Cold feet

Distance 24.5km [total: minimalist 136.5km: Barefoot 1436.9km] Week 21


The rainy weather arrived this week so I curtailed the running as it isn't very inspirational running in the wet, cold and dark.
Thursday, 26-May. 10km
I did manage to get a 10km run in on the Thursday. I left work at 4pm so I could run in as much daylight as possible. I got to the beach at around 4.40pm. There were some dark looking rain clouds around but also enough gaps in the clouds to let the last of the sun shine through.
Now it is colder it is time to move out of the shorts and into warmer running gear. I put my compression leggings on and a long sleeve top over my T-shirt. I'm testing the idea that if you keep your body core warm, the heat might try to dissipate through the feet and keep them warmer while running. One myth that I thought I should check before committing to the blog is that of losing up to 40% of body heat through the head. It is in fact a myth, the head area as a percentage of the total body surface area is around 7% and the heat loss is proportional to that surface area ie 7%.

Saturday, 28-May. 14.5km
A misty start to the day, my thermometer was reading just 10C, pretty chilly, I wasn't going to get up early for a run that was for sure. I did make it down to the beach at 9am. The sand was cold and I was wondering how long it would be before my feet were numb. I kept up a short efficient stride. I kept trying to will heat into my feet. They did seem to go through different zones, numb cold, a bit warmer then back again. I am trying to resist wearing the VFF's but that will only work if my feet get accustomed to running on cold surfaces.
I got to Semaphore jetty in a time of 44 minutes, I climbed onto the jetty and felt some warmth in the wood. The sun was now out and adding a bit of energy to the darker surfaces, a bit of feeling came back to my soles.
I ran back along the foreshore then, as last week, along the back of the houses by the beach. The run is far more interesting on this route.Time 1:32:04
My feet are quite sore now due to the cold, the right more than the left. I have much harder skin on the forefoot pads on the right foot, this seems to get sore when cold and wet. It will be fine by tomorrow.
I stepped on a glass splinter while in the house yesterday, it stuck in my big toe and before long was gushing blood. I couldn't retrieve it with tweezers so waited for the blood to stop first, cleaned it up then picked around with a needle. I seem to have got it but I couldn't find a trace. So much for the dangers on the road outside!

Neil