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| Eric Orton |
Wow.. just wow! I am really excited to share with you an interview I had with Eric Orton last week, and a really cool startup called ZOZI!
OK... what or who is
ZOZI? Just think ADVENTURE... and very cool gear and amazing guru's. And Eric is one of their great guru's who has designed a custom trip to Nicaragua as part of ZOZI's "12 days of Adventures" giveaways. Check out his adventure, plus all the others and enter to WIN here!
http://www.zozi.com/12days/
Anyway... make sure you enter, as there are some really amazing adventure trips being given away! And, sign up with ZOZI to get info on local adventures at discounted rates, and also some really cool gear as well. AND... if you stick around after the interview below, one BI reader will win $100 towards ZOZI getaways or gear! Talk about a rocking Christmas present!
OK... now to my interview with Eric. I was really excited to get this opportunity since I really enjoyed reading Eric's book,
The Cool Impossible.. and his B2R Road shoes and strength training program got me ready and through my first marathon in January.. Check out the book review by clicking
HERE and the B2R review
HERE.
Barefoot Inclined Interview with Eric Orton:
Barefoot Inclined: What are your thoughts
on pure barefoot running, versus minimalist?
Eric:
I think there is
too much emphasis on this and attaching categories and making it
black or white, right and wrong. I believe there is a proper or best
way to run and this includes, run form, proper strength and muscle activation,
shoes, the way we eat, how we think, and the way we train.
I feel most of
this was lost in Born To Run and the only focus became barefoot and minimal
running. I use barefoot running as a tool to help teach form,
develop strength, and to help athletes transition to a more natural shoe.
I coach
runners to perform as best they can at races and to accomplish long term race
goals and it is very hard to achieve proper run training running only barefoot.
Some can and do it well, but for most of us, we need good protection against
the terrain and the ability to run faster when needed in training. With
proper training including form, strength, and run training, it is my goal to
eventually get my athletes in as minimal a shoe as possible that also provides
the protection needed for any given day. For example, when I go
for an easy run on the road here in Jackson Hole, I will run in a
very minimal shoe. But when heading for the trails and
mountains, I need a very protective shoe to that shields my feet from
rocks and doesn't allow my feet to fatigue prematurely
if I am out running all day.
Barefoot Inclined:
What is your definition of a minimalist shoe?
Eric:
To be honest, I hate this word and how we have
this need to place things in categories. I understand why, but it takes
the real purpose and focus on WHY away from the consumer and we then lose the
opportunity to educate the consumer. If we need a word, I like Natural
the best because it speaks to the WHY and as I described above, minimal might
mean different shoes for different purposes.
But getting back to
your question. I would define minimal or natural as a shoe that has a
zero drop or very close to it (~ 3-4mm drop or less) and allows your feet to
feel the ground. But the key element here is this type of shoe will allow
good form to help activate muscles better. In other words, the shoe does
NOT make good form, good form comes with practice and you can still have bad
form with these shoes and even barefoot. Going barefoot or running in
minimal shoes does NOT guarantee good form, you need to learn what good form is
and apply it. But once good form is applied, THEN these types of shoes
will further enhance the natural muscle activation that takes place first and
foremost at the feet.
The health of a
runner is dictated by how well he or she can use their feet naturally and that
is how these shoes become a training tool in a variety of ways for everyone.
When we run with good form and use our feet well, our muscles work well
all the way up the leg to the hip. Why is this important? Well it takes away
the tug and pull of dominate and dormant muscles which ultimately alleviates
the muscle tightness we have been conditioned to think is inherent with
running. This is what the shoe companies are missing and they all are
treating this movement like a fad because they do not understand it themselves,
or care not to educate because it is hard for them to you sell other
"categories".
Barefoot Inclined: The B2R Road Performance shoe is really great
(my favorite road shoe), when can we expect a trail version to be released, and
are there any plans to offer other road models as well?
Eric:
The trail shoe is
amazing and I can't wait to get it in the hands of the B2R fans. My goal
with this shoe was to produce what is missing in the market and design a shoe
that allows for natural foot stability and movement I spoke of above BUT also
provide great protection. We have had testers who use this shoe for short
trail runs and have had one run 50 miles in it. So we really nailed it.
B2R's long term strategy is to have an endurance or long course line of
shoes to compliment the current road shoe and the soon to be released trail
shoe. We also have a casual moc and a gym training shoe coming out at the
same time of the new trail shoe. If all goes well, we should expect these
three new releases in late January, so stay tuned.
Barefoot Inclined:
Your "Cool Impossible"
is the dream of one runner in every household.. What do you see in your future
to help achieve this?
Eric:
This goal is two-fold. One,
it is meant for me to lead by example of what the cool impossible really means,
a huge goal and it doesn't get much bigger than one runner per household.
I want runners and readers of The Cool Impossible to see my goal and
understand it is not so much about the outcome, but the "cool" things
and amazing things that come to us through the process of living this cool
impossible. Too many of us are stopped by fear because before we start a goal,
we want to know what the outcome will be. We ask, can I do it, what will
happen, will I succeed? Well, that is impossible to know until
we live our goal day to day. So, this need to know will stop us before we
even start and our actions are being decided on something that is impossible to
know.
So yes, one runner
per household. My passion and mission in life is to use running as a
vehicle to help people live the life THEY WANT. When people are empowered
to live the life they truly want, they eat better, they take care of their
bodies, they treat others with respect and compassion and become just a little
bit more open minded to other beliefs. Through running, we can create a
healthier and better world. And running is something most all of us can
do.
Right now I am
putting together a team to help me with this campaign and mission. There
is a create Ted Talk out there about starting a movement and the overriding
point is when starting a movement, you need help and others to help carry the
torch. As a coach, it is sometimes hard to ask for help and it is tricky
to find the right kind of help to keep this an authentic and organic movement.
