The 12′:45″ barefoot run did not produce a delayed negative reaction in the calves, despite feeling a small amount of pain during the run. Yesterday (4th) I went for another run and intended it to be 15 minutes max – but my watch went wonky and I ended up running 21 minutes. Some pain had already started at under the 10 minute mark.
There are two ways of overdoing it when running – either ramping up the distance too much or increasing speed too much. Yesterday the speed was starting to come back and it’s still too soon for that so it’s obvious that a lost of self restraint is going to be necessary to keep the progression at the right level.
Gareth pointed out yesterday that the stance in ski boots – with the heel raised and a significant forward ramp angle – could be adversely affecting the calve muscles. I suspect that he is right and that’s probably why I always get calve pains when starting running – even in shoes – after a winter season – and why I’m prone to cramps in the calves when swimming front crawl in the winter. I hadn’t thought of this and had just put it down to the running itself. It might be that “barefoot” running is the right thing for balancing out the muscles after skiing.
Reading a bit about “Chi-running” technique – which uses the exact same underlying principles as Pose running – I tried extending my stride by allowing the hip and pelvis to follow the foot backwards – extending the stride behind. The acceleration was immediate because it also allow the centre of mass to fall a little bit more forwards. This is one reason I ran a little bit faster than intended.