Barefoot Running Myths, Lies, and TRUTH: #7 - Use Transition Shoes
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- Опубликовано: 18 сен 2024
- XeroShoes.com - Ever wanted to try running barefoot? Tried but had problems? Never knew it was even possible?!
Either way, this short 10 part video series is for you. You'll discover some of the secrets of fast and easy barefoot running, the truth about "minimalist" and "barefoot shoes", and much more.
In this video you'll learn about moving from big, thick, cushioned running shoes, to lower and lower shoes (including zero-drop shoes) until you can go barefoot
Watch the rest of the video series. Subscribe to our channel.
And check out some barefoot comedy (or "bear foot" comedy) in Sh*t Barefoot Runners Say -- • Sh%t Barefoot Runners Say -- and the follow-up, Sh*t Runners Say TO Barefoot Runners: • Sh*t Runners Say To Ba...
There's much more info on how to start running, walking, hiking, and LIVING without shoes at www.XeroShoes.com
Wow, this guy really loves barefoot running and it shows.
extremely valuable information in such a short time! nice!
I think something that's not being mentioned is the impact force being applied on your foot when landing on the ground. Overtime bones have to be strained or stressed after being exposed to so much impact. I'm assuming improving your form is your best option.
Research from Harvard's Dr. Daniel Lieberman (and others) shows that when running barefoot, you're applying LESS impact force because you're using your muscles, ligaments, and tendons as the natural springs and shock absorbers they're meant to be (and no overstriding and landing on your heel with a relatively straight, outstretched leg).
That doesn't mean impact forces go away, and appropriate forces can build bone density over time.
You're correct: To optimize force reduction and production, improving your form is the way you do that.
Boy, am I ever having fun! I've been a serious runner for 50 years. When I've been able to run without pain, I've trained and raced competitively. I have PRs of 3:52 for 1,500 meters and 14:36 for 5,000 meters, and I finished my first and only marathon in 2:34, somehow even winning the damn thing.
But for most of that 50 years, I've had achilles tendon pain or heel pain from Haglund's deformity. I now think all of that was caused by a lifetime of running in conventional running shoes, i.e., shoes with raised heels and thick cushioning. After vacillating between minimalism (I used to take my Nike Frees into the cobbler and have him shave off the heels) and conventional shoes for several years, I resolved to go with barefoot or minimalist permanently 7 months ago. I'm certainly glad I did. As you say, there really is no substitute for barefoot. The tactile feedback you get from the soles of your feet is essential.
And you're absolutely right. If the soles of your feet are sore after running barefoot, it's probably because you're overstriding. That's a very hard habit to break after decades of running in high-heeled shoes. So the mental cues I've been using as I run are "back, back, back," to remind me to contact the ground as far beneath my body as physically possible, and "contact softly behind the 4th and 5th toes," so that I first contact the ground with the most flexible part of the foot, which feels like the 4th and 5th metatarsals. As a result, I've got that old spring back in my stride.
And when I know I’ll be running on a surface that requires shoes, I use the Xero Shoes Cloud sandals (and I ordered a pair of the Speed Forces yesterday). Sorry for the long-windedness, but I really am excited to be running pain-free and fast again after all these years. Thanks very much for all your great advice (and products).
Thank YOU for sharing your story!
Be careful with bounding and hurtles when newly barefoot. Otherwise, one's foot can fold the (usually) smaller toes under the foot. Metatarsals are supposed to be the slowest healing bones in the body. No walking cast either. Especially gym floors, tiles, smooth finished concrete.
You are so Fricken Awesome!!!
I thought transitioning from cushioned shoes to lesser cushioned shoes then to barefoot was a good idea just like directly transitioning to barefoot. I never attempted it myself I admit. lol
I do believe in the science of barefoot.
Our feet are made to adapt to walking on different surfaces including hard or concerte floors. You can train your feet to walk including on concerte/hard floors. They say to wear supportive footwear on concerte/hard floors to prevent pain/soreness. It is true that they will or can prevent pain/soreness while wearing them on concerte/hard floor but you create dependency for your feet simply by not spending time walking on concerte/hard floors barefooted or in minimalist footwear if barefoot is not appropriate. What people or not many arent aware is that
concerte/hard floors isnt the issue but rather but lack of foot strength which makes people depend on supportive shoes for such surfaces. Hence, most people dont have enough foot strength to walk on concrete/hard floors without supportive shoes.
Yes, and building up the necessary foot strength is totally do-able... by USING your feet. Research from Dr. Sarah Ridge showed that merely walking in a minimalist shoe built foot muscle strength as much as doing an actual foot strengthening exercise program.
@@xeroshoes . . .true.
Total believer in the science of the barefoot and minimalist footwear. More truth in this than the idea of conventional shoes being beneficial.
Running in Altras actually did make it easier for me to transition to barefoot running. But I think the reason is that it forced me to correct my form, as well as giving me a lot of miles to drill this into my mind. I never bought Altras to be a transition shoe. Once I made some adjustments and the Altras felt natural, running in Xeros with the correct form was really easy. This being said, I think it would have been possible to bypass the Altras, while still accomplishing the same thing.
