The more time you spend around barefoot running and minimalist running — the more articles you read in magazines and newspapers, the more interviews you hear with doctors or runners, the more stories you see on the news, the more websites you see about it, the more research you hear about it — the more often you’ll hear one particular admonition.
Actually, if the piece is supportive of running barefoot, you’ll hear it as a recommendation. If the piece is anti-barefoot, then it’ll be a warning.
And that bit of instruction/caution is:
Transition to barefoot running SLOWLY. If you make the transition too quickly, you’ll get hurt.
But to focus on how quickly or slowly you make the transition is to miss the point. Running barefoot safely and enjoyably isn’t about whether it takes you a day, a week, or a year to do so. It’s about HOW you make the transition, not HOW LONG it takes to make it.
It’s about form and function, not about seconds on the clock.
Okay, so the big question is, “WHY use huarache, the Tarahumara running sandals?”
The answer is pretty obvious, but there are some important-yet-surprising pieces to the puzzle.
The obvious answer about huarache is: It’s the closest thing there is to barefoot running, without some of the hazards of barefoot running. Namely, you’re adding a layer of protection to your feet that bare skin simply can’t give you, no matter how well conditioned your feet are.
Especially with the 4mm Vibram Cherry sole material we use in our huarache kits and custom huaraches, you get what I like to call “better-than-barefoot.” The soles are so flexible it’s like having nothing on, so light, you barely notice them… except it’s blissfully clear that you’re not getting scraped up, cut up, scratched up and dirty like you would if it was just your tootsies on the ground.
That said, I’m not going to say “Don’t run barefoot and run with huarache running sandals instead!”
Why not?
Well, because running barefoot gives you more feedback than running with ANYTHING on your feet.
If you want to know how efficient your form is, go barefoot and you’ll know (that is, if it hurts, you need to change something!).
If you want to know if you could be running lighter or easier, go barefoot and you’ll find out (did I mention: if it hurts, you need to change something?).
Conversely, putting ANYTHING on your feet, including huarache sandals, can mask some improper technique, give you the illusion that you’re better than you are and, possibly, lead to overtraining. Especially at first.
That said, since it takes awhile to develop that new barefoot running technique, and since it takes a while for your feet to get conditioned (btw, they do NOT get calloused), I recommend a mix of barefoot and huarache running.
In fact, what I often do is carry my huaraches with me when I go out barefooting. And if my feet start to get a bit sore, and I’m still a ways away from home, I’ll slip on my huaraches for the 2nd half of the run.
Or, I’ll warm up in my huaraches, and then slip ’em off (using the method of how to tie huarache sandals here), and take off from there.
Oh, if I’m on serious trails — and by serious, I mean a lot of rocks, twigs, etc. — then it’s all huarache, all the time.
When I tell people that I run barefoot (or when they see me out running without any shoes), the first response I get is
“Oh, so you run on the grass?”
Or when I suggest to people that they might want to try running barefoot, the first thing they say is,
“With my feet/knees/ankles/eyelashes, I’d need to run on the grass.”
I mean, it makes sense, right?
Grass is soft. Feet are soft. Therefore, feet should be on grass.
Barefoot = Grass is the common wisdom.
But wisdom is rarely common, and what’s common is rarely wise.
Here’s what I can tell you, though. And it’s not just me, every accomplished barefoot runner I know will say the same thing. And all the other good coaches I know agree.
In fact, what I’m about to say is SO true, that if you meet a coach who tells you otherwise, RUN AWAY (barefoot or not, I don’t care) from this person as quickly as you can, because they don’t know what they’re talking about.
Here it is:
THE WORST SURFACE for learning to run barefoot is GRASS.
THE WORST.
ABSOLUTELY.
Why?
Three big reasons:
BIG: Who knows what’s hiding in the grass. If you can’t see it, you might step on it.
BIGGER: One of the principles of barefoot running is that you don’t use cushioning in your shoes… well, when you run on grass, you’ve basically taken the cushioning out of your shoes and put it into the ground.
BIGGEST: Running on grass, or any soft surface does not give you the feedback you need about your barefoot form to help you change and improve your form.
The best surface for barefoot running is NOT grass or sand or anything soft, but the smoothest and hardest surface you can find.
