Why it is worth training barefoot or with barefoot shoes

We jump out of bed and slip into our slippers, before leaving the house we put on our street shoes. To run barefoot? Is out of the question, because our feet are so used to shoes so much that it can be quite uncomfortable to run barefoot. The tile floor is too cold for walking barefoot and on the street we need shoes to protect our feet.

Naked feet are also usually considered unattractive and unrelegant. Shoes are simply part of our modern lifestyle. In addition to the protective function, we can also express our individual style with shoes.

However, by wearing shoes, we also lose muscle strength and the sensory feedback from the floor is lost. In the following article you will find out why it can be advantageous to train barefoot.

Train barefoot - advantages / effects

In a study by Franklin et al. In 2015, which was published in the scientific magazine Gait & Posture, interesting results can be read.

The following effects can be achieved if the shoes are moved out during training, i.e. you train barefoot or with socks:

• More muscles are used
  In normal footwear, our foot moves in a kind. Barefoot are used up to 20 muscles that are not only strengthened, but also have a variety of tasks for a stable gait. If you train these muscles specifically with weights, the "forgotten" muscles can be reactivated and built up quickly. This makes an important contribution to staying healthy, fit and injury -free.

• Better balance
  Having good sense of balance is important to prevent injuries. With increasing age, a fall can lead to serious injuries, which is why it is very important to always run stable and not to false, even if the surface should be slippery or uneven.
  A study of children from Zech et al. 2018, which appeared in the Frontiers in Pediatrics, shows that children who run a lot of barefoot and play have a significantly better sense of balance than children who always wear shoes.

• Winning of muscle tone and muscle strength
  Especially when it comes to weight training, whether with a weight or with external weights, a big effect can be felt if you train barefoot instead of shoes.
  The brain gets a better sensory feedback from the floor via the feet. Especially in the case of stagnant performance, barefoot trainers can lead to being able to lift larger weights. By better feeling through the foot, the quality of the movements can be significantly improved, which can ultimately lead to increasing performance.

Is barefoot training suitable for everyone?

Basically yes, provided you have healthy feet. If you have fractures or have malpositions or suffer from osteoporosis, you should always consult the attending doctor. In addition, you should always listen to your own body. If you are in pain, you shouldn't continue the barefoot training.

It should also be noted that there is a special risk of injury from shards, spines or sharp -edged stones when training.

Tips for barefoot training

As with all new activities and sports, you should slowly get used to the stress when it comes to barefoot training. If you are already used to doing weight training in shoes, you should not train barefoot for more than 10 minutes. Of course, the same applies to all other sports.

It is best to stick to the rule of thumb to extend barefoot training every week by 5 minutes, as long as the previous unit has not caused any problems. Perhaps this tentative increase seems too careful, but it must be noted that the new muscles to be used need time to build up. Only when strong muscles are developed in the foot area does the risk of injury drop.

That is why it is always advisable to slowly approach barefoot trainers and not want too much at once.

Alternative to barefoot trains are barefoot shoes

An alternative to barefoot training is to wear barefoot shoes. Our ZAQQ barefoot shoes offer sufficient protection, but are designed in such a way that the sensory feedback is not lost. That is why the soles of all ZAQQS are absolutely flat, wafer -thin and highly flexible. The foot can feel the floor and naturally roll it off. In addition, our shoes offer a lot of space in the area of ​​the toes so that the foot can move freely as when running barefoot in the barefoot shoe.

For sporting activities, whether weight or running training, we recommend our ZAQQ barefoot shoes from the Running category. These are light, flexible and particularly breathable.

>> Running barefoot shoes for women - click here! <<

>> Running barefoot shoes for men - click here! <<

Feel Free, Feel Zaqq.

Sources:

Simon Franklin, Michael J. Gray, Nicola Heneghan, Laura Bowen, François-Xavier Li 2015: Barefoot VS Common Footwear: A Systematic Review of the Kinematic, Kinetic and Muscle Activity Differences During Walking, Gait & Posture, 2015, Volume 42, Issue 3, P 230-239.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966636215004993

Astrid Zech, Ranel Venter, Johanna E. de Villiers, Susanne Sehner, Karl Wegscheider, Karsten Hollander 2018: Motor Skills of Children and Adolescents Are Influenced by Growing Up Barefoot Or Shod, Frontiers in Pediatrics, 2018, Volume 6, P 115.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fped.2018.00115/full