Are we going about this "barefoot movement" in the right way?

[stomper]

Saypay, your post has several

Saypay, your post has several interesting aspects.

First, the premise that there is a movement here... i.e. not just a practice, but a philosophy, and a desire to bring others into it. I'm not sure I feel that way about barefoot running or shoelessness in particular right now. Of course when I was first doing BFR and my injuries were going away and running was getting fun, yes, I was ecstatic and naturally wanted to convince people that it was the best thing to do. But now I almost shy away from talking about it with people (except here at the BRS, and then there is the troublesome premise that the users here are people ) unless they really pursue me about it. I feel like if I'm part of a "movement" now, it's that one should be aware of their body and all the things it is communicating and doing. But shoelessness is just one way of going about it.

But when it comes to the more specific matter of running footwear, I am VERY RESISTANT now to recommending minimal shoes, because of the growing evidence that they encourage many people to do TMTS and heel strike. See this comment about the recent U.Mass study. I think I'd rather recommend people run a few yards a day barefoot and experiment or adapt that way. I feel like minimal shoes may be best for runners who've already learned to how to run without banging themselves up.

Or, if they're the right colors, for clubbing.

 

[Matt]

stomper wrote:...First, the

...First, the premise that there is a movement here... i.e. not just a practice, but a philosophy, and a desire to bring others into it. I'm not sure I feel that way about barefoot running or shoelessness in particular right now. Of course when I was first doing BFR and my injuries were going away and running was getting fun, yes, I was ecstatic and naturally wanted to convince people that it was the best thing to do. But now I almost shy away from talking about it with people (except here at the BRS, and then there is the troublesome premise that the users here are people ) unless they really pursue me about it. I feel like if I'm part of a "movement" now, it's that one should be aware of their body and all the things it is communicating and doing. But shoelessness is just one way of going about it.....

That really sums up my take on this. I think after a certain period of initial excitement and enthusiasm passes, there is a lot less desire to get other people to "join".

I'm always wary of people trying to "convert" other people to their movement.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I very much think this is a

I very much think this is a movement, a movement to healthier, safer, happier running. And I do think you can have a movement without getting into other people's faces; rather live by example. I would like to think I am a part of that movement, living by example and offering support to those who seek it.

 

[jschwab]

The only way you will ever

The only way you will ever get me to treat this barefootin' thing as a "movement" critical to my consciousness is if we bring in issues of social justice and environmentalism. Nike kills, yes, but not because Nike footwear is on our feet - it's because of what happens in Nike factories and what happens with all that manufacturing waste.

But do I care enough about people's feet and knees and whether they do TMTS? Not really. I have bigger fish to fry. They can wear whatever the heck they want. I see this more as a support/advocacy organization. Do you want to learn? Do you need more information? Do you need to know if that race course will leave you with quarter-sized blisters? Do you need strategies for convincing your gym to let you go barefoot on the track? Here we are.

I work with organizations in my life to end war, support wounded and hurting vets, to stop abuse of children and families, to expand educational opportunities for marginalized youth, to stop abuse of women, especially pregnant women. This is way, way low on my priority list of "causes".

 

[stomper]

Barefoot TJ wrote:I very much

I very much think this is a movement, a movement to healthier, safer, happier running.

Yes, that nails it.

I could care less what other people wear on their feet. But it does pain me a bit, the old "recent convert" behavior does threaten to come out, when I see other people who are clearly miserable running. It doesn't have to be that way!

 

[Abide]

I look at it simply as a

I look at it simply as a helping a fellow human out. I'll wait until they ask though.

 

[migangelo]

When i first started i became

When i first started i became a bit of an evangilist. I still will trumpet the glories with close friends. What i no longer do is tell people how great my vff are or how great bf is. If they ask i tell them. I have, at least with the last two questioners, told them it's best to do a little bf every other day then get some minimal shoes. i can read their faces that that's not what they wanted to hear but when i tell them let their skin guide them and put their shoes on afterwards to go for a run, they seem a little more pleased.



Mike

 

[kentox]

I've become quite cautious

I've become quite cautious about how i answer peoples questions about BF or wearing VFF's. I need to see if they are open to the idea or not. I don't try and convince anyone but I will let them know about all the benfits I get of being BF and let them make up their own mind. I point them to this forum and Ken Bob's site for more information. I see it more about planting the seed in their mind then beating it into them and coming off as a BF loony

 

[zapmamak]

Barefoot TJ wrote:The bottoms

The bottoms of my feet are so smooth. My feet never look all scraped up. That's just not what's happening...to me anyway.

