of a super long run or to be able to go into Barefoot Unfriendly businesses for resupplying during long runs.

If you have questions or would like any kind of consultation on what your dealing with or insights on some sticking point in your adaptation to Natural Running feel free to contact me through any means I’ve listed on my Facebook Profile. My prayers for you are that you discover what I have and it blesses you even more than it has me.

PS: I might also add that I have become inspired to plan a “Run Across America” to launch in the Spring of 2011. Not sure if it will be completely Barefoot or supplemented with such minimalist shoes as above depending on how my feet continue to adapt to more extreme terrains and surfaces. I’ve put all that in God’s hands as he has and is my Coach on the “Road of Life” anyways. J

Erskien Lenier.
https://www.facebook.com/LandSurfingFrugan

The Most Common Questions I'm Asked About Barefoot Running

First concept to understand is to think of how hard a horse with horseshoes clops down on the pavement.

Then think about how graceful, silent and low impact a mountain lion or cougar would walk or run across the same terrain or pavement. Huge difference in shock or force put into the feet and the ground.

Like the horse and the big thick hooves and even more so if you add horse shoes, humans wearing shoes are muting a lot of "feedback" from their God designed soles on how much force one is putting into landing on the foot.

Those who chronically wear shoes become practically unaware as to what and how they are stepping on almost 100% of the time. Shoes mute out most if not all awareness of what part of the foot we land on, how effectively we distribute body weight on the foot for agility and safety, the amount of down force during foot landing, the stability of the landing and loading of the foot and ankle and even how to walk or run compared to how God designed bi-pedal the movement to happen.

An example of this is the fact that the injury rate has sky rocketed for both people who walk (everyone) and those who run with fancy running shoes.

Bunions, Gout and Arthritis don't exist in shoeless tribes all over the planet and the foot, ankle, shin, knee, hip and back injuries which are normal and common in shoe based running don't exist for those that have never relied on shoes or have "ran away from them" and allowed their feet to reteach them how the legs and feet were designed to land, load and lift off in a natural walking and running gait.

The first thing that happens when one takes off their shoes is they become conscious and intentional as to where the step and how we step.

In nature, notice the mountain lion does not walk or run staring at where each of his 4 feet will step next.

He or she can do that because God designed them and us to be able to read the terrain before we get to it out our peripheral vision and automatically tell the legs and feet how how navigate with precision and agility.

Another symptom of chronic overuse of shoes is our feet become over reactive to stimulus such as walking on common surfaces in our environment like dirt, rocky trails, sidewalks, streets and such.

This over-reactive tendency is no different than if you chose to wear a blind fold everyday for decades to avoid seeing sunlight (which makes about as much sense as wearing shoes to me now a days!) and then taking the blind fold off one sunny day thinking you could now go out into the sun and be functional.

Not a realistic scenario, but can be done over time as you force the "atrophy" out of the eyes by gradually exposing them to low light and limited time exposures or are willing to put on shades once your eyes have absorbed as much as they can for the day out and "allow" them to return to doing what God designed them to do.

The feet atrophy a lot from being in shoes chronically and require time and lots of miles of use on a variety of surfaces to restore their natural health. The rewards for choosing to take that journey go far beyond just having healthy feet!

The skin on the feet does not become hard and calloused nor become all cut up and gnarly as is commonly thought. Instead the soles becomes slightly thicker than it's anemic shoe-self allowed or encouraged. They tan and the soles become more durable and elastic, kind of like "Kevlar" in a police officers bullet proof vest.(Elastic, stretchy and pretty puncture resistant!)

When I do step on shards of glass, thorns and such the leg of that foot naturally without conscious thought in a micro second, reduces the amount of force I was about to load on that spot and the foot flexes and shifts its load to other parts of the sole.

The skin stretches and usually the object either does not even stick to the sole or it slightly sticks in the surface of the skin but does not pierce through to any nerves or blood supply.