For me, here in Boulder, Colorado, we have miles and miles of bike path.
In New York City, the sidewalks are perfect!
So, what makes a hard, smooth surface the best? It’s the biggest reason, from above:
FEEDBACK.
Grass and sand and soft surfaces are too forgiving of bad form.
Hard smooth surfaces tell you, with every step, whether you’re using the right form.
If it hurts, you’re not.
If you end up with blisters, you didn’t.
Pay close attention and each step is giving you information about how to run lighter, easier, faster, longer.
I’ll never forget going out on the University of Colorado sidewalks with the Boulder Barefoot Running Club. I had a blister on the ball of my left foot (more about that in another lesson). But I decided to see if I could run in such a way that I didn’t hurt .
At first, each step sent a shooting pain up my leg. Then I made some adjustments and I just felt the friction on the ball of my foot.
By the end of the first mile, I had made some other adjustments — using each step as an experiment — and the next thing I knew I was picking up the pace while putting out less energy than ever. I was running faster and easier than I’d ever run without shoes… and it was painless.
This would have never happened on grass.
I needed the feedback of the hard surface.
If you want to see a barefoot runner get a wistful look in his or her eye, mention a newly painted white line on the side of a road. Smooth, solid, cool… it’s the best! 😉
Oh, and it’s probably no surprise that the advantage of Xero Shoes is that when you wear those on the road, they still give you that feedback you need… but with protection from the surface.
While barefoot running isn’t new, it’s popularity has been going through the roof since Christopher McDougall’s book, Born To Run, became popular in 2009.
Ironically, Born To Run isn’t really about barefoot running. It’s about the Tarahumara Indians in the Copper Canyon of Mexico and how they’re able to run pain-free and injury free for hundreds of miles, well into their 70s. It’s about the first ever ultramarathon held in the Copper Canyon. It’s about the fascinating characters around this race. And it’s about Chris’s exploration of safer, more enjoyable running.
By the way, if you haven’t read the book, you must. It’s a great, exciting read, whether you’re a runner or not. And, admittedly, I make fun of the fact that barefoot runners treat this book like the bible in my video, Sh*t Barefoot Runners Say and the follow-up, Sh*t Runners Say To Barefoot Runners.
It happens that around the time the book was becoming popular, one of the people featured in the book published a study about barefoot running. That person is Dr. Daniel Lieberman from Harvard University and, in a nutshell, what Daniel showed was:
Runners in shoes tend to land on their heels, essentially using the padding built into the shoes
Landing in this manner sends a massive jolt of force (called an impact transient force spike) through the ankles, knees, hips, and into the spine
Then…
Runners who run barefoot tend to land on their forefoot or midfoot, with the landing point nearer to the body’s center of mass (not out in front of the body, like shod runners)
Barefoot runners use the natural shock-absorbing, spring-like mechanism of the muscles, ligaments and tendons within and around the foot, the ankle, the knee, and the hip.
Barefoot runners do not create the impact transient force spike through their joints
In short, running shoes could be the cause of the very injuries for which they’re sold as cures!
Take off your shoes and you’re less likely to land in a biomechanically compromised manner.
This seems to explain why people who run barefoot often report the elimination of injuries (that were caused by bad form that they no longer use) and, more importantly, that running is more fun!
Now it’s not all as simple as this.
The shoe companies, realizing that barefoot was becoming a big deal, began selling “barefoot shoes”… most of which are no more barefoot than a pair of stilts.
Even the Vibram Fivefingers, which look like bare feet, aren’t necessarily as barefoot as they appear.
The key to successful barefoot running seems to be the ability to use the nerves in your feet, to Feel The World. Basically, if you try to run barefoot the same way you do when you’re in shoes, IT HURTS!
Figure out how to do what doesn’t hurt and you’ll be running in a way that’s more fun and less likely to cause injuries.
Now, I know it’s not as simple as that, and I’m the first to admit that the science supporting barefoot running isn’t in yet. But, then again, there’s no science that shows that running shoes are helpful.
Think about this: people lived for millions of years without shoes, or without anything more than a pair of sandals like Xero Shoes or a pair of moccasins. Runners ran successfully up until the 1970s with shoes that had no padding, no pronation control, no orthotics, and no high-tech materials.
