Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Final Phase Conditioning: 35-Minute Barefoot Run with Alternate Runs Mixed In

With four more days to go before the half marathon in Hadano City this coming Sunday, I had a brief practice run as a final phase conditioning activity. First I jogged for ten minutes. I felt reasonably warmed up, so did alternate runs. In this training you run fast for one minute, and then jog for one minute. This is one set. I did it 8 sets. Finally as warm down I jogged for about eight minutes to make it an approximately 35 minute running session. I did all this completely barefooted. I carefully selected the road where the surface was smooth, because at this stage any damage on the sole should be strictly avoided.
Tomorrow I will do some stretching. On Friday I will give myself a complete rest, as I have a very early start on Saturday morning, and I have a very busy schedule all throughout Saturday. On Saturday night I want to eat some good food to fuel myself for the race. No alcohol will be taken on Saturday night, as it would exhaust my liver.  I should take a look at the course map soon to have a mental rehearsal.

Sunday, November 26, 2017

Weekend 30 K Run in Aqua Slippers

With one more week to go before Hadano Minasegawa Half Marathon 2017 on Dec. 3, I ran 30 K. I ran a 3 K course ten reps. The course is rich in undulation. It's good because the course in Hadano is just like that. 

I ran in aqua slippers with no cushioning. They are my most favorite choice these days. Better than "MUTEKI", sock-like split-toe running shoes that have become famous through TV drama "Rikuou", because they are far lighter, and even less protective of your sole. 

It was not an easy run. I became too hungry to go on after the 6th rep, and took an aid break. I also took one long pee break and several hydration break. So it was not a seamless session, but each rest was short enough, so I consider the session a decent 30 K run. The result is shown below:

1st 3 K: 15:28.54
2nd 3 K: 15:01.96
Aid break: 2:08.90
3rd 3 K: 15:15.21
4th 3 K: 15:28.92
Water break: 12.43
5th 3 K: 15:51.09
6th 3 K: 16:09.30
Food break: 8:09.08
7th 3 K: 16:30.90
8th 3 K: 16:42.59
Water break: 11:35
9th 3 K: 17:01.66
10th 3 K: 16:23.78
Total 30 K: 2:50.35

A week from today I will be running in Hadano. In all of the previous races my times were mediocre. That's mostly because of lack of running mileage. But this year with this 30 K run and all, I feel more confident. I did good speed training prior to the 10 K race last week, and my time proved that my speed is OK. So I am hopeful.  

Thursday, November 23, 2017

Midnight Hill Repeats and Jog (Total 24.52 K)

Four days after the 10 K road race on Sunday I felt reasonably recovered, so I re-started my running training for my next race that takes place on Dec. 3. This time the distance is double. It's a half marathon. I proved in the last race that I can maintain a pretty decent speed up to the distance of 10 K. But whether I can keep the same pace for another 11 K is another story. I must work on longer distance endurance. So I decided to do for 25 K today, a distance far beyond the race distance. I jogged for 3 K to the hill stretch. And there I did 12 hill repeats. I was planning to do more, but I had a slight pain in my right knee, so I left the hills, jogged back to where I started off, and then ran the 2.5 K loop near my house three times. I rested whenever pain was back in the right knee. It's not a race. It's a practice. I even did some stretching before taking off for the last lap around loop. A brief rest helped me reset my motivation, allowing me to run a distance that fell slightly short of the original target, but that was good enough: 24.52 K.

