There has long been an argument re: cushioned shoes v. minimalist shoes and which is better for injury prevention. I don't have the reference on hand, but I have read of at least one study that found there was no statistical difference in the rate of injuries between runners who wore cushioned shoes versus those who ran barefoot or in minimalist shoes, but there was a significant increase in injuries in runners who switched from one type of footwear to the other. It didn't matter which way they switched. The act of switching itself seemed to be what promoted the injuries.You make some very valid points. I started running barefoot, so my opinion of shoes is a little critical anyway.I'm also less of a competitor and more of someone who just loves to run and loves to be on the trails, so speed and whether the shoe I am wearing makes me faster are not priorities to me. I do love your point about recovery and injury prevention and can see the value in having shoes that promote both of those. I would be reluctant, however, because some of my worst plantar fasciitis flareups have come after running or walking in thicker soled shoes. This may have been my own fault (perhaps poor posture, form, etc.), but after running barefoot so often or running in minimalist shoes, I equated the change to thicker soled shoes with my injury. Maybe I'm wrong because, as you know, correlation does not imply causation.
Right. If you can afford better nutrition and a knowledgeable coach. If your work schedule and home demands enable you to free up enough time to train regularly. If you live in a climate where running hard year-round is possible. If you have access to other runners to train with who will push you to train harder. If you can afford race entry fees and the costs of travel to get to races in the first place. All of these things provide performance advantages.
We never all have a level playing field in any sport. I think our energies are better spent trying to lift everyone up, and giving as many people as many advantages as we can, rather than wasting it hating on one particular aspect of one particular sport as if expensive running shoes are somehow the great evil of fitness inequality. They are not.
I too think a lot may come down to different strokes for different folks. Heavier people may well need more cushioning than skinny little kids. (Certainly I ran in minimalist, very inexpensive shoes when I was a skinny little kid and never had any issues.) It may depend a lot on one's gait: do you supinate or pronate? a lot or a little? forefoot strike or heel strike? etc. How strong one's feet are in general and how used to supportive shoes in the rest of one's life may also play a factor.
I am barefoot at home all the time. I workout barefoot. I usually dance barefoot. (Although I have injured myself pretty badly by doing so on a couple of occasions. Once I bruised the soles of my feet through dancing barefoot on a hard concrete floor. Another time I burned my feet through dancing on grass that was too hot--I actually gave myself 2nd degree burns on the soles of my feet from dancing for one song on the scorched grass.) I think my feet and ankles are strong and can generally handle supporting my bodyweight without the assistance of shoes. But I hike and run in cushioned shoes.
I live in Canada where running barefoot is just not a good option. We have ice. We have snow. We have well below freezing temperatures in the winter and black tarmac that will literally burn the soles of your feet in the summer. We have streets and trails littered with fallen twigs and nuts in the autumn. We dump sand and salt on our roads in the winter to provide traction for automobiles and then push the sand and salt and snow around with ploughs. We also plough gravel driveways and roads and paved roads with soft shoulders, so the gravel gets shoved around. Our roads and sidewalks are a mess in the spring! Plus there are the arseholes who smash their beer bottles onto sidewalks and don't clean up after their dogs.
So I run in shoes. I have tried minimalist shoes. But I did not like them. I did not like the force with which I could feel roots and stones underfoot, even through the shoes. I also did not like wearing shoes without socks. (The shoes were Vibrams. So socks were not an option. And shoes without socks for me is a guaranteed recipe for shredding the skin off the backs of my heels.)
But then you have athletes like Zola Budd who set world records running barefoot. So I definitely think there's no one best method for everyone.
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I get what you're saying, though, and it makes sense. I am also barefoot a lot. Where I live, it safe enough to walk barefoot but probably not run. I've had friends who also tried and cannot stand minimalist shoes. I think amongst my trail running friends, the most popular shoe has been different iterations of the Altra Lone Peak. I was running in Asic trail scouts for a few years and really liked them before my dog got hold of them and shredded the top of one shoe where the eyelets are. I've also ran in a pair of Adidas Rockadia trail shoes, as well as cheap Walmart barefoot shoes and some barefoot trail shoes from Amazon (can't remember the brand). But these have all been for short distances (3-5 miles). I am fully aware than as I progress to longer miles, I likely do not want to be running in minimalist/barefoot shoes.
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