Now here’s James: “It’s still funny to me how three million years of evolution is still considered a fad by some folks. Nobody who has ever followed our advice on gradual transition has ever been injured from the act of running completely barefoot, or in minimalist shoes. Many do have the usual fatigue and discomfort over a period of up to a year or so trying to undo the weakness and atrophy of the most excellent foot that has been caused by horrible traditional footwear for everyday wear and for running. Mother Nature has given us a foot that is very endurable and survivable, despite our very recent efforts to screw it up Nike Air Max 270 Herr with the many ridiculous features of a traditional running shoe. Would anyone please tell me one single reason to elevate a human heel above the forefoot for anything, or to interfere with Nike Internationalist Femme our natural suspension system with arch support, and especially for running?”Would you recommend that every individual get a preventative appendectomy at a young age to avoid the risk? Should we make all kids wear glasses from age 3 because their eyes might go bad at some point? That’s essentially what the current shoe philosophy is – put kids in cushioned, controlling, heel lifted shoes at a young age because some think it might prevent an injury. Only problem is there is no data to support this. No data to support reduction of injuries barefoot/minimalist either, but as an evolutionary biologist, I tend to think my default state is a better Nike Air Max 95 Femme option from the outset than a heavily controlling shoe with no scientific basis for it’s utility. Particularly when we know quite well that ill-fitting shoes can alter the anatomy of our feet Adidas Ultra Boost Femme and legs with chronic use.I am don’t urge ANYONE to take up barefoot running just because I love it, or because they find it intriguing. My first words to anyone who asks me about it are always: “If you are running now without injury, don’t change a thing! Stick with your shoes, your socks, your training program. Don’t start barefoot running just out of curiosity. But if you are getting injured running in shoes, barefoot running might be worth looking into. It’s a very low-impact form of running. But don’t take it up if you’re running now without injury.”I am one of the many runners who suffered an injury due to minimalist shoes. I had a stress fracture in my right foot that took me out for about 6 months. In answer to the authors question “Are the injured runners just going to the doctor instead of back to us?”. No I did Nike Air Max 90 Femme not return to the store that I bought them from. I returned to a store that had much more selection and knowledgable staff. Why wouold I return to a store that sells the same product that I got injured in? While the minimalist shoes may be a great shoe for SOME runners, there are a lorge number of runners that NEED a cusioned shoe.our staff gives education and like the post says for many a “minimalist” shoe is not a thin shoe…it is the safest place they can go to learn better form , get the foot level, adapt gradually, and learn better form. Example is Newton Isaac. the barefooters do not like this shoe…they are already there. but the 95% of runners who are relearning how to run find it an excellent and durable shoe, it gives protection, but is is not soft and mushy on impact….which impedes the bodies ability to stabilize Nike Air Max 95 Femme itself in midstance. I own The Runner’s Sole located in Chambersburg, PA. I started this store nearly 3 years ago and had all of the traditional shoes with the bulky heels. I didn’t take the minimalist approach upon opening only because I wanted my store to succeed. However, with time and the minimalist movement well under way, I have reduced the amount of shoes in the traditional sense and put more minimalist shoes on my wall. I am a 100 mile guy and I wear Newtons for most of my races including Old Dominion 100 last month. I spend nearly 20 minutes per customer educating them in the minimalist movement and how things will differ from the traditional shoe to the minimalist shoe. I explain to them the need for patience and gradual progression of going minimal but the advantages of doing so. I allow them to try on traditional shoes www.jamlikhalsavast.se and run on my in-store treadmill as well as the minimalist shoe for the same length of time and at the same speed. Finally, I encourage them to run on the treadmill completely barefoot for www.arqueoymas.es the same time/pace.