[pct-l] Vibram 5 fingers, foot injuries, and muscle atrophy

[Dan Africk]

I hadn't noticed that, that's pretty cool. I don't see anything on his page
about barefoot hiking, but I'll be interested to see if he posts anything
about his barefoot experiences. I don't know how often I'll have access to a
computer, but I'll try to keep you posted on my experiences.

I've come to the conclusion that barefoot hiking is great, but at least for
thru-hiking, its only practical in areas that have few rocks and tree roots.
Otherwise I tend to hike pretty slow and stare at the ground the whole time.

Yesterday I went trail running, and for the first time in almost a year, I
went barefoot. My feet were soft from wearing the 5 fingers and other shoes
a lot(I have to at work), and I woke up this morning with much thicker pads
of skin on the bottom of my feet. It's a shame how quickly I lose that
though, all it takes is some sweaty shoes or a hot shower to make my feet
soft again.

On Thu, Mar 25, 2010 at 10:05 AM, Paul Mitchell <bluebrain at bluebrain.ca>wrote:

> > I'm hoping there will be lots sections of the PCT that are relatively
> smooth
> and not too rocky, and I plan on hiking barefoot as much as possible.
>
> Hey Dan
>
> Late last year I took an interest in barefoot hiking - the stuff I read was
> really compelling, but I couldn't quite get myself motivated to go out this
> winter and train on cold sidewalks, which is mostly what I have access to.
>
> You may have noticed that another one of the hikers who has signed up to
>  hike for Haiti this year is planning to do his hikeI h on the Long Trail
> barefoot.  I'll be interested to hear about his experience.
>
> http://www.hikefor.com/haiti-2010-IceMan
>
> In 07 I hiked California in Tevas, and for this year I've been trying to
> train my feet to like Chacos, but I'm really not sure how well I like the
> thick hard sole.  I definitely don't feel like the muscles in my feet are
> getting the exercise that they should, and I'm concerned those hard Chacos
> are a step in the wrong direction.  The Tevas disintegrate as quickly as
> running shoes, but at least there is some flexibility there. I feel
> compelled to try the Chacos simple to not put five pairs of Tevas in the
> garbage over the summer. Anyhow, I'll be interested to compare barefoot
> notes on the PCT as I'm hoping to at least try a few stretches here and
> there, maybe starting with a half hour each day & ramping up from there.
>
> Donna has had an entire family stop in on their barefoot hike from Campo to
> Oregon, so clearly it's doable.
>
> Cheers,
> Potential 178
> www.hikefor.com
>
>
>