The result of tonight's training is shown below:
<Jog>
2.92 K:18:37.16
<Hill Repeats>
1st K: 5:17.32
2nd K: 5:25.50
3rd K: 5:16.35
4th K: 5:21.99
5th K: 5:21.87
6th K: 5:20.18
7th K: 5:26.42
8th K: 5:22.92
9th K: 5:30.06
10th K: 5:28.47
11th K: 5:22.55
12th K: 5:33.80 (slight knee pain)
<Jog>
2 K: 12:45.76
2.55 K: 14:39.51
2.5 K: 14.17.10
Stretching: 1:33.68
2:55 K: 14:05.49
Total 24.52 K: 2:20:36

Race Report: Yotsukaido Gas Light 10 K Road Race 2017

On Nov. 19, 2017 I ran Yotsukaido Gas Light 10 K Road Race 2017. I finished at 42'55". It's my third best time for this distance. Here is how I ran the race:

The race was scheduled to start at 10:45 a.m. I went to the waiting area twenty minutes before the gun went off. While waiting, some runners noticed that I was barefooted, and asked me how I was able to do it. My answer was always, "I don't know, 'cause this is my first official race to run barefooted." The gun went off at exactly 10:45 a.m. Mr. Koide, the former coach of Sydney Olympics gold medalist Naoko Takahashi was a guest, and he said hi to all runners. We all said hi back to him. As the runners left the start line, the leading group quickly picked up the pace and the crowd spread out. I carefully ran on the center line where the surface was smooth in order to minimize the friction between my soles and the pavement. The first 700 m was the key. The road condition was the worst there. Fortunately I was able to avoid rough surface in this initial phase of the race, and from then on the road condition presented no problem.

Every now and then a cheerer or two noticed my running barefooted, and wildly reacted to the feat, saying, "Gee, he's barefooted!" or "Goodness, that guy has nothing on," and so on.

This year I was more comfortable than all of the previous races because I test-ran a week before, so I traced the course as if I was going home from work. About less than one kilometer from the turning point, I saw the leaders coming from the turning point and heading for the goal. Ordinarily, I would yell, "Nice run," but this year I was so focused that I said nothing and hammered down the street.

Soon I reached the turning point and headed toward the goal. Shortly after I passed the halfway point that came soon after the turning point, Eiro, my friend from high school days, found me and said, "Go, Gakuji."

The course is rich in slight undulation. Few slopes are steep (except for the ones near the start/finish line), but nevertheless they affect the runners. In the past races I would increase the speed in down slopes, but this year I didn't. For one thing, when you are running barefoot, it creates unnecessary friction between the sole and the road surface, which could lead to blisters. This should be avoided. So I kept the same pace, saving energy for a final surge.

In no time I found myself passing the sign that said 2 more kilometers to go. A big upward slope awaited ahead. A runners overtook me, sounding out of breath. I let him go, knowing he would not last long. I reached the entrance to the upward slope. I changed the gear and took shorter strides to minimize energy loss. God knows how many times I practiced this in my training. It was not easy, but it was manageable. It was the same as all those countless uphill repeats I had done.

When I finally reached the top of the slope, I was already within a kilometer of the finish line! I gave it everything I'd got. I came to the zone where the road condition was the worst. I carefully chose to run on painted lines, but the paint was scraped and the surface was not as smooth. But by then I didn't really bother. I pressed on. At 500 m to the finish line, I heard an announcement through the speaker that said 42 minutes something. Thinking that I might be able to finish within 43 minutes, I kicked and put on a spurt, swinging my arms like a track athlete. The arch over the finish line came nearer and nearer with each step. I closed my eyes and kicked. The next moment I was on the other side of the finish line. I stopped my watch. It said 42:54! I did it. For the first time in my life did I complete a race barefooted, and I finished under 43 minutes!

Although I couldn't renew my PB, I feel deeply satisfied with the result, and even proud of myself for the feat. I got a tremendous amount of moral support from cheerers along the roads as well as from some runners who ran the race with me both before and during the race. There must be something in running without shoes that commands a sense of awe. My next race is a half marathon in Hadano City, Kanagawa Pref. It takes place on the 3rd of Dec. I am planning to run the first 15 K in aqua slippers, and the remaining 6.1 K barefoot.

Thursday, November 16, 2017

Midnight Barefoot 3 K Build-Up

As part of my final phase conditioning toward the 10 K road race held this coming Sunday, I did 3 K build-up tonight after coming home from work. I ran barefoot as I'm determined to run the race without shoes.

