Foot Strike Photos from the NYC Barefoot Run

Monday, September 26, 2011

Foot Strike Photos from the NYC Barefoot Run

As part of my whirlwind trip to New York City, on Sunday morning I attended the NYC Barefoot Run. Rather than starting the race with the other runners, I opted to set up shop about a quarter mile from the starting line with my trusty high-speed video camera in tow. Managed to film all of the runners as they passed by, and got some great footage. Lot’s of interesting observations should come of this. Anyway, my messages for the day:

1. Just because you take your shoes off and run barefoot does not necessarily mean your ~~form~~ footstrike (updated: form may have changed in other ways, such as the degree of overstride or angle of the heelstrike) will change immediately. Perhaps it might never adapt without conscious effort.

2. Just because you wear Vibram Fivefingers, does not necessarily mean your ~~form~~ footstrike will change immediately. Perhaps it might never adapt without conscious effort.

3. If you run barefoot in a costume that looks like a giant human foot, you’re probably good to go.

In all seriousness, I find this all fascinating. Why do some people switch immediately to a forefoot strike when barefoot, but others do not? How much does wearing any form of shoe influence whether a change in form occurs? These are the things churning in my head right now – you can expect more on this as I wade through these videos.

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Runblogger is edited and authored by Peter Larson. Pete is an anatomy professor, writer, and a fanatical runner with a bit of a shoe obsession. He is co-author of the book Tread Lightly. Follow Pete on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and via email.