|
 Minimalist shoes reached peak sales in the United States at $400
million in 2012, according to sports research firm Sports One
Source, but sales declined by 13 percent in the first quarter of
2013.
“After the minimalist movement, the pendulum swung in the other
direction, said Tony Post, Chief Executive Officer and founder of
running shoe company Topo Athletic.
“But a lot of nice things came out of it: more natural running,
lighter, more naturally-shaped shoes that allow the toes to splay,
and a more neutral drop from heel to toe.”
During the boom of barefoot running that followed the publishing of
Christopher McDougall’s best-selling 2009 book “Born to Run,” Post
was CEO of the minimalist shoe company Vibram Five Fingers, makers
of thin-soled, toe-articulated shoes that were designed to replicate
running barefoot.
These days, he said, ergonomic design integrates the lessons learned
from the barefoot craze with a natural feel.
“The future is the best of both worlds,” he said. “Minimal shoes
didn’t allow enough time for bodies to adapt.”
Post noted that before the barefoot craze nearly all shoes had a 10
to 20 millimeter drop from heel to toe, even though flatter shoes
are known to aid posture and alignment.
This year the American College of Sports Medicine listed minimal
heel-to-toe drop, the absence of motion control or stability
components, and lightness as the key characteristics of a good, safe
running shoe.
Washington State-based biomechanist Katy Bowman said the barefoot
movement alerted people that shoes were limiting their performance,
but too many started running too soon.
“From a biomechanical perspective I’ve been a fan of minimal
footwear, but in a progression,” said Bowman, author of “Move Your
DNA: Restore Your Health Through Natural Movement.”
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“It takes a long time to achieve strength in legs,” she added.
Before running in them, walk in minimal shoes for a couple of
months, she recommends.
To awaken the foot’s support structure and improve circulation,
Bowman also advises barefoot exercises, such as lifting each toe one
at a time.
“It’s not just about taking off your shoe,” she said. “It’s about
exposing the foot to different elements and loads, going uphill and
downhill with debris and angles under your foot (to get) all the
tiny exercises that your foot and ankle need.”
When choosing minimal footwear, Bowman said, think light, with a
flexible sole that you can twist, not just bend, and look for zero
drop.
Because shoes limit the way the body moves, Bowman said, the
benefits of being minimally should go beyond walking or running.
“If you wore them all the time it’s a secret weapon,” she said, “a
way to get more movement into your day without doing anything else.”
(Editing by Patricia Reaney, Bernard Orr)
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