Touring around the country with Chris McDougall helping promote the Born To Run paperback was great fun. Every stop was unique and it was wonderful to meet so many passionate runners. I would often close my speech by telling the audience how cool it was that someone (Chris) who came in last, has completely turned the run industry upside down. Chris's success story essentially started the natural running movement and brought to light how beneficial barefoot running can be if done properly and for a purpose. But this doesn't touch the importance of how much hope Born To Run has given people. Hope to run for the first time. Hope to run pain free. Hope that running IS healthy and good for us. Hope that running can be fun. Hope to run forever!
At EVERY stop in the Tour, at least one person came up to me and thanked me for helping change their lives. Now that is what it is all about. Now that is cool!
I would love to hear how Born To Run has given you hope in your running or changed your life.
Please share your story with us and I will see you out there on my own tour - E
Comments
I had stopped running for 6 months with persistent hip flexor pain. My physio identified a lazy/weak glute medius and I really worked at strengthening it, but going out for a run just exacerbated the problem again. It was so frustrating because I've always loved running, however slowly, and however inefficiently as a heelstriking over-pronating Brooks' Beast wearing runner. I saw a link to the Newton running page, and liked the stuff on the problems with heelstrike, but wasn't impressed with their coaching tips. Then a friend on Facebook recommended Born to Run. Wow. What a fantastic book. I read it once, twice, three times, recommended it to friends, bought it for my wife who was equally gripped. I was completely sold on the logic of forefoot striking, was very struck by Chris' experience of an Eric Orton training programme (huge mileage, no injury, great fun), particularly as somone who always needed 2 or 3 days to recover after a 10 mile run (from sore hamstrings, tight calves, aching hip flexors), and Eric's line, "You're like everyone else; you don't know what you're doing." That's what lead me here, and, OK, I'm only 4 weeks into the introductory programme, but so far (touch wood!) it's working brilliantly. I finish a run/session with no muscle pain or strain or stiffness. My glute medius has powered up so my hip flexors are giving me no grief at all and my leg pain has pretty much disappeared. I'm still quite slow, but it feels so much more smooth and efficient - when a heelstrike accidentally slips in it's horrible and clunky and decellerating - and I'm confident I'm going to get faster. Eric, it's early days, but if this carries on then, yes, you will have changed my life immeasurably for the better. Many many thanks.
I was actually buying my first pair of Vibram 5 fingers when Christopher McDougall was doing a book signing at the store. At that time I did not know about the btr book but I became interested in reading it. I was running in the Vibrams with good success and I have since then switched to using the Nike Frees too. I run and train in both. While running with my typical "running" shoes I was having extreme knee pain and some hip pain. However, since switching to the vibrams and the frees I have eliminated my knee and hip pain. I still need to work on my form because I tend to revert back to a heel striker at times. The vibrams make it much harder to be a heel striker but I can still manage it. I will keep at it!
having been an on-off runner for 10 or so years, I've finally found the joy in running!!! I don't do great distances - yet - and am only starting to get the barefoot technique, but I LOVE IT!! Running through morning damp grass, or forest trails on bare feet is the best feeling ever! I love the fact that we're finally realising that millions of years of evolution can't be beaten! Started my "back to basic" journey with chucking away the dog's dry food and giving them what evolution had intended - meat. Then grew seriously allergic to horse shoes, and finally the turn has come to myself!
Would love to meet you on the tour, but have a feeling Sweden might be off the map.
Thanx for bringing me the joy of running!
I am amazed how many negative comments I get regards my running without shoe, anything from people worried about stepping in dog shit to hypodermic needle spike. Or "you cant go fast without shoes" despite the fact that I often say it not only by taking your shoes of, do you get the ability to learn better run form, but you also get the bonus of a better environment by not having thousands of "worn out sneakers" getting dumped each year.
One of the revelations to me that the introduction of a barefoot running ethic has shown me, has been the greed and exploitation and outright lies perpetrated by footwear manufacturers in the name of profit and fashion.
After reading BtR I began to ask myself questions, do I really know how to run?? So I changed my form from a heel striker to a forefoot striker. I feel like im running more efficiently with less wasted energy compare to how i ran in my high school days in c.c.>(15 years ago) At the beginning of this year I used to run on $100 pair of nike lunar glide 2's now I run on old dirty, green Puma Roma's (love them!) To this day my feet, calves, glutes, core , and mind feels strong.
I like to think that I inspire others as reading BTR inspired me. I bought BTR for my dad for fathers day...i hope it improves his lifestyle.
Reading BTR woke me up so to speak. And made me think more about other cultures and way of life, made me realize how easy we got it up here in U.S. , how lucky we are, and to appreciate what the earth has to offer you. When I go trail running on the weekends, I really feel connected to the earth and I just flow with it. Thanks E, Chris, Scott , book staff, and of course the Tarahumara : )
BTR encouraged me to go minimalist and therefore fix my running form. Not that everything is perfect, but my chronic knee pain is gone and my endurance is up.
The so what is that I enjoy running much more due to the lack of pain (pain is the only thing that hurts me...). And that is huge.
The story was inspiring and fun, but the running form is lasting.
Oh yeah, the chia seed thing is great too!
BTR gave me reassurance, not just hope, that I can be running healthy for as long as I keep running! :)
In infused me with energy and brought me back to childhood-like feeling of running barefoot at my home town in Russia. That was - barefoot, on unpaved trails and rural roads at gardens and fields.
I am still thinking of translating it to Russian, cause when I quote it at my Russian blog, people keep sending the quotes out, passing the message further on.
Eric,
"Hope" is exactly what running gave me ten years ago. And BTR allowed me to push my limits beyond what I thought possible, and make running a true lifestyle. But the story I want to tell is not about me. It's about my father.
For as long as I can remember, my father has been working very hard to make sure that everyone in the family is healthy and enjoys doing physical activity. However, with flat feet and a history of shin splints – I saw him walk with crutches for about a year – there was little he could do to reach his own fitness goals.
Two years ago, after I found out about BTR, I told him casually about the book that had changed my perception of running, and that reads like an adventure novel. Two weeks later, he had read the book himself, bought chia seeds and a pair of Vibram Five Fingers, and started to run five minutes a day. He went through every step of the manual, following every tip he could find in the book, and he connected with other barefoot runners through internet forums. Progressively, he became a true runner again.
This year, he will be celebrating his 50th birthday. Next month, we will be running a full marathon together. Thanks to BTR, my father has gained back the ability to enjoy running, and we can do it together.
This is our success story. I'm sure there are plenty more like this out there.
Thank you for everything,
JF
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