The natural reflex is to use the the next step to brush that sole gently against the pavement or ground to brush whatever it was off and continue on without needing to stop or further analyze what it was. Of course also that alerts my eyes to be more on the look out for more hazards in the coming area to be even more intentional on stepping around any other things that could do the same thing. No pain, no wounds, just agilely dealing with it.

Regarding heat or cold:

The sole become acclimated to temps up to just about melting asphalt and as cold as slightly below freezing if you go out running as those temps move into your region.

You learn to increase your tempo or steps per minute across the ground or pavement in such conditions to give the soles time to cool or get warm while not in contact with the extreme temp surface.

For surfaces like melting sticky tar or long stretches of sub freezing pavement or path, snow or slush those are times to dawn some form of shoe or foot covering (Moccasins or Vibram Five Fingers http://www.vibramfivefinges.com) to protect the soles until you have passed the danger and can take them off again.

When I know I am likely to traverse such liabilities on my runs I bring along my Vibrams in the outer pockets of my Camel Bak Lobo Hydration pack for quick easy access and storage when not needed.

Shoes have their place...Just not every place!

One final insight that I have not mentioned that is very different for Chronic Shoe wearers vs Barefoot Runners is what is called "The Gait" or "Bio-Mechanics of How Walking or Running Occurs"

If a child is not allowed to go long enough barefoot during the stage of learning to stand, walk and run they develop and unnatural tendency to land on their heels instead of the ball of or "mid foot" as all Native Tribes of the planet and all children start out doing naturally.

There is no padding, fatty tissue or jointed bones that form levers like the knee to absorb shock on the boney knob that forms the heel.

So instead of teaching correct walking and running biomechanics (mans stupid way as usual) to fix the problem of bruised heels was to add padding and lifted heels to try to absorb the shock and shift the weight mechanically back to the front of the foot instead of just instructing the person to do so!

Because making, distributing and selling shoes became profitable shoes become a needed accessory to prevent bruising of the heel!

Shoes teach the occupant of the body "backwards use" of the muscles of the feet, ankles, legs and hips also!

No different than taking the body of your car and turning it around on the chassis and having the wheels that steer now at the back end of the car and removing the shock absorbers and put hard rubber tires like your tricycle as a kid had on it! Oh and while we are at it let's stuff your feet into long narrow drinking glasses and take away all the padding on your seats.

Now imagine going at a walking pace drive in this car. Probably tolerable but not that much fun. Now try driving it at freeway speeds or even God forbid Racing it!

Imagine how that would change your feeling of being agile, in control and amount of shock you would experience. You would be endlessly looking for ways to get make the ride softer and more control able! Doesn't that sound like modern shoes and modern running shoes?

Ever notice that shoes are never shaped like feet especially the front of the foot? Show me a baby's foot that is shaped like a triangle! Or even a "U"!

The "Carnage" begins at Toddler Age when we begin to stuff Gods perfect creations into "Foot Coffins" resulting in the deformation of the toes, either the collapse of the arches or the over rigidity of them (depending on how a person unconsciously adapts to the lost of stability and flex ability that rigid shoe "stole" from them.)

That pattern of weakening spreads up the ankles, to the knees, on into the hips and eventually the back and even the neck to create a whole chain of problems that keeps Chiropractors, Knee, Hip and Spinal Surgeons happy and rich and population forever becoming more hunched over, unconsciously voting to just settle for moving from chair to chair as they wait for death to come take them away from their now lifelong misery of not liking what was Natural Movement. This is so saddening to me.

I was headed down the above path until I met a Barefoot Runner over the Internet 3 yrs ago suggested I "Lose the Shoes". I prayed over that direction and God clearly helped me see that "He made my feet perfect and appropriate for the journey I was to travel over this lifetime and that I had been by default blinded to his glory in this area of his work. I was to take the path of Restoration and Redemption and use my experience to bring glory to him as the ultimate source for all guidance and insight for the "Class Room of Life and Beyond"

I am happy to report that thanks to God I am completely restored!

