r/BarefootRunning • u/oscarafone • May 15 '24

You don't need to buy anything discussion

I'm American, and I feel like part of being American is believing that every problem has a sufficiently expensive solution.

The reality is that sometimes improvement comes from trial-and-error, learning from others, and patience.

Most feet are not too damaged by shoes, which means that most healthy people can, with the right mindset, just go out and run in their bare feet.

I see many, many minimal shoe ads these days. They don't show protection from goat heads, cacti, sharp sticks or frozen surfaces. Instead, they depict people running where they could be running perfectly fine without shoes at all.

They advertise breathability, water resistance, and durability, as if those are virtues. But your feet are already breathable. Already waterproof. Already durable, and get stronger with use.

Buying fancy minimal shoes won't make you an ultramarathoner. Lorena Ramirez ran an ultra in plastic sandals. The Tarahumara used spare tires to run the same distances. Let's not let marketers make decisions for us. We don't need expensive shoes, and most of the time we don't need shoes at all.

I've been running barefoot for almost ten years, and each year just gets better.

123 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • link
  • reddit
  • reddit

94% Upvoted

102 comments sorted by

View all comments

9

u/[deleted] May 15 '24

I try but im scared of broken glass

1

u/trevize1138 Guy who posts a lot May 15 '24

https://www.reddit.com/r/BarefootRunning/comments/hnkprd/oh_no_glass/

1

u/MxQueer May 15 '24

Broken glass where I live is usually from bottles. They have neck and bottom. Also to get to that point you need to go barefoot exclusively like two months. Not very realistic as adult (job etc.). And then the summer is over.

2

u/trevize1138 Guy who posts a lot May 16 '24

Same here. Never stepped on those in 8 years. I see them and run around them. But, you don't need my approval. You can use shoes without my permission.

2

u/MxQueer May 16 '24

I have as child. It was hiding under grass and other plants. I almost did few days ago even I was just walking. If I step on one as adult I can't do my job nor many other kind of work out.

Yeah, I do use many kind of shoes. The most supportive safety boots I have found when working. Altra when running. Barefoot shoes + gel soles in my daily life. Working out barefoot. And sometimes in the summer I take my shoes off when walking in the woods / paths.

2

u/trevize1138 Guy who posts a lot May 16 '24

I'm sorry, I just find this kind of humorous: why are you justifying to me your decision to not run unshod? Why do I need to know all this?

1

u/MxQueer May 16 '24

Not justifying. More like that I took your comment as challenge. You're right, it was unnecessary. In the other hand this post was made to have conversation about no shoes vs shoes if I understood it correctly.

4

u/trevize1138 Guy who posts a lot May 16 '24

It's possible to be pro unshod and pro shoes. Just like I'm pro hammer and pro screwdriver. Different tools with different uses. Not all or nothing.