Going Barefoot to Keep Running

Injuries are the bane of any serious runner, and many not so serious runners. These can both be the acute, like a torn tendon, or chronic like stress fractures. The average runner spends a lot of money on shoes and orthotics that are designed to minimize the chance of injury and keep them running better for longer.

But what if the shoes are the problem?

That’s the question being asked by proponents of barefoot running, who believe that the altered gait that is produced by heavy, shock absorbing shoes isn’t help us avoid injuries, it’s causing them. What if everybody would be a lot better off if they ditched the shoes and started hitting the road barefoot, or something close to it?

It seems like a strange idea, but there is a lot of evidence that the barefoot folks might have a point. Shoes absolutely do change your stride, moving you from a shorter, toe first stride to a longer stride where the impact is on your heels. In fact, this change in stride was the entire point of the original Nikes, which were designed to allow a longer and theoretically faster stride.

The problem with this is that it shifts your weight from something designed to work as a natural shock absorber, the front of your foot and toes, and transfers it to something that is absolutely not designed for that kind of abused. Think about jumping up in the air; you wouldn’t land on your heels, would you? When you do this, the heavy padding we associated with modern running shoes becomes an absolutely necessity.

The idea of barefoot running being superior has been around for decades, at the very least, but the idea got a big boost in 2009 with the publication of Christopher McDougall’s best seller about the lost tribe of ultra runners, the Tarahumara, who run hundreds of miles in nothing but thin sandals made from truck tires.

McDougall, a runner himself, charts the barefoot movement in his book, and eventually overcomes his own running related injuries by using a barefoot program. All of which makes for an interesting story and great anecdotal evidence, but what does the science say about it?

Unfortunately, there haven’t been any long term controlled studies about the issue. A review of the various reports on the issue does indicate that barefoot runners suffer from significantly less chronic and acute injuries to the ankle and lower leg, as well as four percent less energy cost. So the science seems to indicate that the barefoot running group has merit, but more studies are need before conclusions are made.

Although the hardcore in the barefoot running crowd actually do run in their bare feet in all sort of conditions, most people actually use a very thin shoes with out padding to protect their feet from stones, broken glass and the other detritus of modern lift that can be hard on runner’s feet. The most popular shoes for this is weird looking foot glove called the Vibram Five finger, but other options are out there for people who want to try barefoot running with growing a set of hooves.