Dear Barefoot Runners

SAVED!! wrote:I think you meant "experienced..."

What makes the OP a reliable source of information anyway? And why does he think there are people out there who he needs to save? WTF does he care what other people do?

Huh, sounds like some great advice that the barefoot/minimalist crowd might like to embrace...

HHH wrote:

Since when is an essay considered facts?

There's plenty more where that came from.

Even three studies from those liberal tree-huggers in the US military - not studying barefoot running per se, but examining whether what we "know" about matching shoes to foot type is true. Their conclusion, and I quote: "... in multiple, scientific studies, it turned out to be a sports myth." (Feel free to Google that quote for the reference.)

But please, spend away. Nike, your podiatrist, orthotics makers, eventually a surgeon ... they need your dollars.

letsrun meme overload wrote:

shouldn't that be "Deer Bearfoot Runners"?

Wholly Mad Cow! A deer with a bear's foot?

Is that kinda like the Elephant Man?

I LOVE running barefoot! Especially on grass. I've done up to 15 miles a week, all around a 800m grass field. When you feel good, it feels even better barefoot. Not doing it in the winter, though. Oh, and I don't care what some stupid guys think. If they want to go around with weak feet, go ahead. Why would I care?

Devil's Advocate wrote:

I run barefoot in combination with my training in Nike Lunaracers, a very non-restrictive shoe, and have been for about a year now.

Since then, I've run faster, ran twice as much mileage, and I regularly run doubles.

Give it shot before you bash it.

Oh, and it's fun as hell.

I'm surprised nobody has bashed Tony K on what he wrote above, but I think he's one of the few guys that "gets it" related to barefoot running. He averaged 120 miles a week in 2010 (including the couple weeks worth of of days he didn't run) with big weeks well over 200 and up to 70 mile trainers and he does maybe 20% barefoot during the summer. It's all in the grass and he just does a handful of easy barefoot runs at the end of the day a few times a week to strengthen his legs. He sees it as a tool to help perfect his stride and avoid injury, but he's not doing it like most of these "100% barefoot or no running at all" morons. Some gradual working in of barefoot running on grass to strengthen your body is probably not a bad idea for someone like Tony who does a ton of miles and I think it actually benefits him, but yeah, for the average joe 200+ pound old dude that runs 5ks barefoot in 27 minutes, they totally don't get it and are just asking for injury.

Davis Barefooter wrote:

I love how after 8 years and thousands of miles running barefoot, guys who never set a bare foot on the ground a day in their f*cking life still think they can give me advice about it. stick to your shoes and STFU.

Is this you?

SAVED!! wrote:

grrrrrrrrrrr wrote:

ignorance...

I think you meant "experienced..."

What makes the OP a reliable source of information anyway? And why does he think there are people out there who he needs to save? WTF does he care what other people do?

The same can be said about barefoot purists. WTF do they care about what other people do, let alone their choice to start off running by wearing shoes. Why do barefooters feel they need to "save" us from the "evil" shoe companies.

BTW, you don't need to "source" everything if you have common sense. I don't need to find a source that says running in wooden clogs is a bad idea. I don't need to find a source that says being 50 lbs overweight increases your injury risk.

I had proposal on another thread of just making barefoot running a separate sport, like race walking. Walking is "safer" than running yet we don't get walkers hijacking every other thread trying to convert people.

The thing with most barefoot posts is that it goes like this: "I had years of injuries until I switched to barefoot running". They hardly ever add that it took weeks and months to make the full 100% transition or that you may need a coach.

fax wrote:http://tinyurl.com/noevidenceforshoes

There's plenty more where that came from.

Even three studies from those liberal tree-huggers in the US military - not studying barefoot running per se, but examining whether what we "know" about matching shoes to foot type is true. Their conclusion, and I quote: "... in multiple, scientific studies, it turned out to be a sports myth." (Feel free to Google that quote for the reference.)

But please, spend away. Nike, your podiatrist, orthotics makers, eventually a surgeon ... they need your dollars.

This link doesn't go anywhere useful and your 'quote' is not based upon actual research being done.

But thanks for your permission to not join the barefoot/minimalist cult.

classof89 wrote:

The same can be said about barefoot purists. WTF do they care about what other people do, let alone their choice to start off running by wearing shoes. Why do barefooters feel they need to "save" us from the "evil" shoe companies.

