The bare facts on shoeless running

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The bare facts on shoeless running

By Al Gauthier ⋅ November 13, 2009 ⋅

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The bare facts on shoeless running: “The bare facts on shoeless running

Barefoot running is the oldest activity known to man, but we know less about it now than ever.

Running coaches, doctors, and scientists all offer up opinions as to who might benefit from or be harmed by barefoot running, but they are all anecdotal. Everyone realizes runners get injured far too often wearing shoes, but their proposed cure ranges from shoes with uber-shocks to naked feet.

So you can take your pick as to who you believe. But after 10 weeks of running barefoot and speaking with both converts and skeptics, some of the most interesting insights I have heard on the subject came from an author who runs barefoot on pavement every day, a running coach who uses barefoot running as a training tool, and a scientist at a running injury clinic who is about to study the new/old school of running style.

The Convert

Christopher McDougall runs in bare feet every day. And he thinks everyone else should too.

‘I never expected to find myself an advocate,’ McDougall says over the phone from New York. ‘But I wish I had just started out running in bare feet. I used to have shooting pains up my heel every time I ran, but now I never feel any pain at all.’

McDougall wrote the book Born to Run:A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen (Random House, $29.95), which has reached as high as No. 4 on the New York Times non-fiction bestseller list.

When you run in bare feet, McDougall says, your body reverts to its proper form to minimize the impact it can feel now that the thick cushions of running shoes have been removed from the equation. He recommends slowly building up the distance you run in bare feet–on pavement. McDougall runs eight to 24 kilometres a day on roads in New York City.

‘Asphalt is my favourite surface to run on,’ he says. ‘My feet are baby smooth from it.’

Only in running will they tell you to buy a product when you have a problem with your running, McDougall says.

‘In any other sport, they’ll tell you to learn better form and correct the problem. They won’t try to sell you a new racket to get rid of your tennis elbow.’

Most people who give barefoot runners strange looks have it backwards, McDougall adds.

‘It’s so strange that shoes are normal, and barefoot is weird. No other creature on Earth is wearing shoes.’

The Trainer

Eric Orton is a running and triathlon coach who believes in barefoot training for everyone, but only in moderation and on soft surfaces.

‘Running barefoot forces you to run in perfect form,’ Orton explains. ‘What shoes do to us is make our feet lazy. They constrict our motion and turn off our stabilizing muscles in our feet.’

Orton trains both elite athletes and recreational runners. In addition to his coaching business ( trainwitheric.com),he administers an online forum for barefoot runners. He recommends barefoot running, but only when it is eased into, and no more than a few times a week. For the rest of your runs, he recommends running in barefoot style–which means landing on your mid-foot –but with shoes on. Orton uses barefoot running to build leg strength in his athletes and ensure they run in proper form. He starts runners with two 10-minute barefoot runs each week at an easy pace. If you stay injury-free, he recommends adding five minutes a week to these easy runs.

Muscle memory, Orton says, will ensure the good form you discovered when running barefoot will spill over when you put your shoes back on to run on hard and rocky surfaces.

‘You need shoes for protection when you run on the road or in the mountains,’ Orton says.

Even when you run in shoes though, Orton recommends you start to pick ones with less cushioning as your feet become stronger.

The Scientist

Reed Ferber, the founder of the Running Injury Clinic at the University of Calgary, has been studying running for more than a decade. He is intrigued by the barefoot running movement. Problem is, there’s no science yet to back it up or disprove it.

Ferber plans to launch an eight-month study this fall that will compare the gaits and injuries suffered by natural mid-foot strikers and natural rear-foot strikers, but expects it will be many years before there is a solid case for or against barefoot running.

‘We don’t know yet whether barefoot running is good for some people, bad for others, or good or bad for everybody,’ Ferber says.

Barefoot running style could cause more plantar fasciitis because it adds loading to the arch in your foot, Ferber points out. Then again, rear-foot strike running could cause more knee injuries.

For Ferber, barefoot running is yet another idea that runners are taking too far.

‘The pendulum has swung too far toward the Nike Free and the Vibram FiveFingers, just like 10 years ago it swung too far toward motion-controlled shoes.’

Just as too much support causes injuries through forcing feet into an unnaturally tight range of motion, shoes with little support, or bare feet (no support) are now driving people into Ferber’s clinic, he says.

‘There’s no middle ground shoe out there,’ Ferber adds. ‘And people are getting injured because of it.’

If you’re keen to try barefoot running, Ferber recommends you first spend a few weeks strengthening your foot muscles with some simple exercises, such as calf raises and side to side ankle pulls using a resistance band.

Otherwise, most people’s feet are too weak to take the strain of running without shoes, Ferber says. After that, Ferber recommends you spend no more than 10 per cent of your running time in bare feet.”

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Featured Interview: Christopher McDougall – Author of Born to Run

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Christopher McDougall is a well-spoken, humble man who has through the popularity of his book brought about some of the biggest changes in the perception of feet and running in recent years. Join us in learning about how this talented author wrote his book, discovered his feet, and how he feels about barefooting and running. This interview should not be missed.

We Talk about:

- Chris’s recent appearance at the TED Conference

- Thoughts on Interviews In General

- His first exposure to barefoot running

- How he came to find the Tarahumara while on assignment for the New York Times.

- He thoughts on his influence over barefoot running and ultra running

- How he struggled with writing Born to Run

- This thoughts on minimalist shoes

- And much more!

To learn more about Christopher McDougall visit his website: http://chrismcdougall.com

Buy His Book: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
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