I’ve hopped on a new nutrition bandwagon.
I guess it all started about 10 years ago, when I first discovered and implemented the Atkins diet. As most people know, the Atkins diet is all about restricting carbohydrates. It has come under some flack for being unhealthy because it restricts fruit and veg, but the truth is, beyond the first two week adjustment phase, the fresh foods are added back in. It worked well for me at the time, I dropped a lot of fat weight, but in time I found it a bit restrictive, and it seemed like an un-natural way to eat, and like so many good diet plans, I came back ‘off’ the diet, and gained the weight back. In fact, during those ten subsequent years I have gained a lot of strength and bulk, I’m just not the same chap physically that I was back then.
But recently on the web, I’ve become more and more aware of the paleo/primal way of thinking about nutrition. The basic idea is that you attempt to follow a diet such as we would have eaten as Palaeolithic hunter gatherers, which is before the Neolithic phase and so before agriculture. The big change is to drop grains and sugar from the diet. This leaves you focussing on meat, animal products, fruit and vegetables. Another part is to avoid vegetable oils, full of omega 6 and would not have been available to the paleo people.
I’m not going to try and lay out the whole nutrition principles, as others have done this at length and much better than me, but suggest you follow the links at the end of the article if you want to find out more detailed information.
I didn’t jump into full implementation of the paleo way of thinking in one go, but started to incorporate it bit by bit. This made my transition pretty easy going. I’ve lost over 20 pounds over the last few months, and I’ve kept my strength in the gym, so I think this is largely fat weight. After a slow-ish start with visible fat loss, when I think I was losing a layer all over, now a lot of the fat that was sat on my belly has gone as well, I’m very pleased about that. Still a good way short of visible abs though, ah well. In short, I’m feeling and looking pretty damn good.
Its been mentally easier to stick to that Atkins. Where I thought at the time Atkins was a little bit ‘out there’ and weird, the logic of following a diet that we evolved to eat (or ate as were were evolving?) seems straightforward to me. So although in some ways it is similar to Atkins, the principles make much more sense to me this time around.
I don’t envisage myself going off the nutrition plan. I can see that maybe in time I will soften it up a little, and maybe eat a little more of the non-primal foods. I’m already happily ‘cheating’ on weekends, usually when I’m visiting friends, when its nice to eat more ‘normally’ and not be funny about food. (What is normal anyway? Is the primal way more normal than the current modern way?) This doesn’t seem to have affected progress. It tends to only be a meal or two. I’m still learning new ways to eat on plan. I’m not going hungry. Its fairly easy, and I feel good.
One nice aspect of eating this way is the control of insulin levels, and hence energy and hunger levels. I was your classic eat 6 times a day strength trainer, and if I missed a feeding, I’d get really hungry fairly rapidly. Now my energy levels are much smoother, and I can not snack between meals with ease if I’m busy, and not suffer a drop in energy or needing to eat.
There’s a lot of information out there on the web relating to eating like our ancestors, I’ll just link you to my absolute favourites. Yes, their ideas don’t all match, but its from the same hymn sheet :
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/ This is where it all started for me. Mark has a fun easy to read style. He had his own slant on the caveman idea, which he calls Primal Nutrition. He covers in some detail nutrition, including lots of information on specific food groups. He also considers exercise, play, and other branches of his ten rules of primal living. Check out his ‘primal blueprint’ posts for the basics. My favourite source of primal info by far. I’ve also bought his book, very good, although a large part of the information can be found by extensive reading of the blog, but its summarised well in the book, and much easier to get the whole picture.
http://freetheanimal.com/ This blog focuses on paleo nutrition. He gets pretty angry and worked up about subjects, and this makes for fun reading. He has transformed himself through the paleo diet. Way back the blog was about politics, but now its pretty much entirely nutrition based.
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/ A lot of nutrition science, digested into understandable articles. A lot about natural food diets of primitive and/or isolated groups, and how they affect health. A lot about the spread of modern diseases and how that relates to nutrition. Really reading through the entire blog, and understanding some portion of the science – this is what made me realise that I ‘had’ to get started on a new nutritional path.
http://robbwolf.com/ In particular the podcast. A fun Q&A style podcast on paleo eating, lots of information laid out clearly, great listening. Discussion of topics in detail that I have not read about anywhere else on the web.
