Does being fat help barefoot transition?

I bring up the question because it's something that I was thinking about . . .

As I've posted before, when I first started running I was in motion control shoes and I was experiencing horrible shin splints.  The only reason I kept running was because I had already signed up for a training program at my local YMCA for the Salinas Valley Half Marathon.  I enjoyed the program and we got plenty of advice on training, injury prevention and treatment.  I liked it enough that I signed up again earlier this year to get more out of it.

But by the time the training program started, I already had several months running a couple times a week in minimalist shoes (Merrell Trail Gloves and New Balance Minimus Trail) and still building my comfort level of no heel shoes.

Now as to the question:  Does being a fat person help to transition into barefoot form easier than being skinny or not as fat?

I would argue with a vehement YES!

First of all, the fat person needs to have the willingness to do something in the first place.  In my case I had two choices:
    Suffer a life of meds, depression, increasing weight 'cause of depression.


    Fat Bastard: "I eat because I'm unhappy. I'm unhappy because I eat. It's a vicious cycle."
   
And slowly spiral into my own stinkin' grave unless I dive because of some coronary!
        OR
    Get off my fat ass and DO somethin'!

 I can't remember what he did, but I hope I don't get that funky looking waddle on my chin!

Once willpower has been assessed and the feeling is positive, what next?

I chose running.  I'll tell you, it was a bitch-and-a-half!  The motion control shoes weren't helping me aquire this Love-Of-Running I'd heard so much about.  I got lucky and heard about Born To Run by Christopher McDougall on I think the Runners World forums or something.

That just spiked my curiosity and picked up the book.  Wow.  What a revelation.

The thing is, not a one of these people who had begun minimal or barefoot running were in my shoes . . . fat.  Most of the runners were runners already with injuries or curious about this movement.  Others had no choice like Michael Sandler who would not take no as an answer!  I'm not saying my condition was anything like Mr. Sandlers'.  Mine was preventable from the beginning and I chose to let myself go.  My struggle now is to start at the bottom of the hill and bust my ass back up it.

So when I began running, I started out ok.  Then it got painful.  I went through so many different styles and fit of motion control shoes because the shoe people at the sports shoe store didn't know any different.  They were truly helpful, except for me.  I stuck with the last shoes I got from them because they did help some, but I was still working hard to prevent the worst of the pain with exercises and stretches.  Even taping!

With Born To Run, I started looking into barefoot form.  I got some chintzy flattish, still cushioned shoes and began running again.  It was several months after my abysmal half-marathon and I hadn't done any running since then.  So I started out slow using the training calendar I had used for the Y.  A couple of months later, the Merrell TG's were released and I attempted a run in them.  By that point I was running about two miles twice a week.  So I went out for my two mile run thinking I was ready for it.

I got a quarter mile into the run before turning back.

My calves were a bit sore the next day, but not as bad as I'd read other people saying they could be.  They felt like I had a good hard work out.  Being the lazy bastard that I am, I suspect by cutting my run short because I started feeling my calves saved me from the excruciating pain a lot of more experienced runners feel when doing TMTS (too much too soon).  Of course being fat helped in that department.

Being fat forced me to take it slow.  There's a psychological and an obvious physical barrier preventing me from pushing WAY TOO FAR.  Don't get me wrong, I'm still pushing.  Just not as much as a conventional runner would.  I'm still slowly increasing distance and speed.  Taking Caballo Blanco's tips of first working on smooth, then easy to get fast, I'm still working on smooth.

I can get a sub 9 mile on a track.  But you're only getting a mile.  If I'm feeling good.  I can probably do better than that now and get a lot closer to 8.  I'm doing much better now than I did before the SVHM.  I can probably get pretty close to a two hour finish.  My feet don't get as exhausted now than they did before.  But it's taken me a YEAR to get this far.  And I still have a lot of improvement to work on.

I'd like to get to two hundred pounds by January and I truly believe I'm going to do it.  It's only another 30 pounds away.  I dropped 20 in about 5 weeks.  I have about two months to make it work.  I know the holidays won't make it easy, but I have a lot of opportunities to run while waiting for the daughter to get out of whatever event she's at.  I want to be able to run 5 miles three times a week.  And I'm gonna enjoy every mile of it!

GD

p.s.
too lazy to check. especially this longish post.  run smiley :)