My knees are completely regenerated despite the opinions of an MD who did an "Arthroscopic Examination" of them a time ago telling me I should be planning on having my right knee replaced with a metal and plastic one!

I run sometimes from sun up to sun down and beyond and distances far beyond the traditional 26.2 mile marathon with no injuries, no pain and at age 52.

I feel and function better than I did at 22! I would have never believed I could run especially without shoes the kind of distances I thought were challenging on a bicycle back at age 22! Now not only do I find those distances not challenging but I find them relaxing and just plain JOYFUL!

So my suggestion to everyone is learn as much as you can about the myths perpetrated about the need for shoes through my blog at http://www.erskien.blogspot.com and put your faith in what God created more than what man created.

If you do decide to explore this path keep me informed. I've coached a lot of people back to rediscovering "Their Soles"

And by all means...Lose the Shoes and go Barefoot. The Truth truly does set you free!

Erskien Lenier

https://www.facebook.com/LandSurfingFrugan

More Testimonies of the Hand Print of the Living God at Work in Our Lives

This was sent to me by a new Ultra Marathon friend of mine named Marc.

I couldn't resist sharing his story as I am beginning to hear such storys again and again as I have taken the leap of faith in putting my own story out there to show others that God is a Living God and is active, listening and responding to our prayers.

Read on....

Hey Erskien,

I posted a comment recently on Lisa Smith-Batchens blog about Plantar Fasciitis. You posted a comment below mine and I was completely blown away by your response.

I have been on this path recently where I have been wanting to improve and heal my body. My previous doctor advised me to quit running. So I changed doctors.

I am a long distance runner/adventure racer and I am 49 years old. I am planning to do the Sahara Race in Oct./09.

So, with that, I sought out a trainer who I felt could help me. He encouraged me to go barefoot in the gym and then eventually on the road. He advised me that the path to better biomechanics and spinal health was barefoot training.

It's been 6 weeks and what a difference!

I did some research and discovered Vibram FiveFingers technology. I pointed it out to my trainer and we both now have a pair.

It is funny how the Lord puts you on the proper path when you ask him. He guided me to Lisa, who inspires me daily, to a doctor who respects me and my opinions/questions, a trainer who educates me, and now you. I plan to read all your articles and gain more knowledge.


Thank you! Marc

Erskien Lenier Replying to Marc


I love it when God shows up so boldly!

My story unfolded in a very similar fashion! I ran back in my teen years (the 1970's) and got side tracked into bicycle road racing.

I had a huge engine (heart, lungs and capillary beds) to go really far and pretty fast but took a while to learn tactics and and specialization in training.

I found myself over trained and lost motivation about 2 yrs into it and returned to running for a mental break.

Being young and dumb I invested all of 2 months and went out and ran my first marathon (St. Louis) in 2:32:30 thinking maybe I'd qualify for Boston and head in a new direction from cycling.

3 weeks later I did the Heart of America marathon in Columbia, MO and began to see signs that something was wrong with my right knee.

Long story short the knee self distructed and the MD's (after Arthroscopic examination) told me it was so bad I'd need a new knee in a matter of years.

I tried speed skating... That eventually proved to aggravate the knee too. I returned to cycling because it was the aerobic activity I that allowed me to express my need for high intencity endurance sports that I thrived on.

Fast forward a couple of decades later and after breaking just about every exotic material used in modern road racing bikes and becoming disillusioned that a better bike would complete me....

I finally asked God to guide me in the healing of my knee so I could return to running and no longer need machines to move across the land. I longed for simplicity, unedited simplicity.

In less than 30 days he guided me to Tucker Sharp in Newport Beach, CA He is a practioner of a form of deep tissue muscle and its surrounding facia or sheath release called Heller Work http://www.balanceme.com/

He helped undo a lot of the cork screw like twisting of my spine and identified extreme tenstion differences in my hip muscles and ligaments.

