i walked 11km at upper pierce reservoir with my family this morning. sunday mornings are normally reserved for family runs/walks as long as nature permits. the benefit of training on this course is the vary degrees of slopes (from gradual to steep climb) which are perfect for power and endurance walks. as the route is situated on the former race course for automobiles, users of this route will have to keep a constant look out (cum hear-out) for on coming vehicles at the respective bends.

after days of consideration, i headed down to the nike flagship store @ wisma to get the new nike free 5.0 yesterday.

nike was the brand that i used in my event debut. it is also the brand that gave me all my personal best times and school records for walks. i am not insinuating that other manufacturers are inferior but they do not give me the feel and luck that nike offers. the last time i used a pair of nike was during my ns days and that racer instilled a prefontaine in me – it kept me going. since i left the army 4 years ago, i couldn’t find a suitable pair of shoes from nike for walks. therefore, i had to seek alternatives from other makers but i got more disqualifications than anything else after wearing them.

the nike free 5.0 is engineered to the biomechanics of a human foot – where it follows the movement of the feet without any form of restriction. the lack of cushioning may turn many athletes off but it is a fantastic shoe for fast workouts, development of good running/walking form and to build feet strength and flexibility in the same way as athletes who train barefoot.

i tried the luna trainer/racer but it couldn’t give me the “rolling motion” (where the heel transits to the toe by rolling from heel land to the mid outer part of the feet before reaching the toe for push off) as the nike free. in my personal opinion, the luna trainer/racer is more suitable for long distance running than technical events.

after trying out the shoe this morning, i can say that nike has surprised me again. i could walk faster in a lighter and more fluid manner. landings are easier with the low heels and the weight of the shoe allows one to push off effortlessly. when you receive such qualities in a training equipment, it serves as a motivation to walk faster and further.

i have always been sceptical about the free since its debut in the market. after trying one myself, i found the free to be an excellent training tool.

like the journey that bowerman took to realise the spirit of prefontiane, time will tell the true intentions of everything.

Cited by Edmund Sim