How Barefoot Runners are Shaping the Shoe Industry

How Barefoot Runners are Shaping the Shoe Industry
A group of running rebels are shedding their shoes and reporting years of injury-free miles. Some ultramarathoners,asics steel toe shoes, biomechanics experts and doctors think that's probably a good thing. Others go so far as to say running shoes are in fact causing injuries. Meanwhile, running shoe companies continue to precisely measure runners,asics trail running shoes womens, and pound and flex shoes in their high-tech labs.
The Boston Marathon,asics gel nimbus 12 running shoes, one of the world's most competitive 26.2-mile races,asics fifty-four wrestling shoes, had the best runners from Kenya,asics running shoes women sale, Ethiopia, the U.S. and around the globe churning out 5-minute miles on Monday for over two hours. While all eyes were on the front-runners—notably the United States' Ryan Hall and Kara Goucher way back in the pack there was one person,shoes comparable to asics gt-2140, Rick Roeber, who stole headlines with his unique running style. One glance at Roeber's feet and you can see what all the fuss is about: he isn't wearing shoes. And a number of people—ultramarathoners,asics toning shoes', biomechanics experts and doctors included—think that's probably the best way to run. Some go so far as to say running shoes are in fact causing injuries.
But to barefoot advocates such as Chris McDougall, author of Born to Run ,asics gel mission men's walking shoes, Roeber is one of the few in Monday's race not drinking the shoe industry's Kool-Aid. In his book,purple asics tennis shoes, McDougall follows the Tarahumara,asics golf shoes, a Mexican tribe of ultrarunners who race from 50 to 200 miles straight without shoes,asics men's walking shoes, yet remain healthy and injury-free. Science doesn't support the shoe industry's claim that "humans are born broken,asics track shoes," McDougall tells PM,ASICS GT-2150 - Women's, and that running shoes exist to fix our stride. Humans have been barefoot for nearly 2 million years,asics cumulus running shoes, but have had running shoes for only a little more than 40—when Nike-founder Bill Bowerman cobbled together the modern-day running shoe with glues, plastic and a waffle iron in his basement. Shoes cause runners to lose musculature in their feet,asics field hockey shoes, McDougall argues, and takes away the natural cushion in their stride.