I’ve been inspired.  It’s often that I say that in this community, especially because I follow so many talented people.  Today, I’m inspired in a  new way - getting back to running.  For as long as I can remember, running has been a cruel and unusual punishment.  Since the early days of High School, when the dreaded 1 mile physical fitness run revealed to everyone that I was just a slow, unathletic flatfooter,  I have hated running.  Despite building up my ability over the years and in the best of times doing daily 5Ks  at lunch, it was still a miserable experience.   I read a lot of books and was religious about getting fitted shoes.  I drank the koolaid, regurgitated words like over pronation, stability shoes, and sold my soul to Brooks for a better running experience.  No dice.  This is probably why I gave it up all together the last few years in favor of basketball and swimming.  Running complete fail.

It’s never left my mind though that running is in the fact the best form of cardio exercise and I’ve been harboring a desire to get back into it in a way that didn’t make me miserable.  The solution I discovered, like so many people before me was to learn to run again, from the beginning.  

I won’t go into long details because so much content is already out there.  However, for anyone who has ever felt the same way I did about running, I suggest the following step by step solution.

1. Go to Birthday Shoes and learn all about the history of running barefoot and vibrams
2. Pick up a copy of Born to Run and be inspired to learn to run again
3. Check out Running BareFoot is Bad to get the other sides perspective.  Don’t blindly drink the koolaid.
4. Now drink the koolaid and buy a pair of Vibram Komodo Sports (the most comfortable style).  Go to store and get fitted.  
5. Hit the roads, treadmills, trails, wherever you want to go.

Trust me, from one running hater to another, it’ll change your whole perspective.