Tucker took me miles from the debilitating contortion I came to realize my body have lived under. I went from 10-20 miles per week to 50-60 miles per week just while working with him.

He eventually saw that the more refined details of what was still needing to be done with my posture would be better addresses by another modality called the Egoscue Method and turned me onto Charlie Reid who is Pete Egoscue trained body worker @ www.egoscue.com

Charlie helped me see other areas of how twisted up my body was still and the need for more subtle yet precise work to unlock it.

He provided me with simple sequential stretches and strengthening exercises to unlock the dysfunctional adaptations my body had distorted itself into to deal with bad form I had adopted from my teen years of running in shoes, the various injuries I'd sustained and the odd cants, leans, twist and shifts I'd subtly made to run and ride around sore spots and injuries.

After all this body work I began to notice that as my milage per week moved up beyond 50 and even touching 65 miles per week I was developing shin splints, loosing toe nails, getting blister in different spots and some times in as early as 4 miles into a run and going from shoe model to shoe model looking for a shoe that would fix all this. I track out finances in Microsoft Money and it helped me realize I was spending over $120 a month on running shoes! And the other thing that really bothered me is all of them were wearing out at that the outer corner of the heal long before the rest of the shoe showed any sign of wear at all! The tops and the front of the shoe looked brand new 30 days out and the heals were worn through!
As I studied all the information on every shoe companies site and read all the reviews on running forums my head began to spin with conflicting "facts" about each show, what they were supposed to do or offer and then I came upon a forum at www.runnersworld.com that was all about the injuries runners sustain and one on shoes and I realized the carnage centered around the feet! The feet and knees were getting hammered and no one was stopping to ask why? And is there something we are missing here?

I googled "Running Injuries" to try to find out what others had found as solutions to what I was haunted by.

That's when I came upon Barefoot Running. Someone has a posting that spoke of turning to Barefoot Running and all their feet and leg problems went away! That person was Barefoot Rick at www.BarefootRunner.org He described having had most of the same symptoms I am a bazillion other runners posted on runnerworlds forum. And he was running marathons barefoot now and his legs and feet were fine!


God had revealed to me that shoes were somehow a part of the problem and were not as important as marketing and the market hyped them to be.

On his site I found contact info for a local Barefooter...

Barefoot Ken Bob Saxton of Huntington Beach, CA he said something in our email exchange that forever changed the way I viewed the valued feet: "Barefoot Running forces correct biomechanics".

Having been a world class cyclist for decades and having worked as a Master Frame Builder in the off season had taught me how importan things like alignment of the bike frames and fittings were to the wear, tear, effeciency and longevity of the attached components.

I'd just never held the human bodys biomechanics up to the same understanding! Nor did I understand beyond it's biochemistry how the human body was so naturally designed to be self balancing in regard to the tension and movement of its structural components.

I was so facinated that here I was crossing the 50 yr mark in life and God had allowed me travel this far from my teen years just to wear down my ego enough that I would simply turn to him and ask for guidance! I spent decades attempting to fix my ailments with my own will and as your about to learn he fixed decades of ignorance in moments! The key is I had to become humble enough to acknowledge the source of my own life force and of coarse the source of all wisdom. He is known as Jesus <>< The Fisher of Men.... He caught... And he taught me....

One night he woke me from a sound sleep woke me up at 1:30 AM.

I had the feeling I was supposed to go for a run.

I put on my Camel Bak as I had no idea how far I would feel like going, scribbled a note that I had my phone with me and kissed my sleeping wife on the cheek then headed out the door.

Two steps out and I heard as surely as someone was standing next to me; "Take off your shoes."

I stopped and looked around.... I heard it again...

I could not tell what direction it came from... It sounded like it was coming from everywhere and from within. I complied. I put my shoes in my Camel Bak and set out.