This year my target pace for full marathon, half marathon, and 10 K is 5'11'', 4'42'', and 4'11" respectively. So I aimed at the first for the first K, and the second for the next, and the last for the last lap.

The result is as shown below:
1st lap: 4:46.98
2nd lap: 4:26.54
3rd lap: 4:03.25.

The time was a lot better for each lap than originally planned. I went home, took a warm bath, and gave both of my calves a good massage.

I'm going to give my legs a full rest tomorrow. I may do some body weight upper body exercise just to stay fit, but I'm not going to over do it. Too much exercise could fatigue the upper body, forcing my body to use much of the nutrition for the recovery of the fatigued upper body, thus delaying the recovery of my legs. That's the last thing I want.

Sunday, November 12, 2017

Midnight "Almost" Barefoot Hill Intervals: 13 Sets by 1 K



Today was a big day for me. I had 13 sets by 1 K hill intervals scheduled for the night. After fueling myself with a big fat Chinese dinner I took a short nap to store up some energy for the challenge.

I woke up around  11:00 p.m., and quickly threw myself into athletic gear. I was originally going to run without any footwear, but I decided to wear 98-yen five-fingered socks from a nearby supermarket, and aqua slip-ons I bought from Amazon. They have a thin synthetic rubber-like sole and an insole that is about 3 mm. There is no cushioning like that found in a regular running shoe. That's good, because I am practicing minimalist running. Then why didn't I just run barefoot? Two reasons. One I had two blood blisters on my right sole, and another on the other, and I didn't want them to get worse. Two, I have a 10 K road race coming in a week, and any unrecoverable injury could potentially lead to cancellation. I didn't want to let that happen. So for a protective purpose, I wore a pair of five-fingered socks for intervals, and for additional protection before and after the intervals I put on the aqua slip-ons. But once I reached the hilly stretch where I always do hill intervals, I took off the slip-ons, and took off only in socks, which was a new experience for me.

The result of today's training session is shown below:
Warm Up 2 K: 11:40.18
<Hill Intervals>
1st K: 4:20.36
Rest: 2:.00.38
2nd K: 4:15.41
Rest: 2:00.59
3rd K: 4:22.01
Rest: 2:00.44
4th K: 4:31.62
Rest: 2:00.33
5th K: 4:28.75
Rest: 2:00.40
6th K: 4:26.63
Rest: 2:00.31
7th K: 4:22.93
Rest: 2:00.37
8th K: 4:24.05
Rest: 2:00.46
9th K: 4:27.77
Rest: 2:00.50
10th K: 4:29.00
Rest: 2:00.35
11th K: 4:29.21
Rest: 2:00.51
12th K: 4:24.32
Rest: 2:00.48
13th K: 4:27.83
Warm Down 6.3 K: 36:12.27
Total 21.3 K: 2:09.27

Although the socks were not so much for cushioning but rather for minimum protection of the sole from abrasion, I was glad that I put them on. As you see in one of the pictures above, they got holes on the heel, ball, and toe. I felt the left sock got a hole on the ball when the 8th lap was over. Then after that the number of holes grew larger as I went through the sets. When the last lap was over, the socks that were almost new when I started off had become pieces of ripped cloth hanging on my feet!! It's amazing to see how much friction my sole usually has to withstand when I run completely barefooted!!

Anyhow, THE biggest training session is now over! From now on until the race all I do is minor conditioning with short-distance training. I will probably do a 3 K build-up on either on Wednesday or Thursday night, and do a quick 3 K pace run on Saturday night just to stimulate my cardio vascular system. Running longer than that could have a risk of getting my leg muscles unrecoverably fatigued. I will also do some stretching between running days to allow smoother circulation of blood so that fatigue substances will break down faster.

Friday, November 10, 2017

Midnight Mixed K's in "Jikatabi"

I did mixed K's after coming home from work. I did them in jikatabi split-toe sock-like shoes favored by traditional Japanese construction workers. 

