Running Press

News and articles from Running Training Plan

The Barefoot Running Diaries

Between July 2009 and April 2013 we ran a project here that welcomed runners  to document their experiences of running barefoot.

Twenty six people participated, some wrote only an intro and maybe a post or two, others contributed more detailed reports. One in particular, Soul Man, wrote 74 entries on his journey into running barefoot.

There is no doubt the Christopher McDougall's book, Born to Run, created a huge interest in barefoot running and a major shake-up within the running community, from beginners, to coaches, to shoe manufacturers. Whilst much of the hype has now diminished, the legacy has been a re-evaluation of what it means to run naturally. These posts in this section provide a glimpse into the lives of just a few runners who tried it.

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Week 17

  • Total weekly miles

 9 miles.

  • Number of running sessions

3.

  • Total weekly barefoot mile

0 miles.

  • Number of barefoot running sessions

0.

  • Running terrain

Mostly flat, one steep hill, on a mixture of pavement and mud.

  • Ground surface of barefoot runs

N.A.

  • Runs in minimalist shoes, e.g. Five Fingers.

RunAmocs on one run, Vivobarefoot Evo II on two runs.

  • Weather for barefoot runs (rain on road?)

I’m going to fill this in weekly even though I’m not barefoot at the moment… This week has been really wet, so the ground surface for running has been really muddy and greasy.   

  • Condition of skin on feet — hotspots, blisters

Good.  No side-effects of wearing my new shoes. 

  • Interesting/amusing comments received during the week: e.g. ‘You’ve got no shoes on!’

read more

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Week 16

  • Total weekly miles

 7.8 miles.

  • Number of running sessions

3.

  • Total weekly barefoot mile

0 miles.

  • Number of barefoot running sessions

0.

  • Running terrain

Mostly flat, one steep hill, on a mixture of pavement and grass.

  • Ground surface of barefoot runs

N.A.

  • Runs in minimalist shoes, e.g. Five Fingers.

RunAmocs on all 3 runs.

  • Weather for barefoot runs (rain on road?)

Not barefoot, but I had some problems this week in my RunAmocs.  I’ve got the “street” soles on mine, which is basically a smooth piece of rubber with no grip or tread.  When it’s dry, or when I’m running on pavement or road, it’s fine.  However, read more

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Great advice about barefoot running

There is plenty of ‘advice’, about barefoot running now. Whilst it is easy to find, it is very hard to sort out the good from the bad, and hence, what is a sensible approach to barefoot running. A very large portion of the directives fail in one vital aspect: the fact that we are all different.

Our survey is clearly telling us that there is a huge variation in the success or otherwise read more

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Week 15

  • Total weekly miles

 6.9 miles.

  • Number of running sessions

3.

  • Total weekly barefoot mile

0 miles.

  • Number of barefoot running sessions

0.

  • Running terrain

Mostly flat, one steep hill, on a mixture of pavement and grass.

  • Ground surface of barefoot runs

N.A.

  • Runs in minimalist shoes, e.g. Five Fingers.

RunAmocs on all 3 runs.  Again, just too cold to go barefoot.  I kind of doubt I’ll be able to go barefoot again till Spring now.

  • Weather for barefoot runs (rain on road?)

N.A.

  • Condition of skin on feet — hotspots, blisters

Good.  No side-effects of wearing my RunAmocs so far. 

  • Interesting/amusing comments received during the week: e.g. ‘You’ve got no shoes on!’

Nothing.  Like I said last week, with my RunAmocs, I have something on my feet, whether they look like trainers read more

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Barefoot Running Survey – some interesting figures emerging

Firstly, a very big thank you to everyone who has completed the survey so far.
With over one hundred respondents recorded so far, we have the beginnings of some very useful data.

Here’s a taste:

  • 75% barefoot runners are male
  • Average age is 35
  • 65% of the barefoot miles run are on the road
  • nearly half of barefooters are running in the 8.30-10.00 min/mile speed band
  • most prevalent pre-existing injuries (before running barefoot), are to the knee
  • 60% of barefoot runners have had to cut back or moderate their barefoot running
  • 30% of barefoot runners say that barefoot running has caused injury (calf pain and top of foot pain being most prevalent)
  • 40% of barefoot runners say they now run faster, with 17% saying they have slowed
  • 86% of existing orthotic users say that they no longer use them since running barefoot or in minimalist shoes

There is plenty more data, and all of the above will have to be put into context by the other answers that have been given.

Have you tried running barefoot or in minimalist shoes?
If you have, and read more

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Week 14

  • Total weekly miles

 3.5 miles.

  • Number of running sessions

2.

  • Total weekly barefoot mile

2 miles.

  • Number of barefoot running sessions

1.

  • Running terrain

First run was in my RunAmocs, I’m starting to get back to the sort of distances where I can run the routes I used to run in my trainers.  So this one was pretty flat, one steep hill, on a mixture of pavement and grass.  Second run was along a beach barefoot, so that was flat.

  • Ground surface of barefoot runs

A mixture of pavement and grass/mud for the first run and a sandy beach for the second.

  • Runs in minimalist shoes, e.g. Five Fingers.

One read more