Just last week, I came across the concept of barefoot running and was immediately intrigued by it.
If you are wondering what barefoot running is, it is well – very simply, running without shoes. Apparently there is already a barefoot movement that started since 1960s, advocating going barefoot in various activities, such as day-to-day life and running. And this movement is quickly gaining popularity over the years.
Barefoot Running: An Experiment
Here’s what Wiki says about barefoot running:
In early human history, barefoot running was widespread, but this became increasingly less so following the growth of footwear usage. Barefoot running is near non-existent in modern-day populations of industrialised and wealthier countries, although it remains relatively common in many poorer nations, especially within third world countries.
Come think of it, in the early times, humans survived perfectly fine without shoes. Somewhere along the way, shoes were invented (for perfectly valid reasons I’m sure, such as protection and cleanliness). Over time, they became a commodity and it was a social faux pax to leave our house without shoes. And then in the recent centuries, shoes evolved (or degenerated, depending how you see it) into material possessions / fashion accessories – that, ironically, hurt our heels and feet (especially for girls), defeating the very reason why we even wear shoes to begin with.
And it seems like there is already a whole range of study results on how barefoot running is actually better for us, with more being done as we speak.
- People are born to run – Barefoot
- How Running Shoes Don’t Work
- Running Shoes May Cause Damage to Knees, Hips and Ankles, New Study Suggests
- Go Barefoot to Get Stronger
- The Science of Sport: Barefoot Running vs. Shoes
Barefoot Running explained by Harvard Professor Daniel Lieberman
The notion of barefoot running piqued my interest. For one, I love trying new things – it is through experimentation that I make my lifestyle choices. If I try it and I like it, I can continue on with it. If I don’t, then at least I know I’ve tried it and it doesn’t suit me. Nothing to lose but everything to gain. This is also the rationale for 21-days cultivate a new habit program – for all new habits, give it a try for 21 days without negative bias and see how it’s like before/after, rather than rule it out at onstart.
More importantly, barefoot running interested me because I like the whole notion of going au naturale. As I journey on the path of personal growth, I’m increasingly seeing how we are closely tied with nature/the universe. A lot of rules and principles we live by today (such as eating meat, cooking food, wearing shoes, etc) were created through human history, and many of them exist now more as habits/practice, rather than out of necessity. Many of them are unnecessary complications that separate us from our true source. Recognizing these physical “noise” and barriers and shedding them away gradually brings us closer to our higher selves. I was surprised I never thought of running/going barefoot before – a lot to do with the societal conditioning that it’s a necessity to wear shoes.
My First Barefoot Run
So 2 evenings ago, I set off for my first ever barefoot run. I picked 10+pm, my regular jogging time. I like to run either in early mornings or late at night when it’s quiet, cooling and peaceful. Since my running spot was a park connector right behind my house, I went straight without shoes.
Walking Barefoot
First thing I felt when I stepped out of my house was how cooling and smooth the surface of the pavements were. I never realized this since I always wore shoes going out. I felt present and connected with every step as I walked over to the lift, stood around in the lobby and took the lift down to the ground level.
As I walked to the park, I walked on different surfaces, including concrete pavements, roads (asphalt concrete) and cemented ground. It was interesting feeling the different textures and temperatures of the grounds – definitely something I had not paid attention to with shoes on. Concrete pavements felt very cooling and smooth – as if you can just slide on them. Roads felt rough and grainy.. somewhat prickly too. Cemented grounds felt like an in-between of concrete and roads.
It was just 2 minutes walking to the path, and I already felt more mindful and present than my normal self when walking with shoes. I was aware of every step I take, how it felt and my connection with the ground whenever my foot touched base with it.
Running Barefoot
So I reached the park. By the way before this experiment, I didn’t read much about barefoot running. I wanted to try it out first hand without being biased by what others have to say. If it is really good, I would sense it for myself. I didn’t want to overthink the process as well. If we humans have thrived perfectly fine without shoes in the past, all the nitty gritty such as the right posture, jogging stance, pacing, landing form, strides, etc should come naturally once I start barefoot running.
