Impure thoughts? ... the lure of shoes.

swedishpimple

Barefooters
Jul 18, 2010
180
2
18
Impure thoughts?... the lure of shoes.

So Sunday I tried a new trail in the area. It was supposed to be an easy day. I planned a nice relaxing barefoot run. The new spot held promise if it worked out. I had skied it once before a couple of winters ago. It was closer to home than my usual haunts, flatter, and even more scenic too. The day before my run a 5 mile trail race was held on the very course I was to set out on. It was going to be good day.

The head of the trail had some nasty gravel and rocks. No biggie... relax, pick you path and you'll get past it. At every turn I found more and more of the same... gravel and rocks... gravel and rocks... okay this is starting to smart. A mile in and that's when the real doubts began to creep in. As I stepped lightly, in more of a painful ouch walk than even a jog... I started wishing I had something... anything.... on my feet. I passed a hiker in Nikes and thought for one brief moment that even a cushy over built shoe sure would feel good about now.

I also started thinking about Fall. Soon leaves will be covering the trails I run. And even though most are not as gnarly to foot as this one... I still wonder if I will be able to safely run them bare. Under leaf there will be roots and more rocks, stones, and gravel too... and since it will be Fall there will almost certainly be my nemesis... the dreaded ACORN. How will my bare feet handle these hidden dangers? Will the leaf cover help or hurt?

I only did 2 miles on Sunday... I left the trail I had such high hopes for defeated and a little ashamed.

***

Whether or not my fears of Fall trail running prove to be justified... I think it is time for me to start doing some of my training in minimal shoes. If only to have a backup plan for when conditions dictate.

I'll probably never give in to the false promise of comfort and safety that is the modern running shoe. Although It's my hope that BFR is teaching me to run properly... regardless of what I put on my feet. One thing is for sure, since I've only logged about 10 lifetime miles total running in any shoes at all - it will be a new experience.

S. Pimp.
 
Vibram KSO Trek's, there is

Vibram KSO Trek's, there is your answer.



You have to be realistic with barefoot running, it sounds ideal to conquer everything barefoot, but it's impossible.



The Tarahumara are never barefoot, they wear huaraches made out of old tire treads. Even the cavemen had some sort of animal skin wrap around their feet.



I don't run trails, wish I did, but if conditions called for some kind of footwear I would wear them. Id rather run, than risk not running because i couldn't handle it barefoot.
 
 If I could only find some

If I could only find some shoes that worked for me, I'd buy them. As much as I love being barefoot, aorns and thorns and frozen pavement concrete all ruin the fun of running for me. Unfortunately, VFFs aren't the answer (I have some and they just aren't perfect for my feet), and I am leery of buying unseen (and often very expensive) shoes on the internet.
 
I should clarify.  I do own

I should clarify. I do own minimal shoes already... FeelMax Osma's. VFF's proved a challenging fit for my somewhat atypical feet and toes.

To this point... I've been using the Osma's more for daily wear than anything else. The little running I have tried in them early on left me wanting more feedback... ergo it just wasn't the same as BFR. Granted my experience with them is limited and it did occur early in my BF journey. So maybe, once I try them again in earnest, I will find that my perspective has changed?

My main concern going forward will be just keeping my form sound while going from bare to shod and probably back again... cause let's face it... in the right conditions running in the bare just can't be beat.

S. Pimp.
 
Did you try removing the

Did you try removing the insole? That should give you more feedback.
 
 Lie back and think of

Lie back and think of England? Or stand up, rather.

But seriously, we all want to wear shoes sometimes. There's no shame in not taking on monster gravel every day. Keep barefooting elsewhere and come back to the rougher terrain some other time; maybe it will be different.

I've noticed that my dog, who, for the record, has NEVER ONCE worn shoes, will avoid gravel if there is a better surface nearby. No one gets down on her about that. :)
 
 Blind Boy - There's a funny

Blind Boy - There's a funny story about that.

I did remove the insoles when I first got my Osma's. But, at least in my pair, they had used some sort of evil gooey contact adhesive that remained present despite my best efforts at removal.

Anyway to make a long story short... I had just started BFR I had some very minor blisters... I got the Osma's - removed the insoles ran about a mile and the aforementioned glue proceeded to rip open all of them. For the next week or so I had open wounds on my newbie feet... it wasn't bad... just not pleasant. Needless to say the insoles went back in.

If I do go that route again... I'll certainly have to do a better job with the glue clean up.

S. Pimp.
 
Ouch. Funny story indeed.

Ouch. Funny story indeed.
 
I'm starting to look into

I'm starting to look into shoes for winter. Even though I live in So Cal and it is warm here compared to most other places, my feet do not do well in cold (to me) temps. I am hoping that running over the last few months has improved my circulation and I won't notice it as much, but I'm not holding my breath.

I found a place just a couple of miles from my new house that sells VFF's. They didn't have the ones I wanted in stock, in my size but I will probably end up with some KSO's for cool/wet weather. For cool dry weather I am thinking huaraches and toe socks or just the socks but have yet to try it. I want to run bare as long as I possibly can.



I hope you find something that works for you.
 
Some terrain is better

Some terrain is better tackled in minimalist shoes. It is up to each of us to learn what we can tolerate. Lots of variables play into this decision, so it's smart to experiment.

One warning- most minimalist shoes will alter your form a little bit. With some people, this means they go through a transition period where they may have an increased chance of getting hurt. When you decide on a minimalist shoe, take a few days or weeks to ease into it. Again, it's not a problem for everyone, but is rarely if ever talked about.
 
Make your own "shoes" out of

Make your own "shoes" out of some old socks and a piece of leather. I did it, and it works great for the cold weather. All you need is some suede (you can get it at Michael's craft store), shoe goo, and some socks.

