The Benefits of Barefooted Running
Tip of the Month: March 2010

Recent wisdom and great marketing has told us that a good supportive trainer is best for the exercising body. The trainer, we are told, provides cushion, absorbing impact and hence decreasing the pressure placed on the joints of the ankles, knees, hips and back. However, is the man-made trainer really better for the body than the intricate structure of the foot that nature has carefully designed for us?

Although the body of research is still limited, more and more literature is being published challenging the belief that the trainer is best and instead champions the benefits of barefooted walking and running. The most powerful and recent of this research is an article published by Professor Daniel Lieberman from Harvard University in the January issue of the research journal Nature. This research project found that people running barefoot actually reduced the impact generated by running as they adjusted their gait to land on the balls of their feet. As Lieberman himself explains:

“People who don’t wear shoes when they run have an astonishingly different strike, by landing on the middle or front of the foot, barefoot runners have almost no impact collision, much less than most shod runners generate when they heel-strike”

The findings of Lieberman’s study are not the only benefits of barefoot running. Previous projects and anecdotal findings have also highlighted other positives of running as nature intended.

1. Increased running efficiency: research has shown that running barefoot can increase your running efficiency by 4%.
2. Lowered chance of suffering from shin splint, ankle sprains and bunions: as Lieberman has already told us, allowing the body move as it was designed to can reduce the stress placed on the foot and the surrounding structures, hence reducing the chance of these and other injuries.
3. Strengthen the muscles of the foot and ankles: the ‘support’ provided by trainers can actually weaken the muscles of the foot and ankles as they no longer have to work to such a great intensity.
4. Improved proprioception and balance: we have more nerve endings in our feet then in any other parts of the body. Encasing the feet in shoes dulls the feedback the brain receives from these nerves and can increase our risk of falling.
5. Decreased risk of developing varicose veins or deep vein thrombosis: as the muscles of the foot and ankle strengthen with barefoot use they become more effective at pumping blood back up to the heart through the venous return system. This means that you are less likely to develop varicose veins or deep vein thrombosis.

Although there are many reasons to put aside your trainers, do not throw them away as yet as you need to start your barefooted life slowly and steadily as there is a strong chance you will initially develop blisters. Also do be careful where you run as you do not want to step on any glass, sharp stones or nails.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND ADVICE CALL 0207 683 0349