Going Barefoot May Protect You From Injury

Go Barefoot

As more people than ever before take up recreational running—everything from 5Ks to marathons—that's also putting them at a higher risk for foot or leg injuries. Somewhat paradoxically, if conditioned to do so, it's not because of trying to run too far or too long—it's because these runners are snapping up trainers from brands that force them to change their natural running stride.

That's the finding, at least, of a team of researchers at the University of Exeter, who concluded in a 2016 article for the journal Medicine & Science in Sport & Exercise [1] that wearing trainers with significant support might be worse for you than thin, minimalist trainers that mimic the sensation of running barefoot. According to these researchers, it all has to do with how running shoes distribute force through the body every time you impact a hard surface.

When you wear thick, cushioned trainers, the force tends to be distributed mainly in the heel and back of your foot, in what researchers refer to as the "rearfoot strike". [2] However, when you wear thin, minimalist trainers, the force tends to be distributed in the ball of your foot, in what researchers refer to as the "forefoot strike". In other words, wearing a thick, cushioned shoe changes the way your foot strikes the ground as you run.

As Dr Hannah Rice, the lead researcher for the University of Exeter study, points out, the dramatic difference in how the foot strikes the ground can lead to a significant difference in the "loading rate" or the speed with which force is transferred to your body while running. Over time, a high enough loading rate can lead to physical stress and injury. That might explain, says Rice, why as many as three-quarters of all runners get injured every year.

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Based on this study, running in minimalist shoes or running truly barefoot may make more sense. Minimalist shoes encourage runners to take a more natural running stride that places less strain on their bodies and reduces the chance of getting injured. While their friends may be getting "runner's knee" or other common ailments after lacing up their training shoes, barefoot runners would be able to avoid many of these worst injury effects.

I’m a huge fan of going ‘barefoot’ and have been wearing minimalist training shoes for over a decade. I found that after a few weeks use, the benefits were particularly noticeable. My feet and lower limbs were stronger, my balance and agility much improved. I felt grounded and more stable in all forms of movement. I couldn’t go back to wearing traditional training shoes as the norm.

That notion is backed up by the work and research of Harvard scientist Daniel Lieberman, who has extensively studied the differences in force and impact of running barefoot. At his Harvard Skeletal Biology lab, Lieberman has also explored the potential evolutionary reasons for the biomechanics of human running. As part of his research, he has produced YouTube videos showing the difference in force generated by running barefoot compared to running in trainers. In close-up views, it's possible to see how force is transferred from the foot to the rest of the body.

In a January 2010 study published in the science journal Nature, he concluded that running barefoot is the most natural way to protect the body from injury, even when running on hard surfaces such as on a pavement [3]. Comparable to the University of Exeter researchers, he found that the forefoot strike is less stressful for the body than the rearfoot strike. Those findings are supported by other lab studies that he has completed at Harvard.

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Lieberman has also suggested that barefoot runners can run efficiently on some of the hardest surfaces in the world—including on concrete—without discomfort from landing. That means it's worth exploring ways of running without the support promoted by the world's biggest shoe brands. Indeed, running on grassy surfaces, sand or dirt seems to be the prime candidates if you're thinking of making a change to your running program. Build up slowly.

As Lieberman has detailed in his Harvard research work, there are other advantages to running barefoot, other than just reducing the risk of injury to the foot. For one, running barefoot strengthens the muscles in your foot, especially in the arch. Another critical advantage is running barefoot may require less energy because you can use the natural springs in your foot and calf muscles to store and release energy. [4] Finally, it just feels better for your feet, which have many sensory nerves in them.

Did you know there are more nerve endings in your feet than anywhere else in your body? The nerve impulses from the feet received by your brain will send messages to your muscles to make deft adjustments in your gait to protect bones and joints and to ensure you are moving efficiently.

Of course, running barefoot doesn't mean you'll be completely protected from injury. The University of Exeter researchers acknowledge that the higher loading rates only apply to forward running. If you're running backwards, sideways or laterally, you will likely use more force than if you were running in cushioned trainers.

Even Dr Lieberman, considered to be one of the world's foremost authorities on barefoot running, concedes that running barefoot will not offer complete protection from some types of injury. There has yet to be a single comprehensive study, says Lieberman, showing the efficacy of forefoot strike running or barefoot running on injury. For example, there's presumably a higher risk of ankle injury if you're running laterally without the proper ankle support—think of playing any sport where you are constantly forced to change direction at a moment's notice. If you are not keen on sport, try playing tag as an excellent way of conditioning the ankles and is fun too!

However, for simple, straight-ahead running, there's simply nothing like running barefoot. Anecdotally, it might help explain why so many long-distance runners hail from places like Kenya, where running barefoot is the norm rather than the exception. Following the logic of Dr Lieberman, this has to do with how humans evolved to chase down prey. [5]

In the modern era, running barefoot appears to enable runners to train harder and longer without recuperating from injury. You're expending less energy as you run, and you're doing so in a way that prevents nagging stress in your feet and legs that often starts to cause discomfort when you've tried to squeeze in running too many kilometres for the week. So if you think that wearing the most cushioned of shoes is going to be the best thing for your feet you might want to think again.

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However, it is natural to be concerned about the lack of support with these shoes, especially during more extended duration efforts. You will undoubtedly feel more impact as your feet get more robust and adapt. I had reservations at first as my feet are very flat-footed; they have improved since wearing minimalist shoes, but it takes a lot to work around a lifetime of poorly fitting shoes.

Here are a few tips that you may find helpful:

Take it slow; it takes a while to acclimatise to wearing minimalist shoes.
Allow yourself and your muscles to adjust and recover from years of wearing over-protective footwear.
Start to wear them doing day-to-day activities and around the home, not just for 'exercise'.
Do foot training exercises such as walking on the tiptoes and heels to strengthen the feet and the outside and inside the foot.
Do bounding activities such as jumping and hopping too.
Try to be lighter on your feet than usual while walking and running, reducing foot fatigue.
Go naturally barefoot without shoes as much as possible.

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Going Barefoot May Protect You From Injury

Going Barefoot May Protect You From Injury

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