The Best Advice You Will Ever Get

The pinnacle of human civilization starts at 3:00

I just read a guest post by Greg over at Birthday Shoes called "How to do barefoot all wrong." It's a race report from a Turkey Trot he ran barefoot, and the short version is that it didn't go well. Although he'd run a 5k barefoot before without problem, this time around his feet ended up looking like this:

Greg finished the race but ended up with a bunch of blisters caused by running too hard, too fast in weather that was too cold for him. This is a common story, but what really struck me about the report was his account of the lessons he learned:

"Be reasonable. Be humble. Be prepared. And also be aware that if you're not any of those things, be truly ready and willing to suffer the consequences."
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"The biggest concern with barefoot running is not the various hazards that the uninitiated bring up in the corrals; what you really have to worry about is yourself."

Greg puts his finger on perhaps the best single piece of advice you can give a runner, barefoot or otherwise: be humble. Don't try to do more than you are ready for. Don't make decisions based on pride or wanting to prove something. Push yourself but always be mindful of your current limitations. Be honest about what you can do. 

Many of my worst injuries happened because I based my training around what I thought I (athletic phenom that I believe myself to be) should be capable of doing instead of what I (injury-prone couch potato that I really am) was really able to do. Hopefully humility is something that will come in time (and I survive until then). 

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Order my children's book about barefoot running: What Should I Put on My Feet to Go Run?