Just wondering if there are any barefoot runners out there? I love a good run along the beach in nothing but shorts and have had a few runs on grass although I’m always nervous about something sharp… The last six years or so I’ve used Vibram Five Fingers for protection and really rate them. The sensation is close to naked but the grip is better than barefoot. Superb on certain trails. Any other runners out there? Any other shoes to recommend for a near barefoot feel when shoes are necessary or wise.
I like to run barefoot, but the concrete streets and sidewalks tend to take some skin off my soles. So I use the Cloud sandal by Xero Shoes. They provide a pretty close to barefoot feel and do not affect my running performance or speed. I highly recommend them. You should check them out.
I’m not into running but do barefoot hike and cycle. There’s a few runners on Instagram - I follow one called thehappyrunnernw , she’s great, so enthusiastic about barefooting
I run barefoot 100% of the time when I'm running the roads. In the past I had some issues with roughing up my feet on pavement, so I ran in various forms of minimalist footwear (VFF, Xero Shoes, sandals). Never could find something that I was 100% comfortable in, so one day I just decided I'd ignore mileage and just focus on running barefoot a little bit each day. I eventually found that my feet were no longer sore after a run, so I increased the distance. Repeated this process until I reached a point last summer when I was running 50+ miles a week, all barefoot on asphalt/cement. I now run all of my races barefoot as well. No more running shoes for me, except for trails (for now).
Any plans to attack running trails barefoot? I walk and hike on trails and dirt paths frequently with sometimes an occasional jog and it is an awesome feeling.
Yes, I do actually, that is why I put the "for now" at the end. I have hiked barefoot on the trails where I run with no problem; I've always gone barefoot whenever I could my whole life so that isn't difficult for me. My main issue up to this point is that I like to race, and I have had concerns about whether or not I can run them barefoot fast enough to remain competitive. But I recently proved that I can now run middle distances on pavement just as fast as I can with shoes, so I am planning to go back and give it a shot running the trails barefoot and see where I stand.
