kilt

For a barefoot runner, I spend an inordinate amount of time testing shoes.  Even though I prefer to run barefoot, there are times when the protection of shoes is a welcome luxury.  Sometimes shoes are an absolute necessity.  My philosophy of shoe use is simple- run barefoot when you can. If you need the protection of shoes, use the most minimal shoe for the job.  The only way to assess the best shoe for any given situation is to test all options repeatedly.  Over time, huaraches have proven to be a great catch-all solution for almost every situation requiring shoes.  The genius of the huarache sandal is the simplicity of function.  It is a piece of material suspended below your foot with a piece of binding material, usually leather or twine. With every other minimalist shoe, some element of the shoe design interferes with foot function.  Vibrams unnaturally separate your toes and fit can be an issue as your foot must conform to the predetermined s...

Over the last year or so, I began seeing more and more runners sporting various leg and arm compression sleeves.  I tend to shy away from things that appear to be fad-like, which is where I placed compression sleeves. My opinions changed after Shelly purchased a pair of matching pink arm and leg sleeves.  She bought them for the UV protection aspect, though I'm sure the aesthetics of the pink color swayed her purchasing decision.  She tried them on various runs and wore them for a few races.  She praised them often, but I wasn't convinced. During a long run, she commented that she felt faster when wearing the sleeves.  Hmmm... that piqued my interest.  I was considering giving them a try, but couldn't quite pull the trigger.  The clincher came when I read a blog post by my friend Dr. Scott Hadley (the physical therapist that gave my the calf-rolling self treatment from his TrekoClinics site).  He discussed an article that appeared in the Journa...