The Barefoot Professor says barefoot running could minimize injuries (2014 Update: Not really)

2014 Update: 'Barefoot' Running Heads Into the Sunset - WSJ http://buff.ly/1nuz0E0



NatureVideoChannel — January 27, 2010 — Harvard professor Daniel Lieberman has ditched his trainers and started running barefoot. His research shows that barefoot runners, who tend to land on their fore-foot, generate less impact shock than runners in sports shoes who land heel first. This makes barefoot running comfortable and could minimize running-related injuries. Find the original research here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature08723

Humans have engaged in endurance running for millions of years1, but the modern running shoe was not invented until the 1970s. For most of human evolutionary history, runners were either barefoot or wore minimal footwear such as sandals or moccasins with smaller heels and little cushioning relative to modern running shoes.

Related reading:

The Barefoot Running Revolution - INFOGRAPHIC  http://goo.gl/7SUGs