The first K was run at my full marathon pace. I then took a short rest of 30 seconds. In the second K I ran at my half-marathon pace, slightly faster than the first K. When it's done, the rest was slightly longer: one minute. Then in the 3rd K I ran at my 10 K pace. The rest after that was extended to a minute and a half. The fourth K is sit'n kick K, which means you start off at a comfortable pace, but then in the last two hundred meters or so, you kick to the finish. The rest after this is the longest: two minutes. This is one set. I did it two sets. 

The result is shown below:
1st K: 4:39.80
Rest: 30.32
2nd K: 4:21.09
Rest: 1:00.33
3rd K: 3:53.10
Rest: 1:30.33
4th K: 4:19.80
Rest: 2:00.34
5th K: 5:05.59
Rest: 30.39
6th K: 4:29.11
Rest: 1.00.38
7th K: 4:06.17
Rest: 1:30.20
8th K: 4:45.20
Total 8 K: 43.42.15

I like mixed K's because I like the gradual pressure building within myself as I go through the sets, steadily increasing the pace. The brief rest that comes after each K is a bliss. You can easily reset your motivation. Also, as you change the pace, different systems of your body seem to get to be activated. So it's good to prepare your body for strategic changing of pace. I recommend you to try it when you get tired of a long, slow run. It's also recommendable for those who find regular interval training a little too challenging. 

Wednesday, November 8, 2017

Midnight Barefoot Intervals: 8 Sets by 1.3 K (Total 10.4 K)


I did barefoot intervals for the first time in my life. There is a 650 M quarter-pie-shaped loop near my house. You run it twice to cover 1.3 K. That's one set. I did it eight times with a short rest between sets. I started off with a short rest of a minute and a half. Then I gradually made the rest longer as I went through the sets, first to a minute and 45 seconds, and then eventually to two minutes, but I didn't make it any longer than that, because too long a rest would kill the benefit of this type of training.

The detail of tonight's training is shown below:
1st 1.3 K: 5:40.06
Rest: 1:30.31
2nd 1.3 K: 5:30.32
Rest: 1:45.35
3rd 1.3 K: 5:35.29
Rest: 1:45.43
4th 1.3 K: 5:32.65
Rest: 2:00.23
5th 1.3 K: 5:31.32
Rest: 2:00.35
6th 1.3 K: 5:31.12
Rest 2:00.22
7th 1.3 K: 5:34.31
Rest: 2:00.31
8th 1.3 K: 5:39.44
Total 10.4 K: 57:36.71

My next training will probably be this coming Sunday. I am planning to do 13 sets by 1 K hill intervals. It's going to be my last major training session before the 10 K race scheduled for Nov. 19. I got a couple of blisters on my right sole, and they hurt a little. But hopefully they will have healed by then.


Monday, November 6, 2017

Monday Park Run in "Jika Tabi" Sock-Like Shoes

I had a practice run in Yokohama today. I had a blister on my left sole, so I bought a pair of "jika tabi" for a protective purpose. "Jika tabi" is sock-like shoes that have a split toe. (See the pictures below.) They are made of cotton, and have a thin rubber sole. There is no cushioning, so they are perfect for a minimalist runner like myself.
Leaving my hotel, I headed for Yamashita Park which is 2.3 K away. Once I got to the park, I did five 1.4 K repeats. There was a short semi-circular route over a small hill in the course, so it wasn't entirely flat. 
For the remaining five laps, I did intervals. I ran one set fast, then took a brief rest and ran the next set at a pace that's not too challenging but not too easy, and then ran the following set fast again.

I went around the park ten times, and jogged back to the hotel for warm down.
























