How many people run barefoot?

I think barefoot or minimal running (I don't think it matters which tbh) is good to include in your training if it suits you or if you like it, simply because it's a different form of running and does potentially offer some benefits. However, lots of people (especially on here) already run and train in fairly minimal shoes as most fell shoes are pretty low and not very cushioned so are probably already getting similar benefits.

I don't dismiss it completely, but I'm not as convinced as I once was that it's a cure for injury. I think the golden rule for avoiding injury is increasing the amount of mileage you run without overdoing it. You're not as likely to suffer an overuse injury imho if you gradually build up the miles, as your body will adapt and become better conditioned to the stresses you're putting it through. You can't really do anything about pulled muscles, strains or sprains though, nothing will completely get rid of the risk for those.

I don't do much barefoot anymore because I used to do it on my treadmill which has been out of action for some time, and I only occasionally run in my VFF's as well. I find recovery runs are quite good in them because they slow your pace a little and stress the muscles in a different way asd well as helping toughen your feet up a bit. I don't really do any other sort of training in them these days though.

can anyone explain to me the difference between these new fangled minimalist shoes and a pair of Walsh PBs? Walshs look pretty darn minimal to me already!

Most of the injuries I've had have been from stubbing my toes or falling over, which is why I wondered if anyone had any comments about the grip on minimalist shoes, the Merrells, New Balance and so on. They all market themselves as 'trail' shoes, but that could mean anything, really. I'm not sure it would cover rocky moorland paths, bog, and so on.

This is weird - I made the last post on friday, it's now Sunday, and it's showing in my 'latest posts' box...

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Originally Posted by plodding bear

Most of the injuries I've had have been from stubbing my toes or falling over, which is why I wondered if anyone had any comments about the grip on minimalist shoes, the Merrells, New Balance and so on. They all market themselves as 'trail' shoes, but that could mean anything, really. I'm not sure it would cover rocky moorland paths, bog, and so on.

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I've got the Merrells and the VB neos. Both are good on footpaths and tracks as long as they aren't too muddy and ok for fairly easy dry fell running.
The Merrells are made with a sticky rubber sole which is still hard wearing but lacks any significant studs on the sole. The Merrels and Neos win on comfort and are easy to run in however their grip is rubbish compared fell shoes like to my Walshes or X-talons. Better to keep them for trails which is what they were meant for and use something else on the fells.

Ta for that. I like the idea of being a midfoot striker, which seems to be the point of running barefoot - it encourages you to do it naturally. Just watch a video of Anton Krupicka or someone trail running; he seems to just float along without any apparent effort.
I think those who criticise 'barefooting' are missing the point a bit when they criticise minimalist shoes, they are just a means of protecting the feet it seems to me, and easing the transition from running in 'platforms' to running with flat feet.
If only I could afford a pair!

i agree plodding bear its all about the form of your running which gets naturally encouraged by running bare foot and people forget this point and assume as soon as you protect your soles its goes to pot. i made the transition to a midfoot strike this year which took me around two months but has made a huge improvement on my bad back. if you want minimalist footwear without the price, buy racing flats instead my ascics cost 40 quid are awesome on road and innov 8 for the fells.

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Originally Posted by plodding bear

If only I could afford a pair!

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In Barefoot Ken Bob Saxtons new book he cites a guy who takes Injinji socks (those with individual toes) and paints Plasti Dip on the bottom (while wearing them - to get the correcft shape). I haven't tried it yet but they're cheap, minimal, protective and recoatable.

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Originally Posted by Nigel

.....they're cheap, minimal, protective and recoatable.

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and completely crap for running in the hills :) ;)

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Originally Posted by plodding bear

Most of the injuries I've had have been from stubbing my toes or falling over, which is why I wondered if anyone had any comments about the grip on minimalist shoes, the Merrells, New Balance and so on. They all market themselves as 'trail' shoes, but that could mean anything, really. I'm not sure it would cover rocky moorland paths, bog, and so on.

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I've got the NB Trail Minimus, which is the shoe that Krupicka had design input on. In terms of grip, they are brilliant. I've had them on tarmac, trails, mud, rock, moorland all of which both dry and wet and all of which at a good pace and I didn't have any slipping issues at all.

I DID however have issues with badly blistering toes and mashed up legs. At first I thought these were simply not the shoes for me (They're for sale on here somewhere) but a fortnight on from a fairly disastrous 17 miles (well, the first eight miles were brilliant, then I started to blister) I'm now thinking that I jumped in at the deep end a bit and should have integrated them into my weekly routine gradually rather than haring up over the first fells I could as soon as I strapped them on. Oh, and I didn't wear socks either, which in retrospect was really dumb. Having done some more research, it takes some adjustment to successfully get into 'minimalist' running, and that includes just toughening the undersides of the feet before you even get onto the biomechanics side of things!

As no one has shown any interest in buying the shoes (sob sob) I think I'm now going to gently introduce them into my weekly routine, maybe a seven/eight mile steep trail run once a week and any recovery sessions I might do.

Well, I will do once I've got over this damn food poisoning anyway...