Forefoot Running: A Safe, Simple Way for Marathoners to Start Doing It

Forefoot running is a mystery to most marathoners. It need not be. There is a safe, simple way for marathoners to start doing it.

I’ll begin by defining different types of running, including forefoot running. I’ll explain why marathoners should consider running on their forefeet. I’ll compare and contrast it with barefoot running, which I’ll argue against. I’ll tell you what kind of shoes are best for forefoot running. And, I’ll tell you how you can become a forefoot runner, concluding with some suggestions and tips.

What is forefoot running?

Forefoot running refers to a way in which your foot lands as you run. There are three common types of running foot-strike:

• Rearfoot running: This occurs when you land on the heel of your foot.
• Midfoot running: This occurs when you land on the middle of your foot.
• Forefoot running: This occurs when you land on the ball of your foot.

Toe running is a fourth type of running. It is fortunate that it is not common. As a video on the Web says:

“In forefoot running, initial contact of the ball of the foot followed by the dropping of the heel provides a smoother landing. In toe running, the heel does not drop to the ground[,] and peak pressures are greatest at the big toe[,] and peak plantar flexor movements are higher[,] which strains the toes as well as the calves.”

As the description for the video says,
[Tweet “Toe running is rare and is a great way to shred your calf muscles.”]

Why should I run on my forefeet?

Some researchers looked at the foot strike of 181 runners across several seeded 800 m and 1500 m races. They found that forefoot and midfoot runners were significantly faster than rearfoot runners.

Other researchers looked at the foot strike of 936 runners at the 10K point of a long-distance race. The runners were recreational or sub-elite. The combination race at that point included both half-marathoners and marathoners.

• 5.9% had a foot-strike asymmetry between the left foot and the right foot;
• 88.9% were rearfoot runners;
• 3.4% were midfoot runners;
• 1.8% were forefoot runners.

The researchers in the same study also looked at the foot strike of the marathoners at the 32K point. And, they looked at the finishing chip-times of those marathoners. There was no significant relationship between finishing chip-times and foot strike at 32K. In other words,
[Tweet “Foot-strike pattern at 32K in the marathon did not affect finishing chip-time.”]
So, if …

• forefoot running can make you a faster middle-distance runner,
• but forefoot running is rare among marathoners,
• and forefoot running will not make you a faster marathoner,

… then why should marathoners learn forefoot running?

“To avoid injury” is a popular answer. But, a study published in 2014 may not support this answer.

Quoting from the abstract:

“Nineteen habitual rearfoot runners and 19 habitual forefoot runners ran on a treadmill at 3.5 m/s using their preferred footfall patterns while tibial and head acceleration data were collected. … The difference in impact shock frequency content between footfall patterns suggests that the primary mechanisms for attenuation may differ. The relationship between shock attenuation mechanisms and injury is not clear but given the differences in impact frequency content, neither footfall pattern may be more beneficial for injury, rather the type of injury sustained may vary with footfall pattern preference.”

The authors caution in their discussion:

“Running injuries, regardless of footfall pattern, are the result of a complex interaction of many variables in addition to impact loading, such as excessive joint excursion and moments, greater vertical GRF [ground reaction force] active peak, and muscle weakness.”

As part of their conclusion, the authors noted:

“RF [rearfoot] running resulted in greater impact loads and impact shock attenuation compared with FF [forefoot] running.”

Does this mean that forefoot running is worthless for marathoners?

This may be the best way to summarize forefoot running benefits for marathoners:
[Tweet “Forefoot running can reduce the impact loads on your body.”]
Now, think about this:

• A 100 m sprint requires only tens of steps.
• A one-mile run requires only a couple of thousand steps.
• A marathon requires tens of thousands of steps.

For example, Usain Bolt took 41 steps to win the 100 m final at the 2012 Olympics. In contrast, I have taken over 50,000 steps in each of several marathons.

I’d argue that forefoot running is the safest type of running for marathoners, given:

• the tens of thousands of steps that a marathoner must take;
• the lightest load when those are forefoot-running steps.

Isn’t forefoot running the same as barefoot running?

Christopher McDougall first released his book Born to Run in 2009. The book tells the story of his encounter with a Mexican tribe of long-distance runners. Soon becoming a bestseller, the book kicked off the barefoot-running craze.

Barefoot running requires running on one’s forefeet, as a toddler does. If you try midfoot or rearfoot running in your bare feet, then you are a braver soul than most barefoot runners are. Without shoes, the impact forces with midfoot or rearfoot running are too much for most to bear.

So, barefoot running requires forefoot running. But, forefoot running doesn’t mean that you must run in your bare feet.

Why not run barefoot?

There is a simple response to runners who insist that you run barefoot:
[Tweet “Would you run naked through brush? Then why would you run barefoot on non-pristine surfaces?”]
If you have never seen it, then watch the documentary The Barkley Marathons: The Race that Eats Its Young. It shows in bloody detail how masochistic it is to run in brush without long pants and long-sleeve shirts.

