Barefoot Running and Gorilla Feet

This is a guest post from Jess, of Half of Jess.  She has a great blog about nutrition, running, and living healthy, and if that weren’t enough she includes some awesome photography and cooking tips to keep me reading.  Make sure you check her out.

You might have seen them. Those crazy barefoot runners bracing the concrete, enduring the gravel, hitting the trails.

You might have seen them. Those ridiculous looking Vibram FiveFingers. Those toe-socks. Those funny “shoes”.
You might have been thinking…

What the hell? Is this the new fad?

I look at it as rediscovering our natural state, ditching the modern running shoes in order to find the way that we were meant to be, the way we were designed and born to run.

The human body is a lean, strong machine. We are meant to be long-distance runners. Our bodies are designed and developed to endure impact. How else were we supposed to survive? How else were we supposed to chase prey? Outrun predators?

The 20th century has not outsmarted evolution. Your body is smarter than whatever Nike, Adidas, or New Balance can design. You just have to learn to trust it, let it adapt and do what it was meant to do.

Take off your shoes and let your feet breathe.

Walk around in the grass, on the sand, in the dirt barefoot. Soak in the earth. Feel nature pulsing through your body, seeping through your skin. Now jog slowly through your neighborhood, at the beach, through the park.

What if there’s glass? Dog poo? Pebbles?

When you run barefoot, you will naturally tread lightly. No more pounding pavement.
You become a stealthy, silent predator.
You start scanning the ground, a natural instinct you lose when you run with shoes.
Your feet will start toughening up.

You will callus. You might blister. But your body will adapt. Quickly. Efficiently. Effectively.

Ease into the transition. It’s like re-learning how to walk. Your feet need time. They have been restricted for too long. You will discover muscles you’ve never used before. You will strengthen your feet, your toes, your calves.

Most importantly, you will strike with your midfoot, enabling your body to utilize its built-in mechanics for shock absorption. You’ll realize that landing on your heels hurt.

But you still want that peace of mind, extra protection.

The solution: Vibram FiveFingers.

They look like gorilla feet and might get a fail in the fashion department, but they mimic barefoot running while giving your feet some protection (although the best way to learn how to run barefoot is to actually run barefoot).

I bought my Vibram KSOs after running my first 5K race in shoes.

And I have never looked back.

I even ran my first Half Marathon in my Vibrams.

They are light, durable, and compact. I walk, run, elliptical, cycle, and weight lift in them. They are comfortable, though they may stink up. Nothing a good wash can’t fix.

Vibrams offer that extra protection against the elements, but not by much. I can still feel the ground beneath me, especially gravel. I can feel the change in terrain, and I avoid stepping on sticks, pebbles, stones, animals.

They may take some getting used to, some breaking in. It took me a few days to learn how to slide my toes into the toe compartments. Sometimes, the pinky just doesn’t like cooperating. The left heel on my Vibrams were irritating for the first week. I blistered under my big toes for the first month.

They will definitely strike up interesting conversation, especially with other runners. And they certainly garner some fascinated, sometimes disgusted, looks and attention.

But I always remember that I run for myself. The “shoe” doesn’t create the runner.

Remember: You were designed to run.