Saturday, 30 January 2010
Sunday, 13 December 2009
1 x 5 - A year of heavy low rep training
This year has been focused around two exercises, with a rep scheme that varied little, with clear goals. As it happens, this rather organised state of affairs is not the norm for me, I like to adapt on the hoof, often known with derision as routine hopping. It’s a good thing and a bad thing. Let’s see how finally actually following some advice from high places worked out for me as I exercised a bit of routine discipline.
I chose to focus on one top set of five in each workout, starting with the trap bar deadlift, and then later in the year the squat. The goal was simple and twofold, to increase strength in these moves for five reps and also to increase my 1RM in each.
Let’s start where I did, with the trap bar deadlift (hereafter TBDL). I began my cycle with 3x5, and followed this for about a month. Training the lift twice a week (or sometimes three times in a fortnight), doing the TBDL first in the routine. I was warming up with sets of five in the lift, starting with a 20kg plate on each end of my heavy bar, making a total of 75kg. I would do some general warmup before this, and it worked well in terms of setting the bar up with the least amount of fuss, I’m pretty lazy about stuff like that. The weight would be increased by 20kg each set, until I was at my working weight.
When the move started getting really tough, I dropped to 2x5. After only a couple of weeks (4 sessions) I dropped to one top set of five. And this was the core of my workouts for the next 8 months or so.
My other workout activities were not constant through this time. Even though my core move was set, I chopped and changed things around in other areas. I worked hard on KB pressing for low reps, KB clean and pressing, KB snatching, ab wheel, chins, anvil horn gripping, COC grippers. Sporadically I would rotate in other things, such as odd object curls, lever bar, blobs. These other parts of my workout always came after the big move, and later in the cycle they did suffer because I was fatigued after the big lift.
Progression. I used the smallest jumps in weight I had at the time, 2.5 kilos, and just kept the cycle rolling. Getting a long period of constant progression was the goal, and I managed to keep to that for months.
The TBDL was now getting seriously hard each workout, in fact it was getting very hard to progress. I found new levels of intensity and focus needed to be summoned up to achieve the set, which would leave me somewhat knocked out afterwards. I began to use a mental routine to help summon up the drive needed to attack the set, using visualisation immediately before the set, this really helped for this cycle. After really struggling with increases, but continuing to get them I finally failed to progress one week, and knew it was time to turn my focus back to the squat.
I had been unable to back squat during this time for various reasons. Those reasons were now resolved, and I returned to the squat with gusto. I started to bring my squat weights up after doing the trap bar work, and soon switched it to be the new core move, dropping the TBDL. I knew I wanted to stick with the one set of five, and quickly found a suitably conservative weight, and began slow progression once again. It was much easier to settle into this new cycle than it was to set up the TBDL cycle, just a case of finding a decent moderate work weight, and getting going. As the weight was still moderate and the volume was low, I was doing this move in every workout, up to three times a week. Once things started to get moderately tough, I switched to using tiny progression, and sorted out enough microweights to allow 0.5 kg progression per session, about a third of a percent increase each time. I started to struggle to recover, and switched in another non-core move session, so only doing the squat every second workout. This other session was lighter, usually KB work. Further progression was possible with the squat, and I continued onwards for another month.
This is one interpretation of Hardgainer and Dino ideas combined. One top set of five is a classic dino training device, and long cycles using microweights is classic Hardgainer thinking. I’ll comment on both.
Using one top set of five was a real revelation to me. I have done all kinds of rep range cycles, 20 rep squats, 10x3, 5x5 and 3x5. These higher rep plans need a lot of work, this is a good thing, but it can also wear me down over time. Dropping heavy volume work way down really allowed me to recover more quickly, a big plus. I allowed the background work to really just coast along, letting the big lift absorb my energy and not worrying about holding back for the key peak set. This allowed me to get really strong, stronger than ever, and the 5 rep work steadily pushed my 1RM up.
Long dedication to a lift, using microweights. This works out very well. It can be a little unsettling at first, as the cycle will work best if you start at a weight that is perhaps medium hard, a good hard set, but a guaranteed to complete set. And then move to the regular increases. The unsettling part is that it feels easy at first, like you’re not working hard enough. But this is ideal, and the longer you can keep it feeling easy as the weights go on, the better it will all work out. You may have spotted I was using only 0.5kg per time with the squat, this was about a third of a percent at a time, this might be considered to be extremely slow progress for a big move like the squat, but I wanted to take the principle to its extreme, and make progress as slowly as I could. Its very good mentally, knowing that you MUST make the lift, because its actually no real difference than the last time you lifted it. And this feeling can be stretched out for weeks and months, and all the time you’re eeking out tiny bits of progress. The Hardgainer book describes this kind of slow, consistent progression training as “slow cooking” and also as“the golden fleece of strength training” and I agree, it’s a very good way to get some very real gains.
