Jogging in High Heels
It’s time to swap your running shoes for a pair of…high heels? A recent article in Scientific American reported that not only does wearing running shoes cause increased joint torque at the hip, knee, and ankle but even jogging in high heels is better for joints. So much for those fancy running shoes.
A study in Nature found 70-80% of runners who wear shoes land heel-first, whereas barefoot runners usually land toward the middle or front of the foot. (See pictures in the Scientific American article.) Daniel Lieberman, a Harvard University professor and an author of this study, remarked, “People who don’t wear shoes when they run have an astonishingly different strike.” Well, so what?
Barefooot runners reduce impact by pointing their toes more at landing, preventing a sudden stop. On the other hand (or foot in this case), landing on the heel when running without shoes is painful and can translate into a collision force 1.5 to 3 times the runner’s body weight. With the development of cushioned shoes, this initial pain has disappeared, and a high-impact, injury-inducing running style that human physiology cannot tolerate has emerged.
Christopher McDougall, an avid runner and author of the best-selling book Born to Run, had been plagued by running injuries until he visited the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico, a tribe known for running long distances while only wearing thin-soled sandals. In this article, he argues that running doesn’t inherently cause injuries and that running has only recently become associated with pain and injury. To hear more about McDougall’s story, check out this video.
Despite this evidence, I’m not quite ready to hit the ground running. Looking for a compromise between no shoes and barefoot running, I found FiveFinger footwear. These sock-like shoes allow the benefits of barefoot running while providing protection for your feet. Don’t expect to find me running barefoot in the snow anytime soon, but barefoot running or running with FiveFinger footwear looks promising.
- blog authored by Kelsie Eichel
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8 Responses to “Jogging in High Heels”
You’ll have the U.S army training and fighting in high heels. Funny just thinking about it.
This is really interesting. Everything I’ve read says that high heels are the worst thing possible for the feet and legs.
As a retailer of high heel shoes we get a small group of customers asking for recommendations of “stripper shoes” they can run in… Needless to say we recommend the lower ones with ankle support if we had to pick a pair of heels to run in.
Apparently there are short races as well as marathons all across the country where high heels are the required footwear. I’ve seen some video clips of such races and it’s amazing how fast you see some women run in 5″+ heels!
Christopher McDougall, an avid runner and author of the best-selling book Born to Run, had been plagued by running injuries until he visited the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico, a tribe known for running long distances while only wearing thin-soled sandals.
These sock-like shoes allow the benefits of barefoot running while providing protection for your feet. Don’t expect to find me running barefoot in the snow anytime soon, but barefoot running or running with FiveFinger footwear looks promising.
Barefooot runners reduce impact by pointing their toes more at landing, preventing a sudden stop. On the other hand (or foot in this case), landing on the heel when running without shoes is painful and can translate into a collision force 1.5 to 3 times the runner’s body weight. With the development of cushioned shoes, this initial pain has disappeared, and a high-impact, injury-inducing running style that human physiology cannot tolerate has emerged.
On the other hand (or foot in this case), landing on the heel when running without shoes is painful and can translate into a collision force 1.5 to 3 times the runner’s body weight. With the development of cushioned shoes, this initial pain has disappeared, and a high-impact, injury-inducing running style that human physiology cannot tolerate has emerged.
Despite this evidence, I’m not quite ready to hit the ground running. Looking for a compromise between no shoes and barefoot running, I found FiveFinger footwear. These sock-like shoes allow the benefits of barefoot running while providing protection for your feet. Don’t expect to find me running barefoot in the snow anytime soon, but barefoot running or running with FiveFinger footwear looks promising.
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