And that’s what happened. I started off with a slow and easy jog, taking cautious steps, one at a time. After a few steps, I let my instincts take over on my running posture and picked up speed. Within just a few minutes, I could see immediately see the difference between running barefoot and running with shoes.
Overall Conclusions
After running barefoot for 2 days (I went on for a second barefoot run yesterday) of 3km each time, I’m starting to love barefoot running. And here are 10 reasons why:
10 Reasons To Run Barefoot
- Connectedness. When I ran with running shoes in the past, I would just feel the cool air and soak in the sights of the sky/trees/stars while running. Running barefoot adds a new dimension to the running experience – I feel a whole level of connectedness to the ground, and as a corollary, the environment I am in.
- Lighter strides. With running shoes, my feet were completely buffered from the ground. I could never feel my strides, save for the numbing ‘thud’ between my feet and the soles of my shoes/ground whenever I land. This made me take heavy strides subconsciously. With barefoot running, I am definitely running much lighter than before. I’m not pounding on my knees/ankles/feet anymore.
- Right landing. People who wear running shoes typically land heel first (a.k.a hard heel strikes), which places more stress on the foot. The correct running form should be to land on the front or middle of the foot. Here’s what a Discovery News article says about landing:
The difference in the way the foot strikes the ground is important. Lieberman’s study examined the physical stresses on feet with different types of running and found that people with running shoes strike the ground with the mass of the entire leg, nearly 7 percent of the body. That’s more than three times the weight of impact for barefoot running.
“It’s really about how you hit the ground,” said Lieberman, who specializes in human evolutionary biology. “When you hit the ground, some of your body comes to a dead stop.”
For runners in cushioned shoes, “it is literally like someone hitting you on the heel with a hammer,” Lieberman said. But, he said that “the way in which barefoot runners run is more or less collision free.”
Interestingly, I came to the same conclusion during my first barefoot run, before reading about it. With running shoes, I would land on my heels and it caused a lot of impact. When I run barefoot, I automatically adjust and land on my forefeet/midfeet. Since I can feel my foot on the ground, I can immediately tell if I am landing incorrectly with each stride. After my first barefoot run, I had a small blister in the top left corner of my right sole, which I see as a sign that I’m exerting more force than necessary on that area. It’s an indication that I should distribute my weight on other areas when landing.
- Better posture. Everything is very instinctual and it takes no more than just a few steps for me to get into a comfortable running posture. The contact between the foot and the ground is like an instant feedback if my posture needs correcting and if so, how. In retrospect, my posture and jogging stance felt stiff when I ran with shoes.
- Freedom & Liberty. Running without shoes made me realize how binding it was to have my feet wrapped up in socks and enclosed in shoes. When running barefoot, I can feel my heel, mid-sole, forefeet and my toes against the ground and brushing against the cooling air with each stride. It’s a liberating experience.
- Mindfulness. Every step I take, I’m aware. Every time my foot touches the ground, I can feel both the ground and my foot. During my run, I am present, of myself, my posture, my surroundings, my environment.
- Less stress for your knees/feet/joints. Studies have shown running barefoot brings less stress for your feet, even when compared with expensive running shoes (Nike, Adidas and Reebok included). A new study suggests running shoes may cause damage to knees, hips and ankles. With running shoes, we tend to shift our weight down to our ankles, which lead to higher possibility of ankle sprains. You might have heard how prolonged running causes knee cap pain – I suspect it’s because of the heavy strides we take with running shoes rather than running itself. By running barefoot, that’s less likely to happen since you get a better running posture (Reason #4) and lighter strides (Reason #2), which means lesser weight on your knees/ankles/feet.