I did plenty of things wrong over the cycle. Firstly, another time, I would make the increases in weight as low as possible, using the 0.5kg weights earlier and really taking my time to bring it up to the tougher workloads. Even my slow progression got pushed along too fast with the frequent training. Secondly, I over-focussed on these moves, doing them every workout, or every second workout, with little variety. Once the loads got really heavy later in the cycle, this was tough on the body, and hard to bring the sheer focus to get a PB every time. Later in the squat cycle I also started to do higher rep KB swings, I was loading my back hard all the time, and perhaps not fully recovering. The relentless nature of the schedule caused a few minor injuries and stiffness. I had to stop the squat cycle after hurting my back outside the gym.
Its hard to hold back on progression sometimes. I really think had I tried to progress even slower, in the long run I’d have managed to get further.
And I desperately needed more variety. Variety in reps, variety in moves. It was working so well it was easy to want to push it along, but I think the core move needs to be varied more, for the mind and the body. Had I switched the move to another before I’d really met my limits, I think I would probably recovered better overall. I took the idea to its limits to find out how it would work for me.
For all the errors and mistakes I made, the difficultly of keeping a completely regular routine in the modern world, it worked really well. It’s really good to be getting stronger, and it’s a lot of fun pushing up those 5 rep maxes. I lost some weight over the year, and definitely firmed up. It was a lot of fun. I’m going to continue the idea of the 1x5 top set, but this time I’ll be mixing it in with other training methodologies. The cycle may last a very very long time done perhaps only once a week, maybe using several different items of equipment/bars each on a slow progression, but if its real measurable progress, then I’ll take it.
The numbers. I started the TBDL cycle at a moderate-heavy 195kg for 5, with a 1RM of 273kg. I ended at 5x257.5kg – this translated into a 1RM of 280kg. The squat cycle began at 150kg x5, and 1RM of 200kg. Ending at 171.5kgx5 and a 1RM of 202.5kg. I suffered injuries before I had properly tested my 1RM on the squat, but I know how much stronger I had got on the 5 rep sets. In the end I didn’t manage to push my 1RM up that far, but I really pushed my 5 rep maxes, and got a lot of hard productive training done over a long time.
A truly great and fun way to train. Just avoid milking it too dedicatedly for too long.
I chose to focus on one top set of five in each workout, starting with the trap bar deadlift, and then later in the year the squat. The goal was simple and twofold, to increase strength in these moves for five reps and also to increase my 1RM in each.
Let’s start where I did, with the trap bar deadlift (hereafter TBDL). I began my cycle with 3x5, and followed this for about a month. Training the lift twice a week (or sometimes three times in a fortnight), doing the TBDL first in the routine. I was warming up with sets of five in the lift, starting with a 20kg plate on each end of my heavy bar, making a total of 75kg. I would do some general warmup before this, and it worked well in terms of setting the bar up with the least amount of fuss, I’m pretty lazy about stuff like that. The weight would be increased by 20kg each set, until I was at my working weight.
When the move started getting really tough, I dropped to 2x5. After only a couple of weeks (4 sessions) I dropped to one top set of five. And this was the core of my workouts for the next 8 months or so.
My other workout activities were not constant through this time. Even though my core move was set, I chopped and changed things around in other areas. I worked hard on KB pressing for low reps, KB clean and pressing, KB snatching, ab wheel, chins, anvil horn gripping, COC grippers. Sporadically I would rotate in other things, such as odd object curls, lever bar, blobs. These other parts of my workout always came after the big move, and later in the cycle they did suffer because I was fatigued after the big lift.
Progression. I used the smallest jumps in weight I had at the time, 2.5 kilos, and just kept the cycle rolling. Getting a long period of constant progression was the goal, and I managed to keep to that for months.
The TBDL was now getting seriously hard each workout, in fact it was getting very hard to progress. I found new levels of intensity and focus needed to be summoned up to achieve the set, which would leave me somewhat knocked out afterwards. I began to use a mental routine to help summon up the drive needed to attack the set, using visualisation immediately before the set, this really helped for this cycle. After really struggling with increases, but continuing to get them I finally failed to progress one week, and knew it was time to turn my focus back to the squat.