The three parts of our body that have the most nerve endings are our hands, our mouths and our feet. There’s only one of those that we regularly cover and make numb to the world… does that seem right?
Put a limb in a cast and it comes out of the cast a month later atrophied and weaker. When you bind your feet in shoes that don’t let your foot flex or feel the earth, isn’t that similar to putting it in a cast (or as barefoot runners like to say, a “foot coffin”)?
There’s a lot more on this site about what the benefits of barefoot running — and walking, and hiking, and dancing, and playing — may be. If you have any questions, ask them here, or on our Forum. Or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Pinterest.
Join the conversation. Join the conversion. Feel The World!
I’ve always been a fan of shoes as a fashion statement, but when looking cool or sexy becomes the priority over feeling good than we have a problem. It is no secret nowadays that the health of our body directly effects how we feel emotionally and how we think. The last 10 years of my life have been dedicated to helping others feel good in their body and mind, and when it comes to feeling good I always start with the feet.
Many of us know how to stretch and strengthen muscles like the abs, chest, shoulders, thighs and buttocks, but what about the ankles and feet? How many gym exercises do you know of that work on foot health? And yet the feet are the foundation of our posture.
There are a few main articulations (joint movements) of the ankles and toes that can seriously improve the over all well being of your body if done fairly regularly. Further down I will go over a few exercises that can be done daily to improve your over all well-being starting from the ground up.
When I teach yoga, especially my hips-focused workshops, I spend at least 20% of the time on feet/ankles, because the health of feet directly effect all of the muscles and joints above, especially the knees, hips and low back. I always find it comical that the solution in the world of modern medicine is to shove something in your shoes that lifts your arches for you or find shoes that articulate the ankle for you as you walk. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and place where quick solutions are great and important, but they are not always the long term fix.
Here is an analogy of what the short term solutions are like for your body. Let’s pretend that our body is a lazy employee at work, and our doctor is the manager. The manager has two options in front of her/him—teach us how to be productive and inspire us to take action, or simply do the work for us. You might be thinking: Fire the employee! Unfortunately that’s not an option in the case of your body—there is no surgery or replacement for lack of muscle engagement. So the manager has only two options: if he/she chooses to do the work for the employee than the work gets done but the employee learns nothing and will continue to do nothing in the future. The other option? The manager puts in the extra time and energy now to strengthen the skills of the employee and help them develop habits that support their growth. If we are the employee (our body) in this case, we would all appreciate that. As the manager (our mind) we would all like to choose the second option, but when it comes down to it, we don’t usually make the time to support our over all well being.
If you are reading this, you probably don’t fall into the category of “lazy human being”, and you are certainly looking for solutions and answers and are willing to do the work. This is why you have chosen to wear Xero Shoes, isn’t it? You care about the well being of your feet! So let’s get into building strength.
The four main actions at the ankle:
Dorsiflexion
Dorsiflexion: what we commonly refer to as flexing the feet. Stand on two feet and bend your knees, lean forward till your knees move forward, you’ll see the skin at the front of your ankle wrinkles, this action is called dorsiflexion of the ankle joint.
Plantarflexion
Plantarflexion: the exact opposite of dorsiflexion, commonly known as pointing your foot, like a ballet dancer would.
Inversion
Inversion: If you sit down with your legs out in front and turn the soles of your feet toward each other like you are making “prayer” feet, this is called inverting your ankle. Note, you may sit up on blankets or a couple of pillows if your hamstrings are on the tighter side.
Eversion
Eversion: this is the opposite of inversion and usually most challenging. Standing up again, press the big toes down and pull the outside edges of your feet up. You will see that wrinkles form in the outer ankle, and you will feel the muscles along your outer shin engage.
Exercises to strengthen the muscles of these actions:
1. Seated Plantar Flexion: Sitting down with legs out in front plantarflex and relax the ankles repeatedly with knees straight. The muscles you’re trying to activate are your calves. Keep the feet everted (inner ankles squeezing together the whole time, ankle bones and inside edge of the feet trying to stay together). At first you can take a yoga strap and loop it around your ankles to help with the range of motion and make it easier on you. Always try without the strap as well to build the appropriate strength.
BONUS! Inversion and Eversion: The best exercise to do daily are the ABC’s with your feet. Do this before getting out of bed to wake up all the muscles of your feet and ankles!
