Originally Posted by
rickair7777
Supposedly you can run on pavement barefoot, after a lot of acclimatization. You natural stride (toe first vice heel-first) absorbs the impact so it just comes down to wear and tear on the soles of your feet. Shoes cause us to land heel-first when running, so it takes a while to get used to doing it the other way.
I used to walk barefoot several blocks to surfing every day and my feet toughened up pretty good. I think they are supposed to be able to do that...but all of our shoe-wearing keeps them tender.
I don't know if they get tough enough to protect against glass or nails, but those five-finger shoes would take care of that issue.
I'd probably try it if I had a long enough stretch of grass, sand, or dirt trail but I don't, so I may just stick with shoes. I'm not sure what the navy would think of barefoot fitness tests.
Exactly right. I run on the road, sidewalks, treadmills, trails... everywhere. Someone posted the Vibrams Five Fingers above, which is exactly what I wear. Have three pairs for different places. Running on pavement is a complete non-issue. Once you relearn how to run on the balls of your feet, and the feet strengthen up (because they're lazy running in shoes) it feels completely natural.
Rick I've run the PFA in my five fingers several times. Which is hilarious when you beat most of the people, essentially barefoot. I can't run on shoes anymore... I hate it. The Vibrams are basically just tread to protect your skin, and the best part is they never wear out like shoes. Until you run far enough to wear through the rubber.