I had been unable to back squat during this time for various reasons. Those reasons were now resolved, and I returned to the squat with gusto. I started to bring my squat weights up after doing the trap bar work, and soon switched it to be the new core move, dropping the TBDL. I knew I wanted to stick with the one set of five, and quickly found a suitably conservative weight, and began slow progression once again. It was much easier to settle into this new cycle than it was to set up the TBDL cycle, just a case of finding a decent moderate work weight, and getting going. As the weight was still moderate and the volume was low, I was doing this move in every workout, up to three times a week. Once things started to get moderately tough, I switched to using tiny progression, and sorted out enough microweights to allow 0.5 kg progression per session, about a third of a percent increase each time. I started to struggle to recover, and switched in another non-core move session, so only doing the squat every second workout. This other session was lighter, usually KB work. Further progression was possible with the squat, and I continued onwards for another month.
This is one interpretation of Hardgainer and Dino ideas combined. One top set of five is a classic dino training device, and long cycles using microweights is classic Hardgainer thinking. I’ll comment on both.
Using one top set of five was a real revelation to me. I have done all kinds of rep range cycles, 20 rep squats, 10x3, 5x5 and 3x5. These higher rep plans need a lot of work, this is a good thing, but it can also wear me down over time. Dropping heavy volume work way down really allowed me to recover more quickly, a big plus. I allowed the background work to really just coast along, letting the big lift absorb my energy and not worrying about holding back for the key peak set. This allowed me to get really strong, stronger than ever, and the 5 rep work steadily pushed my 1RM up.
Long dedication to a lift, using microweights. This works out very well. It can be a little unsettling at first, as the cycle will work best if you start at a weight that is perhaps medium hard, a good hard set, but a guaranteed to complete set. And then move to the regular increases. The unsettling part is that it feels easy at first, like you’re not working hard enough. But this is ideal, and the longer you can keep it feeling easy as the weights go on, the better it will all work out. You may have spotted I was using only 0.5kg per time with the squat, this was about a third of a percent at a time, this might be considered to be extremely slow progress for a big move like the squat, but I wanted to take the principle to its extreme, and make progress as slowly as I could. Its very good mentally, knowing that you MUST make the lift, because its actually no real difference than the last time you lifted it. And this feeling can be stretched out for weeks and months, and all the time you’re eeking out tiny bits of progress. The Hardgainer book describes this kind of slow, consistent progression training as “slow cooking” and also as“the golden fleece of strength training” and I agree, it’s a very good way to get some very real gains.
I did plenty of things wrong over the cycle. Firstly, another time, I would make the increases in weight as low as possible, using the 0.5kg weights earlier and really taking my time to bring it up to the tougher workloads. Even my slow progression got pushed along too fast with the frequent training. Secondly, I over-focussed on these moves, doing them every workout, or every second workout, with little variety. Once the loads got really heavy later in the cycle, this was tough on the body, and hard to bring the sheer focus to get a PB every time. Later in the squat cycle I also started to do higher rep KB swings, I was loading my back hard all the time, and perhaps not fully recovering. The relentless nature of the schedule caused a few minor injuries and stiffness. I had to stop the squat cycle after hurting my back outside the gym.
Its hard to hold back on progression sometimes. I really think had I tried to progress even slower, in the long run I’d have managed to get further.
And I desperately needed more variety. Variety in reps, variety in moves. It was working so well it was easy to want to push it along, but I think the core move needs to be varied more, for the mind and the body. Had I switched the move to another before I’d really met my limits, I think I would probably recovered better overall. I took the idea to its limits to find out how it would work for me.
For all the errors and mistakes I made, the difficultly of keeping a completely regular routine in the modern world, it worked really well. It’s really good to be getting stronger, and it’s a lot of fun pushing up those 5 rep maxes. I lost some weight over the year, and definitely firmed up. It was a lot of fun. I’m going to continue the idea of the 1x5 top set, but this time I’ll be mixing it in with other training methodologies. The cycle may last a very very long time done perhaps only once a week, maybe using several different items of equipment/bars each on a slow progression, but if its real measurable progress, then I’ll take it.
