Born to Run: The Sandals and the Book that Will Change the Way You Walk and Run

Science, Health and Sports Editorial
Many people in the Mediterranean area (Persians, Arabs, Kurds, Armenians, Turks, Afghans, etc.) grow up wearing simple sandals and hand-made thin-soled shoes, such as Giveh or Galesh in Iran or Kalash in Kurdistan. Yet It might come to them as a surprise that scientifically-speaking, shoes and sandals that mimic walking barefoot offer us anatomical, metabolic and evolutionary benefits. This is exactly what Ted McDonald, nicknamed Barefoot Ted, has discovered and shares in "Born to Run", Christopher McDougall's best-seller which explores the evolutionary history and science of endurance running.

Barefoot Ted, Barefoot in the park

Recently we had an opportunity for a short chat with Ted, a genuine, well-read, spiritual, naturalist, athlete and entrepreneur - a rare combination of traits. Ted, who is an accomplished athlete with many 21K ultra-marathons in his record, says his love of nature is rooted in California's "Surf and Skate" culture of the 1970s. This is before the age of fancy video games and cell phones so youngsters (baby boomers) spent a lot of time outdoors surfing, skating and being nourished by nature in the sunny California. It was in those years that Ted discovered "Being barefoot or in sandals, on a sandy beach, on a surfboard or skateboard, or while running is one of the life's simplest pleasures. It grounds people. The natural grip allows our body to best balance itself."

The book offers science and stories that back up Ted's experience. Also in the book, Barefoot Ted shares with us the story of the indigenous people of the Copper Canyons in northwestern Mexico who are featured prominently in the book. The tribe call themselves Rarámuri, which translates in English to "those who run fast." The book explores some of the reasons for why they are considered some of the best long-distance runners in the world. The Rarámuri tribe, known to outsiders as the Tarahumara (pronounced "Taramara") have a technique for remaining light on their feet which enables them to cover long distances with efficiency, less effort and injuries. In fact, the Tarahumara people have been seen smiling and appearing quite joyful while running at the end of marathons. Besides wearing minimal or no shoes while running, the Tarahumara let the front of their foot lead the way with each advancing step. This is known as a midfoot strike (MFS) or forefront strike (FFS) which means landing on the ball of the foot or on the toes, Not the heel.

Inspired by the Tarahumara, Barefoot Ted and his business partner, Scott Smuin founded the company Luna Sandals to bring to the world the best made minimalist running shoes. Luna Sandals is named in honor of one of the best runners from the Tarahumara people, Manuel Luna (pictured here with Barefoot Ted at the 2019 at the Ultra Maratón Caballo Blanco held each year in Chihuahua, México).

Luna sandals combine the natural barefoot grip with durable protective soles. Some of their sandals such as The Retro Mono [Moh-No] are so versatile and shape so well to our feet's natural shape that they can be used in hiking, traveling, lounging, camping, running, spelunking, or anything else. Ted is offering a summer-special promo code on the sandals with a promo code KODOOM15 redeemable only on their website or automatically on this link: lunasandals.com.

New research has validated McDougall and McDonald. A 2017 study published in the Journal of Sport and Health Science indicates: "Why forefoot striking in minimal shoes might positively change the course of running injuries", the technique of a forefoot strike (FFS) has been shown to exert the lowest impact and less shock to your skeletal system compared to a heel strike, otherwise known as an RFS (rear foot strike): "Most runners today wear footwear to protect their feet. It is well-recognized that modern footwear changes our natural pattern to a predominant RFS landing that results in significantly different mechanics from an FFS pattern. Some of these RFS mechanics, such as increased load to the knee and increased vertical loading rates, have been significantly associated with running injuries... Running in full minimal footwear is associated with increases in both intrinsic and extrinsic foot muscular strength, as well as being associated with the most soft landings. Converting to an FFS pattern in minimal shoes should be done slowly and be accompanied by foot and lower leg strengthening to minimize injuries during the transition. With proper transition, an FFS pattern in true minimal footwear that most closely mimics our natural, barefoot state, may positively change the trajectory of running injuries in the modern-day runner."

The story and study of the mechanics of running, with or without shoes is still being written. You can read more about this in McDougall's post, "Why is running form controversial?" As McDougall remarks: "The debate isn’t about Bare Soles vs. Shoes. It’s about learning to run gently. Master that, and you can wear — or not wear — anything you please."

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