- Gives you stronger feet. All the shoe wearing has made our feet weak and soft. In fact, some of us wear poor-fitted shoes that cramp our toes/feet. Here’s an interesting excerpt from an article “Go Barefoot to Get Stronger“:
Through years of wearing shoes, our feet lose their tactile capacity, which is bad enough. But they also fail to develop to their proper size and shape. Tendons and ligaments shorten, muscles weaken, and the risk for foot and ankle injuries increases.
If it sounds like the ancient Chinese tradition of binding the feet, it kinda is. “It’s identical, but to a lesser degree,” Rooney says. “Shoes crush the foot into abnormal positions and you don’t get the movement the foot is designed for.”
Going barefoot builds up our foot muscles and makes them stronger, the way they should be.
- It’s Fun! Do you remember the times when you were young and ran around barefooted? How did that feel? Walking/Running barefooted brought a sense of child-like wonder that was lost since long ago, like dancing in the rain. It made running fun, more fun than it normally is. I ended up running longer than my normal route (3km vs. 2.4km).
- Saves money. I wish I knew about barefoot running before I bought all the sport shoes – Adidas, Reebok, soccer shoes, Nike Air, Zoom, Zoom+ and what not. Sports apparel have become more fashion accessories and cost more than they should. If I add up all the money I spent on sport shoes over the years, it easily sums up to over one grand. That is a lot of money that could have been saved and used for better purposes.
Attention from Others?
If you are wondering about what others might think, I didn’t notice any overt stares or unwanted attention from other people. But then again, it was about 10pm at night, so it might not be all that obvious. The people who did see it were probably too wound down to pay much attention.
Running Surface
The track is made of asphalt concrete if I’m not wrong – It’s not smooth like concrete ground, but it’s also not as grainy as roads, so it was good for barefoot running, save for a sporadic twig and stone. Ideally I’d like to run on the stadium tracks which are rubbery and safe from foreign objects, but the nearest stadium is 20 minutes away, so the park is my best option.
Continuing with Barefoot Running
I’m going to continue barefoot running for the next few weeks, and if nothing goes wrong I plan to make it a permanent habit. :) I might bring it a notch further by going barefoot in my day-to-day activities. The only concerns I have will be (1) hot surfaces during day time and (2) unwanted attention.
Try Barefoot Running For Yourself
Whether you are intrigued by the notion of barefoot running or not, I’d say try it for yourself before making any conclusions on it. Here are some resources that you will find handy:
How to Get Started
- Barefoot running (Wiki)
- Myths of Barefoot Running
- So, you wanna start running barefoot?
- Born To Run (Book by Christopher McDougall)
- Should you start barefoot running? If so, how? (Video)
- Society for Barefoot Living
- Extensive 5-Part Q & A on Barefoot Running: Part 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5
Vibram Five Fingers Footwear (for barefoot running)
- Official Vibram Site
- Vibram Five Fingers Review (BarefootRunningShoes.Org)
- Vibram Five Fingers Footwear (Tim Ferris’ Blog)
- Hot Summer Gear: Vibram FiveFingers (Youtube Video)
- Field Test: Vibram Five Fingers (Youtube Video)
Update June 3 ’10: Over 8k visits on this article in just 3 days! Thanks so much to everyone who shared this with others. There’s been many link backs to this article, including a video review by Josue, who found value in barefoot running after he recovered from a ruptured Achilles Tendon. Feel free to share this article with more people to drive awareness of barefoot running.