The numbers. I started the TBDL cycle at a moderate-heavy 195kg for 5, with a 1RM of 273kg. I ended at 5x257.5kg – this translated into a 1RM of 280kg. The squat cycle began at 150kg x5, and 1RM of 200kg. Ending at 171.5kgx5 and a 1RM of 202.5kg. I suffered injuries before I had properly tested my 1RM on the squat, but I know how much stronger I had got on the 5 rep sets. In the end I didn’t manage to push my 1RM up that far, but I really pushed my 5 rep maxes, and got a lot of hard productive training done over a long time.
A truly great and fun way to train. Just avoid milking it too dedicatedly for too long.
Thursday, 3 December 2009
All about colophony allergy and shoes
I am allergic to colophony, which is just a fancy name for pine resin. It’s a contact allergy, and so was hard to identify, as the effects are seen to begin a day or two after contact, the skin blisters up in fluid filled bumps, and its crazy itchy. So you get a reaction, and find yourself trying to think about everything you came into contact with over the last few days. In the world of contact allergy, around 5% of people who have an allergy have colophony sensitivity.
Once I finally found out what I was allergic to, with a proper dermatology test, things got a lot easier. I’m not allergic to pine when it’s in lump form (like furniture) so that’s a start. Sawdust is a real killer, especially if it gets caught by sweat in elbow or knee creases. Dust in garages seems to generally contain an aspect of sawdust presumably from past woodworking projects. Obvious sources of resin, like the tacky stuff on the kiln dried pine at the timber yard can be avoided, or at least you tend to know if you’ve come into contact as its sticky.
Plasters can be a problem, I find even the “allergy free” branding is no guarantee of it being free from colophony. I used an allergy free soap (Pears I think) in a hotel once and realised as my skin began to prickle afterwards it contained pine, and it was listed on the contents. I’m also allergic to juniper berry bubble bath.
But all of these things pale when the spectre of being allergic to shoes rears its head. I’m allergic to the glues in shoes, particularly those used for sticking the insole down, and for gluing the panels of shoe together (often shoes are glued as well as stitching). I suppose it’s the close contact that feet have with shoes, the extended exposure time, and repetition of exposure day after day. I tend to react worst in a line around my foot where the insole meets the sides of the shoe, but it can be anywhere in the shoe, toes, heals. It is sometimes ok with a brand new shoe, but as the shoes wear, the problem can reveal itself, sometimes after a week or two, sometimes it begins after a few months.
It’s a real problem. And that is the point of making this post. I have spoken to some manufacturers about if their shoes contain the colophony glues. Many shoes I have tried and failed with. Here’s what I know….
Shoes that do not contain colophony :
Crocs
At least all the one piece plastic moulded versions, they contain no glue at all.
I also have a newer style pair with a leather top to them, with the plastic soles, these do contain some visible glue, but they seem ok, the insole is not glued it is a croc foam pad. Proceed with caution on this style.
WELLIES! Croc makes a welly called the Georgie. Its not as tall as a regular welly, maybe ¾ height, but it is one piece moulded so no glue at all. A life saver for me, great for walking, festivals, building work, gardening. The sole is a bit spongy for my taste, and you can feel when you’re walking over rough ground, but it’s a soft foamy sensation.
My main issue with Crocs, is that they look kind of funny, not really suitable for the corporate world, or for formal occasions.
Birkenstocks
Birkenstocks are a lifesaver for me. It is worth noting that they do contain glue that the company cannot verify colophony free. But many styles seem to work for my feet. The sandals and shoes have a cork footbed with a top layer of leather. The design of this is that the foot sits in the middle of the footbed, safely away from where any glues might be in the shoe. This footbed is removable, so again, no glue.
So all the sandals are good.
I also seem to not react to the leather top clogs. These come in all types of leather and colours, and easily work with casual. I have black leather ones, and they work ok for my smart-casual office. Although, they are a bit funny looking, and don’t go completely un-noticed.
They also produce plastic clogs one piece moulded, with the orthopaedic footbed built in, with these again, no glue. I also like their flip flops, and various ‘Croc like’ variations on the plastic clog.
Importantly, the company was able to tell me that the Pasadena style of shoe is glue free, as it is stitched. This shoe has become a staple for me, they are loafers, with laces, and come in leather. A black pair and a brown pair are my go-to items for formal, and often for the office or casual. Its worth noting that after heavy wear, I think I become allergic to these, I think once the layers of leather begin to split inside the shoe, I guess the colophony is a part of making layered leather.
