Shoeless Kenyan Runners Have Happy Feet

Could running shoe-less be better for our feet? Harvard researchers traveled to Kenya, putting this theory to the test by looking at lifelong endurance runners who grew up shoeless. Compared to shoe clad runners, the barefoot group put only a third of the impact force on their feet torquing joints less overall. The study also observed that barefoot runners typically land on their middle to front foot rather than the heels that shoe wearers did. Daniel Lieberman, heading the study, is skeptical. He cautions, before tossing the running shoes we need to consider that most runners didn’t evolve their physiology in this way. The question remains whether lifelong shoe wearers would be able to adapt their running strides to compensate for the new landing impact site. (Via Discover)