I don't think bare feet in a health club are any less sanitary than the sole of my running shoes, but I see the one club member's point. Personally, I wouldn't do it. You have to be crazy to run barefoot on a treadmill or in the streets for that matter. Clubs are correct to ban the practice for legal reasons. And the thought of cleaning dog shit from between my toes is gross.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323826704578356632609610700.html?mod=ITP_AHED
Pretty sure feet are a lot more likely to host fungal infections than a rubber shoe sole.
Any bets this guy is friends with Kip?
Bare feet are actually cleaner than your running shoes, a simple microbiological culture easily prooves this.
The health club member's point from the article? Shave your feet, lose weight, and learn to run lightly?
Personally, you wouldn't do it, so it's obviously not for you.
That makes me crazy?
Clubs are correct to ban the practice for legal reasons? That's not the opinion of the chief legal counsel for one of the largest health club chains in the U.S.
In fact, their liability exposure for the shod machine users was deemed to be significantly higher.
The thought of cleaning dog S$#t from between ANYONES toes is indeed gross, fortunately barefooters are a bit more in tune with where they're stepping than their shod counterparts are. Yet, if it happens, as gross as the process may be, the job gets done rather thorougly in less than a minute.
Microbiologists don't lie......culture your shoes.....canine fecal matter will be positive, while my feet will test dirty looking but pathogenicaly clean.
Sorry to have to break it to you, but your post is wrong on all counts.
Also wrong.
Ain't science great!
Brand new here, so don't know Kip. But just curious since I'm following this thread, which guy are you refering to and what makes him Kip-like?
Oh THAT Kip, sorry!
when I read the article, my first thought was--do they require wearing of gloves for push ups or other exercises where the hands touch the floor? What's the difference? Both are bare skin touching the floor.
BTW anyone have opinions on what is the best shoe to simulate barefoot running on treadmill, for those who want to do it but can't due to gym rules?
This orthopedic surgeon reviews the article and posts his conclusions. Your hand theory is backed up by the MD that limits his practice to treatment and surgery of the foot and ankle.
http://blog.anklefootmd.com/2013/03/18/barefoot-runners-face-obstacles-during-winter-months/
When I MUST wear something on the treadmill due to un-enlightened trainers and assistant managers when it is below 25 degrees F outside , it's FeelMax Pankas. Outside they would only be good for 60 miles at best, but they last forever on the 'mill. The problem is that the plantar surface of your foot starts to peel due to the encasement, and THEN you lose what you had built up for protection outdoors. THEN the case could be made that your feet ARE gross! Educating the gym owner is better for everyone.
civil rights issue?
That really demeans some more serious issues.
What a horrific tagline for that article. I thought that the OP made it up. It's LRC quality stupid.
Longboard wrote:
Bare feet are actually cleaner than your running shoes, a simple microbiological culture easily prooves this.
A simple culture test is a very poor way to substantiate your claim.
The civil rights issue must be taken with a grain of salt, as it is just the writer's conclusion and not attributed to anyone interviewd on the record.
Even the quotes have to be read with consideration to the fact that the reporter interviewd at least three of those mentioned for over three hours each! Many things can be taken out of context, etc.
Jason "Toe Explosions" Carrell is an avid kiteboarder, surfer, skydiver, gym owner/rat and all around cool guy that spends his summers barefoot outdoors Cody Lundon style WHO HAD NO PROBLEM with bare feet in his gym until the reporter contacted him! Five long telephone conversations later the exploding toe and toe shoes comment is all that made the article, which were made in defence of the gym's corporate level rules governing the franchise's dress codes.
Complex testing results back the claim up as well. This is nothing new, long before the current interest in barefoot running these things were studied exhaustively in the gymnastics, martial arts, and yoga arenas.
Why does it matter if everyone else has shoes on? The barefoot guy is clearly not dirtying the treadmill more than anyone else there. Just make him and the other barefoot idiots sign a waiver in case they cut their foot or get fungus or something like that.
The waiver is already taken care of in the membership agreement. Also, case history in U.S.litigation regarding bare feet in establishments shows that the barefooter never has won, unlike the DAILY judgements brought against establishments by shoe and sandal wearers.
At least you can't blame us barefoot runners for that....we cringe reading those silly words more than the shoddies do!
At least you can't blame us barefoot runners for that....we cringe reading those silly words more than the shoddies do!
Is this the guy featured in the article's pictures?
Adler
Best movie lines 3/22/2013 7:40PM
Read more:
http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=5100706#ixzz2OUNMnHwp
Those barefoot runners should behave like civilized human beings and wear their shoes on a treadmill. It is astounding that those people actually have to be told to wear shoes.