Check out Part I and Part II in this series of posts on barefoot running.
I got beat.
I had it brewing in my mind, but I was too slow.
I picked up the September 2010 issue of Running Times magazine today at Safeway and found a great article on barefoot running called CHANGE IS A FOOT-Shoe makers are targeting natural running concept by Brian Metzler.
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| Running Times September 2010 Cover |
Oh well.
If you have been reading all my recent posts on barefoot running, you already know what the article is going to tell you. He even mentions Born to Run by Christopher McDougal.
Check out Christopher McDougal wearing and talking about the Vibram Fivefingers:
Think about this for a second.
When we walk, we land on our heels and roll inward and toe off from our big toe.
As I've mentioned before, large cushion/heeled running shoes FORCE us to do the same: land on our heel, roll inward and toe off from our big toe.
As I've said before, barefoot running changes our foot contact with the ground to a more mid-foot fore-foot strike. The heel momentarily touches the ground and your momentum springs you forward.
Why, for 30 years, since the modern running shoe, have running shoe companies applied the biomechanics of WALKING to RUNNING????
I don't get it.
Yes, you heel strike when you walk barefoot BUT YOU DON'T WHEN YOU RUN barefoot.
Interesting thought...
Have the shoe companies been wrong for 30 years?
There is an interesting quote from the article that says "But the key isn't whether you strike at the heel or mid-foot or fore-foot...The key is having your foot strike below the center of your mass and not out front of it" say Jay Dicharry, an MPT and director of the SPEED Clinic at the University of Virginia's Center for Endurance Sport. I agree with that statement and I'm no MPT but it's quite difficult to heel strike directly under your center of gravity...go out and try it! You heel strike in front of your center of gravity.
That's why there is a large collision force and a large deceleration force.
Check out Newton's NATURAL RUNNING PAGE for an animation:
-----> http://www.newtonrunning.com/run-better/optimal-running-form
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| Vibram Fivefingers |
I've mentioned the Nike Free already. Keep in mind, the Nike Free design is based on a scale from 1 to 10. According to Nike, a 10 rating is a shoe and 1 is bare feet. To my knowledge, the lowest rating for a Nike Free is the Nike Free 3.0. The lower the rating, the lower the shoe profile and support.
It might be smart to transition from a regular shoe, down the scale to a 3.0 and then to the Vibram Fivefingers if you're not used to minimalist running. This will slowly build your tolerance and strength for natural running.
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| Nike Free 3.0 |
Other brands are picking up on this hype or should I say, "what research is telling them." According to the article, New Balance, Merrel, Terra Plana and Newton are coming out with new models of footwear designed for natural running.
It will be interesting to see where the shoe industry takes this information. It's just unbelievable that for 30 years running shoes got fancier and fancier...air here, plastic here, mesh there, Z90 foam here...but it seems that the technology is too over-the-top and unnecessary.
It seem as though less is more...and better!
JK
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Interesting article, JK. There's an ongoing debate on which running shoes are up to standard, and whether running barefoot is the way to go. Thanks for sharing your perspective on this issue.
ReplyDeleteRick Kaselj
of ExercisesForInjuries.com