I met Nate Sanel on a cold night in October, 2009. Nate had joined his friend Sherpa John Lacroix in his second attempt to run 125 miles across the state of New Hampshire for charity, and I and another local running friend had decided to join them for about 10 miles at about the halfway […]
Going Minimalist and Changing Form Help Ultrarunner Nathan Sanel Fix his Shins: Another Anecdote
June 9, 2011 By 30 Comments
The Bad Run as an Early Warning Sign for Illness
June 8, 2011 By 11 Comments
Image via Wikipedia It’s been a busy few days here on the blog. My post from last Friday – ASICS versus Zero Drop, Maximalist versus Minimalist – sparked quite a bit of fruitful discussion, and I highly recommend you take a look at the post and the ensuing discussion in the comments (if you have […]
ASICS versus Zero Drop, Maximalist versus Minimalist
June 4, 2011 By 114 Comments
I’ve been following with interest a spirited debate that is taking place over on my friend Bill Katovsky’s Zero Drop blog. Like me, Bill is an advocate for greater variety in shoe choice, and his approach on his blog is to poke fun at the status quo in addition to providing the occasional shoe review. […]
Unbreakable: The Western States 100
June 3, 2011 By 8 Comments
This trailer for Unbreakable, a movie about the 2010 Western States 100 ultramarathon, has been making the rounds recently. Figured I’d share it here as well as it’s one of those clips that really makes you want to head out for a long trail run. The movie is due to be released this Fall.
Vibram Fivefingers KomodoSport Review and 5K Race Report
June 1, 2011 By 5 Comments
For the first few years after I started running, the 5k was my preferred race distance – in fact, my 5k PR (18:51) was set back in 2008. Like many runners, I was quickly bitten by the marathon bug and focused most of 2009-2010 on long distance races. I’ve run only a handful of 5k’s […]
Mizuno Wave Prophecy – The Anti-Minimalist Shoe?
May 25, 2011 By 39 Comments
I want to begin this post by openly stating my personal bias (which is not going to come as a surprise to regular readers). I am a minimalist advocate, and believe that benefits can be accrued by avoiding overbuilt running shoes and modifying form to reduce things like dramatic heel striking and overstriding. That being […]
Saucony Kinvara 2: Comparative Photos and Update Summary
May 23, 2011 By 60 Comments
Well, I broke down and purchased a pair of Saucony Kinvara 2’s. My original pair are still in pretty decent shape, despite having run two marathons and ~200 miles on them (I don’t tend to accumulate a lot of miles on individual shoes given all of the reviews I do – these have the most […]
Terra Plana VIVOBAREFOOT Ultra Review: Initial Thoughts
May 20, 2011 By 26 Comments
I have a confession to make – I like my Crocs. Mine aren’t the real thing – they’re cheap knockoffs bought for $10 at Target – but for kicking around the yard or walking the dog at night, they really are quite comfortable, and few shoes have as wide a toebox. What’s more, they seem […]
Can running in minimalist shoes strengthen your feet and legs?
May 18, 2011 By 46 Comments
Image via Wikipedia One of the most common claims made by minimalist and barefoot runners (myself included) is that running in minimalist shoes (or barefoot) can be an effective tool for strengthening the muscles of the feet and legs. The idea is that constrictive, stiff, and overly cushioned modern footwear brace the foot, alter our […]
Review of New Balance MT101 Trail Running Shoes
May 16, 2011 By 53 Comments
If I had to total the number of hours that I’ve spent wearing each of the running shoes in my collection over the past 6 months, I’m pretty sure that the New Balance MT101 would come out on top by a fairly wide margin (note: this shoe was a personal purchase). The reason is quite […]
New Balance Minimus Trail: Is the MT20 Coming Soon?
May 15, 2011 By 69 Comments
I’ve written a number of posts about my up and down experience with the New Balance Minimus Trail shoes. The original version, the MT10, is an awesome shoe, but suffers from what I feel is a serious design flaw in that the black band across the forefoot is rather constricting (for at least some people). […]
What is Good Running Form?
May 11, 2011 By 26 Comments
Earlier today I was doing a phone interview with a reporter from the Chronicle of Higher Education and she asked me a question that I have been asked a lot lately: “How would you describe good running form?” This is a question that a lot of people have opinions about (sometimes very strong opinions), but […]
Runner’s World on Running Form
May 6, 2011 By 15 Comments
In case you aren’t a subscriber, I wanted to mention that the June edition of Runner’s World (currently on newsstands) includes an article by Peter Vigneron titled “Does Form Matter.” I wanted to thank Peter for including me and my buddy Harry Hollines (the barefoot runner) in the article, and I have to say it […]
Gait Variability Among Elite Runners at the 2011 Boston Marathon
May 3, 2011 By 50 Comments
Shortly after the 2011 Boston Marathon, Steve Magness posted a link on Twitter to a series of videos of the top runners from this year’s race. The videos were all shot at 300fps with the same camera that I have used to shoot my own race videos, and they were posted on YouTube by elvin314. […]
Saucony Mirage Running Shoe Review
May 1, 2011 By 32 Comments
Over the past week I’ve posted reviews of two low-drop shoes from Saucony – the 5 mm drop Fastwitch 5 and the zero drop Hattori. Next up is the Saucony Mirage (disclosure – these were free media samples provided by the manufacturer). Of these three shoes, the Mirage is probably the most similar to the […]
