Disappointing BF running clinic

moominmamma

moominmamma

Barefooters
Nov 8, 2010
72
33
18
New Denver, BC, Canada
#1
I went to a clinic in a neighbouring town that was being hosted by their running club. It was about barefoot running, and was being put on by a guy from somewhere in our region who had recovered from injury by barefooting and had logged over 6000 km of barefoot trail running. I was stoked! I love barefoot running, and I love trails but I haven't had much success marrying the two, since the trails around here are mostly rocky, rough and highly technical. My feet just aren't up to the task on anything but smooth dirt trails with minor debris.

The clinic was a fantastic, systematic introduction to minimalist running. I don't think the guy leading it had ever actually run barefoot. There were lots of freshly minted recreational runners there who I know will never run barefoot, and they were lapping up everything he was saying, getting a lot out of it. There was another whole group of newly-minimalist runners: people with swanky new VFF Komodo Sports and Merrell Trail Gloves. I toyed with being a cantankerous badass and challenging the terminology and then launching into a tirade about how the best way to learn proper "barefoot form" is to actually (duh!) run barefoot. But I wimped out; everyone else seemed to be getting exactly what they wanted out of the clinic.

So I guess I'm still on my own grappling with the barefoot + gnarly trails issue.

Miranda
 
#2
Surprisingly, I have talked to lots of folks who thought they would only ever go minimal and not even give BFR a glance, but then ended up ditching their brand new VFFs and opting for BFR full-time. So at least the idea is planted...somewhat.

(Of course, most will still go with the minshoes, but transforming some is better than none.)

Were you actually barefoot at this clinic? Were you the only one?

I can understand not calling him out on it publicly, but oh to see his face if you had done so privately.
 
#3
Reminds me of another thread on here where we were discussing what exactly constitutes barefoot running. There are a good number of BFRS members who would support this instructor calling his clinic a "barefoot" clinic, even though no bare feet were involved. Somehow the meaning of barefoot eludes the average person.
bare·foot

   
adjective, adverb
1.
Also, bare·foot·ed. with the feet bare: a barefoot boy; to walk barefoot.

As we can see, this does not include the wearing of any form of footwear. The foot must be naked in order for someone to be barefoot. :barefoot:
 
#4
We need a dead horse emoticon.

[Edit:
beatdeadhorse.gif
]
 
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#7
Yes, I was barefoot. Yes I was the only one. Small rural area, catchment population 3-4000. I wasn't surprised. Some of the runners attending the clinic did talk to me afterwards about my barefoot experiences.

Miranda
 
#10
Miranda,
That is disappointing for you, but maybe TJ is right; it does at least plant a seed for others. I'm just glad to see clinics on proper form starting up at all, so as to at least give the impression that switching from squishy shoes to minimal shoes might require some changes/learning.
Perhaps seeing you there without shoes was enough to make them wonder?
For me, it was reading the bf running forums and blogs, so maybe this will get people to start exploring on the web and see what their options are...
 
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#11
This is Jason's reasoning: barefoot shoes may act as a gateway to barefoot barefoot. Time will tell, but as long as they're teaching good form throughout, the problem of people trying barefoot running with barefoot shoes without good form and getting hurt and then giving up BFR in any shape or form, is greatly diminished.
 
#12
I agree that BFRs must encourage minimalist runners:) , but do we have to engage in a form of intellectual dishonesty by calling minimalist runners, barefoot runners?o_O I use minimalist shoes when needed, but I certainly don't lie to myself by telling myself I'm still running barefoot. :barefoot:
 
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#13
I agree, the semantic distortion is excruciating for some us, but I think Jason's point is that the term 'barefoot shoes' may plant the minimally subliminal idea of 'barefoot' in the heads of the minimally curious, in a way the more descriptively adequate term 'minimalist shoes' may not. Whether this actually works in practice, I have no idea.
 
#14
Your back to my "barefoot iceberg theory" the barefoot/minimalist runners are like an iceberg with the true barefoot runners showing up as the 10% who get noticed "top of the iceberg" with the 90% not showing as minimalist runners. To grow the 10% barefoot runners the whole iceberg has to grow which means the 90% minimalist runners have to grow also. As much as I don't like the oxy-moronic term "barefoot shoe" that's the only way some people can relate to mid-foot running form...so be it.