The detail of tonight's training is as follows:
Warm Up 2.3 K: 10.39.41
1st 1.4 K: 7:00.11
2nd 1.4 K: 7:07.39
3rd 1.4 K: 7:02.24
4th 1.4 K: 6:45.15
5th 1.4 K: 6:33.23
Rest: 2:00.27
6th 1.4 K: 5:34.14
Rest: 1:02.42
7th 1.4 K: 6:48.45
8th 1.4 K: 5:51.96
Rest: 1:30.43
9th 1.4 K: 7:21.67
10th 1.4 K: 5:54.63
Warm Down 2.3 K: 13:44.55
Total 18.6 K: 1:34:56

Saturday, November 4, 2017

Weekend Barefoot Test-Run of the Gas Light 10 K Road Race Course


Two week to go before Gas Light 10 K Road Race held in a small local town of Yotsukaido I test-ran the course barefoot. Last year I had a similar trial-run, but the road surface was so rough that I couldn't even run the first 1 K. At the race I ran in MUTEKI, minimalist sock-like shoes that have recently become well-known thanks to the popularity of TV drama "Rikuoh" or "King of Road". I renewed my course record, which was also my second best time for the distance. 


I have run quite a few races in those now popular minimalist shoes, and have gotten quite used to running with little or no cushioning. So I hoped that this year I might be able to run it barefoot. I went to the venue by scooter, and quickly took off my wind-breaking pants and jacket. Just in case I should get my feet injured, I carried a pair of thin shoes that I bought from Amazon. (See below.) They are aqua shoes, but one guy says in his review that he uses them for running. I kept them in my pockets so that I could take them out and put them on in case my sole hurts. 

I started off slowly and carefully not to step on sharp-edged pebbles. I immediately felt my soles had gotten rougher over the course of time. But as I went on, the road surface got rougher and my soles started feeling sorer. My heart sank, afraid that I was still not strong enough to run this race barefoot. A bad memory from last year flashed back. I decided to quit and turned back, because I assumed that the road condition would continued to be the same. 

But this year one thing was different. I had a pair of shoes in my pocket. In the worst case scenario I could put them on to protect my feet to run the remaining distance. So instead of giving it up, I pressed on. 

To my surprise, once I crossed the first major intersection, the road condition suddenly changed, and it became as smooth as cream! So this may be it. It's only the first 700~800 meters that are rough, and the rest is mostly smooth like this. As I went on, I became increasingly confident that I could run the race barefoot this year. 

In about 26 minutes I reached the turning point. The last 500 meters leading to it was just a little less smooth, but it didn't cause any pain that was unbearable. The second half was very pleasant because I knew what was coming. I picked up the pace and pushed on. Then came the final challenge. The last stretch leading to the finish presented a very rough road surface. I slowed down and took smaller steps, carefully tracing the while line near the side of the road because the surface is smooth because of the paint. It helped. I surged in the final 300 meters, and crossed the finish line and stopped my watch. It said 49:35.79. Not bad. Now that I know the road condition of the entire course, I can be bolder at the race. I will probably not be able to run as fast as I did last year, but I should be able to complete the race barefoot. Should that happen, it will be my first official barefoot debut in an official race. Just a mere prospect of it thrills me enormously. I cannot wait to run the race.   

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

The Longest Barefoot Run That I've Ever Done: 15 K


  • After coming home from a long day's work I went for a barefoot run. I jogged to my favorite hilly stretch, taking a longer route than usual. I originally aimed for 10 K as today's target, but as I went along, I felt good, so I increased the distance. 



I did ten hill repeats and came back home through the same route, but ran extra 1 K to cover a total of 15 K.

Today's result is as follows:
Warm Up 2 K: 11:.12.89
Hill Repeats:
1st K: 5:17.67
2nd K: 5:21.24
3rd K: 5:22.29
4th K: 5:22.31
Water Break: 19.50
5th K: 5.19.27
6th K: 5:23.44
7th K: 5:25.34
8th K: 5:21.59
Water Break: 17.98
9th K: 5:21.10
10th K: 4:55.29
Warm Down 3 K: 17:18.27
Total 15 K: 1:22:18