If you want to see where that attitude comes from, try this:

take off your shoes, and go outside for a run. Better yet, just walk around for a day. If you can make it through the whole day, all the snide comments, all the laughing behind your back, people telling you that you're and idiot and treating you like a fool. Either you will run home like a bitch, put on a pair of shoes and never take them off ever again, or you'll get pissed off and more determined.

Davis Barefooter wrote:If you want to see where that attitude comes from, try this:

take off your shoes, and go outside for a run. Better yet, just walk around for a day. If you can make it through the whole day, all the snide comments, all the laughing behind your back, people telling you that you're and idiot and treating you like a fool. Either you will run home like a bitch, put on a pair of shoes and never take them off ever again, or you'll get pissed off and more determined.

Ah Davey, do you need a hug?

This thread is turning into a "Let's end the barefoot running debate right now" type of thread.

Let's use Geb as an example. He did pretty much everything the OP recommended and ran barefoot his entire youth, yet he now chooses to run in shoes.

Excerpt from an interview (http://www.takethemagicstep.com/coaching/athletes/interviews/haile-gebrselassie-i-cant-run-slowly/):

Abebe Bikila, the Olympic marathon champion from Ethiopia in 1960 and 1964, decided at the age of 16 to run barefoot. Have you ever thought of doing that?

Haile: I have huge respect for Abebe, and he took a decision at the time which was the best for him. I would never run without shoes, because shoes are what suit me. I can imagine that in those days shoes were very uncomfortable, and it probably just felt better to run barefoot. These days, however, the shoes are perfect. They are just what the feet need and for running.

So there you have it. The best distance runner of all time who spent years running without shoes now thinks that "shoes are what suit him".

shoe guy wrote:Abebe Bikila, the Olympic marathon champion from Ethiopia in 1960 and 1964, decided at the age of 16 to run barefoot. Have you ever thought of doing that?

He wore shoes for his 2nd Olympic victory and when he broke the WR.

You don't think he could have just been in better shape 4 years later? Too many variables exist for you to be able to pinpoint that it was the shoes that enabled him to break the WR. You are an ignorant fool.

uhuhhh wrote:You don't think he could have just been in better shape 4 years later? Too many variables exist for you to be able to pinpoint that it was the shoes that enabled him to break the WR. You are an ignorant fool.

I'm an ignorant fool for stating that he wore shoes when he won the Olympics and when he broke the WR? Did I say that it was because of the shoes? Sounds like someone is upset that we aren't all just joining the cult...

I work at a running store, and before I even size someone up who is looking for five fingers, I give them a full spiel on proper running form, soft surfaces, the fact that the change in form is what is significant (NOT the shoes) and that they need to work into these things GRADUALLY.

To send people out with that information is helpful, and a service. To send people out without that information is unconscionable.

Now THAT made me laugh.

shoe guy wrote:

Haile: I have huge respect for Abebe, and he took a decision at the time which was the best for him. I would never run without shoes, because shoes are what suit me. I can imagine that in those days shoes were very uncomfortable, and it probably just felt better to run barefoot. These days, however, the shoes are perfect. They are just what the feet need and for running.

So there you have it. The best distance runner of all time who spent years running without shoes now thinks that "shoes are what suit him".

I don't really think there is much of a debate whether a poor man who gets shoes will wear them or not. If you started out barefoot...shoes will always be the goal. A sign that the poor man is gettin rich. Good vs bad never comes to mind (except for Abebe). The shoes will always win if you can afford them and comes from a poor background.

If Geb reflects a bit longer he might find that his achilles troubles might be caused by his bulky Adidas with high heels. Which prevented the achilles from being stretched on a regular basis. The transition from his Adidas trainers to spikes probably put too much stress on the tendon.

btw Geb is sponsored by Adidas, any answer coming from him regarding shoes is as biased as it gets.

machinegunfunk wrote:If Geb reflects a bit longer he might find that his achilles troubles might be caused by his bulky Adidas with high heels. Which prevented the achilles from being stretched on a regular basis. The transition from his Adidas trainers to spikes probably put too much stress on the tendon.

I'm assuming you have some proof to back up this theory of yours?

HHH wrote:

This link doesn't go anywhere useful and your 'quote' is not based upon actual research being done.

Perhaps your browser is broken.

For me, the link goes to a paper published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in 2009 that concludes that no evidence exists to support the "prescription" of distance running shoes.

You know, I was in the barefoot-hating cult just a few years ago, so I totally get where you're coming from. But the evidence to consider an alternative to running shoes is a lot more well publicized now than it was then.

How's shoe-wearing Haile doing, btw? Running strong and healthy?