Is barefoot running for me?

About a year ago I read a book Born to Run. At first it was just another book but after finishing it I really got inspired to try running in sandals. After a year running in sandals I have a few things I’d like to say. First: I freakin love it. That feeling of freedom, lightness and wind cooling down your feet, it is just brilliant.

Little background about me: I am fit guy but I never ran much in the past. Typically I’d clock about 30km a year and the longest distance I’ve ever run in a day until switching to sandals was 10km. As you can see I wasn’t much of a runner to begin with.

Now everybody keeps saying barefoot running this and that but most of the times they don’t really mean running ‘barefoot’. This whole category of running also includes running in sandals, five fingers and other forms of minimalist shoes. Going for a run without anything is a totally different experience even compared to super this sandals. Trust me, I’ve tried it.

How to get up to speed

After reading the book I dug out my super old five fingers (Chinese fake version of the real thing) I bought from a guy I knew and went for a run. I ran a couple kilometers and felt really sore. It also wasn’t all the pleasant and I didn’t feel light at all. I did a little bit more research, read a couple of articles, watched some videos and I also ordered my first pair of DIY huaraches (6mm thick piece of rubber and a long cord). The best thing I’ve read and heard so far was to take it slow. I’ve decided that I will start running very short distances and increase them with every consecutive run. The plan was to start with 200m and build up to 3km. I would also run only on pavement. Common misconception is to go running barefoot on the grass. When you do you are substituting the cushioning of your running shoe for the softness of the terrain. The feedback from our feet will be different compared to running on a hard surface.

So I went for the first run in the new sandals, ran 200 metres and slowly walked back. I felt fine the next day so I went to run for 400m and walked the same distance back. And this went on until I’ve hit the 3km mark. If I felt sore or tired I would take a rest day. The whole point wasn’t to do it in 15 days but to slowly get my body used to running differently.

You will be using different muscles or same muscles but in a different way. If you go too far too quickly you can hurt yourself and the whole ‘running in the sandals’ thing might lose its appeal. The goal was to build up the distance, be relaxed and I’ve also tried to be really aware what is happening while I am running. Truth be told you will know that something is wrong within a couple of steps. On hard surfaces even a couple of steps using bad form will result in some unpleasant feeling or pain. The thinner the sandal/sole the quicker you will know. Your feet are a great instrument and can give you amazing feedback — that is if you let them.

It is hard to get the running form right from the get go but awareness of what is happening combined with the analysis of reasons will lead you to make adjustments to correct the issues. There were multiple times were I felt there is something right, I would slow down, walk for a bit and think what was I doing wrong. When I started running again focused on correcting the problem. It the beginning I tried to be relaxed as much as possible, bend my knees and enjoy it. When that felt good I focused on the cadence and stride length. There is a lot of articles online saying that the ideal cadence is between 180–200 steps a minute. I’ve got myself a watch that can measure it and surprisingly this wasn’t really an issue. I was hitting on average 185 steps/minute. The cadence comes hand in hand with focusing on landing your feet below your body and not in front of it (that is called overstriding). Overstriding creates a lot of issues, increases braking forces and also increases the chance of getting hurt. The key for me here was to run like a small child: small steps and landing my feet below my center of gravity — landing on midfoot works the best for me. And when you do a lot of small steps your cadence goes up naturally.

After this “add 200 meters a day” exercise I’ve started running about 2–3 times a week with distances ranging from 2km to 5km and pace of 5:00–6:00 km/minute. It started to feel really good, it was fun and soon I was clocking about 20km a week. I was still running only on hard surfaces as wanted to get my form right before going anywhere else. After that I’ve tried my first longer distance. We went for a hike that is also a loop and I decided to run it. I packed my sandals but I’ve also taken really light shoes with me as a backup. The loop was about 21km with around 900m of elevation gain and I’ve finished it under 3 hours. No record broken there but I had a great time. I’ve used the shoes on an uphill scree section for about 3 kilometers, the rest was done in sandals. I was sore for couple days after this but as I mentioned before I’ve never run anything longer than 10km prior to this.

Now I have no problem running on pavement or mountain trails. Scree is an issue but for that I carry a light pair of super worn down shoes. All I need is the protection of a shoe in those cases. I regularly run 10+ km distances.

Risks

Yes, there are risks. Barefoot running is no cure-all. My advice to you is:

• Take it slow. By using shoes for such a long time (compared to walking barefoot) the muscles will be used to work differently. Don’t push yourself to much in the beginning.
• Do not run on your toes — you will shred your calves. 99% of the time I am landing on my mid foot and allowing the heel to touch the ground shortly after
• Protection is minimal. Your feet will give you much more feedback when you put only 6mm of rubber tied by a shoelace to your foot but sometimes that feedback can hurt. Stepping on a small shard rock on otherwise clean pavement won’t go unnoticed. You’ll will learn to be more observant of the line you pick. Also because the feedback is so fast you’ll handle it just fine. When it happens you’ll see what I am talking about.
• Terrain matters. There is a difference running on pavement and then on a steep mountain trail. The lateral traction is not so great in sandals. Rocky terrain or scree is a bit dangerous and if you are not careful you can get injured really quickly.
• Achilles Tendinitis. I was warned about this one by a friend so I’ve been carefully watching and observing if I am not overloading my Achilles tendons. If you take it slow, your body will adjust. Listen to your body.

Is barefoot running really for me?

This is a big question you’ll have to answer for yourself. To me it’s perfect. No shoes to worry about. No shoes to buy — you save money. All I need is a piece of rubber and a long cord. The sandals I use cost me $30. I plan on making the next pair myself from a piece of old bike tire.

But the big thing is: what is really your goal?

• Do you want the comfort of a shoe?
• Do you need the protection of a shoe?
• Do you run a lot in show and on ice? It’s no big surprise that open this sandal doesn’t work well in icy conditions
• Are you chasing fast times and records? Running in sandals is great for long distances where pace isn’t that fast. But sprinting in sandals is not so great.

If yes than maybe stick to your shoes. Like they say: why fix what ain’t broken.

On the other hand:

• Do you want to run because you love the activity and just want to go out?
• Are you comfortable slapping on a piece of rubber tied to your foot with a piece of cord?
• Are you willing to learn how to tie your sandal? Believe me it’s a bit of an art to get it right so you don’t have to adjust it on a 20km.
• Are you willing to change?

If yes: think about it next time before you tie your running shoes and give it a chance, you might end up liking it…