Barefoot in the darkWith no shoes, no socks, and (they say) no pain, some find the soul of running
By Taryn
Plumb
Up
ahead, you can see them, moving through the moonless,
cold-tinged night, passing headlights dabbing them with
flashes of light.
But hold on here - just
take a look down at their feet.
No shoes.
No socks, either.
They’re totally commando. Toes fall exposed on cracked
concrete, heels land on rugged and ridged pavement,
ankles bend unencumbered through the cool, late-fall
air.
Joining with their cushiony-shoed compatriots for a
recent night run with members of Woburn’s Shamrock
Running Club, these free-spirited, unshod few represent
a mini-evolution (or perhaps devolution) in the running
community.
By going barefoot, they contend, they’ve truly found the
soul of the sport.
“This feels good - it’s freeing, it’s natural,’’
Gloucester 46-year-old Preston Curtis, wearing long
sleeves, shorts, and no shoes, said after a 5-mile run
through Woburn’s nighttime streets. “We were designed to
run this way.’’
Your body doesn’t need the aid of synthetic leather or
rubber - it’s already equipped with everything it
requires to run properly and safely, say barefooters.
In fact such “support,’’ padded and pillowed into
athletic footwear, isn’t helpful, say the shoeless. It
can be damaging, by working against the natural gait and
changing the way the body absorbs the shock of
repetitive footfalls.
“We weren’t born with shoes,’’ 42-year-old Nancy Kinney
of Woburn said. “It just feels so much more natural.’’
Still, Americans love their sneakers. Last year, we
bought 334 million pairs of athletic shoes, according to
the American Apparel and Footwear Association.
Despite this, increasing numbers of runners are leaving
their Nikes in the closet and letting their feet go
nude. (And for the more tentative ones, there’s a bridge
between shod and shoeless - Vibram Five Fingers,
essentially gloves for the feet.)
Just do a quick Web search: You’ll find dozens of sites
dedicated to the movement, as well as hundreds of
instructional videos and forums. Some schools are even
trying it, including the track-and-field team at
Portsmouth Christian Academy in Dover, N.H.; others are
using it as an engine for charity work. A Vermont man,
for example, is now running across the country to raise
money for homeless youth.
Meanwhile, the science community is also tapping into
the trend, with researchers, including Harvard
University’s Daniel Lieberman, studying the effects on
gait, skeletal structure, muscles, and joints when
running with shoes and without.
“When I started, it was much more fringe,’’ said Edward
Faulkner, a 28-year-old from Somerville, who ditched
sneakers 2 1/2 years ago and recently ran the Cape Cod
marathon barefoot (and in 3:07). “It’s become much more
respected among runners in general.’’Continued...
Page 2 of 2 --
Largely the movement is spurred by Christopher McDougall’s
recent book, “Born to Run.’’ In it, McDougall analyzes the
Tarahumara Indian tribe in Mexico, whose members traverse
hazardous and risky terrain every day in simple sandals with
thin rubber soles
Ultimately McDougall theorizes that the modern running shoe
corrupts the stride and forces runners to land on their
heels, rather than the balls of their feet, the latter being
better equipped to handle the impact.
This means fewer injuries occur without shoes, he contends.
It’s the same testament you’ll hear from the local ranks of
the unshod.
As they’ve liberated their feet, they say, ailments like
crushed toes, weak ankles that roll, knee and back pain,
blisters, and toenails ripped off from sweat buildup, have
all but healed.
“I was just tired of aching,’’ Faulkner said of his decision
to try going barefoot.
Longtime runner Melissa Bourassa of Woburn tells a similar
story - she tried going barefoot on a whim a couple years
ago at the end of a long mountain race.
Before that, she had chronic problems with her hips and IT
bands (tissue that runs down the outside of the thigh).
Gone now, she says.
So she’s since sworn off shoes, although she does prefer a
little protection, slipping regularly into a pair of light
purple Vibrams.
“My knee feels better, my feet feel better,’’ she said.
Her wallet, too. She estimated that in six months time she
bought 12 pairs of shoes - all styles, all brands. Nikes,
Faulkner, for his part, estimated that he’s saved about $500
so far on shoes.
In addition, barefoot runners say the shoeless route
provides a much better workout - muscles left idle are
awakened - and it’s environmentally friendly.
“You’re not just throwing away thousands of pairs of
sneakers that take a long time to disintegrate,’’ said
Bourassa.
Still, doesn’t it hurt?
Remarkably, no, say barefooters.
So, then, how does it feel?
“Like a massage,’’ said Curtis, who started running barefoot
12 years ago on California beaches and now averages about 25
miles a week.
“Like a pedicure,’’ said 26-year-old Paul Koenig of
Manchester, N.H. Exposing the bottom of his foot by grabbing
hold of his big toe, he boasted, “My feet are softer than my
girlfriend’s.’’ (His soles were smooth and blisterless -
albeit a little dirtied from pounding the pavement.)
Sure, at first it can be a little uncomfortable, they
acknowledge, but your feet adapt, the bottoms getting
toughened and eventually feeling like gel packs or soft
leather.
Which allows guys like Tim Bourassa, Melissa’s husband, to
log 35 to 40 miles a week, and recently a 62-mile trek for
charity.
The Woburn 39-year-old zips along back roads, busy streets
rumbling with cars, and rocky, chestnut-studded trails at a
clip of 8 1/2 miles per hour (averaging a 7-minute mile),
even in snow and sleet.
And in his shoeless travels, he’s heard it all:
“You’re nuts!’’
“You’re a better man than me!’’
And then, Faulkner said, there are the jokesters who ask if
you forgot your shoes.
Mostly, though, the reaction is shock.
“They think you have to be a tough guy,’’ Faulkner said.
The thing is, the opposite is true, according to Faulkner.
“I’m not willing to run with pain,’’ he said. “I’m much more
comfortable this way.’’
But barefooters don’t advise tenderfeet to ditch their
sneakers and immediately trot off at a marathon pace.
It’s very different from regular running, they say, which is
clear as soon as you watch them. The pace is more tentative,
strides shorter and landings gentler. They’re prancing
almost, toes and balls of their feet touching down lightly
and springing back up.
Intrigued? Try starting out on smooth, flat pavement, and
begin with short distances, maybe a quarter-mile or a
half-mile, Faulkner said.
Or work your feet in on a treadmill or track; even a golf
course or the beach, Tim Bourassa suggested. Anything soft
and easy.
Ultimately, “It’s like you’re starting from scratch again,’’
Faulkner said.
Bourassa agreed. “You’re going backwards. You take your
shoes off and you have to learn how to walk again,’’ he
said.
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