- Learning to run with shoes on, is like learning a spoken language with ear plugs. You just can’t hear the way the words sound. And with shoes, you just can’t feel your feet touching the ground. And, as far as potential damage to our bodies, that is where the important part of running takes place!
- ...It is possible to learn to run correctly, while wearing shoes. It is also possible to learn to speak and understand speech while deaf. My wife, is deaf, and she learned to speak. But it is a time-consuming and frustrating chore which requires an almost full-time commitment, as well as having someone else observing, and providing constant feedback, to let us know if we are doing something correctly or incorrectly.
- My bias, is of course, to start barefoot. Our feet, after all, are our best coaches. They will remind us immediately, and persistently, when we are running badly. And, when we are running well, our feet will enjoy the run, as much as the rest of our body, especially, if our feet are not being imprisoned inside shoes!
His article on "How to Run Barefoot" is a great primer on why barefoot (or "barefoot-ish") running makes sense biomechanically, and on how to get started. This is a guy who's run more than 70 marathons barefoot, so you get the idea that he kinda knows what he's talking about. If you're interested in making the move away from your running shoes, it's well worth the read!
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