Born to Run

I received the book, Born to Run, for my birthday.  I had heard quite a bit about this book recently, so I was very excited to be able to finally read it.

The book is written by a journalist who also happens to be a runner.  He is telling the story of the Tarahumara Indians from Mexico, who happen to to be some of the world's best endurance athletes.  They run either barefoot or in rubber tread huarache sandals.

In the book he is looking to learn the secrets of the Tarahumara distance running success, as he had been plagued with running injuries for most of his running life.

I won't divulge any more of the story, as I would highly recommended reading the book. 

Besides the story that he tells, there is also a lot of information regarding a relatively new movement towards barefoot running.

Now, my first thought about barefoot running, was that this is just a couple of crazy people for which barefoot running has worked for, so they think everyone should do it.   As a Physical Therapist,  I definitely thought that this was the worst idea ever for runners to have no footwear.

Running is a wonderful way of keeping in shape and staving off the effects of aging, but it also poses a higher potential for injury compared with other forms of exercise.

With each step during a run, you can have up to 10 times your body weight jolting through your legs and spine.  It would be crazy to go without some sort of support on your feet to help 'cushion' some of this shock, right?

Well, according to the book that would be true, but only because we all tend to run incorrectly, or at least not as we were born to run.

 Heel Strike.                           Forefoot Strike

If you were to run without shoes on, odds are you will be running more towards your forefoot and toes, rather than over-striding and landing on your heel,  and sending a 1700 pound (in my case) shock-wave through your leg and spine.

The picture to the right shows the difference between the detrimental 'heel strike' during running and the more efficient and safe 'forefoot strike'.

The book's theory is that by wearing shoes for cushioning, stability and support, it encourages this heel strike during running, thereby subjecting us to a lot more wear and tear than running should actually be causing.

The shoe, they claim, is like a brace for the foot.  When it comes to Physical Therapy, I only uses braces when absolutely necessary because the body adapts to this support and allows the muscles which should be giving the support to relax and not be activated.

Could this be happening in the foot by continually wearing shoes as a 'brace'?

I think it is a feasible possibility.

Now, I am certainly not advocating that everyone go get rid of their shoes and start running barefoot.  I don't think that everyone is a candidate for running barefoot, and even if they are, it should be a gradual and slow progression to allow the foot and ankle to adapt and strengthen.

I will not be running barefoot anytime soon, but I am definitely going to work on altering a few things from a technique and bio-mechanical standpoint, in order to reduce injury risk and increase running efficiency. 

Who knows, maybe I will be running around wearing these some day!