Vivo Barefoot, the great "barefoot" shoe company, recently came out with an instructional barefoot running video.  The teacher in the video, Lee Saxby, is a Level 4 Pose running instructor based out of England.  I have heard a lot about him through the Pose running message boards, and he is an incredible teacher.

In the video he shows how form improves by merely removing cushy running sneakers, but that poor form can still exist even when barefoot.  After a few drills to correct postural alignment, the runner in the video notices how much more easy and fun running is.  It almost becomes effortless when you really get in the zone.  Effortless running?  Sign me up.

The slow motion examples in the video are great, and be sure to look how the hips land above the ball of the foot.  If you're looking to learn barefoot running or Pose running in the NYC area, I offer both group clinics as well as one-on-one lessons.  I l

There's a short article on SocialWorkout.com asking whether you would let your baby go barefoot.  An obvious reason against this, particularly outside, is that they don't know the difference between a sharp piece of glass and a Barney Doll.  As long as your home is somewhat babyproof, it should be absolutely fine to let a baby walk around barefoot.  I mean, they crawl around the floor, right?  Why not let them walk the house au natural?

A great outdoor alternative would be to buy minimalist baby footwear (does that even exist?) or even let them mosey around in thick socks.  Vibram Five Fingers will be coming out with kids line, which you can check out here.  Vivo Barefoot also has a kids line that you can see here.

One advantage of letting babies and toddler go barefoot is that they receive feedback from the soles of their feet, allowing them to keep their heads up, which prevents falling down.  Who wouldn't want their baby to learn to walk earlier?  Also, most shoes are too tight on kids, thus deforming their feet.  It's not as bad as foot binding, but sneakers don't allow the toes to spread out and let the foot muscles fully develop.

What do you think?

This Saturday morning I woke up at 4:45am and was out the door by 5am on my way to Prospect Park in Brooklyn for the Brooklyn Half Marathon. After grabbing a bagel from the place on the corner, I encountered some subway trouble, namely the trains weren't making all stops. It wasn't the most pleasant situation to face this early on a Saturday morning, but luckily I factored in extra time to my commute. The total trip took about 1:40 minutes or so, and the timing worked out perfectly as I hopped into my starting corral as the National Anthem was being sung just before 7am.
I used to play a lot of ultimate in Prospect Park, so I was somewhat familiar with the area, though I had never run it's three mile loop. I felt great in my new Vibram Five Finger Bikila's for the first lap (I was probably still half asleep) and the second loop also went by without much problem. I chatted with a few runners about my shoes, and made a point to run up to (and then pass, hehe) other VFF runners. The four or five VFFers I spoke with (all males, though ages varied from people in their 20's to early 50's) all loved their shoes and were all enjoying the run.  I even talked to a guy who was running in the Vivo Barefoot Evo running shoes.  He really liked them, though maybe it was because he worked for the company.  I gushed about how I own three pairs of Vivos and that they need to get some other colors and styles in for next season.  At that point he had enough of my ramblings and ran on ahead.

Once we left the park at around mile seven I started to get a bit tired, though I pushed through it and kept my pace up. I made sure to focus on my form and kept telling myself to "pull" my foot off the ground, a la Pose style. My breathing thus far was perfect, as my heart rate stayed low and I was able to breath smoothly in and out through my nose. The next six miles were flat and straight as far as the eye could see down Ocean Boulevard, which was actually kinda boring. The road surface wasn't as smooth as Central Park, and I felt the balls of my feet tingling a bit as the miles wore on. This was a bad sign, so I kept checking in with myself and made sure my form was getting sloppy. Fatigue leads to injuries, and with only last weekend's 10k run as my longest recent run, I had to be careful. The worst part about running on the flat, straight, endless road was when I could have sworn I was approaching mile ten, but alas, it was only mile nine. Argh.

The route didn't get interesting until the very end when we made a turn onto the famous Coney Island boardwalk. I think by that time my form went to poop, as the soft planks yielded to my weight. At the very end there was a guy running next to me who said, "C'mon, you can do it!" So I picked up my pace and said, "Ok man, let's do this", and I took off like a rocket and sprinted across the finish. I could have sworn some spectator on the sidelines said, "Wow, look at him!", but I was going too fast to really hear. Boo yea!

My official time was 1:40:26, which is a new personal record for me, beating January's time by over six minutes, and improving over my first half last July by over thirteen minutes! A lot of that has to do with my running form improving, my workout routine which includes more leg exercises, and my knowledge of what 13.1 miles feels like so I can better gauge my pace. My breathing the whole race was calm and easy, and I breathed through my nose the whole race, which I'm most happy about. I still have three more half marathons to run this year to complete the NYRR Half Marathon Series, and I'm eyeing the Bronx one in a few months to further improve on my time.

