Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Frozen VFF’s

Now that the temperatures have fallen to single digits, I noticed something about my VFF’s, they’re not warm. Actually, my feet don’t get as cold as I thought they would. Besides any snow that comes over the top, the main problem is the transfer of cold from the frozen ground through the thin rubber soles to my toes. The main portion of my foot does not get that cold but my toes start to go numb. You don’t have to be a native of Colorado to know this is not good.

I have had several runs which I had to cut short because of numb toes. All the years of frostbite from skiing in below zero temperatures has decreased the circulation in my toes and has made them more vulnerable.

Now I’ve seen the videos of other barefoot runners running in the snow and that’s great for them. If they can do that for an hour long run, more power to them. I am not a barefoot runner to show people how tough I am. Even Barefoot Ken Bob said it’s okay to wear something in freezing temperatures. I run barefoot because it eliminated decades of knee pain. It gives me an incredibly deep relaxed feeling that lasts throughout the day. I have more a Zen outlook on my surroundings because of barefoot running. Frozen feet do not have a place in this equation. Since I want to keep my toes, I’ve looked for winter alternatives to VFF’s.

One alternative are my Teva sandals with a warm pair of socks. This actually works quite well with the only drawback being snow coming over the top or wedging between my foot and the sandal. On dry cold days, this will be my go to shoe. If there is snow or just a lot of wet, I’m going old school with the shoes I wore when I got married. My Converse Chuck Taylor high tops. They are flat, thin, and offer no arch support. Yes, when they get wet they get cold but so does any shoe. A warm wool sock goes a long way to help out here.

If you have any alternatives for keeping your feet attached in the winter, let’s hear about them.

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