Po-Zu
Po Zu are environmentally aware shoes, they are hand stitched in Portugal, and will (in due course) bio-degrade. The soles are made of coconut fibre and natural latex. They are not at the cheap end of shoes, but are reasonable priced.
Po Zu have been able to tell me that their shoes contain no colophony at all. A real find for me, as well as funny ‘crazy’ shoes, they make some shoes that look like, well, just shoes. I have a great pair of Chelsea boots, and plans for more from Po Zu.
General
Any shoe that contains no glue should be ok. This starts from flip-flops and ends I suppose at fully stitched dress shoes.
Goretex socks
Goretex socks, and other water proof breathe-able socks work. They will make any shoe wearable. They have their own problems.
I have some army style boot liners, these are non elastic, designed to be used over a sock, and work great for army boots.
My favourite brand though is Sealskinz socks, they are elastic like a sock should be. They basically have the Gore liner contained inside the fabric of regular sock material. Most of them are fairly chunky socks, and warm. They do a lightweight version, this is about the same as a heavyweight regular sock (but short of chunky). You can wear any shoe with these socks, if the shoe still fits when you’ve got big socks on. I use them for training in, so I can wear converse boots, or hike boots.
The downside of the breathable sock, is that its warm to wear (often overwarm), and your feet feel a bit like they are in a bag all day. Ok, but not for all the time.
I’ve heard that for sports, you can just put your socked foot into a freezer bag into your shoe. Ok for the length of a match perhaps, and at least allow you to wear specialist sport shoes.
Barrier cream
“Gloves in a bottle” It creates a barrier by combining with the skin, forming a layer that will naturally come loose over a day or so. So it doesn’t sit on the skin and isn’t greasy. This eases the effects I have if I have to wear a pair of problem shoes, although doesn’t fix it, depending on what I wear and for how long. I also use it if I have to work with pine, this works out pretty well, obviously I clean the sawdust off as soon as possible as well.
Latex Lining
I’m not allergic to latex. I poured liquid latex into my shoes, swilling it around to get good coverage. I have done this for several pairs. It seems to work ok if you get good coverage. Its ‘rubber’ so it does make it a bit hard to get the shoes on as your feet don’t slide in. And it doesn’t breathe, so for wearing for longer periods it’s a bit damp and nasty. There may be ways to make this work, but I have largely abandoned the idea. Watch out because of course adding layers of latex will shrink the size of the space for your feet.
Shoes that are confirmed not ok (by me or by the manufacturers)
Almost all shoes, trainers, dress shoes, boots. (confirmed by me)
Converse (me)
Vibram Five Fingers (manufacturer)
Vivo Barefoot (manufacturer)
Note to strongmen
‘Tacky’ the stuff they use on the forearms for stone lifting, is pure pine resin. Keep clear, and remember anything near strongmen is likely covered in the stuff.
Final thoughts
Many shoes suitable for this allergy are funny looking. Clogs are cool enough, but they have big clunky toes. Sandals are ok in the right place, but often get me funny looks (maybe those looks are just from seeing a garage dweller outside the garage habitat). I rely on a few key brands and types to see me through.
If anyone knows any more shoe brands that will work, please please leave a comment. And any other tips about life with a contact allergy to colophony too. There must be a few of us about?
Once I finally found out what I was allergic to, with a proper dermatology test, things got a lot easier. I’m not allergic to pine when it’s in lump form (like furniture) so that’s a start. Sawdust is a real killer, especially if it gets caught by sweat in elbow or knee creases. Dust in garages seems to generally contain an aspect of sawdust presumably from past woodworking projects. Obvious sources of resin, like the tacky stuff on the kiln dried pine at the timber yard can be avoided, or at least you tend to know if you’ve come into contact as its sticky.
Plasters can be a problem, I find even the “allergy free” branding is no guarantee of it being free from colophony. I used an allergy free soap (Pears I think) in a hotel once and realised as my skin began to prickle afterwards it contained pine, and it was listed on the contents. I’m also allergic to juniper berry bubble bath.
But all of these things pale when the spectre of being allergic to shoes rears its head. I’m allergic to the glues in shoes, particularly those used for sticking the insole down, and for gluing the panels of shoe together (often shoes are glued as well as stitching). I suppose it’s the close contact that feet have with shoes, the extended exposure time, and repetition of exposure day after day. I tend to react worst in a line around my foot where the insole meets the sides of the shoe, but it can be anywhere in the shoe, toes, heals. It is sometimes ok with a brand new shoe, but as the shoes wear, the problem can reveal itself, sometimes after a week or two, sometimes it begins after a few months.