This is part of the Cultivate Good Habits Series. Check out the full series:
- 21 Days To Cultivate Life Transforming Habits
- Waking Early: 9 Reasons To Wake Up Early | 21 Tips To Wake Up Early
- Quitting Soda: 5 Reasons To Quit Drinking Soda (And How To Do It)
- Improve Your Posture: Benefits of a Good Posture (And 13 Tips to Get One)
- Be TV-Free: 10 Reasons You Should Stop Watching TV
- Being On Time: How To Be On Time
- Meditation: 10 Reasons You Should Meditate | How To Meditate in 5 Simple Steps
- Manage Emails Effectively: How To Manage Your Emails Effectively
- Run Barefoot: 10 Reasons To Run Barefoot
- Emotional Eating: How To Stop Emotional Eating (6-part series)
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I have been told by so many people that running barefooted is bad and I started to think I must be strange as I believe that our feet are the right tools for the job . Thank god I found your site! I am 43 and have just lost two and a half stone and have invested in a good treadmill at home as well as going to the local gym. I had found that running in trainers was near on impossible so started to run barefooted at home and wow! I have to say I am known for walking around the office without my shoes and did so as a kid at home too so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise but I was concerned about potential damage to my ankles/knees/hips. Thank you to everyone that has posted on this site for your insight into something I believe will become a real passion! I’m wondering if I should invest in some VFF as I am running the Breast Cancer Race for Life next June? Us Brits are somewhat reserved!
I can’t / don’t run but I don’t wear shoes when I’m around home. When you mentioned about when we were kids, we didn’t wear shoes, brought back many memories. I stumbled across your web site & have bookmarked it to return and read more. I will tell others about it.
Thanks for posted all this information,
Tom
I have read many articles on the benefits of barefoot running but I dare not give it a try cos’ I am afraid that I may cut my feet accidentally or step on sharp object. Normally, I work out in the morning even before the sunrise so it is pretty risky. Thanks for sharing your experiences. :wink:
Good points you got! Thanks much for this very informative article on barefooting. Running barefoot is one of the things I love doing.
I started running barefoot several months ago. The transition was not pleasant but hey I wanted to join see what the hype was all about. I started by running around the house on bare feet then bought a pair of VFF’s and went on a 2 mile walk and slowly increased the distance. Now, I’m just enjoying the freedom of running with a pair of barefoot running shoes and even on bare feet.
In fact, I’m in the market now for a new pair of shoes. Saw the new Vibram Bikila at http://barefootrunningshoes.org/2010/07/12/vibram-bikila-unboxing-and-first-impressions/ and I’m thinking how cool it would look on me. But I heard it’s super hard to find one of these nowadays.” :wink:
I ran bare foot on the beach and got a worm in my foot. Better think twice before venturing out without shoes. I think I’ll take my Mom’s advice over this post.
How coincidental! I just wrote about this a few days ago: http://www.dailymile.com/people/joegoh/entries/2836826
“3 surprising things i’ve learned (the hard way) from my switch to being a barefoot runner:
1) Running on sand and grass doesn’t help improve running form and is more dangerous than running on pavement. Grass hides biting insects and beach sand is frequently filled with icky things that infect your soles with fungus.
2) Walking barefoot is harder on your soles than running barefoot. This means that if you’re Asian (which means you walked barefoot indoors your entire life), you don’t need to walk outdoors much before you start running.
3) Running faster makes you less susceptible to being stung by sharp pebbles than running slower (jogging).”
As you’ve found out the hard way like I did, running barefoot on the beach is a bad idea. Hope you’ll give barefooting a go again, on pavement this time. :-)
I have started incorporating some barefoot running recently. I had to stop running last year to heal a very bad case of plantar fasciitis. During that time off to heal, I read a lot about barefoot running and wanted to try it really badly based on what I had read. But I thought I had to recover completely from my plantar fasciitis before I could do so, and I also thought I had to lose weight before I tried it.
I was wrong. And as it turns out, my first little jaunts out barefoot have been wonderful. My foot feels great and I even think the barefoot running has made the plantar fasciitis improve drastically.
You really captured the wonderful feeling of running barefoot when you wrote about the connectedness above.
I took a barefoot workshop with Michael Sandler — author of the book Barefoot Running: How to Run Light and Free by Getting in Touch With the Earth — when he was in Central Park a couple of weeks ago. He made me aware of some considerations one must take when beginning barefoot running. I’m proceeding very slowly — to condition my feet, which are weak from being supported for years in expensive running and walking shoes. But I’m having a blast and I feel like I’m on the right track!
