Every time I teach another introductory kettlebell class, one of the first questions I get asked is about shoes. It used to be what kind of shoes – but since the minimalist / barefoot shoe trend, it’s now usually about whether I think my clients should wear shoes at all.
My preference is to not wear shoes at all.
Why Barefoot?
Z-Health Master Trainer mc schraefel has written a great article about the biomechanical and neurological reasons why you should go barefoot: Kick off your Shoes, free your feet, show your nervous system you care
On a much more practical level, I like my kettlebell clients to be shoeless because we have better balance when we are barefoot (particularly with a few minutes of coaching about rooting and gripping the ground). And, when you are swinging around a heavy weight and moving what can be tons of weight during the course of a kettlebell training session, I think that being firmly rooted to the ground with a good sense of balance is a good thing.
An Alternative to Barefoot
I know, sometimes it’s not practical to go barefoot. You are outside (and squeamish about being outside barefoot) or you are doing kettlebell training as part of a circuit where you need shoes. I get it.
In those cases I ask my clients to wear a shoe with an uber-flexible sole. Ideally the thinner the better, but you have to balance that with the other activities during your training session. Onitsuka Tai Chis are great (my personal favorite), Jengas, most martial arts shoes, Feelmax, Vibrams, and any of the other new barefoot style shoes that are coming out. Everyone has their favorite, so find yours.
Shoes vs Barefoot Video
Nothing demonstrates the difference better than being able to see it with your own eyes. Here is a great video of the impact of running with shoes on vs barefoot.
About Jen Waak
For kettlebells and many other things, I’m a huge barefoot girl. But I also just had a total hip replacement at the tender age of 43 because I was a barefoot runner in the 80s (think Zola Budd and the Olympics: my hero at the time. Hint: she ran on grass.). Barefoot impact sports for adolescent females, esp those of us who run on asphalt, cement and even cinder tracks, are terribly dangerous and detrimental. The female pelvis creates a foot strike pattern that is not direct like the male foot strike pattern, creating more complicated forces on the femur, knees and hips. The hormone changes of adolescence set young women up for stress fractures such as the ones that began the premature degeneration of my hips. Word to the wise. Love your work getting the word about wellness out!
Christine, that’s really interesting. I’m sorry to hear about your hip replacement. Do you have any additional info about the strike pattern for women? I’d really like to read up some more about that, as I had never heard that. I’m not a huge fan of distance running on asphalt for either gender, but I’d really like follow up on the effects in women, particularly.