August 15, 2010
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Barefoot running and shoe weight
I’ve been helping some friends of mine with their physical training as they look to enter the military. Specifically, I’ve been helping them with their running. At some point, one of the guys, Joe, was having trouble. At first I thought that it was because he was new to running, and was not psychologically accustomed to some of the feedback that your body gives you while you run. Specifically, the feedback that makes you want to quit very quickly.
However, he brought up the issue of pain, and I asked him where it hurt. He said in the shins, and that it started from the first step. Now, I’m going to not go really deep into the mechanics of running. However, I would recommend the book Born to Run, if you want to read about some of it. One thing that modern sneaker design has made people do is extend their stride, causing their heel to hit the ground first. This is why we have such thick soles on our shoes.
The problem is that you are not supposed to run like that. The issue is twofold. First, the only shock absorption comes from your shoes, and that’s not that great to begin with. Therefor, the shock travels up your heel, to your knees and hips, damaging them over time (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auntctXMS5Q). The second reason is that, in order to strike with your heel, you have to pull your toes up (called dorsiflexion). This causes overuse of the muscles, leading to shin splints.
Seeing this (and since we were at a track), I told the two guys with me that they should run a lap barefoot, explaining to the guy the reason for his pain. I run in the Vibram Fivefingers, but took them off to join in the barefoot delight. At first I tried to explain how their foot should hit. However, I remembered that, if you take away the shock absorption, the body will naturally set your foot up to run properly. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9itkEkcQ8WM) All I had to tell them was not to hit their heels into the ground first.
Here’s some more info on the mechanics of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jrnj-7YKZE
The guys took to it instantly. And loved it. Like REALLY loved it. To the point where we actually ran faster barefoot than we did with shoes. Their paces dropped and at one point, we sustained a 6:40 mile pace for a quarter mile. After a couple of laps, we walked on the grass a bit, which is okay at the park we were at, but is really nice to do at the Central Park Great Lawn.
Now, I mentioned the Fivefingers, which is a great shoe to run in. The guys were running in your standard running shoes. While talking to them, I brought up shoe weight, which are mostly due to the amount of padding in the heel. Here’s an example. Years ago, when I started looking at my shoe weight, I started running in the Ecco RXP. When you go to buy a shoe, and look at the listed weight, understand that the weight given is for ONE SHOE, and for a size 9. The Ecco RXP was 10 oz each, so 1lb. 4oz total. Most running shoes are in the 13-15 oz per shoe range (again, for a size 9). Joe’s Asics were listed at 13 oz per. That’s more than a pound and a half on his feet.
The Vibram’s are 11.4 oz TOTAL, and as far as minimalist shoes go, are the cheapest, at about $85 a pair. Mine have lasted me for a year, with no signs of breaking down any time soon. The Nike Free is the next cheapest (although the sole is thick for a minimalist shoe), while the rest are around double the price of the Fivefingers.
If you correct your running style (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrOgDCZ4GUo), you won’t need the thick heels on regular shoes, and can choose sneakers with a lighter weight. However, there are issues that standard shoes do cause, such as plantar fasciitis, as well as structural deformity. I actually do have the line from the big toe, through the ball of the foot, to the heel, but probably because I don’t wear really tight shoes, and I’ve always walked around the house barefoot.
My old classmate Juan converted to them when I suggested them as a fix to his plantar fasciitis, instead of all the other methods that he had tried which had failed (I know he mentioned ice, and cortisone shots). At last check, he’s been running pain free for months, and has to be running at least enough that it justified him buying a Garmin GPS running watch.