Celes – Great article. I definitely know where you’re coming from with your list of 10. It was very informative and told me just a little something I didn’t already know about barefoot running!
Regarding the Vibrams, I purchased my pair and began running with the shoes (socks? What should we call them?) on the same day: May 30th – a little over two weeks ago. Now, I am a competitive collegiate athlete (cross country and distance track) and so I have been upping the ante on my mileage each week (I am currently at around 4.5 miles/day) in order to prepare for my upcoming cross country season. Anyway, my first day running with them was dreadful, to say the least. Don’t get me wrong – they felt perfect, molding to the shape of my feet. I was about 1.5 mi in, however, when I was feeling gutsy and attempted running through a street that was being renovated, where I painfully landed my heel upon a few decent size rocks. Needless to say, I limped around for next three days. From that day forward, I have been running off and on with the Vibrams and my Nike Structure Triax’s. This system has been working out great for me and as soon as my feet are entirely calloused and no longer dainty and weak, I plan to ween myself of trainers altogether (with the possible exception of racing flats). I now absolutely love the feel of “barefoot” running.
I hope this helps anyone out who is curious about the Vibram Five Fingers.
Cheers,
Kelly
It’s interesting to view the negativity of certain individuals regarding barefoot running. People will offer rude sentiments to protect their mode of thinking. I stepped on a nail wearing sneakers…went right thru the shoe and into my foot. I also stepped on a nail as a child playing barefoot in a gutter while it was raining. The effects of both incidents are pretty parallel. Nail in foot. Tetanus shot. No more damage or no less. If it’s gonna happen it’s gonna happen. All the fearful protecting of the self isn’t going to stop it. Also, you can look as you run…. :wink:
To be honest, I wouldn’t want to worry about nails, broken glass, sharp rocks with every step I take. Some are simply too small to notice until you step on them. I feel it’s justified to have such concerns, and they shouldn’t be labelled as negative.
The spirit of barefoot running is not whether you wear shoes or not, but whether you’re running in the correct posture.
Well I havn’t quite been running barefoot, but some moths ago I changed the heel-landing way of running into fore-foot running. The result has actually been quite amazing. Of course it took a lot of hard work, and days with extremely sore calfs, but as a basketball player I am now accelerating faster, loosing less energi while running, and then I don’t feel any pain in my knee.
Wow brings up memories! I grew up on the beach in the Virgin Islands – a great place to go barefoot. As kid I would run full tilt about a mile to the hotel down the beach. Running on the beach his great especially on the firm sand left when the waves come up then recede. It is amazing how ones feet can build up thick layers of protective skin I used to be able to run on our steep crushed gravel driveway and never feel a thing (there is no way I can do this now).
As a weightlifting coach Celes, I also advocate certain lifts to be performed bare foot. The human foot is an amazing creation!
One caution though, doing this will build up scar tissue in the muscles of the foot. Not to worry though, you can perform self massage on the sole of your foot with a tennis ball and be good as new!
Great post and such a timely topic. Sunday’s NYT Magazine also did a piece on barefoot running- I’d say it’s hit the mainstream. An inspiring and informative book on the subject is called “Born to Run.” Here is a link for anyone interested in checking it out. Happy running trails all!
http://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Hidden-Superathletes-Greatest/dp/0307266303
i dont know if et this corectly ..for we should be thankful coz we have our feet. :wink: e shold stop cmplaining..learn to be contented..slipers,shoes are not neccesity.we are lucky we hav our feet..
For all of you interested in barefoot running, read the book “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall. It is a wonderful book, with an interesting section about barefoot running. Besides that, it is a great read for any runner.
Hey Celes. Great article. There is one more reason to barefoot walk or run you didn’t mention that I feel is most meaningful to me and that is about being “grounded”. I have attached a link to Clint Ober’s website:
http://stores.earthing.com/images/faqs.html
Also, here is a wonderful explanation from David Wolfe you might find profound… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51w2Y8l492I
Hope you enjoy!