3 miles later and way out in Norco, CA on gravally dark roads (with tender feet mind you) I was giddy with laughter and so happy it was beyond explanation!

I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God was teaching me! That he loved me and I told him there on that spot that if he would be my coach for all things running and beyond running I would dedicate my every effort to bringing glory to his message and his agenda which is that we are forgiven! There is grace. God sent his only begotten son of a virgin birth to be crucified and perish only to rise again as a means to pay the price of all of mankinds sins. We are free! Free to live as Godly a life as we can listen and follow.

Well that was 15 months ago.... 3400 miles later here I am! My right knee is perfect! No crunchies, no inflammation, no ticking or clicking and I feel so truly blessed that God has given me back what was stolen 100 times over.

No my feet are not calloused over and no I don't worry about glass or any other thing in my many paths of adventure across the concrete and asphalt land I live in. Gods taught me like life... To land softly. Be alert yet relaxed, move with momentun and allow gravity to not just hold you to this Earth but to actually move you across it. (That's another lesson you will learn if you decide to unmute your ability to feel the Earth beneath your feet.)

My mission is to share the good news with everyone who will listen.

Two BareFoot Soles at a Time!

Erskien Lenier
Corona, CA

Bad Biomechanics?

This topic is from my friend Barefoot Ken's blog and I think it is a brilliant and accurate observation of the deeper truth about barefoot running, biomechanics and how running injuries happen. You can always count on Ken to give you the bare bones truth about barefoot running!

Bad Biomechanics? (2004 September 23) Saxton
September 23rd, 2004
A salesperson said I have bad biomechanics and should not run without special shoes, which cost an arm and a leg?
I am often told, “how lucky you are, that you have perfect biomechanics which allow you to run barefoot.”
My reply is, “I don’t have good enough biomechanics to be able to run well woth shoes blockign my ability to feel the ground beneath my feet, and respond appropriately by correcting my, otherwise, sloppy biomechanics.”
Are our “Biomechanical Problems”, simply mechanical defects in the human design, which cannot be repaired, and can only be patched or corrected by adding cushioning, motion control, support, etc., provided by wearing modern hi-tech running shoes and orthotic devices?
Do we really have “Biomechanical Problems” with our feet, our legs, our hips, etc., or do shoes actually cause it to appear that we have biomechanical issues, by depriving us of an essential component in the design of the human running “machine”, depriving us of the one thing that might help us learn to run “biomechanically” correct?
I believe that actual genetic bad biomechanics are very rare. Most of us are born to run well. It’s in our genes. When someone says we have “bad biomechanics”, they often mean that we run with bad technique. The assumption is that we are born with our running technique, instead of my presumption, that we learn how to run as we grow up.
When we learn to run WITHOUT feedback from the soles of our feet, as they touch the ground, we often learn to run badly, just as a deaf or hard-of-hearing person has trouble learning to pronounce sounds they cannot perceive.
The best runners in the world come from areas of the world where they learn to run barefoot. Good running technique in these areas is taken for granted. In fact, it is in our genes as well. The problem is, shoes often get in the way of the natural advantage a barefooter has, in learning how to run the way we are designed to run.
Even such seemingly severe problems such as seeming leg-length discrepencies, well, I suspect that most, perhaps nearly all, asymmetry issues; leg length, uneven wear on your shoes, etc., are the result of learning, practicing, and adapting unsymmetrical postural habits. The right leg might appear longer than the left leg, if we, for example, spend a lot of time standing with our weight on one leg, with the other leg stretched out to the side. This may not result in bone-length differences, but the asymmetrical posture, when it becomes habitual (you may not even be aware you are standing that way), will result in asymmetrical strengths and weaknesses of the muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc..
In such cases, the cure is NOT to add a shim to the bottom of the sole, which would only reinforce the leg-length discrepancy by pushing the “short” leg even shorter! The cure is to exercise, and stretch, and practice symmetry in your day-to-day posture, movements, and other physical habits - to, in short, make symmetry a habit, over the long run.
Most of our bad habits are learned because we aren’t aware, either that the practice is bad, or that we are doing something in a particular way. Awareness is key in developing good biomechanical habits. Shoes block awareness.
We can continue to depend on sales people and shoes to control the way we run, with the underlying, and obviously wrong, assumption that humans were designed to run with shoes blocking valuable sensory information about how we are running.
Or we can learn to improve HOW we run - starting by listening to and paying attention to what we learn from our bare feet.Sphere: Related ContentFiled under: Biomechanics
More posts by: Barefoot Ken BobRunning Barefoot
Search more posts for: Bad Biomechanics? (2004 September 23) Saxton
-->http://runningbarefoot.org/?p=415

