Bare My Sole

Monday’s pub run started out like most of the previous ones I had gone on in December.  The temperature was -4°C, winds were calm and a few cm’s of snow left over from the weekend was on the roads and sidewalks.  I was planning on only running the 7k, but figured I would follow everyone else since I had done the 10k route in December without problems.  The packed snow wasn’t a problem, but I found the loose grey snow on the roads that contained salt to be extra cold especially as it contacted the edges and arches of my feet.  Once we reached Little Lake Cemetery I knew I had pushed too far.  My feet were feeling colder and more painful than my other winter runs.  At that point I decided to pick up the pace to generate more heat.  Once my feet started to warm up back at the store, I was getting the burning sensation that was more painful and lasted longer than before.  The other difference was that this time my foot arches were more affected.  I was able to continue on as usual until the next day when I discovered some blisters on my feet and some pain when walking.  By Tuesday night I had a huge blister on the arch of my left foot and some smaller ones on my right.  This made it impossible to walk, but I knew enough not to break the blisters so as not to increase the chance of infection.

I said earlier “The trick is not to cross the line that results in injury”.  Unfortunately that is what I did.  So once I recover, the rest of my running this winter will be done at temperatures above freezing.

So 2008 has come and gone.  So far I’ve been lucky enough to find a day or two each week that was warm enough to get out and run.  I even ran 14k on a mild (3°C) Saturday, although the slush and ice were unpleasant.  Being away from work the last 2 weeks of December has allowed some extra sole thickening to occure.  By staying out of socks and shoes inside and when possible outside, the skin on the heels and balls of my feet has thickened to give them more protection.  Most people think that the soles get callused from going barefoot, but my experience has been that the skin thickens and remains soft and smooth.  The thickened skin provides protection and reduces discomfort without removing too much sensitivity.  This means I can go farther over rougher terrain without discomfort.

There is a threshold where conditions make it impossible to continue without some kind of foot protection.  My goal is to keep pushing that threshold forward as far as I can.  I want to find the point where I cannot push it any farther.  As biological entities we are always changing to best fit the conditions we are in.  Some of these changes happen slowly and others are relatively fast.  So the more comfortable we make things for ourselves, the weaker we become.  My goal for 2009 is to become stronger, not weaker.