2. Seated DorsiFlexion: This action is the opposite of the first exercise. Sit down with your legs in front and pull the tops of your feet back and release several times until you feel heat building in the top of the shins (these muscles are called your tibialus anterior muscles).
3. Calf Raises: The one pop culture ankle strengthener! Standing upright plantarflex your ankles till your heals lift up. Try not to let your ankles roll outward while doing these. The primary muscles you’ll be strengthening are called the gastrocnemius muscles. To keep the ankles from rolling outward you’ll be using the muscles of the outer shines to stabilize the ankle.
4. Inversion and Eversion: The best exercise to do daily are the ABC’s with your feet. Do this before getting out of bed to wake up all the muscles of your feet and ankles.
BONUS! The toes: there are four main articulations of the toes but to keep you from being overwhelmed simply focus on the one action called abduction, which is spreading your toes. Get yourself a toe spreader or separate your toes with your fingers for range of motion at first but then learn to do the action with the strength of your muscles. It might feel totally foreign at first but over time and repetition you will be able to do it! You can then add toe spreading into all the above ankle articulations.
Keep building that strength to make barefoot running even more enjoyable!
The content of this post does not constitute and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions or concerns you may have about your health or a medical condition.
Arthur Lydiard was one of the most accomplished running coaches of all time and his training methods revolutionized the sport.
The Lydiard Foundation is carrying on Arthur’s teachings, led by Lorraine Moller, a 4-time Olympian and Olympic bronze medalist in the marathon, and Nobby Hashizume.
If you’re looking for a distance running training program, the Lydiard method will serve you quite well. And thanks to Lorraine and Nobby, you can grab the Lydiard First Steps course right here.
We last left you hanging wondering which model of Xero Shoe we pack along for our different adventures. We often take multiple shoes when we travel, but the Xero Z-Trek sandal always makes the cut due to its versatility, low maintenance and extreme light weight.
The Z-Trek is a fantastic sandal for river and water sports. The design keeps the shoe snugly where it belongs (instead of washing out to sea) and it dries within minutes, making water-to-land transitions a non-event. We’re avid stand-up paddle boarders and have hiked our boards (SUPs) to remote waters in many parts of the world, paddling places like New Zealand, Costa Rica, South Korea, Italy, the Mississippi River, Hawaii and the U.S. Pacific Coast. Wherever we paddle, there is one commonality: You must first get to the water. Whether it’s crossing a hot parking lot covered in broken glass, a quarter mile of blistering-hot sand, or carrying our paddle boards down a large field of lava rock, our Z-Trek sandals are the perfect companion to get us to the water.
Preparing to paddle the glacier lakes of Mt. Cook, New Zealand
Last June, we took our SUPs on a five-day, supported run on the Green River, through Desolation and Gray Canyons. It was an 88-mile run down one of the most remote areas in the lower 48 states. We were surrounded by spectacular scenery devoid of any technology. (Especially so, because the river ate my camera phone on day one.) There were hours of stillness and quiet on the river as it meandered through the deep canyons of the Colorado Plateau, with the occasional adrenaline produced by the roar of sixty Class I-III rapids.
Our tent, clothing, food and water were transported by experienced guides on small, solo, inflatable rafts. Many of the rapids had only a few safe lines to take. Some rapids only had one line– and that line changes substantially depending on the volume of water rushing down the canyon. Several times during the five-day expedition we paused upriver of the rapid and hiked out to overlook our upcoming challenge. We scrambled through hot sand and over red sandstone and rock, always watching for small cactus plants and rattle snakes. Then we’d put on our special whitewater life jackets, quick release leashes and helmets for the duration of the rapid.
Our mornings were spent striking camp and then navigating downriver for a few hours. We’d break for lunch by finding a calm section of river and circling our SUPs and rafts to distribute food and swap stories. By early afternoon each day we made our campsite for the evening. Campsites are non-developed, governed by a “leave-no-trace” rules and ethos. Since they are taken on a first-come basis, we’d rise early each morning to ensure our party beat the other expeditions downriver to the next camp.
Paddling the 10,000-ft lakes of the Uinta Mountains
Once camp was made, we explored the surrounding dry canyons and high desert topography. Or pass time on the river’s edge in our tents, hiding from blood-thirsty mosquitos. Occasionally we’d see another party float by on their journey to their evening camp.