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Bad Biomechanics?

This topic is from my friend Barefoot Ken's blog and I think it is a brilliant and accurate observation of the deeper truth about barefoot running, biomechanics and how running injuries happen. You can always count on Ken to give you the bare bones truth about barefoot running!

Bad Biomechanics? (2004 September 23) Saxton
September 23rd, 2004
A salesperson said I have bad biomechanics and should not run without special shoes, which cost an arm and a leg?
I am often told, “how lucky you are, that you have perfect biomechanics which allow you to run barefoot.”
My reply is, “I don’t have good enough biomechanics to be able to run well woth shoes blockign my ability to feel the ground beneath my feet, and respond appropriately by correcting my, otherwise, sloppy biomechanics.”
Are our “Biomechanical Problems”, simply mechanical defects in the human design, which cannot be repaired, and can only be patched or corrected by adding cushioning, motion control, support, etc., provided by wearing modern hi-tech running shoes and orthotic devices?
Do we really have “Biomechanical Problems” with our feet, our legs, our hips, etc., or do shoes actually cause it to appear that we have biomechanical issues, by depriving us of an essential component in the design of the human running “machine”, depriving us of the one thing that might help us learn to run “biomechanically” correct?
I believe that actual genetic bad biomechanics are very rare. Most of us are born to run well. It’s in our genes. When someone says we have “bad biomechanics”, they often mean that we run with bad technique. The assumption is that we are born with our running technique, instead of my presumption, that we learn how to run as we grow up.
When we learn to run WITHOUT feedback from the soles of our feet, as they touch the ground, we often learn to run badly, just as a deaf or hard-of-hearing person has trouble learning to pronounce sounds they cannot perceive.
The best runners in the world come from areas of the world where they learn to run barefoot. Good running technique in these areas is taken for granted. In fact, it is in our genes as well. The problem is, shoes often get in the way of the natural advantage a barefooter has, in learning how to run the way we are designed to run.
Even such seemingly severe problems such as seeming leg-length discrepencies, well, I suspect that most, perhaps nearly all, asymmetry issues; leg length, uneven wear on your shoes, etc., are the result of learning, practicing, and adapting unsymmetrical postural habits. The right leg might appear longer than the left leg, if we, for example, spend a lot of time standing with our weight on one leg, with the other leg stretched out to the side. This may not result in bone-length differences, but the asymmetrical posture, when it becomes habitual (you may not even be aware you are standing that way), will result in asymmetrical strengths and weaknesses of the muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc..
In such cases, the cure is NOT to add a shim to the bottom of the sole, which would only reinforce the leg-length discrepancy by pushing the “short” leg even shorter! The cure is to exercise, and stretch, and practice symmetry in your day-to-day posture, movements, and other physical habits - to, in short, make symmetry a habit, over the long run.
Most of our bad habits are learned because we aren’t aware, either that the practice is bad, or that we are doing something in a particular way. Awareness is key in developing good biomechanical habits. Shoes block awareness.
We can continue to depend on sales people and shoes to control the way we run, with the underlying, and obviously wrong, assumption that humans were designed to run with shoes blocking valuable sensory information about how we are running.
Or we can learn to improve HOW we run - starting by listening to and paying attention to what we learn from our bare feet.Sphere: Related ContentFiled under: Biomechanics
More posts by: Barefoot Ken BobRunning Barefoot
Search more posts for: Bad Biomechanics? (2004 September 23) Saxton

-->http://runningbarefoot.org/?p=415

This page is for those who want radically better health and the wages to support living that way.

