Are Barefoot running, Vibram Five Fingers, etc getting way too much hype?

I generally avoid crowded parks when I run, but today visited one with a friend to play some baseball. It was warm for the first time in a while and all the seasonal joggers were there in full force. I could not believe the crazy amount of Five Fingers I saw. I even witnessed a girl painfully jog past me barefoot. I heard of people actually doing this, but I figured it was some fringe group. I guess I was really oblivious to this stuff. I read Born to Run, and didn't have the urge to throw out my shoes. Is the movement large because of the book?

First time ever, saw a guy yesterday running on the street barefoot. Of course, also decked out in the latest running fashion, supporting the local running store in shorts and shirt.

He clearly saw me before I saw him because he picked up his pace immediately to look impressive. What I spotted before his bare feet was his atrocious stride. He was barely lifting his feet off the ground and merely shuffling at a very fast rate. Then I looked down and realized he wasn't wearing shoes, and clearly running with no lift in his legs because it would be too painful to actually impact the ground with a normal running stride. To top it all off, he was still heel-striking, and very badly, because he was barely lifting his feet and slapping the ground.

I wound up turning around shortly after passing him just because I was so annoyed, never seen anyone running barefoot on the roads before, and wanted to see how he would navigate the 20 feet of crushed asphalt spilled across the roads. As soon as I turned around I saw that he significantly slowed his pace. When he approached the stones he almost came to a complete stop, then ran around the outside to the center lane (on a road that has a traffic) and lightly stepped by. I guess he didn't move out of the way enough because he took one step where his leg shot up, then hopped on his good foot for a few steps because I guess he missed one stone.

Turned around, thought it was hilarious. Either way, I just don't get it. I thought the whole principle of running barefoot was to strengthen your feet, strike the ground with your forefoot as the body naturally does, and enable a perfect gait. All of these things were not being accomplished by what he was doing.

Don't know why, just pissed me off to no end to watch and see being done. I'm sure he'll be the highlight of the next local road race though, and not the 15 year old high school kid who was able to win the race.

see there's not reason why you should have to run completely minimalist or barefoot. Because during evolution humans typically didn't run 80-140miles per week, and most humans today physically will just breakdown. That's why there's only a select few who are durable enough to go through continuous amounts of high mileage and not get injured.

we should just look at the japanese for inspiration and look at what they do. The japanese do get injured sometimes, just not nearly as often. And they integrate long walking to strengthen themselves during the base phase.

like lydiard said, shoes should not be complicated.

1.they should be very flexible in the forefoot

2.firm, low profile heel.

3. breathable, well fitting upper.

4. lightweight

I had some pretty bad knee issues coming out of high school, and after many many many months of PT/aggressive stretching/strengthening/everything else I started to realize that sprinting and running around barefoot (at the time jsut like playing soccer barefoot) really didn't bother me at all. So, just to be able to run any appreciable amount consistently I started only running barefoot on fields near my house. Obv running barefoot isn't really that great after you step on a couple of sharp things, so I transitioned over to running in distance spikes on the track. I still do a vast majority of my running on the track in spikes or on a treadmill in flats or H-Streets. At this point I'm exclusively landing on my forefoot even on runs up to an hour or more so I bet my mechanics would now allow me to go back to standard trainers if i wanted. But I don't need them, I'm not getting hurt even though I've been doing this for 2+ years and running more than ever, and not needing to spend $80 every few months on shoes because there's nothing to wear out in an H-Street is also very nice.

I have no scientific evidence about any of this, and I will only go so far as to say minimalism worked for me and has allowed me to keep running. Is it _better_ for most people? I don't know. Do I think if most people were smart and safe about switching it would be fine? Yeah probably. I will say wearing trainers now, which I do pretty much the few times I cut my parents grass during summer, feels really strange now, very unnatural.

And how fast are you?

2/10.

So if he would have been running in shoes with a goofy pillow under the heel he would have proper mechanics?

Shoe companies have zero evidence for using cushioning, there is no evidence that shoes or any special shoe technology reduce injury. There is preliminary evidence that barefoot and minimalist shoes reduce impact forces. Forgetting for a moment that this evidence even exists, because running is a very simple, funamental act it makes sense to be as basic as possible with your footwear. It is rediculous to think that our feet can't function witout roll bars, stability, large amounts of cushion. If there is not evidence either way, why not go the route that promotes the most natural result. That is just my logic, I see using modern training shoe as a blind faith (unless of course it works for), but it is a poor argument to critique minimalists on a lack of evidence when the burden is on the non-minimalist.

Hit him with a bat wrote:

He clearly saw me before I saw him because he picked up his pace immediately to look impressive.

How do you know he picked up his pace if he saw you first? Wouldn't he already have picked it up before you saw him? How do you know he didn't slow down so you could check him out?

Bump

Yes, the idiots who run barefoot make me laugh too. I look at them as brainwashed head-nodders following runners who are not fast, famous, or even well-trained in the sport. Always a market when fools will buy.

You referring to some of the fast women athletes that just recently raced at world's?

Uh oh, sounds like I shouldn't admit my newly instituted office policy for VFFF or "Vibram Five Fingers Fridays."

So far I'd say I've gotten mixed reviews ranging from curiosity to chagrin.

Maybe if our environment was all grass and no pavement, barefoot or minimalist footware would be great. But that's not how it is.

Running barefoot may be 'natural', but what we're running on isn't. Pavement and cement and asphalt. That's why we need some form of cushioning.

That's exactly what Vibrams are for. The ability to take advantage of our natural gait in an unnatural environment full of concrete, asphalt, etc. The poster that said barefoot running isn't for everybody...do you mean some people do not have the same foot structure we evolved with? The human foot is designed by nature to handle everything humans need to do on foot. If the human foot is not designed to run 80-140 miles per week, which I agree with, then you might want to reconsider why you're running 80-140 miles per week.

Clearly the barefoot and Vibram revolution is a new fad, partially due to the recent book, but it doesn't mean it's a bad thing. And for the poster that questioned the running improvement from wearing Vibrams...you so totally miss the point. Nobody has ever claimed they will make you a better runner. They allow you to walk, and then gradually run as the foot is meant to, strengthening all of the muscles and connective tissues of the foot that cause so many shod runners so many problems.

Nope

i run barefoot mostly. i live in a suburban town so it's mostly houses with lawns and driveways. i run in the grass on the side of the roads during my morning runs. if i ever come to a stretch that looks difficult or painful to run over i simply stop and walk. i like walking breaks anyway, i think it's good to incorporate them especially on easy runs. i could run in shoes but it feels better to run barefoot. i ran all 4 years in high school with shoes and did fine so i ain't got nothing against shoes. it's just that running barefoot on grass FEELS SO DAMM GOOOOOOOOOOOOOD. especially if you're not feeling that great. if you're not feeling that good, and you run in shoes, you feel so heavy. but barefoot, you feel light and crisp, and even when your legs don't feel great to start they quickly feel better as the run goes along.

so, anyway, hate on barefooters if you must, but i'm enjoying it.

Freaking Hobbits.

ya man wrote:

i simply stop and walk. i like walking breaks anyway, i think it's good to incorporate them especially on easy runs. .

Troll?

No, it's just bring back some balance, and not nearly compensating for the hype that normal running shoes have gotten.