THE BROOKS BLOG

Scott Jurek and Chris McDougall sat down a few days ago with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) to chat about nutrition, ultra-running, and barefoot running.

Listen here.

Silvia Ruegger, Canadian women’s marathon record holder and eighth-place finisher in the 1984 Women’s Olympic Marathon, talks about how footwear needs can change over time and how shoe technologies have affected her running.

>>Read Sylvia’s full statement here.

Sports medicine doctors will tell you that foot structure takes place up until the age of eight, so later in life we can only strengthen muscles and ligaments through foot strengthening exercises. This can prevent or speed up the healing of certain injuries, or allow some individuals to change the level of support they need in a shoe, but to do this requires time and discipline to make a gradual transition to less support.

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One of the other things that we experience as we get older is issues with metatarsalgia—pain under our metatarsals. With structural changes in our arches, there is added pressure that gets placed on the metatarsal heads. Without the benefit of structure under the arch and help to alleviate the pressure underneath the metatarsal heads, many of us find it impossible to run. Similarly, as we get older, some experience a receding of the fat pads underneath the metatarsal heads. Now even the natural cushioning that was in the foot is no longer there. We are appreciative of shoes that help cushion the forefoot and help us transition.

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I began running before footwear companies were really incorporating support technologies into shoes. I overpronate quite significantly on one side, was injured for two-and-a-half years, and unable to run at all, because shoes at the time were not posted. As sports medicine footwear technologies progressed, I had an orthotic made to help my overpronation, and I chose shoes that addressed overpronation with posting and other support technologies. If I try to run in a shoe with less support, I begin to feel my old injuries again. I am very grateful for the advancements in technology that footwear companies have made. They have allowed me to run injury free.

Kevin Hanson, long time runner, coach of the Hansons-Brooks Original Distance Project (ODP), and owner of Hansons Running Shops, Michigan, talks about evolving shoe technolgies, barefoot running as a training tool, and how he decides which shoes to put on his wall.

>>Read Kevin’s full statement on minimalistic running here.

KEVIN HANSON THE RUNNER

I began running in 1975 as a high school cross-country runner. [...] I am certain that 90% of our team had stress fractures, or at the very minimum, a stress reaction. [...] As the shoe technology changed, so did the frequency of our aches and pains. Lower leg issues became less and less. Shoes became softer and provided much needed relief. This, however, led to more and more knee problems. These cleared up once dual density technology became part of the running shoe industry. Fast forward to today: The better understanding of the foot has allowed the shoe companies to both control foot fall and allow the foot to respond in a natural state.

KEVIN HANSON THE COACH

I work with athletes of all levels, from high school kids who are new to the sport to Olympic level runners. I believe that there are some definite advantages to both running and walking barefoot. However, I would not recommend doing more than six to eight 100-meter strides, twice a week. This will enable the athlete to strengthen the plantar fascia and all of the soft connective tissues.

KEVIN HANSON THE RETAILER

I would be happy to bring in a training device that would protect the foot while doing strides a couple days a week. The problem is that the misinformation that is being generated by the minimalists makes it nearly impossible to protect our customers. I feel that this type of product being on our wall adds legitimacy to using it on a daily basis. This would not be in the best interest of our customers’ health.

Wow! I just read through all the comments on Jim’s recent blog post …what an amazing conversation we’re having on running. I love to see all of this passion and energy around our sport and what we care the most about at Brooks: the run.

As a career long R&D guy, this is particularly exciting to me as it gives my team more opportunity to learn, grow, and explore new methods and technologies that will ultimately allow the runner to run farther, faster, more efficiently, and healthier.

Many of you have asked about research (or lack thereof) regarding the benefits of shod vs. unshod running. One way or the other, show me the proof, right?! Well, while no one has been able to prove whether running with or without shoes causes more injury, we at Brooks have been and will continue to develop and conduct prospective and retrospective studies around running injury prevention. We’re dedicated to reducing running injury risk and have aligned ourselves with some of the top researchers and universities from around the world to help us tackle this. These types of research projects take some time, but we’re making progress and we expect to make some big strides forward this year. Be sure to stay tuned for updates and keep us posted on your thoughts, comments and suggestions!

Keep Running,

Pete

Hi all,

My name is Andre Kriwet and I am the Director of Footwear Merchandising at Brooks Sports. I have been working on and with running shoes for the last 22 years. My team and I are responsible to set the direction of the running footwear line for the future. So with that said, I can only tell you that I love to read the passionate comments you guys posted: Thank you for caring!

I will not take sides on the barefoot discussion but rest assured that we hear you and are super excited and inspired by your thoughts and ideas. We at brooks do only one thing: running. No tennis, no football or climbing. Our only goal and success is when we get it right for YOU! If we learned that we can reduce injuries by putting the left shoe on the right foot and vice versa we would do just that. It is a unique time right now, a time of new beginnings in a way, a lot of questions and great discussion like in this blog: Minimalist shoes, how you run, how you train, why you run, and how the footwear industry goes about reducing injuries.