Paddling the Green River for five days was an amazing experience and something everyone should consider doing.
This weekend we’re traveling to Moab, UT to compete in a paddle board race on a seven-mile section of the Colorado River. It’s our first race of the season. Typical of most SUP races, we have a running start into the river (while carrying our paddles and boards), paddle for about an hour and a then jump off our boards and run a short distance across a rocky shore and parking lot to the finish line. For the past few weeks we’ve debated which paddle boards to take with us; as each race board has its advantages in different conditions. But our footwear will be the Xero Z-Trek sandal – for obvious reasons: This race seems to have been designed around the functionality that we love about the Z-Trek. Water? Rocks? Running? Bring it.
See pics and race results this Sunday by following us @WildAcroDuo.
You’ve got a stellar vacation coming up. Each night you’re thinking about all the new food you’re about to chow down on, the new scenes you’re going to experience, and all the novelty coming your way!
But if you’re like the common athlete/fitness fanatic the anxiety will sneak it’s way into that excitement sandwich. “How are you going to get in all your training? What this is going to do to your fitness? You’re screwed!”
We know that feeling all too well. How do you balance out the wanderlust bug with the running bug? It’s not easy. But 100% doable. We’ve been all over the world traveling vigorously and still maintained our sanity while not falling off the entire fitness bandwagon. We just went to Morocco and actually came back FITTER than when we left. So here are 5 tips to taking a vacay without your fitness mind going nuts.
1. Training your heart out before: If you know you’re going on a vacay that isn’t going to have many training opportunities (whether that’s because you’re stuck on a cruise ship or your agenda is already jam-packed with activities from the crack of dawn till night time), look prior to your vacation for ramping up your training. Having a loaded week(s) before your vacation can give yourself the ease of mind that you’re vacation time is more of a “recovery” period for yourself than a training grind.
2. Finding a running group: When we first moved to Chile we had no clue where to run. We’d squint at our iPhone screens, double-tapping, zooming-in trying to see the longest road we could find. What those maps didn’t tell us was the number stop lights we’d hit & the “locals don’t even go there” areas. As soon as we found a running group online, problems solved. We had the added bonus of accountability, we were taken on some of the most badass routes, felt even safer while out there and made some amazing life-long friends while at it. So if you’re in the foreign land for a bit longer of a period, we’d highly recommend this option.
3. HIIT & Stretch : An LSD run might not be plausible on your vacation. Even getting in a full hour run may be a stretch. Speaking of stretch(puns were intended)– this vacation time could be a chance to switch up your typical training routine and ramp up some strength, stretching, and mobility.When we’re finding it hard to get in runs, for whatever reasons, we’re big fans of doing strengthening and/or mobility yoga classes while we are on vacation. Tabata, hills, stairs or suicides are also great options. You don’t need a lot of room, you don’t need any gear, and you can get your heart pumping hard…FAST.
4. Walk, walk, walk it out. When we’re wearing our Xero Shoes, we are blown away at the number of miles we can rack up when we ditch the uber, taxi, tuk-tuk or sketchy donkey carriage and choose to walk where we need to go. Furthermore, we’ve ran into some opportunities we would have never caught if we were zooming by on wheels (ex. partaking in a mini-make-shift-toy-car-race with a bunch of Malagasy kids down the streets of Madagascar).Although walking is not high intensity, although it’s not running, it is still exercise. Embarrassingly or proudly enough, some of our sorest days on vacations have not been the days we ran but rather the ones we just walked around. Time on feet is a major factor for us ultra-runners too so we don’t mind this option at all.
5. Finding a race: Make that vacation a racecation. We do this all the time. What better way to see a country than on foot right? Blows our mind seeing people slouched over in a tour bus, on their iPhone and eating packaged crap. The smells, local interactions, feel of the terrain, local foods, etc. they are missing out on by being bugged up in a bus is a bummer to see. The best experiences we have had on our travels are ones we experience first hand without a glass in front of our face. Besides the enhanced experiences, you also get lead through pretty sweet spots and you have the safety of race directors/teams so you can fully get lost in the experience and not worry about getting stranded by yourself.
At the end of the day you can only do what you can do (common sense but always a good reminder).