Take care
David
I also meant to inlcude this link as well. Its even better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RGN5ikfOho&feature=related
I live in NM and the road gets hot enough to blister your feet. I am sure pavement was not around hundreds of years ago and our feet are not well equipped for it. You don’t however need expensive shoes. I made some hurrachis from scrap leather I found at the store. $4 to make and they still look like new at 75 miles.
I’m 56 years old and I’ve been running in shoes for over 25 years. I’ve done 5K’s 10K’s 25K’s and 1/2 marathons. I’ve never been injured. One doesn’t have to buy expensive running shoes…it’s a choice. I’d be interested in knowing how you’re doing barefoot 5 years from now. Please let us know. Keep us posted.
I recently changed my running technique to use the Chi Running style and there is much that is similar to the posture etc in barefoot running. I’ve also been reading with interest a sport science blog which has had a good look at the pros and cons of changing over.
Here is the link – http://www.sportsscientists.com/
One thing that did strike me in all the comments was the potential reduction in injuries of going too far, too fast! Kinda logical, isn’t it. And as you so rightly point out, it all connects us back to the earth – grounding us again.
It definitely seems to be a trend! :)
Look like just everyone has written a post about it. Starting from Ferris (long, long ago), then I’ve seen Sergey Brin himself in Vibram shoes, then zen habits post and now you…
Sounds great in theory, and maybe you live in the nicest, cleanest part of town.
I’d never recommend it in many cities I’ve lived in, given that there’s sometimes broken glass on the ground or even needles on occasion, depending where you are.
Hello,
I love this concept. I have to confess, I hate running, it just doesn’t suit me (although I have never tried it barefoot), however I do skip a lot, outside, barefoot and in all weathers. I love it. More often than not I will skip on the grass and the feeling of grass on your feet is wonderful, when it is wet and the mud squidges between your toes it brings back great childhood memories and makes me feel young.
I also feel lighter on my feet, less clumsy and more aware of my surroundings. I would also recommend no i-pods etc, and just listening to the sounds around you – I have a teeny tiny garden in town but the sounds of birds, insects, breeze blowing plants etc far and away out weighs the traffic noise when you focus on it. Definitely makes you feel more connected, peaceful and energetic.
I do have to keep a hose by the back door though and get through lots of foot cream!!
So thank-you for the post, while I may not be running, I would certainly suggest trying any outdoor exercise barefoot:)
Best wishes,
Kate.
Do read:
1. Barefoot running – new evidence, same debate: http://www.sportsscientists.com/2010/01/running-barefoot-vs-shoes.html
and watch:
2. Barefoot Running: http://running-advice.com/blog/?p=3362
Thanks a lot Rohit :) I just included the second link into the barefoot running resources in the article.
Love your take on this Celes! For me, my comfortable running distance dropped from about 25km to 1km! My calves were NOT accustomed to fore/mid foot striking!
I’ve slowly been able to up my mileage, and running off-road in my vibrams is euphoric!
Hey Jeff, no kidding, 25km is over half a marathon!! How often did you run 25km in the past? I have a friend who is a barefoot runner and a marathon runner too, so I’m thinking it’s just a matter of time before you reach the same mileage (or even longer) :)
You may be focusing too much on NOT landing on your heels. During my first week or two of barefoot running, i’ve noticed that whenever I do that, my calves hurt. Don’t worry about your heels touching the floor, that’s supposed to happen. Let your heels touch lightly, and don’t focus on the landing of your feet, focus on lifting of the feet off the ground. Might take some practice to get that drilled into the head, but it works. Also, a quick cadence of around 180-200 steps per minute (90-100 strides) helps too.
Consider adding other forms of exercise while you’re transitioning to avoid losing fitness. Have fun!
When I started, I’d run a mile in my vibrams and then stop and put on my running shoes for the rest of my run. Now I can do my whole run in vibrams.