Right now my focus is
on building my website community, helping the runners there as much as I can
and eventually encourage them to become ambassadors for this global running
movement. I have a few projects brewing that hopefully will include a TV/digital
media platform for my message. And, as I mentioned, I am in the process
of putting together partners and sponsors to help me travel and show how
adventurous running can be and give it a "face lift" to the general
public.
Barefoot Inclined:
Do you do all of your running on
the trails and in the mountains?
Eric:
Yes, the majority of
the time, but I am sure to keep some road and track work for speed and leg
turnover. My season is very diverse and goes something like this:
Winter – depending on
snow conditions I try to get on snow trails as much as possible to develop
strength and endurance. It stays cold here in Jackson, so the snow stays
which allows me to do my road running on snow as well, which is a lot of fun
and gets me on some great mountainous roads that I would not be on in the
summer. In the winter I focus on running quite a bit and try to make extreme
adventures to keep me motivated during the cold, but without forcing it and
making it a "have to". I also sprinkle in ski mountaineering,
climbing, snow biking, Nordic skiing and of course, alpine skiing at the
resort.
Spring – This season
is the least desirable Jackson Hole has to offer. It really can be a mix
of snow, rain, sun, clouds, cold, etc. During this time I back off a
little on volume and take the great strength I built in Winter and work on my
speed. I will hit the track for speed sessions and as the lower elevation
trails start to dry out, I will run some fast tempo and intervals on varied
terrain.
Summer – There is no
better place to run than Summer in Jackson Hole. This is a time where all
my winter and spring prep has me ready for hitting all the high elevation
trails and canyons in Teton National Park. This is my high mileage time
and I try to do as much on trails as possible, which leaves only my true
recovery runs for the road. Summer projects also take center stage,
whether it is hitting the races I have chosen or putting together new trail
link ups, traverses, and high alpine ascents.
Fall – I usually
schedule my most important races for fall, so I am able to use the summer of
running to prepare. The days also get a bit cooler and shorter, but I am
also doing as much mountain running as possible before later Fall and snow
hits.
Barefoot Inclined:
What does trail running do for you... what does it provide?
(besides a workout of course :-) )
Eric:
The great thing about
living in Jackson is everything is so close and accessible. So having the
ability to run for a living and run on trails everyday really centers me and
gives me that daily reminder that I live a very cool life and I am fortunate to
have this ability and health to explore the mountains and wildlife right out my
door. I also came from a team sporting background where making athletic
moves and plays was a big part of my ability and when I am in the mountains
running on technical terrain or even having to climb or scramble up a rock
formation, it gives me this feeling of athleticism that I sometimes miss when
running roads. It truly brings that mind and body connection to the forefront
and gives me a very creative mind. When I was writing my book, I would go
for a run and assemble thoughts and actually write while running.
Barefoot Inclined:
How much of running is mental vs. physical... and what advice to you
have for new runners who aren't sure about their physical capabilities?
Eric:
In my book, I start out be saying I believe at
first, the mind follows a good body. Sometimes we often hear it the other
way around, where the body follows the mind. But from my experience as a
coach and athlete, it is hard to feel good about yourself mentally if you are
not feeling good physically. So, at first, the body must get strong and
well and this promotes mental confidence and empowerment. Through time,
this starts to alter and as we become strong and capable physically, the mind
takes over and leads the way.
So in advice to new
runners, first and foremost running is good for us if done right. Yes, it
is a skill to be learned and one that we all can learn. And, running can
be fun and getting to the point in your running where YOU have the ability to
manage you effort is the holy grail for new runners. With this, I really
think it is crucial for them to understand appropriate run intensity and
effort. This will help keep efforts as easy as possible when first
starting so it stays enjoyable and something you gain power from, not torture.
This will promote consistency and will help running to be FUN - leading
to that physical confidence I mention above. In fact all runners need to
understand intensity for long term improvement.
Barefoot Inclined:
What's the next big thing for Eric Orton?
Eric:
Short term, I am
preparing for the US paperback release of The Cool Impossible in
May 2014, which will lead to the long term plan of more run clinics, run
expeditions, and launching of my global running campaign.
Barefoot Inclined:
Tell me about your relationship with ZOZI. What do you do for them as a
ZOZI Guru. How does this align with your passions and goals? And you’re working
with them to give away an adventure to Nicaragua? Tell me about it.
Eric:
As I mentioned above
it is tricky to find great partners and ZOZI is a great partner. I was
fortunate enough to be one of the original ZOZI Gurus and now to be associated
with the likes of Bear Grylls, Jimmy Chin and others, is truly humbling and an
honor.
ZOZI is all about
adventure and living life to the fullest every day and this is a very authentic
way of being that we both share. And the Nicaragua adventure giveaway is
a great example of promoting this way of life. That there might be a different
way to look at traveling and living and how this can create experiences that
mold how we go forward with our life. I traveled to Nicaragua last
February as an invited runner to the Fuego Y Agua Ultramarathon hosted on
Ometepe Island. This trip blew my mind, running up volcanos, with
monkeys, thru jungles and reinforced how adventure brings people and cultures
together. Running is truly a unifying force and this is what ZOZI wants
people to experience on their own. ZOZI is the catalyst and care takers
of this adventure mindset and what life is all about.
Thanks Eric! I appreciate you taking the time for the interview!
Now... if you want to win $100 credit towards ZOZI adventures and gear, check out the Rafflecopter widget below. I'll run this contest until 10PM MST on December 24th, 2013 and then randomly select one lucky winner... Merry Christmas! Contest is open to the U.S. and Canada.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Happy Trails and good luck!
Jeff
http://barefootinclined.com
barefootinclined@gmail.com
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