was a track workout consisting of 6 sets of 800 meters at 85% effort,
100 meters at 50% effort, then 300 meters at 90% effort. I alternated
between Barefoot, Evo and Free 3.0's so that I was sufficiently warmed
up for a better apples to apples comparison.
For the 800's, I averaged a 6:30 pace barefoot; 6:15 pace in the Evo's
and 5:50 pace in the Free 3.0's.
For the 300's, I averaged a 6:30 pace barefoot; about a 6:05 pace in
the Evo's and 5:10 pace in the Free 3.0's (I did an extra 400 at 4:45
pace).
So I ran faster in the Free 3.0's which doesn't surprise me. In the
past, I've run about :30 sec. per mile faster in shoes. However, also
as expected, the Free's felt quite weird since I rarely ever wear
traditional running shoes. I'll say I think the Free is a decent shoe
but that's only based on a single interval session. I think there's
enough protection with the Free's to wear on trails but that will take
some more testing. The landing has a completely different feel when
comparing the Evo's to the Free's. The Evo's are pretty close to a
barefoot landing for me but the delta between the Evo and the Free's
was very noticeable. I'm still digesting the experience so I'll have
other thoughts later on.
It is amazing how different it feels to run in more traditional
shoes. I just imagine the weirdness that a East African child must
feel when putting on shoes for the first time. I don't think I
accomplished must on this first day other than getting further
validation about the Evo which I received when 3 of the folks I train
with came up to me (before I switched to the Free) and said, you run
so softly that it freaks us out on the track because we can't hear you
coming so it's hard to get out of your way. That's the ultimate
compliment when someone says, "I can't hear you coming." That must
mean I'm landing softly and I assume (or hope) that also means good
form and technique.
So what do I do next? I have no idea right now as I will take it day
by day. I will run in the Evo's tomorrow and Tuck posted something
that was interesting on the Evo and trail running because it matched
what I was thinking last night when I thought about looking for a
different insole for the Evo for trails runs might be the answer. I
don't like the stock insole from Terra but maybe a firmer insole might
be the answer (shouldn't be that expensive, so I'll give it a try).
6 hours later, I can feel tension in the knee and back. Not pain, but tension, however, tension ultimately leads to pain. I have no such tension barefoot or in the Evos . . . hmmm!
At a minimum, the Free's will be good for walking. And, they may be
good for recovery runs when my feet are really tired.
HHH
That's interesting, thanks. And yes, I agree, landing softly and quietly means good running form and technique.
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