![]() Most of these differences stem from the fact that barefoot runners typically land with a mid-foot strike (where the foot lands rather flatly) or forefoot strike (where the ball of the foot contacts the ground first and then the heel is lowered). The claimed advantages of barefoot running revolve around the fact that an evaluation of experienced barefoot runners compared to shod runners reveals several striking (no pun intended!) differences. The proponents of barefoot running claim that this mode of running is far more ‘natural’ and allows the human foot to work in the way that Nature intended it to – something that can’t happen when the foot is shod in an artificial shoe. ![]() In more recent years, some runners have taken a different approach by embracing barefoot running. In other words, despite all the technological advances in shoe development over these past decades, the rate of injury has stayed pretty much the same. However, studies on the incidence of running-related injuries conducted from 1989 to the present have found a remarkably consistent rate of injury (1). With this in mind, you might expect that the rate of injury suffered by runners per mile run has been steadily falling. It’s hardly surprising therefore that the past four decades has seen an explosion in running shoe technology, with successive generations of shoes using increasingly sophisticated solutions to ensure the ideal running gait and the absorption of the impact forces, which are a particular problem when pounding the tarmac or pavements. Throughout the running boom, it has always been assumed that the most effective way of preventing running injuries has been the use of appropriate footwear. Not surprisingly therefore, the growth in the popularity of running has been accompanied by an increasing number of running injuries. However, as any physiotherapist will tell you, the biomechanical demands of running are such that the potential for injury is comparatively high compared to other endurance sports such as cycling or swimming. Since then, tens of millions of people around the globe have enjoyed recreational and competitive running, both as a pastime and as way of getting and keeping fit. ![]() It was back in the late 1970s that the running boom really got underway. But what does the science say about the benefits or otherwise of this type of footwear? Sports Performance Bulletin looks at the evidence Minimalist running shoes claim to offer the benefits of barefoot running, without some of the drawbacks. ![]()
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