:D Barefoot Running

[superflyguy]

I have been looking into barefoot running and good running posture and wondered if the forum had an opinion on the following

"are converse Chuck Taylor All Star a suitable transition BF running shoe?" (maybe not pink!) these are not really for fell running, more likely road/hard trail, obviously there is no real grip.



they seem to tick all the boxes, but I wondered if i was missing something.

[Derby Tup]

They're very cheap. Barefoot running shoes usually cost much more than 'normal' trainers

I seem to have missed the point with all the barefoot running concept. I thought it was about running with no shoes but I now think the running with no shoes is so you are then ready to spend eighty to a hundred quid plus on specialist footwear. I might be being cynical for a change but perhaps not :closed:

[overthecrowroad]

Converse are too expensive for minimal shoes and the soles are too thick. Try here http://www.schoolpumps.co.uk/ £6
As I have wider feet I have used £8 aqua shoes http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/tusa-aquashoes-170644450/
No good for on the fell though. I must admit to recently buying the expensive Merrell Trail Gloves which are excellent shoes. If they ever do a these with studs I don't think I would by anything else again.

[jhb0510]

For me the problem with most uncushioned "normal" shoes like converse is that the toe box is too narrow and does not let your toes splay natrually. I too wear watershoes (I found mine in Tesco for £5 a pair).
Whilst in utiopia running competely barefoot is where I would like to be there are some fundamental problems. Most of us have spent a lifetime wearing shoes, this means that the soles of our feet are soft. When I have spent an entire summer wandering about barefoot, I can run about 5 miles without shoes. The problem of winter then arises, as in the UK it is pretty cold in the winter, I (being a southern softie), need something to keep my feet warm. The other problem is that in the winter I do most of my running in the dark, I therefore wear something incase I tread on something sharp that some lout has left lying about. Come spring my feet are soft again!
The point of Barefoot running is not to save money on running shoes, but it is to allow your feet to work naturally, which they cant do in tight pointy padded cushioned shoes.
Having come from a position where before discovering "barefoot running" I could not run. I am now getting to the point where I am building myself up to run reasonable distances. I have tried cushioned shoes with the new techniques I have learnt and i end up injured again. So for me it is a no brainer, no cushioning I can run, cushioning I can't.
As it has started warming up again I have been for my first barefoot run of the year. I started with a 1 miler, so there may be a little residual toughness in my feet, maybe by the end of the summer I will be able to run more than 5 miles barefoot! I also have a cunning plan to get me through the winter. The local road running club do an evening a week training on an indoor track. I am thinking of joining next winter, so I can get a barefoot session a week in, which I think might tide me over to the spring!

[MorganW]

Born to Run?

A post from Hal Koerner's blog:

http://roguevalleyrunners.blogspot.c...rn-to-run.html

OUCH!

[nikalas]

They're very cheap. Barefoot running shoes usually cost much more than 'normal' trainers

I seem to have missed the point with all the barefoot running concept. I thought it was about running with no shoes but I now think the running with no shoes is so you are then ready to spend eighty to a hundred quid plus on specialist footwear. I might be being cynical for a change but perhaps not :closed:

I think the big difference is between 100% barefoot evangelicals and runners who incorporate barefoot training/drills into their training.

The first group is a lifestyle things and nothing to do with running performance. The second is about improving running form, strengthening the lower extremities, moving to faster/lighter shoes and lowering injury incidence.

Fell runners who run primarily off-road and in shoes such as Walshes and the lower arrowed Inov-8's are pretty much there already as you can't get much more minimal than these shoes. For road/trail runners who want to ditch their cushioning and support, it's hardly expensive to either find a grassy playing field for drills or get a pair of aqua-shoes and then, once they've made the transition, get racing flats rather than heavily cushioned shoes.

[Alexandra]

An interesting article on barefoot running HERE.

[IanDarkpeak]

went out for my first fell run in my VFF today now the paths have dried out a bit, the brief bit of road was uncomfortable but the next 4 miles felt surprisingly good, a good deal of old bracken and heather, a bit of dirt and a steep climb and descent, I was surprised how well they gripped in everything except slimey mud, I had to slow down though on a rocky stretch. i could almost see myself racing in them if I knew there would be no rocks on route.

[Alphin]

went out for my first fell run in my VFF today now the paths have dried out a bit, the brief bit of road was uncomfortable but the next 4 miles felt surprisingly good, a good deal of old bracken and heather, a bit of dirt and a steep climb and descent, I was surprised how well they gripped in everything except slimey mud, I had to slow down though on a rocky stretch. i could almost see myself racing in them if I knew there would be no rocks on route.

Keep at it Ian - VFF for training runs for me, in the dry. When you are happy with the minimal shoe way, then certainly Inov8 Bare-Grip 200's for racing - just finished my first month in these and more than impressed. My concern was the sole/grip wearing out/de-laminating but they are rock solid and wearing well - certainly better than the X-Talon soles....It is a different style of running and one which after two years I'm now beginning to reap the benefits, ie. feeling the earth beneath me and being injury free - brilliant

[Twister]

Anyone taken off their shoes yet this year? I've logged about 3 miles so far this month properly barefoot and will do more. I love the change in the weather and its great to feel the ground under my feet.