An alternative is “nike free”. It’s less close to barefoot than “vibram fivefingers” but closer than most other shoes. Incidentally, there are midfoot strike shoes as well for those not into barefoot running but into midfoot strike.
For running outside barefoot, I tried once at night (with torch light to boot!). Feel too gross and dangerous for me without any protection from dirty and sharp objects, so I won’t do it except at a stadium track. Tried running barefoot on a treadmill but it gets hot and seems very abrasive to the feet.
Hey Celes – stumbled upon your blog, and wanted to add my voice to those who heartily endorse barefoot running. It’s my second season practicing this way, and unlike previous years, I haven’t sustained a running injury yet (which is the primary reason I started running barefoot… bad knees, and numbness in my feet after long runs).
One note about Vibrams, though. I’d be careful about calling them transition shoes, because they really don’t provide any more support than running barefoot, they just add a sole so that you dont’ need to worry about getting rusty nails through your feet. Vibrams are the safest and most comfortable way to run “barefoot” as far as I’m concerned, but anyone who’s used to running in sneakers needs to *slowly* transition into running barefoot, and switching from sneakers to Vibrams and expecting that it’ll be a good transition isn’t recommended. Even in Vibrams, someone new to barefoot running should take the pace and distance down a few notches until the muscles that are not used to being worked get up some strength.
Anyway, all that to say, great post, and welcome to the world of barefoot running!
Five fingers or Nike Free are not the best solution for barefoot transitioning, in fact they could make it worse. Here is why.
1. both your feet and the sole have been dormant all of your life. both the sole sensitivity and the muscles/tendons/bones of your feet are interconnected all the way to our brain. have you heard of reflexology? it really works, people who massage parts of your body to heal pain in other parts of your body. The more we walk barefoot, the more we activate this path in our body. your feet want to be used as they were designed.
This is what I recommend for those wanting to start barefoot running:
1. Walk barefoot for at least a month around your neighborhood. start with 10 minutes a day and increase gradually with time. eventually walk the running path that you are used to. you will noticed that within a week, your feet soles will start forming a nice layer of protection. everyone is different, but once you have this layer, you are ready to GRADUALLY running bafefoot, start with short distance and increase as you go. The only part of the body you will find sore is your calves. I recommend that during your first couple of weeks of walking barefoot, you also do 10 to 20 repetitions lifting your body using your calves by stepping on a step, do this at least once a day and let your calved recuperate.
2. do everything else everyone is suggesting on this blog; high candence, low impact, avoid heel strike but ok to touch slightly, lifting your feet slightly, etc, etc.
What about rough terrain?
You really should be able to run on most terrain, except gravel roads at first, this really takes a lot more training. you will also notice that when you run on paved roads or path, that you might step on some loose gravel everyone once in awhile, if it happens, it shouldn’t hurt much and you should be able to wipe it right off, although lately I just let it be there and carry the little pebble on my sole for several strides until it falls off on its own. remember your feet sole is already conditioned so you won’t feel much pain. if anything think of reflexology.
About Vibram Five Fingers:
Well… I bought a pair a month ago. I have to say that it is very easy to go back to the old bad habits of heel strikes. just the extra comfort on the soles allows you to change your strike slightly from your barefoot strike. Also, your feet is not as flexible, when I first put them on, I tried going up and down with my toes and noticed that it was very stiff to push my toes up. I really feel that there is a restrictive mechanism. if you feel that you must wear a shoe, I recommend you use a very thin sole and a shoe that doesn’t wrap plastic/rubber around your feet like a glove. instead use a wide open sandal with either leather soles or thin soles. if you have to buy a vibram, get the sprint style. but again, I don’t recommend buying or using five fingers. besides, they are well overpriced. I would much rather use a wetsock and for the price you get the same benefit. actually the wetsock might even be more flexible but it is also enclosing your feet.
