Barefoot Running - Frostbit Phalanges

In an attempt at "winterizing" my feet I've been walking barefoot in the cold for as long as I can stand it. I'm getting some looks from the neighbors, but as long as I'm not hurting anyone I guess they'll stay off the phone. This morning I went for a short run and rather than go completely barefoot I wore the huarache sandals.

It was 22 degrees at the time. I did wear a hat, gloves and a long sleeve shirt. I figured there's no sense freezing my entire body and maybe holding in all the heat at the top would allow for more to flow to my feet. Nah! But it was a nice thought.

The sandals were very comfortable, but there was no stopping the cold as it slowly deadened my middle toes. I thought that was strange. The ones that went to the market and the ones that went "Whee, whee, whee all the way home" were fine. But the ones that stayed home, had roast beef, or had none worked really hard at becoming useful for keeping your beer cold. Yeah, I know, strange mental image. It's Sunday morning, okay?

As it was I only did 1-1/2 miles and I was okay with that. I'm not interested in pushing the envelope and requiring medical treatment. I have some ideas for keeping the callouses thickened and running in the cold which will probably equate to more laughs at my expense. So stay tuned.

In the spring I plan on running Bloomsday barefoot. EvilElf over at Spokanarama has been doing some barefoot running himself and he seems to be sold on the idea of minimal footwear. He's been enjoying that so I invited him to join me.

Note: This is definitely not a challenge to him or anyone else. I'm not throwing down a gauntlet. If you have trained and you're interested in running Bloomsday barefoot, feel free to join me.

Let's hope that in May I still have enough toes to play This Little Piggy.