When I look at all the wonderful people the Lord brings me in contact with daily I can't help but wonder what would it take help them find what I have found in the realm of running?

Having been a fitness trainer and an endurance and power sport athlete most of my life I've heard so many people say... I just don't have the time, I can't afford memberships, sessions, I don't have the energy, my old injuries, I'm to old, and on an on....

Well it's time to take the mystery out of achieving extraordinary healing, fitness, stamina, strength, recovery and even creating the time and energy to build these into a lifestyle that make health and fitness natural and not an extra thing to do.

A couple years ago I parked my road bike and rediscovered my love for the simplicity of running.

Having the huge endurance engine I have naturally wanted to move into the same kind of milage and time durations I was used to in cycling.

This led to a very sudden awareness that flaws in the way my legs, feet and hips worked were destroying my joints and feet.

In my quest to find out how others had over come running related injuries I began to see that those who wore shoes running seemed to reinjure often and predictably. Many seemed to resort to settling for just a few miles at a time or cross training a lot to give themselves something to do until they healed from the dameage done while running.

I also saw a huge drop out rate which told me something fundamentally was wrong with the way most approached running.

I asked God to show me a way through the carnage I was witnessing and experiencing and within a week or so he directed me to a web site that was all about Barefoot Running!

Lo and Behold.... I read story after story written by others sharing how they had ditched shoes and found that all their injuries were miraculously healed and never have come back!

Then a light came on! A facinating fella out or Huntington Beach, CA who has 2 first names (Ken Bob)said a truth that changed my understanding of running health forever.

He said, "Running Barefoot forces correct biomechanics"!

Ponder that for a minute....

If you take off your shoes and then set out running anywhere...

The God designed in biofeedback loop in the soles of your feet will immediately, accurately and repetitously coach you on every movement you make. Every weakness in the feet, ankles, toes, shins, calves, alignment of the thighs, which muscles you use in what sequence, your hip tilt and balance, your spinal alignment, the symetry of how your arms swing and hang from your shoulders and even whether your head sits centered on your torso or leans to far forward... Will all be spoken to you through the soles of your feet!

I came to realize we have all beed decieved about the value of barefeet and how that supports proper posture, movement, balance, comfort, attunement, agility, proper use of the legs as shock absorbers (Instead of a "Jack Hammers"!)

Discovered Barefoot Running gave birth to a Spirit of Satisfaction and a Passion for the art of running that I never expected.

I've turned my 10 mile comute to work and back into Aerobic Threshold Training sessions with work gear, and food and water for a day.

I'm realizing at 51 yrs of age or as I think of it "51 laps around the Sun" that having finally found out how active and involved God is in the most minute details of my life and the love and passion I have for barefoot running.

I want to create a lifestyle now that will allow me the freedom to explore how far God will take me in this new form of expression of my spirit... Actually "his Spirit"

I'm looking asking the Lord and looking for others who are discovering they feel a call to move deeper into running as a means to connect with God, inspire others, develope both friendships and lifestyles that support all the freedom that going to running events, creating running events, touring the lands that God sends us too, touching the lives of those he brings to us in his name.

On the right side of this page are links to explore that can be doorways to other aspects of what has awakened in your soul (soles?) :o)

If you do find that the journeys into any of the attached sites inspires a new awakening, confirms whispers the Lord has already planted in your mind and heart, feel free to contact me by any means I've supplied you with.

My contact info is available via a link on the bottom of the page of the first link on the right.

Remember that God Speed is the perfect speed... Stay with that and always be where God is leading you.


All men will die but most will not live fully.

Brave Heart