Different strokes...and strides...for different folks.

The information below comes form a fun site from an organization called Primal Britain. The authors are advocates of the paleo diet and of athletic techniques based on natural movements and on how the body was made.

Almost Barefoot is not affiliated with Primal Britain, but considers the site's statements about "Relearning to Walk" i.e. training the feet and finding your stride, to be excellent instruction. Stepping will be a bit different for each person. Strides shorter than those taken with shoes on are key no matter what you exact step type is.

We also chose to feature Primal Britain in our salute to our steady readership from the United Kingdom.

Cheerio!


 This information comes from Primal Britain. We thank the authors and encourage the readers to visit their site! Great barefoot info here.

Re-learning to Walk

There is no hard and fast rule for walking barefoot. Individual walking techniques may vary and it is important to find a style which is both comfortable and efficient. We’ll look at a few different walking styles so you can experiment with a method that suits you.

1. A soft heel strike rolling to the mid/front foot. The key here is ‘soft’. While landing on the heel is a no-no when barefoot running, many people will find this movement natural but not necessarily the safest. This method may causes pain in the knees and joints. If this is the case, try one of the alternative walking styles.
2. Mid-foot strike. Most common is to land on the outside of the foot underneath the knuckle of your little toe. You then roll across your toes and push off.
3. Fore-foot strike. This requires a landing on the forefoot and a gentle push off.

The common elements among all the styles are that you need to maintain short strides, lift your thighs high enough so that your knees can bend and tread lightly. Walk at a pace which allows you to feel what is on the ground (i.e. sharp stones) before you transfer your weight to that foot.

Connected with nature