I cannot tell you too much here right now (you know, our competitors will read this as well: Hi there J, by the way) but we, as one of the leading running shoe brands, have a lot of innovative stuff cooking that will excite you and answer many of the questions you have today. So please trust us, we hear you! And we really care about your opinion since you help me shape the future of the footwear line.

>> Read Brooks’ Perspective on Barefoot Running here .
>> Read trusted experts’ opinions here .

Just before 2009 came to a close, The Washington Times Communities’ online running column "Run, Karla, Run!" honored ultra runner Scott Jurek by including him in a post titled "The Best Runners of the Decade."

Runner/journalist Karla Bruning ranked Jurek 8th on the 10-person roster, which also includes Catherine Ndereba, Tirunesh Dibaba, Usain Bolt, Haile Gebrselassie, and Paula Radcliffe. Of her highly personal, yet star-studded list, Bruning notes:

"My picks are completely unscientific and subjective, and I’m sure they will incite at least a little grumbling. But these 10 runners have dazzled the world with feats of strength. . . and racked up the hardware to prove it."

About Brooks-sponsored ultramarathoner Jurek, in particular, she writes:

"There’s distance and then there’s distance. In the burgeoning field of ultramarathons, Scott Jurek is the king of the road."

>> Read "The Best Runners of the Decade" online column in its entirety here.

As a champion ultra runner, running coach, and physical therapist, Jurek was one of the experts whose opinions we sought in preparing our Perspective on Barefoot Running . Jurek was also one of the runners featured prominently in Born to Run , the bestselling book by Christopher McDougall.

In his expert section on barefoot running, Jurek states:

"Personally, I have used barefoot running before and/or after a speed workout by warming up and cooling down in 10- to 15-minute sessions on grass or artificial turf for technique training. I have also used it to prevent injury or rehab a foot-ankle injury, such as plantar fasciitis, by running on grass or sand for one to four miles. As a running coach, I have recommended running barefoot for the same reasons I have used it in my own training program. The key is proper progression and integration (i.e. avoiding too much, too soon) to allow the athlete’s body to adapt appropriately."

To see Scott Jurek’s "pros" and "cons" of barefoot running, along with the rest of his remarks on the topic, please read his expert statement.
>> See the rest of our experts’ statements
>> Read our Perspective on Barefoot Running

January 22, 2010

An Open Letter to the Running Community ,

For many of us, running is an inseparable part of our lives—we need it. When we run, we improve our health, relieve stress, achieve personal goals, compete, raise money, and have fun. On any given weekend, check out a running event in any city across the globe and you’ll be inspired by runners spanning ages, speeds, motivations, and goals—each with their own stories. At Brooks, inspiring everyone to run and be active is our reason for being.

Given the passion felt about our sport, it’s easy to understand how everything about the run is actively studied, critiqued, debated, and questioned—including shoes. People strive to run faster, longer, healthier, more efficiently, and injury-free mile after mile, and they’ve traditionally looked to their footwear to deliver that. But many people have recently questioned whether running barefoot is better, so we feel it’s time for Brooks to join the public dialogue.

Let’s call a spade a spade. We make running shoes: High-quality, biomechanically mapped, performance running shoes calibrated for runners’ unique needs. We hope runners buy our shoes and we’re confident they’ll enjoy them. But this isn’t about selling shoes. And, quite frankly, this isn’t even about running barefoot.

So what are we talking about here? First and foremost, we’re all talking about running, and that’s a great thing because we believe to our core that running is a positive force in our world. We want everyone to run and be happy. But to get there, whether you should run barefoot is not the great debate. We are all unique. The focus should be on how you run and train, and then finding the right shoe that addresses your unique biomechanical needs. "The Perfect Ride for Every Stride," as we say at Brooks. Let’s look at a snapshot of the running population:

• At one end of the spectrum, we know there are runners who lack foot strength leading to severe pronation. They may strike heavily and need a great deal of support to run injury- and pain-free. We hear repeatedly from them that the Brooks Beast "saved their lives."

• At the other end of the spectrum are the biomechanically blessed (and/or conditioned through training) who have natural healthy gaits and enjoy great efficiency. These gazelles may wear shoes, they may not.

• The vast majority of runners (including this middle-of-the-packer !) fall in between. And for us, we strongly believe most of our mileage should be logged in a performance running shoe, not barefoot . For us, supportive, cushioned footwear is not only beneficial, it also plays an essential role in delivering a comfortable, injury-free running experience.

Elsewhere on our Web site, you’ll find a robust discussion on this topic (or you can view it as a downloadable PDF here ) from our Brooks footwear team. We also asked people we respect in the running industry to chime in with their perspectives on the barefoot running discussion. These experts include accomplished runners, coaches, researchers, doctors, and specialty running retailers, who see more runners (and their feet) each week than many of us see in a lifetime.

Join us in this conversation and be active in your decisions. We were all born to run. But the ultimate goal, of course, is to keep running for the long haul.

Run Happy,

Jim Weber
President & CEO
Brooks Sports, Inc.