Barefoot ultramarathoner and medical doctor Sidy Diallo ran barefoot the 90 km of the 2018 Comrades Marathon without any pain or injury, while thousands of shod runners were enduring a different experience.
The 2018 Comrades Marathon (90 km)
Barefoot Ultramarathon # 1
Date: June 10, 2018
My Time: 11:13:04
By Dr. Sidy Diallo
Until 20 years or so ago, I was convinced like many that comorbidities and the loss of physical and cognitive abilities were humans’ unpreventable and unstoppable destiny as we age. Fortunately, I progressively found out that we can enhance our lifespan in good health, improve our life quality and avoid ending up in nursing homes, just by shifting from the current dominant lifestyle. As a result, I moved from sedentary lifestyle to long-distance running and running barefoot the 2018 Comrades Marathon (90 km) in South Africa without any pain or injury.
When I decided to get rid of the sneakers in 2015, at the age of 60, one of my goals was to run barefoot the 90 km of the Comrades Marathon. I first ran the whole distance of the 2016 Comrades Marathon with minimalist shoes. I returned the following year and ran barefoot the first 63 km of the 2017 Comrades Marathon, then I put on minimalist shoes to prevent unnecessary pain or damage.
Finally, I easily ran barefoot the 90.2 km of the 2018 edition of the Comrades Marathon, completing the race pain and injury free, and puzzling thousands of shod runners who were unfortunately going through quite a different experience, just 7 days after achieving in Duisburg, Germany, my fastest barefoot marathon (3:37). My purpose is to show that we all can readapt to barefoot running, regardless of age, gender or melanin density. It’s the biology. The 2015 Two Ocean Marathon (56 km), also in South Africa, is the last official race I ran with sneakers.
The World Best Road Race
The Comrades Marathon is not only the best and oldest ultramarathon, but also the world best road race. I explain why in the book Running Barefoot for Human Survival, chapter XXVI: The Great Persistence Hunting in KwaZulu-Natal.
Date: June 10, 2018
My Time: 11:13:04
By Dr. Sidy Diallo
Until 20 years or so ago, I was convinced like many that comorbidities and the loss of physical and cognitive abilities were humans’ unpreventable and unstoppable destiny as we age. Fortunately, I progressively found out that we can enhance our lifespan in good health, improve our life quality and avoid ending up in nursing homes, just by shifting from the current dominant lifestyle. As a result, I moved from sedentary lifestyle to long-distance running and running barefoot the 2018 Comrades Marathon (90 km) in South Africa without any pain or injury.
When I decided to get rid of the sneakers in 2015, at the age of 60, one of my goals was to run barefoot the 90 km of the Comrades Marathon. I first ran the whole distance of the 2016 Comrades Marathon with minimalist shoes. I returned the following year and ran barefoot the first 63 km of the 2017 Comrades Marathon, then I put on minimalist shoes to prevent unnecessary pain or damage.
Finally, I easily ran barefoot the 90.2 km of the 2018 edition of the Comrades Marathon, completing the race pain and injury free, and puzzling thousands of shod runners who were unfortunately going through quite a different experience, just 7 days after achieving in Duisburg, Germany, my fastest barefoot marathon (3:37). My purpose is to show that we all can readapt to barefoot running, regardless of age, gender or melanin density. It’s the biology. The 2015 Two Ocean Marathon (56 km), also in South Africa, is the last official race I ran with sneakers.
The World Best Road Race
The Comrades Marathon is not only the best and oldest ultramarathon, but also the world best road race. I explain why in the book Running Barefoot for Human Survival, chapter XXVI: The Great Persistence Hunting in KwaZulu-Natal.