Why?
all the benefits listed on this blog are true. I used to have IT band problems and some knee issues and they are gone! I also run much longer distances than ever before. about the pace… it was slower at first but I have to say that a month ago I just matched my fastest pace on running shoes, I am now running the same pace or faster….
What else besides running barefoot?
there is more to life: swimming, praying, cycling, relationships, and nutrition.
Hi Celes.
I like that you hear about something and then bam take action on it. That is a good feature. Then you were able to provide us many details about the process of barefoot running here.
The benefits sure are cool.
That is interesting about how running with cushioned shoes is like being hit on the heel with a hammer and running without them is collision free. That is counter-intuitive.
Thorough analysis of the process here.
hmm interesting, my own experience differs slightly. I run more slowly in my Vibrams because I can’t seem to lengthen my stride while landing on my mid-foot.
Distance is also shorter because of those darn blisters. :)
Have you tried running completely barefoot before? How’s the experience in comparison?
My strides are actually short; I’m able to run faster cause of the “lightness” and hence faster pace :D
From what I’ve read, I don’t think blisters is a norm – how long have you been running with your Vibrams?
It’s too uncomfortable (almost painful) running completely barefooted, I’m also concerned about stepping on rocks or rusty nails.
I’ve run less than 10 times with my Vibrams. Toe socks might help, or I just need more time to build up my soles – too delicate! :wink:
Yep, it takes time to build up your soles, coordination, tendons, muscles, etc. Many parts of your body which have been left neglected after being left in shoes for so long!
One thing to note: longer strides is not a good thing in itself. First improve your cadence, then improve your stride length. The ideal cadence is 90, or 180 steps a minute: http://therunningbarefoot.com/?page_id=684 I used an MP3 recording of a metronome to help me out in the beginning.
When running barefoot, your strides will be shorter.
You can take long strides in shoes because you are pounding everything.
I haven’t noticed any difference in speed, just lots of difference in stride, especially at higher speeds.
Be careful about stepping on broken glass or sharp pieces of rock!
How does your speed and distance compare to normal “shoed” running?
Speedwise – If you are talking about the maximum possible running speed, I don’t know if running barefoot has any effect on it. But for my average running speed, I’m running faster because of (1) lighter strides (2) lesser stress on feet/ankle/knees/joints (3) connectedness. With shoes in the past, I took a slower pace as I didn’t want to stress my feet/knees.
Distance-wise, I’m definitely running longer than usual, because of the fun factor. :) I’m say distance covered is also longer for the same reasons above.
barefoot running is pretty good for distance running since it does impact your joints less in the long run, but i would think for speed you can get similar benefits if you try specific types of shoes.. one example would be the newton running shoes
Hi Celes,
I have read about barefoot running before but I didn’t give it a try before. Anyway you can google up on Vibram shoes. They are shoes meant that fits the shape of the foot to provide the feel of barefoot running. The shoes seem rather interesting.
Cheers,
Vincent
Hey Vince, I’ve read about the Vibram shoes. :) My impression (based on what I’ve read) is it’s more a transitional footwear to ease between normal running shoes to full barefoot running. Readers who are interested in it can read more here:
http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/
http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2009/05/07/vibram-five-fingers-shoes/
Vibrams and other minimalist shoes aren’t transitional aids. It’s far safer to improve your running form, cadence, etc with barefoot running first, then deciding whether or not you want to add minimalist shoes to the mix. Minimalist shoes allow a runner to do too much too soon, and risk all sorts of injuries that are caused by losing the direct feedback given to you soles with barefooting.
Oops, brano on the last sentence. “losing the direct feedback given to you *by your* soles with barefooting.”
Hey Joe, thanks so much for sharing your advice :D. I personally have never used/tried Vibram and don’t know much about it, so I recommend readers read through what the other commenters mentioned about Vibram as well as the Vibram links/resources I’ve included in the article. I’ll be adding on more over time too so feel free to send any useful resources over.
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