Would you say the Altras stopped you from heel striking?
@@DSRT888 For sure. It felt strange at first. Almost like the heel was missing. Obviously, it wasn't. But with your feet being basically parallel to the ground, I think it would be difficult to heel strike. It just wouldn't feel at all natural.
I'd like to see you address the different types of feet and their biomechanical influence on running mechanics. I, for one, have been known to have 'duck feet' because they are pointed at nearly 45 degrees when heels clicked in order to bend my knees forward. That means ALL of my heel wear happens on the outside of the heel as I land. Running is a very clumsy and uncomfortable movement for me. That's why I wrestled--I wasn't running.
Well, I know world champion and Olympic champion runners who also have "duck feet" so that may not be a delimiting factor.
FWIW, outward pointing feet are often related to glutes not working properly (which also affects knees).
And, if you're not a runner, that's cool... our shoes and sandals still let your feet bend, move, flex, and FEEL naturally, whether you walk, hike, workout, etc.
Had a shoes salesman for the 3rd time tell my I needed a bigger heel and that why i have pain even tho I just told him pain is away is with flat shoes and going barefoot. He was pretty close to telling me I should heel strike.
They just do what they're trained to do ... by big shoe companies that sell high heeled shoes.
This is true if your goal is to go barefoot. But transition shoes have their utilities and can be good if your goal is only to run with less interference, which can be good too. Plus, transition shoes allow you to adapt quickly to the distance you are used to run.
I just bring a little nuance to your talk. I like your vids and your work ! :)
+francis bélanger But, Francis, they're called "transition" shoes, implying that their purpose is to be a middle ground on the way to barefoot. Otherwise, they're just lighter weight, lower "drop" shoes. The shoe companies named them that to deliberately insert themselves into the barefoot conversation, knowing they'd never offer anything truly minimalist.
And since these don't "prepare" you for being barefoot, then "transition" is a completely false claim that hurt many runners who thought these would help them, well, make the transition. What happened instead was that many runners got injured wearing transition shoes, but would then say, "I tried BAREFOOT and it didn't work for me. Or, they figured that since "transition shoes" hurt them, barefoot would be worse... when true barefoot may have been EXACTLY what they needed. So, again, "transition" confused the conversation.
My $0.02 ;-)
+Steven Sashen I think I exactly know what you mean. I feel the same way about the confusion between minimalist running and barefoot running that we heard too often everywhere. That is a real confusion and some companies take benefit of that. I don't think it's honest but marketing so often works this way, sadly.
That said, shoes are shoes and I think minimalist, which included some so called «transition shoes», are great in many ways. You have to consider them for what the are and of course they are not barefoot shoes (complete non-sens).
But where I think I desagree with you is in the idea that minimalist shoes seem useless to you or that they are the same than maximalist shoes. As you said in an other video, we can not always be barefoot. You sprint with spike, I trail-run with spike too. But again, it depend what I want to acheive. If I want to trail-run really fast, I can't use a fullminimalist shoes because I wont be able, in any case, to reach my full speed while downhill. My point is : shoes are usefull and depending on what you want to do, you will need different kind of shoes.
The important thing, and I think that is one of you main point, is to avoid the confusion in trying to see thing for what they really are. Marketing rarely took this way. In other word, it's a lot preferable to know what you want and why you wont it. Some marketer abuse of people who don't kwno what they wan't while some just repeat empty words without bad intention.
+francis bélanger We agree, actually. I don't think they're useless, and certainly not the same as maximalist. All footwear can have a function. As you said, I sprint in spikes. The only point I was making is that "transition" shoes are not what they claim to be.
+Steven Sashen Fighting bad marketing is a really hard fight to engage in but it's another subject.
Thanks for the feedback ! Its a pleasure to follow your work and to ad xeroshoes tools to our running toolbox ! ;-)
I wish i could, but because of cold winter months i need at least a mm isolation material under my foot
Take a look at www.xeroshoes.com/cold/ ;-)
"If you're in a place where that is not appropriate for some reason"
Gravel roads: *Laughs in hard, pointy pebbles.*
Nah fam just toughen up your feet. Git gud in other words.
my only disagreement with what youre saying is to not run on soft surfaces. what about grass? my common sense tells me that running on grass or dirt would be a very natural and freeing movement
The recommendation for hard surfaces is so that you get the maximum amount of feedback that your brain/body needs to sense your form and adjust accordingly.
Two problems with grass:
1) Grass is on ground that's soft enough that it may as well be padding. It's like taking the padding from your shoes and putting it on the ground. I've seen many people overstride and heel strike on grass without knowing it. When they get on a road, they DON'T do this (because it hurts, frankly).
2) You can't see what's in the grass -- uneven surfaces, rocks, sticks, etc.
You want to master your form on the best surface before switching to less good surfaces. Once you have good form, you're TOTALLY correct, that running on grass and dirt and sand and EVERY surface is quite fun.