The official newsletter of StrongFast Fitness
and Earthlings everywhere.
July 23, 2013
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In this issue...

  • What's New at StrongFast?
  • Feature Article: New Balance Minimus Review
  • Fitness Found Online
  • Recipe: Indian-style Mustard Greens

What's New at StrongFast?

VHS Tape
This will be the last issue of The StrongFast Planet we will send to your inbox.

But fear not: it's definitely not the last issue of The Planet! We're just going to be changing the way we deliver it.

Getting each issue to show up (reasonably) well in a wide variety of email clients requires some fairly restrictive formatting. Instead, we'll be sending you a link to the new issue. So be prepared to click or tap to see the latest, greatest Planet content. It's still free!

Ready Defense tape One of the neat things this will let us do is use video. Your StrongFast Fitness team has a long history of video production. If you want a (still relevant) blast from the past, check out our Ready Defense series of self-defense videos at readydefense.com (also free!). Then stay tuned for next issue's blast from the present!

Oh, and a special HAPPY BIRTHDAY to everyone's favorite StrongFaster!
"I really don't think I need buns of steel. I'd be happy with buns of cinnamon."

- Ellen DeGeneres

Feature Article


New Balance Minimus Review

It's a shoe review! How exciting is that? First my anti-disclaimer: I have no relationship with New Balance (or any other shoe company) and didn't get these for free. So there.

three running shoes Now, a little background. A while back, I tried the barefoot running style aided by a pair of Mizuno racing flats which are a "barely there" shoe that help with midfoot-strike running (instead of the more common heel-strike). As regular readers know, this helped me run on hard surfaces without knee pain and also improved my speed (mostly because the shoes are so light). My Mizunos are awesome! I much prefer them to my Vibram Five-Fingers for running. But they're not great for walking, which tends to be more heel-intensive. For that, I've kept my old New Balance shoes. But they were in need of replacement and I decided to try something minimalist, but not as minimal as the racing flats.

After a bit of research (I'm not one to agonize over these things), I decided on the New Balance Minimus. (There are different versions of the shoe: these are the 1010s, not to be confused with the 1010 Trail. Go figure.) I'm a long-time New Balance wearer. I like that they come in widths and it's nice that they still make some of their shoes in the USA. The Minimus look pretty good, have been around for a while, and have soles made by Vibram, which should be a good thing.

I still haven't worn them extensively, but here's my take on them so far.

They run a little small. These are a half-size bigger then every other pair of New Balance shoes I've ever had (probably around 10 pair). I'm still not real happy with the way they fit: there's a little too much play in the right heel even though the laces are quite tight. I'm going to change the lacing style to help address that. Now, they feel a little tight when sitting around but pretty good when moving, but I can't wear them without socks due to the heel play.

They're right in the ballpark of bulkiness that I wanted. They're almost twice as heavy as my racing flats, but less than half the weight of my old walking sneakers. That works for me. I've done a little running in them and they feel pretty good: if you're looking for an introduction to running barefoot-style in a minimalist shoe, I think these will fit the bill. But of course, that's not why I got them. I'm happy with them for walking--they're much sturdier in the heels than the flats--so that's good.

Minimus shoe sole My biggest complaint is the tread. They have these big circular pads on the bottom. I have no idea of the engineering behind this decision, but it's a little weird for a minimalist shoe, I think. More importantly, I've had the pads catch on surface irregularities. That's pretty annoying, and maybe even a little dangerous. I can only hope to wear the pads down with lots of walking (and a little running) to make them less obtrusive.

I should note that a friend of mine sent me pictures of his older Minimus shoes that had tears in them, apparently from a design or manufacturing flaw that caused it to happen frequently. (Or maybe he was doing a lot of running through cactus patches.) Anyway, that problem is hopefully solved with these new models.

While I'll use these shoes for some running and some training, their main purpose is as a walking shoe, and so that's what I'll rate them on. At this point, I'll give them a 7 out of 10, mostly due to the fit and the tread. That might sound low, but I'm a tough grader, so take that into account.

I'll give updates on this shoe in the future so keep an eye out, especially on our Facebook page.

Now I think it's time for a walk.

Be seeing you.

-gary

Fitness Found Online

treadmills
A study suggests that using a treadmill desk helps with fat loss. Too bad they're so expensive. But if you work in an office, suggest it anyway! You have nothing to lose but some unwanted fat.
fish market
A StrongFaster directed me to an audio piece on a study finding correlation between high omega-3 fats and prostate cancer. (The fats were mostly from fish.) And Paleo guy Rob Wolff responds.

Recipe: Indian-style Mustard Greens

Brighten up your veggies with this something-different exotic side-dish. Enjoy!
Indian-style Mustard Greens Indian-style Mustard Greens
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