Yeah. I'm a WHOLE different story. But its all good. I consider my torn up feet a small price to pay for such an incredible experience. :bigsmile:

 

[Barefoot TJ]

J., of course, some movements

J., of course, some movements are more important than others. No doubt hunger is more important than barefoot running is, as one example. That doesn't mean that the barefoot/minimalist movement is not a movement though. You can place whatever importance on it you want and focus more on those that mean more to you. That's great. We need all types of people to take on all different types of causes. I choose to focus on this movement at this moment in my life. I give of myself in many other ways as well, not just here.

Now, to rise it above just running around, frolicking in the wind, like hippies without shoes on, you could look at this as a movement to end obesity in America, which is a very serious health problem in our country, a problem that leads to diabetes, heart attacks, and death. Many people stop running because they get injured too often and feel that they just weren't meant to run. I hear this story all too often. Some get depressed about it. Some end up sitting around and gaining weight. If we can inform people that there's a great possibility that they will be able to run again and gain back their health, that people can run free from injuries caused by shoes, that people are not defective, then that is a movement, a movement to healthier, happier living.

 

[jschwab]

Oh, I agree it's a movement,

Oh, I agree it's a movement, TJ - I didn't mean to imply it wasn't. It's also a particularly successful one, thanks to good folks like you. I think for me I just don't feel like it's critical to persuade others to join if they don't want to, and I do like to emphasize other reasons besides avoiding injury. I am an "exercise pusher" -- I want people to live healthier, happier, simpler lives and I like the way you formulate it. I want more people running period, whatever their weight, age or physical limitations. I also think changing the way we think about what external aids we need to perform the simplest of tasks like running ultimately helps strip away the facade that life is so hard and complicated. With that in mind, we can tackle those really critical issues in a different way that more directly solves problems. Barefoot running is all about community and self-reliance. We can stand to have more of that all over.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Whew!  I'm glad you

Whew! I'm glad you reiterated your stance there, J. I was a little confused and shocked.

I don't go around soliciting people who don't express an interest in joining our site or our movement. I figure if they get sick enough of all the pain and injuries they go through, as long as we've planted the seed and are here to support them, they will seek us out when they are ready.

Now, if a friend says, "I've been having knee pain while running," and I look down to see them wearing boat anchors, I will tell them, "Have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, it's not you? Maybe it's the shoes you're wearing?" If they act offended, I'm done. If they don't, I continue on, just a little. I think we have a responsibility to do so.

I was approached recently by a running club, not my own, to be a guest speaker at one of their meetings. I'm quite honored and quite scared, since I am rather shy, until you get to know me. I'm disappointed that my own shod running club, of which I have been a member for 2-1/2 years hasn't (yet) asked me to be a speaker at one of our monthly meetings. I know that most of the 200 members are much older than me (I'm 44), and so it may be even harder to break down the walls of "conventional" thinking. They did, however, ask the local shoe outlet (that has been selling a lot of minimalist footwear lately) to come and speak about the footwear options available these days and that included bringing VFFs. And yesterday, at my club's monthly grand prix, one of the older runners wanted me to know that he bought a pair of VFFs. (He used to be a running partner of mine, until he got a new girlfriend, and so I had talked to him about them about a year ago, but he wasn't at all interested in them then. He just sorta smiled, to humor me.) I said, "Be sure to only run in them for short distances at a time until you can work your mileage back up, or you'll get injured." He just smiled at me (to humor me), patted me on the back, and said, "Good-bye."

 

[SaraLord]

I've spent most of my adult

I've spent most of my adult life living on the fringe in some form or another - enlisted in the Marine Corps in the mid 80's passing up an offer of OCS, had my second child at home with a midwife, vegetarian (although this is arguably not as novel as it may have been 20+ years ago), lived and worked in Hong Kong on my own. So my perspective starts with this as a backdrop.

There are lots of things well worth doing; giving up margarine and refined carbohydrates, not wearing shoes that enable child labor, not buying in to the medical notion that childbirth is a disease and should be treated as such, etc. For even the most moderately curious bystander, all of this information, particularly with the onset of the internet, is readily available.

Most people don't want to put the time and energy into a) knowing what alternatives exist, b) determining if said alternative would be a match for them or c) following through with the nascent idea.

Would I love to see more barefoot/minimalist runners? Heck yeah. Will lots of people try it and give up because of the reasons listed in this thread so far? Yes.

Margarine is alive and well and wearing those fluffy expensive Nikes sold to you by an uneducated salesperson might just be easier.

Saypay - thanks for floating the idea out here - it was good food for thought. I vote BF first, minimalist second.