My new VFF Bikilas held up great, though I think I hit the pavement a bit harder than necessary during the latter part of the race, causing the slight tingling sensation on the balls of my feet, and a small blister under my left foot. Overall they held up really well, and I'm looking forward to wearing down the tread a little bit to made them thinner and more flexible. I'm definitely still a fan, and I highly recommend them to any newbie minimalist runners out there.

Race Notes:
-Total runners: 7006
-My place: 988 (cracked the top 1,000!)
-Total time: 1:40:26
-Race pace: 7:40 minute miles
-Note to self: Coney Island is friggin' far from the Upper East Side

This past weekend I went to City Sports with my wife so she could try on a pair of Vibram Five Fingers. She first tried to try on a pair last year at the Boston Marathon expo, but her toes weren't able to fit in the pockets, so she never got to experience walking around in them. I had high hoped they'd fit her this time around, but once again her pinky toes and some other toes just wouldn't slide into the correct places. I'm not sure when she'd wear these shoes anyways, but we were both still disappointed in the outcome. I mentioned to her that alternative minimalist running shoes were coming to the market, like the Alteras, and that within a few more months more and more competition for the VFF's would be available. Lo and behold, during my online browsing just now I spotted an ad for the Soft Star RunAmoc shoe, a moccasin take on the running shoe.

I first heard of Soft Star mocs about a year ago as a great minimalist shoe, but the styling and look just didn't seem appropriate for everyday use, especially in an office. I settled on Vivo Barefoot shoes for my work and weekend use, and I now own three pairs of them! While the original mocs could be used for running, their delicate leather makeup would not last against prolonged exposure to pavement. This new offering, with soles only 2mm thick (and made by Vibram, coincidentally), could be a great alternative for my lovely wife since the VFF's just don't fit her little toes. They look very comfortable, and since they're advertised as running shoes I'm assuming they're durable, though we won't know that until they've been tested.

The Soft Star company has excellent looking offerings for casual footwear, and one day when I have little Bennys running around the yard, I'd be happy to see my kids in these shoes!

With all the hype that barefoot and minimalist running has been receiving lately, it was only a matter of time before knockoff and real competition entered the product space in this niche market. BirthdayShoes.com had a great article on knockoff Vibram Five Fingers, but there has also been bigger shoes companies that have tried to gain a foothold in the "natural running" market. Nike has come out with their "Free" line, which in my opinion are too cushion and too big a heal, and MBT has come out with the clunkiest shoe of all time (sorry Buttahnut), to just name a couple.

Then there is the more barefoot competition, like Sockwa, Feelmax, Vivo Barefoot, and now Altera. These new Alteras look to be the most like VFFs, but without the obvious toe pockets. They may even be a better looking alternative to regular everyday sneakers, but that is too tough to say without actually wearing them and seeing them with jeans. I'm curious and excited to find out more about them, but depending on their distribution, it could be hard to track one down.

I'm sure this niche will become more and more saturated, especially by the big shoe manufacturers trying to keep pace with this ever-growing market.

My mom recently forwarded me an article from ABC News about the ever growing barefoot movement called "Barefoot Running: Is Going Shoe-Free for You?" (Personally, it's the only way I can run without pain.) The article talks about the same issues as all the other articles, like how running barefoot is a growing trend, how there are new shoes companies like Vibram Five Fingers, Vivo Barefoot, and Feelmax that are catering to the alternative runners, how there have been no true scientific studies but how there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that barefoot running is a healthier way to run. I highly recommend reading the article for yourself, but allow me to quote a couple of the more important passages.

Barefoot Ted McDonald, one of the unofficial spokesmen of barefoot running, said, "Once you take off your shoe, you no longer pound the ground," said McDonald. "My way of approaching it is getting people to run more like dancers move across the stage -- with form and grace and strength."

Detractors of barefoot running, like shoe store owners, like Michael Gotfredson, founder and "chief runner" of Road Runner Sports, are calling barefooters crazy, saying, "The barefoot running thing is an injury waiting to happen. Ever walked on the beach or a sidewalk and seen shards by the dozens? Don't step on those if you plan on running in your future." It is definitely possible to step on glass and get a cut, especially if your run with your eyes closed. To minimize the risk, barefoot runners must be aware of their surroundings and look for dangerous materials on the ground. And honestly, the guy makes it seem that the roads are paved with broken glass, which isn't even close to the truth. I think it's hilarious how he can't even speak of the benefits of barefoot or minimalist running, as that would put him out of business. If he was smart, he'd hedge his shoe store by selling minimalist shoes like VFF's, to get on the train before it passes him by. Instead, like many stubborn running store owners, he'll probably stick his fingers in his ears and hope the whole thing goes away. Good luck with that.