New shoes. Barefoot running

First you need to find out if you are a supinator or pronator which most of us are to a degree...if you are, you need a shoe that is designed to compensate for your lack of balance/alignment. Light weight shoes are nice but don't compensate for the lack of support...especially when you run longer distances. Unless you have a genetic disposition towards barefoot running, such as growing up running on the plains of Kenya, I wouldn't do it. Most of us city slickers need really, realy good shoe support. The amount of serious, chronic injury you can do to yourself is not worth it.

there was a kid at the track yesterday running barefoot.....it's a black top track....unreal.......he was taunting his buddy who had a pair of shoes on....he was really cruising I couldn't believe it.

The Nike Free is meant to be a training tool only...to build foot strength. Use them for a couple light 20min sessions a week. You need an appropriate training shoe for the bulk of your running.

I'm going to a local sports shop that has a pressure pad for the foot strike. I will see how it goes. Hopefully I get a copy

Abebe Bikila from Ethiopia won the 1960 Olympic marathon running barefoot, so it can be done! Of course when he defended his title in '64 he wore shoes. And he's the exception and I don't think he had to spend all of his time training on paved roads. I wear flats (Asics DS racers) to race in but wouldn't dream of wearing them to log any serious miles because of the reduced support.

One thing that does feel great on the feet is to do a few barefoot strides after a long run. Helps build foot strength too. The problem is finding an area of grass that you know is free of sharp rocks, broken glass, etc. But if you have such a place, give 'em a try.

I agree. Don't know your age, weight, etc. but I would caution you that if you think you can train regularly on bare feet, consider long term effects. You may (needlessly) cause damage that could prevent you from running when your old like me
Make sure your running store evaluates your run before suggesting any shoes. My store uses a treadmill w/ digital video (in the store) and has software that overlays graphics to illustrate what specific support the shoe needs to provide to prevent injury.
Good luck!

I would encourage you to run barefoot at a local park. Just start out slow. Don't do a bunch of sprints or run for several miles. You will be using muscles differently and you want to build them up.

Mike

Well it turns out I'm a mild overpronator so I went with support. Tried them out with a quick 3km run. They felt great but this might also because they are not worn out like the old shoes

I live next to a park so I will consider some barefoot running there.

I just wanted to add that you CAN train and race in the Nike Free. My daughter got a pair a couple of months ago and now does all her running in them. She now gets aches and pains in her feet when she wears her Adidas Cubato's. Yes, they are marketed as a training aid. But think about it, if you were Nike, would you intoduce a "less is more" shoe and market it as a training/racing shoe? That would be contradicting what Nike has been doing for the past 30 some odd years. If you can find a safe place to run barefoot, that is great. But in the absence of that, Nike Free's are the next best thing I have found.

I am actually a bad pronator but light shoes do feel GREAT to me on a run.....the extra support really doesn't make the shoes feel better on your average short run, if anything they feel worse because they are a bit heavier.....it protects against the cumulative sustained impact over many miles, days, weeks and months.....that's why I need the support.

I'd be concerned about the long-term implications of doing a lot of miles barefoot or in something like the Free. Hopefully everything will work out over time for her but don't be shocked if she develops chronic back problems down the road. Some people have good mechanics and probably don't have anything to worry about but for those others at least some support/motion control is a wise choice. As for her old shoes causing her discomfort now...it makes sense. The Frees aren't providing and type of support so her feet are basically doing their natural thing. Put on the old shoes that try to control her feet and her feet aren't used to the support...it's gonna be uncomfortable. This isn't necessarily a positive observation.

"I'd be concerned about the long-term implications of doing a lot of miles barefoot or in something like the Free. Hopefully everything will work out over time for her but don't be shocked if she develops chronic back problems down the road. Some people have good mechanics and probably don't have anything to worry about but for those others at least some support/motion control is a wise choice."

Why do you think that running barefoot or in a minimalist shoe might cause chronic back problems? I spent the first twelve years of my life running barefoot for a good part of each day(playing outside) and I suffer no back problems because of it. Wouldn't it be better to allow the foot to develop the strength needed to support the body weight naturally? I agree that proper mechanics are very important and the shoe should support proper mechanics, which I believe the Nike Free does by allowing the supporting muscles in the foot to develop the needed strength naturally, as does barefoot running. It seems to me that in most cases, it makes more sense to develop the muscles in the foot rather than trying to "fix" things with a shoe. I know there are extreme cases of foot irregularity that would require intervention, but I am talking about the average person.

"As for her old shoes causing her discomfort now...it makes sense. The Frees aren't providing and type of support so her feet are basically doing their natural thing. Put on the old shoes that try to control her feet and her feet aren't used to the support...it's gonna be uncomfortable. This isn't necessarily a positive observation."

My point exactly! The Frees are allowing her feet to do their natural thing, so she is strengthening her supporting foundation. When she puts on her other racing flats, they are designed to make her feet do what the shoes want them to do instead of what they naturally want to do. I am not surprised that they are uncomfortable for her now, but I think that is a good thing. To me it means that her feet are developing in a way that supports her without the need for the extra control and support that her old shoes provide.