As long as the term holds the
As long as the term holds the word SHOE, I can deal with that, but I will continue to use the term minshoes when I talk about minimalist running shoes. That's what they are. The industry and its followers can and will call them whatever they want, and I have come to grips with that because I realize that these minshoe companies are making healthy footwear choices, and I realize that because of the term they use, more people are finding their way to healthy running. As long as these minshoe companies continue to make healthy footwear, we (the BRS) will support them.
What I take issue with, and this is where the term "Barefoot Running Shoes" becomes dangerous, is when runners get injured running in their "Barefoot Running Shoes," go to their doctors, and tell them they were injured while running barefoot because they are utterly brainwashed in believing they were running barefoot; after all the shoes say they're barefoot. The injury stats are adding up, and unjustly, it's not in barefoot running's favor. To an extent, the term is crippling barefoot running.
Here's what I've had to say about the term "natural" running:
I think natural running and proper running are two different things.
There's honestly nothing natural about shoes of any kind. That's like saying my shirt is natural or my hat is natural. No, they are artificial; they are fabricated. Bare feet are natural.
Some people can achieve a proper (remember the words safe and healthy when reading the word proper here) running form in shoes, whether they be minimal or traditional, and/or without shoes. Likewise, some people can run barefoot and never achieve a proper form. The barefoot person may be running naturally, but if they don't have a proper form, they aren't running properly.
The average Joe's best chances at achieving this proper form is first by barefoot, then by minimal, and good luck with traditional, although it can be done (just not by the majority of us).
Overall, the best way for the majority of us to achieve a "natural and proper running form" is by running barefoot.