Slather the shoe goo on the leather and step on it in your socks.

Let it dry for about 12 hours, and trim off the excess leather.

Very easy, very cheap shoes!
 
Matt wrote:I'm always amazed

Matt said:
I'm always amazed how every other animal on the planet does so well without shoes.

I disagree with your implication here.

Animals on the planet don't need shoes, True in most cases. A Horse has a hoof as do all other hooved animals. Cats, dogs and many others have very advanced and well developed forms of pads. However, they do puncture the pads, get infected, wounded and die. Mortality rates in the animal kingdom are extremely high. How many deaths are related to foot injuries? No clue but I bet there are many. You can imagine the uselessness of a lion with a torn open foot that cannot run, A cheetah that limps, a lame horse, dogs with frozen feet. They all exist.

A Major problem in running dog sleds is frozen feet. They sell shoes for dogs to protect them on extreme cold surfaces Humans, well we are thinkers, we put shoes on to increase the odds of survival. If we are running along persistence hunting yelling ouch, ooch, and worrying about stepping an sharp stones, we miss the food and perish. Our feet are very durable and do take well to abuse however, they are very prone to frostbite, clime Everest barefoot and see how you fare, for that matter, stand outside in 20 degree days or nights barefoot for a great length of time and you will find that your feet freeze, literally. Sprint up a hill covered in hard A'a or Pahoehoe Lava chasing a goat barefoot and see how far you make it before you bleed out. sometimes it makes sense to protect your feet. Notice I didn't say support, pad and elevate the heel. There are many animals that suffer frozen feet, damaged feet and probably stress fractures. However, they just don't seem to post here about it. In the wild they become dinner so the evidence is thin. I am of the school to keep it minimal and sometimes that means no shoes and I know there are trails, surfaces and temperatures that it is not intelligent (what separates us from the beasts) to stand or walk on without some form of protection. Just my 2 cents

From the Yukon Quest site

Sled dog veterinarians and mushers pay close attention to the dog teams' foot care. What are they looking for when they inspect each dog's feet for several minutes? At every mandatory checkpoint, the veterinarians spend considerable time checking each toe and joint for any soreness; toenails for damage that may need to be addressed; pads on the soles of the feet for any blisters; areas where the booties may have rubbed under the dewclaw and caused soreness; and finally, the webbing between the feet for swelling, redness, or cracks that can occur on a wet trail.
 
There's been a good motto

There's been a good motto popping up lately I think should be followed when all else fails, that is "Use the most minimal shoe for the job." I hope for bare feet, but that's not always practicle.

There's no shame in carrying whatever shoe you decide to run in on a belt around your waist to pull off when needed.
 
I'm with Liz, for ground

I'm with Liz, for ground feedback in minimalist footwear you can't beat a modified sock. I was trying to figure a way to do this awhile back, and a member on another forum recommended Plasti-dip in a spray can. It works great!

I agree that the Osma are not at all what I had hoped for as far as ground feedback. They may be only 2mm...but it's still a hard and stiff surface. The other Feelmax models, with the 1mm sole (Neisa, Panka, Kuusa), are infinitely better. It's a soft fabric sole.
 
LavaRunner wrote:I disagree

LavaRunner said:
I disagree with your implication here. Animals on the planet don't need shoes, True in most cases. A Horse has a hoof as do all other hooved animals. Cats, dogs and many others have very advanced and well developed forms of pads. However, they do puncture the pads, get infected, wounded and die. Mortality rates in the animal kingdom are extremely high. How many deaths are related to foot injuries? No clue but I bet there are many. You can imagine the uselessness of a lion with a torn open foot that cannot run, A cheetah that limps, a lame horse, dogs with frozen feet. They all exist.A Major problem in running dog sleds is frozen feet. They sell shoes for dogs to protect them on extreme cold surfaces Humans, well we are thinkers, we put shoes on to increase the odds of survival. If we are running along persistence hunting yelling ouch, ooch, and worrying about stepping an sharp stones, we miss the food and perish. Our feet are very durable and do take well to abuse however, they are very prone to frostbite, clime Everest barefoot and see how you fare, for that matter, stand outside in 20 degree days or nights barefoot for a great length of time and you will find that your feet freeze, literally. Sprint up a hill covered in hard A'a or Pahoehoe Lava chasing a goat barefoot and see how far you make it before you bleed out. sometimes it makes sense to protect your feet. Notice I didn't say support, pad and elevate the heel. There are many animals that suffer frozen feet, damaged feet and probably stress fractures. However, they just don't seem to post here about it. In the wild they become dinner so the evidence is thin. I am of the school to keep it minimal and sometimes that means no shoes and I know there are trails, surfaces and temperatures that it is not intelligent (what separates us from the beasts) to stand or walk on without some form of protection. Just my 2 cents
Do you know how many animals suffer foot injuries in the wild? I suspect this could happen, but I would be surprised if foot injuries are common in the wild. But I don't have any numbers to base this on. Only my limited experience observing creatures in the wild.

I'm not sure any animal really evolved (or was designed) to climb Mt Everest without a ton of protection from the elements.
 
Thanks everyone for the

Thanks everyone for the feedback and advice.

I'll continue to explore my options for Minimal footwear. Huaraches appeal to me... as does the idea of a modified sock. So who knows? There may be some plasti-dipped Injinjis in my future.

LPJ - Your advice on transitioning from BFR to minimal running slowly is probably spot on. I'll try to stay true to that approach as I dabble in MR. I get the impression that anytime one makes a significant change, be it, equipment, form, speed, terrain, etc. ... that it's probably a good idea to do so in a measured way.

TJ - I do like the idea of having shoes with me when I go out. Keeping my options open just makes sense.

S. Pimp.