Shod (with shoes) and Un-shod (without shoes) is how barefoot runners like to refer to running with and without shoes. My goal in this article is not to steer you in either direction, but to give you my points of view and the findings I’ve come across in my years as a coach and recent research, that will allow you to make a prudent decision as to whether or not running shod or unshod is best for you.
As both a performance coach and a running shoe specialty store owner (that supplies shoes to both types of runners), I have seen a lot of changes in the running industry over the years, one of the biggest and popular amongst the younger athletes, is barefoot running. Now, when I say barefoot, I don’t truly mean without a shoe altogether. Most of the runners who are adopting this style of running are using a Vibram five fingers shoe or some other minimalist shoe such as the Nike Free to run in. (both are pictured)
What most people don’t know is, barefoot training has been around for years. In fact, a lot of coaches (including myself) in the sports performance world, have our athletes lifting and conducting some of their additional technical training barefoot. This is to ensure that the athlete not only has a better feel for the ground, but to strengthen the 19-20 intrinsic muscles and 38-40 intrinsic muscle tendons in the foot which in turn will help decrease injuries among our athletes.
I have always believed that the reason America has a foot doctor on almost every corner (outside of high heels), is because our feet (all the intrinsic muscles and tendons I mentioned above) are weak. This in my view, is a result of not allowing the foot to work like it is supposed to.
Think about it this way: when someone has a cast on their leg and they finally take it off, there is obvious atrophy (loss of muscle & size) compared to the opposite leg. The reason for this is because it isn’t being used while in the cast. If you have your foot in a shoe all day everyday, whether it’s a house slipper, running shoe or your work shoes, you are never allowing those muscles and tendons to work properly or strengthen themselves. So, if you want to strengthen your feet, you will at some point have to train unshod.
Now keeping those positives in mind, there are also the negatives that go hand in hand with running barefoot. According to a recent article there has been an increase in lower extremity injuries due to running barefoot.
Personally, I think both shod and unshod have their place in training. The real issue is not shod vs. unshod, but proper running form and technique. I will cover this in my next article so until then, train smart, not dumb!
TB