It’s a real problem. And that is the point of making this post. I have spoken to some manufacturers about if their shoes contain the colophony glues. Many shoes I have tried and failed with. Here’s what I know….
Shoes that do not contain colophony :
Crocs
At least all the one piece plastic moulded versions, they contain no glue at all.
I also have a newer style pair with a leather top to them, with the plastic soles, these do contain some visible glue, but they seem ok, the insole is not glued it is a croc foam pad. Proceed with caution on this style.
WELLIES! Croc makes a welly called the Georgie. Its not as tall as a regular welly, maybe ¾ height, but it is one piece moulded so no glue at all. A life saver for me, great for walking, festivals, building work, gardening. The sole is a bit spongy for my taste, and you can feel when you’re walking over rough ground, but it’s a soft foamy sensation.
My main issue with Crocs, is that they look kind of funny, not really suitable for the corporate world, or for formal occasions.
Birkenstocks
Birkenstocks are a lifesaver for me. It is worth noting that they do contain glue that the company cannot verify colophony free. But many styles seem to work for my feet. The sandals and shoes have a cork footbed with a top layer of leather. The design of this is that the foot sits in the middle of the footbed, safely away from where any glues might be in the shoe. This footbed is removable, so again, no glue.
So all the sandals are good.
I also seem to not react to the leather top clogs. These come in all types of leather and colours, and easily work with casual. I have black leather ones, and they work ok for my smart-casual office. Although, they are a bit funny looking, and don’t go completely un-noticed.
They also produce plastic clogs one piece moulded, with the orthopaedic footbed built in, with these again, no glue. I also like their flip flops, and various ‘Croc like’ variations on the plastic clog.
Importantly, the company was able to tell me that the Pasadena style of shoe is glue free, as it is stitched. This shoe has become a staple for me, they are loafers, with laces, and come in leather. A black pair and a brown pair are my go-to items for formal, and often for the office or casual. Its worth noting that after heavy wear, I think I become allergic to these, I think once the layers of leather begin to split inside the shoe, I guess the colophony is a part of making layered leather.
Po-Zu
Po Zu are environmentally aware shoes, they are hand stitched in Portugal, and will (in due course) bio-degrade. The soles are made of coconut fibre and natural latex. They are not at the cheap end of shoes, but are reasonable priced.
Po Zu have been able to tell me that their shoes contain no colophony at all. A real find for me, as well as funny ‘crazy’ shoes, they make some shoes that look like, well, just shoes. I have a great pair of Chelsea boots, and plans for more from Po Zu.
General
Any shoe that contains no glue should be ok. This starts from flip-flops and ends I suppose at fully stitched dress shoes.
Goretex socks
Goretex socks, and other water proof breathe-able socks work. They will make any shoe wearable. They have their own problems.
I have some army style boot liners, these are non elastic, designed to be used over a sock, and work great for army boots.
My favourite brand though is Sealskinz socks, they are elastic like a sock should be. They basically have the Gore liner contained inside the fabric of regular sock material. Most of them are fairly chunky socks, and warm. They do a lightweight version, this is about the same as a heavyweight regular sock (but short of chunky). You can wear any shoe with these socks, if the shoe still fits when you’ve got big socks on. I use them for training in, so I can wear converse boots, or hike boots.
The downside of the breathable sock, is that its warm to wear (often overwarm), and your feet feel a bit like they are in a bag all day. Ok, but not for all the time.
I’ve heard that for sports, you can just put your socked foot into a freezer bag into your shoe. Ok for the length of a match perhaps, and at least allow you to wear specialist sport shoes.
Barrier cream
“Gloves in a bottle” It creates a barrier by combining with the skin, forming a layer that will naturally come loose over a day or so. So it doesn’t sit on the skin and isn’t greasy. This eases the effects I have if I have to wear a pair of problem shoes, although doesn’t fix it, depending on what I wear and for how long. I also use it if I have to work with pine, this works out pretty well, obviously I clean the sawdust off as soon as possible as well.