Elephants are elegant.
 
#15
mokaman said:
Your back to my "barefoot iceberg theory" the barefoot/minimalist runners are like an iceberg with the true barefoot runners showing up as the 10% who get noticed "top of the iceberg" with the 90% not showing as minimalist runners. To grow the 10% barefoot runners the whole iceberg has to grow which means the 90% minimalist runners have to grow also. As much as I don't like the oxy-moronic term "barefoot shoe" that's the only way some people can relate to mid-foot running form...so be it.

Elephants are elegant.
Click to expand...
That seems like a plausible model, and would make for a good infographic. And yes, bare and let shod.
Elephants are effluently elegant.
 
#16
mokaman said:
Your back to my "barefoot iceberg theory" the barefoot/minimalist runners are like an iceberg with the true barefoot runners showing up as the 10% who get noticed "top of the iceberg" with the 90% not showing as minimalist runners. To grow the 10% barefoot runners the whole iceberg has to grow which means the 90% minimalist runners have to grow also. As much as I don't like the oxy-moronic term "barefoot shoe" that's the only way some people can relate to mid-foot running form...so be it.

Elephants are elegant.
Click to expand...

Precisely.I think those of us that have been around this for a long time have recognized this.

If we embrace the term "barefoot shoes", it gives us an opportunity to promote barefoot running. Before the critics whine about the semantics issue- would you rather be right or be effective? What if they were called "Pose shoes"? How many people would try barefoot then?

I have some pretty extensive experience selling barefoot running under the auspices of "barefoot shoes." Trust me when I say it's a good thing. And yes, this is one of the few issues that piss me off. Those that insist on correcting others just come off as d-bags to the uninitiated, which helps fuel the reputation of barefoot runners as fanatics. THAT does more harm to converting people than any semantics issue related to shoes.
 
#17
On the other hand, I think learning that you CAN run without shoes as early as possible is helpful.
For me, I just bought the minimals; it didn't occur to me that you COULD run barefoot, till the rw forum had some comments and people saying that they did run bf and thought it was better for form training. It was like "oh, ok, I'll try that, then." If I hadn't stumbled across discussion of barefoot running, though, who knows. And a seminar where it's never mentioned to actually take off any shoes, well, that sort of implies that you can't.
So maybe just seeing Miranda in her bf was the actual planting of the seed. Hey, if she can do it....
 
#18
I have gradually come to accept the term "barefoot shoes" as a marketing hook that is helpful in persuading people to reconsider the validity of the whole support/cushioning paradigm. But I still think the term "barefoot running" should refer to skin-to-ground. Without the word "shoes" in there, it's just misleading.

I think the clinic I attended was doing something really positive for most of the people there, which is why I chose not to make waves. Two of the people there did recognize me as "that person that we saw up near the ski hill in January returning from a run barefoot when it was way below freezing." I definitely piqued their interest.

I really would have appreciated the clinician making the point that going completely barefoot is one very valid way to "transition your form," that your bare soles are the best form coaches. That's what I probably should have piped up and said. Ah, well, next time.

Miranda
 
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#19
Miranda, maybe next time you can do a informal barefoot ( as in skin to ground) running information clinic. It seems you have accumulated enough miles and knowledge to get some who are interested to get started. Approach your community center to see if they are open to this.
 
#20
If we embrace the term "barefoot shoes", it gives us an opportunity to promote barefoot running. Before the critics whine about the semantics issue- would you rather be right or be effective? What if they were called "Pose shoes"? How many people would try barefoot then?

I have some pretty extensive experience selling barefoot running under the auspices of "barefoot shoes." Trust me when I say it's a good thing. And yes, this is one of the few issues that piss me off. Those that insist on correcting others just come off as d-bags to the uninitiated, which helps fuel the reputation of barefoot runners as fanatics. THAT does more harm to converting people than any semantics issue related to shoes.
Click to expand...

Exactly right IMO.
 
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