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Healthy Home Economist / Archives / Fitness / The Reality of Barefoot Running Shoes

The Reality of Barefoot Running Shoes

by Sarah Pope / Affiliate Links ✔

It’s been almost three months since I purchased my first pair of barefoot running shoes.  I wrote about my 2 year search for a the perfect pair that weren’t over the top expensive and weird looking in my post from June titled Are Barefoot Running Shoes Hype?

I promised to update you all about how I liked my new shoes in the upcoming weeks, and since this is the last official summer weekend of 2012, I thought it appropriate to give you the scoop right about now.

The bottom line?  I love my barefoot runners!  These shoes really do give you a connection with the ground that is sorely missing from typical athletic shoes.

I took them with me on our summer trip to Alaska and Canada and found them nothing short of awesome for all sorts of activities:  long distance walking, hiking, rock climbing, and even zip lining from the treetops as you really do feel balanced and secure wearing them.

I wore my barefoot shoes as much as possible for the two weeks before I left for vacation to get used to them as recommended by the manufacturer.

I did not experience much if any soreness or problems adjusting.  While wearing barefoot shoes for athletic activities definitely felt strange at first, it certainly wasn’t uncomfortable and during those early days of adjustment, I always stopped right away if I felt like I was going to overdo it and injure myself.

We go barefoot year round at my house as do many people in Florida, so it really did surprise me how long it took me to adjust to these shoes despite being used to barefoot living for most of my life.

Observation: walking around your house all day long barefoot is quite a different thing from doing something athletic wearing barefoot shoes!

The Downside to Barefoot Shoes

Now, for the nitty gritty.

Despite the fact that I really enjoy my barefoot shoes and find them very comfortable and even pleasurable for all sorts of athletic activities, I have just one beef to share with you:

I still can’t run in them!

I have tried and tried to get used to running in my barefoots, but I can only get to about the 1/4 mile mark before my calves and Achilles feel like they have had quite enough.  I always stop and don’t push it at that point because I have no desire to injure myself as that would accomplish nothing in the long run.   Any athlete knows that an Achilles injury is nothing to mess around with as it takes you out of commission for an extended period of time!

I shared my frustrations with Paula Jager, the Fitness Editor for this blog, at our local food pickup this past week.

What she said shocked me.

Paula shared that it took her a full year to get to the point where she could run any appreciable distance in her barefoot shoes!

Ah ha!

So that’s the secret!

I just haven’t given the whole thing enough time.

I guess this makes sense.  Having been active my whole life and participated in a wide variety of sports and outdoor activities, my leg muscles have good muscle tone and getting them to stretch to the point where the muscle tone is equivalent in barefoot mode is going to take quite a bit of effort and time.

I think if I wasn’t a very active person, I ironically would have had an easier time adjusting to running in barefoot shoes as my calves and Achilles would not have good tone in the unnatural shortened position which occurs over time when you wear typical athletic shoes.

So those of you who are just starting out with running and haven’t really done much in the past, I think you will have an easier time with barefoot shoes than I have.   Don’t be discouraged by what I’ve experienced!

Based on Paula’s advice, I am back to wearing my barefoots for running again after nearly giving up on the idea some weeks ago.  I am alternating my barefoots with my conventional runners and am giving it until next summer to fully convert over.

 

Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist

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Category: Fitness
Sarah Pope

Sarah Pope MGA has been a Health and Nutrition Educator since 2002. She is a summa cum laude graduate in Economics from Furman University and holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

She is the author of three books: the bestseller Get Your Fats Straight, Traditional Remedies for Modern Families, and Living Green in an Artificial World.

Her four eBooks Good Diet…Bad Diet, Real Food Fermentation, Ketonomics, and Ancestrally Inspired Dairy-Free Recipes are available for complimentary download via Healthy Home Plus.

Her mission is dedicated to helping families effectively incorporate the principles of ancestral diets within the modern household. She is a sought after lecturer around the world for conferences, summits, and podcasts.

Sarah was awarded Activist of the Year in 2010 at the International Wise Traditions Conference, subsequently serving on the Board of Directors of the nutrition nonprofit the Weston A. Price Foundation for seven years.

Her work has been covered by numerous independent and major media including USA Today, ABC, and NBC among many others.

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Comments (93)

  1. 安心 ピーコート 大人気

    Dec 29, 2013 at 8:34 pm

    Hello there! I simply would like to give you a big
    thumbs up for your great info you have got here on this post.
    I will be coming back to your web site for more soon.

    Reply
  2. Zerocamber

    Aug 23, 2013 at 9:44 pm

    I saw on the vivobarefoot site that most people tend to run incorrectly even after switching to barefoot. Not sure i’m a fan of some of those knee over toe squats, but could give it a try. I think ultimately the thing that i found most interesting about training in general is how important range of motion is and correcting it. Hip alignment as well as chest and shoulders. I’m no expert but i started using the Assess and Correct tools i found online and it really does make you think about how unbalanced your body gets from day to routine and even from improper training. hope this helps I just wish the program was cheaper

    Reply
  3. jaelle

    Aug 21, 2013 at 9:57 pm

    I can’t run at all, unless I’m barefooted, ie no shoes at all.
    My Merrell barefoots are the only shoes I’ve found in the last 10 years I can happily keep on all day.

    Reply
  4. Divya

    May 8, 2013 at 1:36 pm

    Hi,

    The shoes in the picture – what brand is it??

    Reply
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