 

[jschwab]

TJ, you are going to be

TJ, you are going to be great! Don't worry - people will be so interested in what you have to say following a simple Q&A format if you're nervous would probably work well. There are so many myths and dataheads spouting research that just speaking from personal experience will be a big deal for people. My running club is a mixed bag - some huaraches, some VFF's, lots of interest, mostly in regular Asics or Frees

I think it's such a different environment around here than alot of places BRS folks are, at least right in the city. City Sports is here and has supported real BF running and VFF's for years and the other LRS's are, for the most part, opened up (still a few stalwarts). The main influencer store has been having barefoot running clinics and sometimes I swear 20% of those on the trail are in VFF's or barefoot or in minimalist shoes that barely qualify as athletic footwear, like superminimalist Skechers - and you can tell it's intentional and not just because they are beginners. Many of my friends have started barefoot/minimalist running, too. I think the information is largely available now for those who want it - mostly I try to dispel myths and demystify how difficult folks think it will be to run barefoot. I find I end up giving alot of advice that is more along the lines of demystifying the importance of being fussy about shoes. My training partner, for instance, is training with me in shoes she's had for 6 years - I love that. They are just simple tools for her.

 

[JosephTree]

I'm with SarahLord.  I don't

I'm with SarahLord. I don't think most people will ever "get it" about home birth, real food, or BF/M running. On the otherhand, even as very fringey topics, all these things are still objectively good in a very well documented and demonstrable (or in the case of BF/M runniing, increasingly well documented) way.

I ran a 10 mile race with maybe 1500 participants yesterday. As I was slowly making my way back from the turnaround, I was amazed at how loud most of my fellow runners were, even as they passed me. Some I could hear coming up on me from 50 yards back. I thought of how much collective wear and tear was taking place on so many feet, knees and backs and I KNOW that there is room for improvement there. I know in my bones that running with gentle impact and excellent form, as my bare feet have been teaching me, has to be a better way. I also know that the shoe companies have very little to fear in the foreseeable future.

I answerd maybe a dozen inquiries from folks who were at best mildly curious. Most of those were from the course minders - non-running atheletes from the local University - who were bored out of their minds. But...some people who saw me and the other VFF runner, will remember, and will have that thought come back to them when they are ready for change. This is faith talk now, but it's how I see the world work usually. So, is this the basis for a "movement?" Yup, I think so.

... and Sarah, all 3 of my children were born in the bed from which I'm writing this.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Ah, sweet, JT.  They were

Ah, sweet, JT. They were made there too, I imagine! ;-)

 

[Barefoot TJ]

When I hear a shod runner

When I hear a shod runner coming up from behind me, yes, I'm that slow, I can't help but tell them, "I could hear you coming from a mile away" and smile at them. Some of them grin, some of them smile back. Regardless, the seed is planted.

 

[SillyC]

 ...  and I'm really going

... and I'm really going about it the wrong way!

I've been declining ofers to be on TV or talk with media. I don't think I have the time, but really - I don't wanna be on TV. It's a decent conversation starter, but I am somewhat uncomfortable with all the extra attention. So there I'll be, just runnin' barefoot.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I'm always referring other

I'm always referring other barefoot runners for interviews, as some of you can attest. It gets pretty routine when it's the newspapers. I try to share the love and not take all the limelight. Mostly, when I am contacted, they are wishing to actually talk to me though, but if they're not, I'll think of someone whom I think would be a good advocate and refer them over to that person. In fact, I referred one to you a little while ago as well, Silly. I guess you declined that one then?

 

[jschwab]

JosephTree wrote:I'm with

I'm with SarahLord. I don't think most people will ever "get it" about home birth, real food, or BF/M running. On the otherhand, even as very fringey topics, all these things are still objectively good in a very well documented and demonstrable (or in the case of BF/M runniing, increasingly well documented) way.

I ran a 10 mile race with maybe 1500 participants yesterday. As I was slowly making my way back from the turnaround, I was amazed at how loud most of my fellow runners were, even as they passed me. Some I could hear coming up on me from 50 yards back. I thought of how much collective wear and tear was taking place on so many feet, knees and backs and I KNOW that there is room for improvement there. I know in my bones that running with gentle impact and excellent form, as my bare feet have been teaching me, has to be a better way. I also know that the shoe companies have very little to fear in the foreseeable future.

I answerd maybe a dozen inquiries from folks who were at best mildly curious. Most of those were from the course minders - non-running atheletes from the local University - who were bored out of their minds. But...some people who saw me and the other VFF runner, will remember, and will have that thought come back to them when they are ready for change. This is faith talk now, but it's how I see the world work usually. So, is this the basis for a "movement?" Yup, I think so.

... and Sarah, all 3 of my children were born in the bed from which I'm writing this.

I hope we get to meet sometime! Did you guys have a midwife? My kids were born within a ten foot radius of where I am in bed right now.