Why? I think I've posted wayyyy enough detail about my experiences so far!

Why stop now? Help us to see and fully understand the merits of your barefoot/minimalist evangelism!

It's good stuff. More people/everyone would probably benefit from at least incorporating some of it. And if MOP me can do it, it can't be as impossible as it's often made out to be.

SHOW US, Bro!....show us.

Uhh...read the tons of text I posted on prior pages?

I experimented with New Balance Minimus shoes when they first came out, using them once or twice a week out of 5 or 6 runs a week. I eventually decided not to pursue the minimalist approach 100%. I do feel that they helped me appreciate my running form much more, and I think that effect carried over when I wear regular running shoes. Did I get faster during that time? Yes. Was that due to the minimalist shoes? Who knows! But it was an experiment I enjoyed doing.

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http://www.howesgreg.com

Interesting, thank you for sharing.

I made the switch to barefoot style in 2013 and haven't looked back. I've been been injury free since I adapted. I had terrible form before which led to all sorts of injuries - Patella tendonitis, sore ITBs, the beginnings of plantir facitis etc. All the problems vanished pretty much overnight.

I bought myself a pair of New Balance minimus road 10v2s to start and they lasted me 3 years. Then I got a pair of 10v3s which lasted only a year (my mileage increased a lot). My 10v3s are now at the end of their life, so I had to scour the internet for a pair of the trail 10v1s which have arrived at my flat today. I'll be trying them later on.

For me, making the switch made me faster indirectly. I am now a much more efficient runner, and more importantly I can train consistently without injury which has led to me being a lot quicker. I feel like I run a lot more fluidly, where as before I was crashing down and putting a lot of stress through my muscles and bones.

The transition period took me about 1 painful month, where my calves ballooned up and my forefoot was basically one giant blister. I used an injury as an excuse to make the transition, as soon as my Minimus' were delivered I got rid of my old 'supportive' shoes and run exclusively in my new style. Probably not the best idea, but the injury meant I had to ease back into running anyway.

Everyone has a unique running style, which you can witness in action if you watch elite marathoners, so it may not work for you but it's worth to try if you keep getting injuries from your supportive shoes.

What does that translate into in practice? How much did you run per week/month before? How much after the transition? How fast did you run before vs. now?

Good question, I've attached some relevant data from Park Run (5km). For reference, I made the switch in October 2013, you can see how my times drastically changed over the following months. The second from bottom row more accurately represents my capability at the time pre-transition, the bottom time was when I was fighting shin splints IIRC.



Before, I was running 2-3 times per week, going to track once per week and getting an injury every couple of months so my training was VERY sporadic and usually crappy zone 3 stuff. After transition, it was still crappy zone 3 stuff but it was a lot more consistent, which yielded gains.

My recent 5km ParkRun is in the 18s now that I've learnt to train properly.

So in other words not so relevant data since you improved your training as well.
While I believe there is def a place for minimalist shoes, they are not for everyone, they will not automatically make you faster.
As others have stated, most pros train and race in shoes with cushioning even though they could choose other shoes.
Even though many east africans grow up running barefoot, most still choose a cushioned shoe when they have the opportunity to afford one.

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Terrible Tuesday’s Triathlon

To be fair to WoodyES what he is saying (as I see it) is it helped with injuries that allowed more consistent training.


I'm not familiar with the injuries stated but barefoot running is supposed to be positive (with all the fine print) for knee injuries.

The study I linked earlier fits with the way I see it that barefoot moves the running stress further from the knees and towards the lower legs. So it is totally wrong for me (Achilles problems) but if it helps someone with knee injuries then more power to them.

Maybe, but it could also be his stopping with track workouts and bad training that kept him injury free.

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Terrible Tuesday’s Triathlon

He said he kept his training the same, but is more consistent now. Stopping track workouts is also not going to make you injured less

He said zone 3, which isn't hard track workouts.
Of course it can. High intensity work is a lot more stressing on the body.

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Terrible Tuesday’s Triathlon

I am going to join lightheir on this one. High volume training in stupid drop shoes has ruined my run form, that I am dealing with many injuries. I look at race photos of me and see the form differences.

What sort of injuries have you been dealing with? Is your opinion that barefoot is a running panacea?

First off, I haven’t mentioned anything about drop, there are cushioned shoes without drop as well.
However the 4% have a 10cm drop and they are the most favored shoe amongst the pros.
You and others in this thread who have positive effects running with minimalist shoes keep touting your personal experiences as prof of a universal truth, however almost all of the best runners simply don’t agree.

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Terrible Tuesday’s Triathlon

It is more than this.
Not only are the top pros in non-flat and cushioned shoes, but so are the Kona runners. So are regional AG winners. So are the top finishers at local races.

Barefoot style shoes are neither necessary nor sufficient to run with a good, efficient form.

Once again silly ST people stuck in the long distances only mentality. How many 5k top elites sub 14 min, sub 13) you see in cushiony shoes?

Competitive 5K is almost exclusively run in the track so I fail to see your point. But, again, Mo Farah when training for 5K and 10K did the bulk of his work in Nike Pegasus.

I'll agree with the prevalence of shoes in winning/record breaking performances. And sure, that's a perfectly good reasonable argument TO wear shoes that I won't disagree with one bit. If that's your means of selection, it's probably a pretty good one, and you should go with it!

Still, despite this reality of shoe-wearing winners in pro and AG realms, remember the key reality - NO running shoe has been ever proven to give a runner a speed advantage, include against barefoot. The closest one gets to a speed advantage is using spiked running flats on a track or x-country course.

As I mentioned though, one of the reasons I myself am going minimalist despite the lack of speed gain and no proven data about injury reduction, is that I think there's enough evolutionary and other evidence to suggest that it'll allow me to run well into my later years, longer than if I had been shoed. It's a guess, but I'm gambling that adopting a technique that is closest to what nature designed us for and using my achilles the way it was meant to be used rather than shielding it with a shoe, will pay off down the road. There will never be a convincing 25+ year series of studies to prove this definitively in any way, but I'm going to go with our anatomical natural motion as my best defense against aging joints etc. It's already paying off with regards to my horrible ankles for me by eliminating ankle rolls from the big stack, and I'm hoping it'll pay off more as I get older.

But just as importantly - it's just hella fun for me to run minimalist! I love the feeling and connection to the ground.

Arguments like this is why this discussion is pointless.
You have science, you have epidemiological data and common knowledge, you have whatever - then you have beliefs, feelings and personal anecdotes. And we're going in circles.

Had mine for I think 3 years now. I have the Ra II shoes.

There absolutely will be studies. There may not be the studies that proves speed. But injury occurrence? Absolutely there will and we've started to get them. Why wouldn't there be? Interview enough people who report type and severity of injury, running style, shoes, etc. Maybe not 25 years because of problems keeping contact with people but long enough to see trends.

My guess is the barefoot peak came some time after the publication of 'Born to Run' (2009?). So whenever the peak was it's less than 9 years. 7 or 8 years isn't really long in Achilles terms. But I think we'll start seeing early adopters reporting these types of injury more as the peak gets to 10, 15, 20 years of running in that style. But someone has to ask the right questions and collect the data.

I did link a study on post #29 that is worth reading.

Tracks acting as cushions was already mentioned above and addressed. I figured it was settled. Thanks for reiterating!