Liar, Liar. Feet on Fire. (confessions of a "barefoot runner")

Vibram Five Finger Komodo Sport

I'm a bare-footer. At least that's what I'll tell you. I've been running in minimalist running shoes ("barefoot shoes") for the last year.   For the most part, it's been a good experience. In fact it's really been great. I ran a half marathon in them last summer, and this year I plan to run a marathon in them. My shoe of choice is the Vibram Five Fingers Komodo Sport. Great "shoes"; I feel like I'm wearing nothing on my feet at all, like I'm barefoot. But really that's a lie; I'm not barefoot. Not in the purest sense of the word, and that became ever so real today.

Last Sunday I ran three miles truly barefoot. I was in Florida, and left the Vibrams at home... on purpose.  I figured, if I'm going to truly run barefoot, now's the time; white soft sand, warm weather.  Big mistake. B-I-G big.  My feet were raw Sunday. It hurt to walk; I know it would hurt to run again the next day.  I could do it if I had my Vibrams.  Maybe after a day off I'll run again and see how it goes - see if I can build up some callous on my feet or something. On Sunday night however... I sat and suffered. The ball of my left foot and the big toe on my right foot felt like they had rug burn; like I drug them down the road while riding a Harley. Funny though. Why the difference in my foot wear? Why is one spot on my left foot and another on my right painful, but the other areas seem OK?

I'm realizing my "barefoot shoes" really cover up some issues with my running technique. My true barefoot wear today reveal imbalance... dysfunction; something I'll need to fix if I want to continue to run distance in these shoes. Certainly, the imbalances exist in the shoes too, but I just don't feel them. The thin layer of rubber between me and the ground makes me less aware of this problem- insulates me from it.

As a chiropractor I see this a lot in other people; in fact I see it all the time. They come in with a pain in only their lower back, but on x-ray we see osteo-arthritis (spinal wear or degeneration) in their neck too. Or it can be the other way around, pain elsewhere, arthritis in the lower back.  Invariably they tell me, "but I don't have pain in my neck, Dr. Zach. Never have." And I tell them, "Arthritis in your spine doesn't have to be painful. In fact it often isn't. Spinal degeneration (or arthritis) often goes undetected because of this for years without causing a problem and then... WHAM, it surfaces.   That undected wear becomes a problem, and often a big one, but unfortunately it was preventable. A few simple tests and and some wellness chiropractic care would have prevented this if we would have caught it 10-20 years ago, but now it's too late.  We can get the pain to go away, but the degeneration...that's premanent." After that I usually tell them to bring in their kids or grand kids with them so they don't end up this way too. No one wants to see that stuff in their spines, and many of these people seek care in our office to assure they don't in the future.

You see just like my feet, imbalances in our spines can cause uneven wear.  Maybe you can visualize it better if the analogy was a tire on your car.  If a tire on your car is mounted out of balance it will wear in an uneven fashion.  You won't notice it right away.  It will take years and miles before you notice a difference.  And chances are you won't be the one to notice it either.  Your mechanic will likely point it out during a regular oil change or when you have the car in for other repairs (kind of like the patient with the back pain).

 "Oh, by the way sir, looks like your tires are wearing unevenly. You want us to rotate and balance them?"

"Sure Mack, go ahead and do that.  I'm sure it'll save some time and money later by doing that now."

Your tires, your feet, your spine, or even your life for that matter, when in balance are designed to be long lasting, extremely useful, and above all else purposeful.  Just a slight misalignment however, can throw everything out of balance and before you know it you've got a blow-out; broken down and disabled on the roadside of life.

Fortunately there are "mechanics" for all areas of life.  Experts in finding imbalances and empowering you to restore balance.  For me, the first step is figuring out this uneven foot wear.  I know I'm going to need some outside help.  Someone to objectively look at where I'm at and what I'm doing.  Someone to point out the errors before this little imbalance leads to a lifetime of pain.  For you, it might be a chiropractor, a coach, a counselor, or your pastor.  Regardless of who it is, know this:

You can never live too long, be too useful, or have too much purpose.