Shoes And Adaptation – Guest Post by Brad Johnson

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know by now that Adam likes hand training. A bit. You would probably agree with him, quite correctly, that a man is only as tough as his hands.

And you’d be right– strong, tough hands really do make the difference between strong guys and freakishly strong guys. All the old-time strongmen had real strength because they had really strong hands.

Don’t forget feet

But ongoing scientific (and plenty of anecdotal) evidence suggests that training your feet can give you a significant edge as well. You’ll find plenty of such evidence from a simple Google search, but much of it refers only to running. This is unfortunate, because as Adam said, “most of the readers only run when they are out of bullets.”

More important than any of that, however, is what you will not find. There exists no compelling scientific evidence to suggest that cushioned, arch-supporting athletic shoes reduce injury or improve performance. In light of that fact, I have to ask: what, then, are we paying for?

Adaptation

In the context of adaptation – Frankie says “there is no ‘off’ switch for adaptation – wearing shoes produces weak, shoe-shaped feet. In populations where people very rarely wear shoes, foot problems are remarkably non-existent. Their feet adapt, aligning and strengthening the toes and widening to produce a strong and stable base.

Note the wide, thick toes of the habitually barefoot man on the left. Additionally, notice the angle of the big toe especially on the “shod” foot: this unnatural angle makes walking and running more laborious as the foot’s natural mechanics are interrupted.

When the bones align properly, the leveraging action of walking tightens the fascia and bone of the midfoot, creating a “windlass mechanism” that allows for efficient transfer of energy into forward movement.

All of this evidence is, of course, anecdotal. But even if we jettison observational evidence, going without shoes still makes a good deal of sense: we are born without shoes, we spent a significant majority of evolutionary time unshod, and shoes often act to restrict movement. No one seriously argues that we can improve hand health by wearing heavy, restrictive mittens.

But I can only intelligently comment on my own personal experience. In a little over a year and a half of frequent barefoot running, walking, lifting and parkour, I have not experienced any pain or injury in my lower limbs despite the strenuous nature of at least two of these activities.

I bought minimalist shoes, and managed not to experience arch-support for a full year. Rather than injury, which athletic-shoe retailers told me to expect, I experienced some major benefits, including:

• Improved balance (especially in parkour)
• Greatly improved endurance (walking and running)
• Better posture (standing up straighter)
• Improved flexibility (I wasn’t expecting this one)

Based on significant improvements in the quality of my movement during this time, I would have to conditionally recommend this kind of activity to almost everyone. Progression, as in anything, plays a huge role in success. Gradually adding difficulty, one can reasonably expect to walk comfortably on gravel and almost completely avoid foot pain.

Our hands and feet act as our main points of contact with the outside world. The stronger they are, the easier it is to move with power, speed and balance. I suggest that you test simple barefoot drills like walking or running in grass or just switching to barefoot when lifting. It may well work as well for you as it has for me.

If you have any questions, I would be happy to answer them.

About The Author:

Brad Johnson lives in the Washington DC area. He has been a barefoot runner for about a year and a half, running on his high school track team in the 800m (district champion in 4x800m relay) for 3 years, working with kettlebells and barbells for about 6 months, GM for about 1. Parkour throughout, all barefoot. You can follow him on Twitter at @Bradjohnson23.

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Tagged as: articles, Brad Johnson, feet, guest posts, running