Comments on: Barefoot Running Debate

By: Gelareh @ Orange Tru

Gelareh @ Orange Tru — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 23:12:49 +0000

I am with you… I don’t think I would be running outside on the pavement or trail barefoot.. on the beach just for a little fun sure. The bottom of my feet are so sensitive that I can’t get a pedi let alone run outside.

By: Neal

Neal — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:29:33 +0000

I’m a big proponent of the Vibram Five Fingers. You should give them a try if you are serious about exploring the barefoot running thing. They protect your feet very well and provide a ton of feedback from the road. The best thing about them is they promote the mechanics of proper running form so that even running in traditional shoes becomes less jarring and stressful on your body. The point of barefoot running is not to run without shoes, but to run in a way that is better for you and hopefully more enjoyable. No matter how much cushion you put on a shoe, landing heel first (as most do in shoes) is worse on your joints and bones than landing on the balls of your feet (as with barefoot). Check out Newton’s site and look into the VFFs. It makes a lot of sense and has changed my running for the better exponentially in the last year.

http://www.newtonrunning.com/run-better/optimal-running-form

Neal
(nturnage on twitter)

By: Jamie (fitforamom)

Jamie (fitforamom) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:49:21 +0000

In conjunction with what Lauren said, I too have run on the beach barefoot but that is the extent of my barefoot running. I think for me trying to run on the road barefoot would be such a distraction. I would be worried about stepping on something so my form would suffer greatly.

The jury is out….

Jamie
@fitforamom on Twitter

By: Lauren

Lauren — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 17:25:45 +0000

I always run (and I mean really run) on the beach barefoot, but I don’t think I would ever try it on a road or trail. OUCH.

By: Scott

Scott — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:05:14 +0000

I don’t know if you have seen, but there are two shoes that try to mimic the barefoot running.

Have you seen the Vibram Fingers Shoes?
Here’s a blog post: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2009/05/07/vibram-five-fingers-shoes/

or the Nike Free Shoes?
http://store.nike.com/?sitesrc=usns_share_link&country=US&lang_locale=en_US&l=shop,pdp,ctr-inline/cid-1/pgid-71460/pid-88963#l=shop,pdp,ctr-inline/cid-1/pid-284349/pgid-222333

By: Sarena (The Non-Dairy Queen)

Sarena (The Non-Dairy Queen) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:35:19 +0000

That is interesting. I have always wondered about running without shoes. I don’t think there is ever going to be a conclusive answer to that question. At least I know that it is not completely bad for you. I always figured it would used different muscles, but my question would always be is it bad for those muscles. Thanks for sharing the info.