How to Walk Barefoot [FAQ]

By Justin on May 7, 2009 | In vibram user stories, frequently asked questions | 1 feedback »

I received the following question in the mailbag yesterday:

Hi, my name is Ben and I'm a recent convert to Vibrams (black KSO's). I'm building up foot strength as well as calluses so I can run the NYC half marathon in them in August. I am also learning Pose running, which is very similar to running barefoot, as you land on your sole/midfoot.

I was wondering if you could run a poll or something asking how VFF wearer's walk in them. I notice that when walking in the VFF's, my heel strikes first, and since there is no real cushioning, it tends to hurt a little bit after a long walk, especially when walking around fast. Do people walk with their soles striking first? I've tried walking more softly, but when moving fast but not yet running, the heel strike feels noticeable.

Thanks and keep up the really cool site!

-Ben

Ben,

Thanks for writing in and you'll have to keep us updated on your half-marathon training a la POSE. I'd like to learn some POSE basics at some point!

As for your request for a poll, hopefully some others will chime in with their experience with walking in VFFs. I recall that in recanting his initial experiences with fivefingers Julien described walking as feeling as though he was on a catwalk. I know that in experimenting with different five fingers walking methods, one method I tend to return is taking short steps and landing midfoot, and when you do this, you feel almost catlike, gliding across the ground quickly and effortlessly.

Richard Nikoley (his b-day shoes interview), who regularly walks three miles a day and has been for years, had to retrain his feet so as to avoid pain in his feet. How does he walk? In his own words:

Armed with the knowledge I'd taken in, I was able to notice that my stride is actually quite short. It's barely perceptible, but my heel only contacts the ground the briefest micro-second before I roll forward on the outside of the foot and spring off my fully bent (and splayed) toes, ending up with my calf muscle fully contracted. Where I used to wear out my shoes on the outside heel and inside toe, I now wear through them right square in the center of the ball of my foot. I should know: I go through a pair of expensive Nike every six months. To me, that indicates that the stress is not on the pounding of the heel, but in the compression and springing off, right from the ball and continuing outward, radially through spread toes -- as it should be. My shoes now have virtually no heel or toe wear when I toss them out.

He also refers to the picture in NYMag's article titled You Walk Wrong — short stride, very low-angled, knees-bent, and soft heel-strike to a roll and push off with your toes.

In Tim Ferriss' more recent review of VFFs, he notes that he's experienced some heel-bruising when walking:

I now use VFFs for no more than three days in a row, as I’ve had some bruising on the heel with more, and such bruising is slow to heal and massively inconvenient. Asphalt is somewhat forgiving, concrete much less so (The Embarcadero in SF, for example), and marble or stone is brutal (casino floors in Las Vegas, etc.).

Ultimately, I think any serious or prolonged heel-striking on our modern, hard-surfaced world is going to result in some foot-pain. However, I think the easiest way to mitigate this is to retrain yourself on how to walk to minimize impact and maximize efficiency. I'm guessing this is the same general method behind POSE running, as well.

Anyone else have any thoughts on this subject?

Update 5/7/09: Ben posted about Birthday Shoes on his blog! Now I just gotta get him to send me a b-day shoes photo!

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