Have your goal and try your best to stick to it. Understand though you will have fluctuations and things will come up unexpectedly. 80/20 rule. Don’t lose your appreciation of your character building opportunity that travel offers by getting blinded by the mileage. Happy travels ☺
–Mel & Jon Sinclair
Xero Heroes Mel & Jon Sinclair are vegan ultramarathon runners, yogis, travelers, gymnasts, and thrillseekers.
For those outside of the slacklining community, let’s start with a quick vocabulary lesson:
Send: a verb known to have originated in climbing but has now spread to numerous outdoor sports such as skiing, surfing, highlining, slacklining, mountain biking, and more. In climbing to “send” means that you have climbed the climb in one go (not necessarily the first try), one continuous climb without falling or hanging on the rope. Translated into highlining terms “to send” has come to mean you have walked the whole highline from one end (the point you stand up close to an anchor) to the other end.
Slacklining:the act of walking or balancing along a suspended length of flat webbing that is tensioned between two anchors
Highlining: slacklining, but up higher (think slacklining above a river)
I personally have been very prone to getting obsessed with “the send”. And I’ve got to say sending is great! It feels good. It is like taking a huge dopamine pill once your activity of choice is over and you have “sent it”, even if it was brutally painful to get there. But I think there is a dark side to being obsessed with sending.
And that’s why I’m currently on a huge “f sending” (pardon the hidden expletive) movement while slacklining–I cannot get enough of it! I’ve been posting bits and pieces of my thoughts on the subject on Instagram and have been getting positive feedback and want to expand.
The dark side, at least for me, is the pressure I put on myself to on-site. There is that classic climbing term that says it all, “on-site or die”. It’s one mentality, but not the one I chose to have anymore. I’ve found that instead of looking at the prize I was obsessed with avoiding failure to a point that is was almost inevitable. This is a little counterproductive. When I teach slacklining I tell people to not look down because they will go down. The same principle applies to your thoughts. Don’t think about falling or else you will fall.
Yes I get super excited when I send that highline clean but f sending isn’t about not sending, it’s about celebrating all of the things in between. Celebrate the stands, the whippers, the gnarly line catch bruises all up and down your arms and legs! Celebrate the present! It’s all about creating a positive playful atmosphere for yourself and others by changing your outlook of success.
In every sport you do remember we all started it because whatever it is we thought it was fun! Somewhere along the way we start getting better and then we get serious. It’s fun to send lines, routes, and new skills but F SENDING and remember to have fun along the way!
“The best surfer is the one having the most fun.” Duke Kahanamoku
“The best climber in the world is the one having the most fun.” Alex Lowe
To sum things up, the road to success inevitably has failures all along the way, so I just like to remember to giggle at every single one.
I'm an international ultramarathon athlete and I wear Xero Shoes for races. No blisters. No smelly feet. But I also use them as my everyday sandals (they look way cool!) and I recommend Xeros to everyone.
Melissa Gosse
As a barefoot runner I’ve heard lots about huaraches but it wasn’t until Steven made me my first pair (I have two) that I understood how much fun they are to run distances in!
Scott McLean
Thank you for making these
amazing huaraches. I love how they feel. I forget they are there so much so I have worn them to bed a few times!
If you somehow manage to wear through the outsole on your Xero Shoes, we will replace them for a nominal shipping & handling fee.
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I'm an international ultramarathon athlete and I wear Xero Shoes for races. No blisters. No smelly feet. But I also use them as my everyday sandals (they look way cool!) and I recommend Xeros to everyone.
Melissa Gosse
As a barefoot runner I’ve heard lots about huaraches but it wasn’t until Steven made me my first pair (I have two) that I understood how much fun they are to run distances in!
Scott McLean
Thank you for making these
amazing huaraches. I love how they feel. I forget they are there so much so I have worn them to bed a few times!
The more time you spend around barefoot running and minimalist running — the more articles you read in magazines and newspapers, the more interviews you hear with doctors or runners, the more stories you see on the news, the more websites you see about it, the more research you hear about it — the more often you’ll hear one particular admonition.
Fostering honest and responsive relationships between businesses and consumers.
If you somehow manage to wear through the outsole on your Xero Shoes, we will replace them for a nominal shipping & handling fee.