Latex Lining
I’m not allergic to latex. I poured liquid latex into my shoes, swilling it around to get good coverage. I have done this for several pairs. It seems to work ok if you get good coverage. Its ‘rubber’ so it does make it a bit hard to get the shoes on as your feet don’t slide in. And it doesn’t breathe, so for wearing for longer periods it’s a bit damp and nasty. There may be ways to make this work, but I have largely abandoned the idea. Watch out because of course adding layers of latex will shrink the size of the space for your feet.
Shoes that are confirmed not ok (by me or by the manufacturers)
Almost all shoes, trainers, dress shoes, boots. (confirmed by me)
Converse (me)
Vibram Five Fingers (manufacturer)
Vivo Barefoot (manufacturer)
Note to strongmen
‘Tacky’ the stuff they use on the forearms for stone lifting, is pure pine resin. Keep clear, and remember anything near strongmen is likely covered in the stuff.
Final thoughts
Many shoes suitable for this allergy are funny looking. Clogs are cool enough, but they have big clunky toes. Sandals are ok in the right place, but often get me funny looks (maybe those looks are just from seeing a garage dweller outside the garage habitat). I rely on a few key brands and types to see me through.
If anyone knows any more shoe brands that will work, please please leave a comment. And any other tips about life with a contact allergy to colophony too. There must be a few of us about?
Wednesday, 2 December 2009
Beyond Brawn and Dinosaur Training - Heaven and Hell
These two books changed my training life. Back in the mists of time, when I began weight training as a teenager, my routines were classically poorly organised, based around what the magazines were saying (high volume pro type routines), and what I saw happening around me in the gym (the usual chaos of similarly misinformed people).
And then, fairly early on in my training life, but a good few years into regular training, I got a hold of these two books, and they literally changed my training world. Finally, I had some sensible advice to follow.
Heaven
Heaven is Beyond Brawn by Stuart McRobert. This book speaks the sensible conservative truth, an oasis of wisdom. It describes how to set up a routine so that actual gains will be realised. It discusses at length sensible form, sensible expectations. It talks about the value of hard work when well directed. Everything you could want to know is covered.
Some of the things I implemented from this book included my first battles with the 20 rep squat cycles, my purchase of a trap bar, long slow progression cycles of the big moves.
Hell
Hell is Dinosaur Training by Brooks Kubik. This is truly stirring stuff, we are taught to be proud gladiators in training, slaying all before us, especially the pencil necked fern and chrome gym dwelling pumpers and toners. Many quotes are used from old time strongmen and great leaders. He introduced me to odd object lifting, grip training, 5x5, low reps, and a proud heritage of iron. And subsequently, the odd objects got me interested in strongman, and the grip training became a bit of an obsession.
I find they complemented each other well. Beyond Brawn offering the sensible side, Dino a little wilder, daring.
I’ve had these books for over a decade now, and I still return to them regularly for inspiration and ideas if I think I’ve gone off course. They are the books I reach for when someone shows a genuine interest in learning about the iron game.
Without these tomes, I don’t think I would had had the successes, and without those successes I never would have had all the rusty gym fun on the way.
And then, fairly early on in my training life, but a good few years into regular training, I got a hold of these two books, and they literally changed my training world. Finally, I had some sensible advice to follow.
Heaven
Heaven is Beyond Brawn by Stuart McRobert. This book speaks the sensible conservative truth, an oasis of wisdom. It describes how to set up a routine so that actual gains will be realised. It discusses at length sensible form, sensible expectations. It talks about the value of hard work when well directed. Everything you could want to know is covered.
Some of the things I implemented from this book included my first battles with the 20 rep squat cycles, my purchase of a trap bar, long slow progression cycles of the big moves.
Hell
Hell is Dinosaur Training by Brooks Kubik. This is truly stirring stuff, we are taught to be proud gladiators in training, slaying all before us, especially the pencil necked fern and chrome gym dwelling pumpers and toners. Many quotes are used from old time strongmen and great leaders. He introduced me to odd object lifting, grip training, 5x5, low reps, and a proud heritage of iron. And subsequently, the odd objects got me interested in strongman, and the grip training became a bit of an obsession.
I find they complemented each other well. Beyond Brawn offering the sensible side, Dino a little wilder, daring.
I’ve had these books for over a decade now, and I still return to them regularly for inspiration and ideas if I think I’ve gone off course. They are the books I reach for when someone shows a genuine interest in learning about the iron game.
Without these tomes, I don’t think I would had had the successes, and without those successes I never would have had all the rusty gym fun on the way.
Sunday, 29 November 2009
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