Barefoot Runner

It's been two months now since I devised and started my last gym/cardio program - Tabata Time - and I think it's time for a change.

I've not really followed my previous program too closely, but rather used it as a guide. I found I was often too busy or couldn't be bothered to go to the gym twice a week, and I've been adding a lot more running into the mix instead of being a slave to the cardio equipment in the gym. I have however stuck to the weights part quite well, except for dropping the lunges every now and then as they were having too much of an impact on my running on the first few days that followed.

This new program is once again, deemed as a guide for myself, but this time with a concentration on strength. I don't want to bulk up too much, but I do want to increase my strength as this will definitely help with the running and when combined with a bit of plyometrics should help me "float" a lot better.

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I'm taking a bit of a break from running at the moment to let my lower legs repair and recover a bit. I've been going a bit mashuga recently and haven't really given my feet and legs a chance to recover properly. As a result the little niggles one can expect from first starting running barefoot (or almost) are not clearing up completely between runs. I don't want these to develop into full on injuries, so I'm taking another enforced break from running.

Now I don't want to just stop exercising completely and sit on my arse, however I do still want to keep my cardio levels up and use this time to burn off as much fat as I can. Moving to barefoot (or almost) has meant I've had to keep my mileage quite low, so I don't really get a chance to burn much of my excess weight off. I've been putting in some time in the gym between runs, but it's not been enough - I've noticed my weight creeping back up.

So I'm using this enforced break from running to try out this "Tabata technique/protocol" I've read about in various places on the net.

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