Erwan Le Corre of MovNat trains in the wild

Alerady fit? I mean really fit? Take a look at how Erwan Le Corre of MovNat maintains fitness through natural movement in the natural world. 

Vibram FiveFingers: First Impressions

FiveFingers at the leg-press.

This holiday my son Ryan and I were treated to Vibram FiveFinger shoes. We went to the local REI and looked through the rack at multiple choices including slips-ons, standard, and booties. Within the standard model, there are more choices to make and the size varies from one style to another. Along with the other customers, we kept the salesman running back to the supply area for more boxes. Eventually I picked the KSO and my son the KomodoSport.

I have worn them around the house after work for the past few days and once to the gym. My initial impressions:

1. Your feet feel like they are getting a massage. I don’t know if it is the snug fit of the shoes, the thickness of the fabric on the KSO, or what. Nevertheless, the shoes feel much different than regular shoes. 
2. Your toes participate more in walking. In a regular shoe, the toes seem to have little role. In the FiveFingers, the toes have more to do and you sense a bit of connection to our Paleo ancestors.
3. You walk straighter. This was a pleasant and a bit surprising finding. Of course, it shouldn’t have been. After all, we were not designed to wear shoes.
4. The one downside, and hopefully only a temporary one, is that they are a bit fussy to get on, especially the 4^th and 5^th toes. Hopefully, this will become second nature over time.
5. They make sense. There seems to be an inherent logic to the shoes. Yes, our Paleo ancestors didn't wear Vibrams. However, their feet were toughened to the terrain ever since they began to walk. FiveFingers seem to allow the foot to work in the way it was designed and yet keep it protected from cuts and scrapes.

Vibram FiveFingers come with AEGIS Microbe Shield, a permanently bonded antimicrobial barrier. A 2 mm insole and rubber outsole “protect the feet from hot surfaces and rough terrain.” You can learn more about FiveFingers here.

Quote: Surreal CrossFit Games

I've never seen so many healthy people in one place.  Almost no one was overweight.  It was surreal.

John Durant
Hunter-Gatherer

Gluten-free Novak Djokovic shakes up tennis

File image: Mark Howard PhotographyAs John Durant identified, The Wall Street Journal ran an article on tennis star Novak Djokovic: The Diet That Shook Up Tennis? Starch Madness: Novak Djokovic's Domination of the Sport Has Coincided With His Gluten-Free Turn.

Well, now there is no question about it, gluten-free Novak just shook up the tennis world by beating Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon. The WSJ, writing before today's men's singles championship win, asked:

How did Novak Djokovic conquer the tennis world? Maybe the answer is as simple as this: Since last year, he's swearing off pasta, pizza, beer, French bread, Corn Flakes, pretzels, empanadas, Mallomars and Twizzlers—anything with gluten.

Yes, it can be that simple. 

Related Post
Gluten Sensitivity on the Rise 

Walking, the Ideal Exercise

When sometimes I am reminded that the mechanics and shop-keepers stay in their shops not only all the forenoon, but all the afternoon too, sitting with crossed legs, so many of them — as if the legs were made to sit upon, and not to stand or walk upon — I think that they deserve some credit for not having all committed suicide long ago.

Henry David Thoreau

Thoreau was a dedicated walker, who, in his essay “Walking,” admitted to not feeling well unless he spent “four hours a day at least” afoot, traveling through fields, meadows, and forests. Yet, in spite of this national icon’s praise of “sauntering,” a striking characteristic of most American city streets is the absence of pedestrians upon them.

Among the excuses used to avoid walking are unpredictable weather, unsafe neighborhoods, the fear of getting lost, and a lack of time. Additionally, there are the car-related excuses, including the damage to health caused by exhaust, the dangers of distracted drivers, and the unwanted attention a lone pedestrian can attract. 

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Cycling crash report

At the top of Squaw Pass. Author near center in blue jersey.Yesterday, I visited my orthopedic surgeon. My left hip fracture is healing well. On September 26, cycling down Squaw Pass in Colorado, I flew off my bike at a curve landing hard enough to fracture my left hip. Looking back, the question is why? Was I not adequately prepared? Was something missing in my training? Did I push above my limits? Was it a fluke? 

After initial healing following implantation of a dynamic pin (no need for a joint replacement!), my first response was to review my training. Besides working out at the gym a couple of times per week, I cycled in town 50 to 60 miles per week.

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Run 2,800 miles in 64 days - loose muscle, fat, and brain!

Course of a previous race, the Transeurope-Footrace 2003On April 19, 2009, 45 ultra-endurance runners (39 men and 6 women) took off from southern Italy to run to North Cape, Norway, a distance of 2,800 miles in 64 days!! Why? “Because its there” doesn’t cut it. Certainly only a few can do this; congratulations to runners. But this is extreme. Persitence hunters in the Paleolithic covered a lot of ground chasing down an antelope but they did not run such distances in such a short time. The Trans Europe Footrace is possible only because of the large supporting cast. (The results of the 2009 race can be found here.)

Dr. Uwe Schutz and colleagues from the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at the University Hospital of Ulm in Germany decided to tag along with the runners and periodically study the anatomical and physiological impact of this ultra-endurance event. Their findings were presented at the Radiological Society of North America annual meeting on November 29, 2010.

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