The Barefoot Running Book

“For me, barefoot running reintroduced a childhood-like joy that had been missing most of my life. There is little to compare with the feeling of the ground beneath your bare feet as you are quietly and softly running along. I feel more connected with nature and myself. And I’ve saved countless hundreds of dollars over the last decade on unnecessary shoes and socks! So I run barefoot for the pure joy and fun of it. I can’t even imagine running any other way anymore.” —Victor Palma

The most common problem that arises with this plan occurs after you start to develop good barefoot form. It will become increasingly difficult to run in traditional shoes. Your feet will feel incredibly heavy, and the rest of your body will rebel against the pounding. You will start to crave the gentle smoothness of barefoot or minimalist shoe running.

It is common for new barefoot runners to want to “ease into” the practice by using a minimalist shoe (Vibram FiveFingers, Terra Plana Evo, Feelmax shoes, cross-country racing flats, huarache sandals, etc.). However, as I’ve already mentioned, it is better to learn the proper form of barefoot running first and then use minimalist shoes as needed. If you begin by wearing minimalist shoes, you are muting your best source of feedback—the soles of your feet. Starting by learning to run barefoot first generally speeds the transition. You will learn good form faster, strengthen your feet faster, and ultimately be able to reach your goals faster.

The drill is best done with the support of a chair. It can be done standing or sitting. Gather a few small objects, such as blocks, marbles, small rocks, or dice, and spread them on the floor. Practice picking up an object with your toes by curling them around it. Move the object a few inches to one side, and then drop it on the floor. Continue manipulating the objects for one minute. At the end of one minute, switch feet. Increase the workout by one minute per day total for the duration of this stage. This drill will help strengthen the musculature of your feet. It also helps you adapt to actually using your feet as something other than shoe holders. If you have toys in your house, try using your toes to pick them up. My messy children have done wonders for my own foot strength!

If you prefer music, “Turning Japanese,” by the Vapors (thanks to Karen Szypulski), has 180 beats per minute. The metronome drill will teach you the ideal cadence for barefoot running. Set your metronome to 180 beats per minute. Most people measure their cadence by timing the metronome beats to each foot strike. I prefer to lift my foot with each beat. It creates a subtle psychological effect of lightening each foot touch.

Enjoy running for the sake of running, not the rewards of winning a race. As George Sheehan says, “Once you have decided that winning isn’t everything, you become a winner.” This is the secret to longevity in running. You will never burn out if you love the process instead of the outcome.

I also look for patterns of times when I tend to overeat. I am an emotional eater. If I am experiencing an unusual level of stress, I have a tendency to overeat. I also overeat if I am bored. The trick to preventing or minimizing overeating is to understand, predict, and correct the triggers that cause it. If I keep myself busy, drink water, and exercise, I can greatly limit my overeating.

We should have been scared out of our minds. Instead we were oddly calm. It probably sounds glib to say that things just fell into place, but that’s exactly what happened. One decision led to the next. We were taking a risk, but I found risks weren’t something to be feared. Every risk I had taken, whether successful or not, was something that ultimately led to better things.

9. If you ever have to enter a store barefoot and it has a “no barefoot” policy, act as if you’re wearing shoes. If you’re walking with confidence, few people will notice. Those who do notice will be unlikely to confront you if you act as if you are doing nothing wrong. In the unlikely event a store employee does stop you, use my favorite excuse: Store employee: “Sir, you need to wear shoes in this store.” Me: “I know, I had a pair of sandals [or flip-flops or any other similar shoe] and they broke. Can you direct me to the [name anything in the store] section?” You provide a reason for your “dilemma” and then reframe the situation to remind the employee that you are a customer.

If all you do is run barefoot-style, you’re probably going to suffer an overuse injury. You also need to exercise, walk, and, ideally, hike in your bare feet or in Vibrams, to allow your feet and legs to get stronger. Feet need time to develop from the state of atrophy they’ve achieved in your shoes. Tucker Goodrich yelling-stop.blogspot.com

To reach my goal, I knew I would have to overcome the injury bug. My exhaustive research led to barefoot running, which I adopted in earnest. There were many trials and tribulations in that first year. I made about every mistake a new barefoot runner could make. Still, I seemed to avoid major injuries.