It is ironic that barefoot-running advocates promote it as an injury-avoidance technique.

Many marathoners train on streets. They don’t have the luxury of training anywhere else. Barefoot running for them means that they can expose their feet to:

• hot asphalt;
• broken glass;
• screws and nails;
• broken pieces of concrete;
• and even medical waste such as syringes.

Some marathoners run on trails, but barefoot running on trails can expose their feet to:

• thorns;
• sharp twigs;
• bug and snake bites;
• jagged or slippery stones; and,
• even litter discarded by other runners.

Imagine, though, that you could train and race on pristine surfaces. Would barefoot running in and of itself help you to avoid “impact” injuries on these surfaces? It turns out that the answer is no.

Researchers published in 2011 their results from looking at shod and barefoot running.

Quoting from their paper,

“The purpose of this study was to compare the impact characteristics of running footwear of different midsole thickness to a barefoot condition. … For impact peak, … there were significant differences between the shod and barefoot conditions. Based on their strike index, participants in this study appeared to alter their footfall pattern from a rearfoot to a midfoot pattern when changing from running shod to barefoot. It may be concluded that the change in the impact characteristics is a result of changing footfall pattern rather than midsole thickness.”

In other words:
[Tweet “It’s the change in foot strike when you run barefoot that reduces impact injuries.”]
Again, barefoot running can convert you from a rearfoot runner to a forefoot runner. But, you need not go shoeless to become a forefoot runner.

Can I do forefoot running with any shoes?

No. You can try to do forefoot running with any shoes, but certain shoes make this almost impossible.
[Tweet “Whether you can land on your forefoot depends on how much thicker the shoe’s heel is than its toe.”]
Consider an extreme but imaginary example. Suppose that there were such a thing as high-heel running shoes. No matter how hard you would try, you would always land first on your heel. You could not point your toes enough as you ran to overcome the height of the heels.

Experts with Runner’s World identified five categories to characterize a shoe’s “minimalism”.
[Tweet “One way to characterize a running shoe’s minimalism is by its heel-to-toe drop.”]
The heel-to-toe drop is the difference in how much a running shoe elevates your heel vs. your forefoot.

The experts gave the most points in this minimalism category to a heel-to-toe drop of 1 mm or less. They gave no points for a heel-to-toe drop of 13 mm (0.51 inches) or greater.

Many shoe makers restrict the “minimalist” label to any shoe with a heel-to-toe drop of 4 mm or less. That is about 5/32nds of an inch or less.

How can I learn forefoot running?

Watch a toddler, and you’ll see him or her run on his forefeet. We seem to unlearn this approach through childhood. By the time that we are adults, we need instruction for forefoot running.

You have three learning avenues:

• In-person instruction;
• Online videos;
• Books.

In-person instruction may be available at a specialty store for runners. Or, you may have to travel to get trained. Either way, this is the most expensive avenue time- and money-wise.

You may find online videos at free-video websites or at the website of a forefoot-running trainer. Some sites are free but may leave you wondering whether you found good instruction. A trainer’s website should provide good instruction, but it may cost more than you want to pay.

If you have the temperament for it, a book may be the best way to learn. You cannot beat the price. And, you can take the detailed instructions with you to try anywhere. Books are more portable than in-person instructors. And, you can follow them better than online videos in bright sunlight!

Two suggestions

If you are a marathoner who wants a safe, simple way to start to run on your forefeet, then I have two suggestions.

Suggestion #1: Start with a 4 mm shoe. Wearing shoes will let you avoid the dangers of barefoot running. Wearing 4 mm shoes will make it much easier to follow my second suggestion. Get them from a specialty store for runners, not from an online merchant or a big-box store. You should try several different make-&-model pairs. When I bought my first pair of 4 mm shoes, I went to a specialty store. The shoe specialist had me try on several pairs. It was not a “Three Bears” experience, with one of the three pairs being perfect. In fact, I was ready to try twenty pairs, if I had to do so, to find the right pair for me. In my case, the fifth pair was the charm.

Suggestion #2: Learn the Pose Method from the book The Running Revolution. This is what I did when I learned to run on my forefeet. If you can follow directions to the letter and be persistent and patient, then you can learn the Pose Method. This is a big IF. It’s not easy, but it is simple:

• When someone tells me that he tried something but it did not work, I ask whether he followed the directions. If “not always or not quite” is his reply, then I give him my “going to the doctor” response. “If a prescription drug does not help you but you did not always take it, then you should not complain that it did not work.”
• When someone tells me that something does not work right away, I ask whether he persisted to the end. The Pose Method training instructions are not a one-week affair. You must persist for several weeks to reach the end of the training.
• When someone tells me that a process is trying his patience, I ask whether he is confusing simple with easy. The Pose Method training instructions are simple. But, becoming a forefoot runner is not easy because you must be patient as you build skill upon skill.

Three tips

Shopping Tip: I’ll say it again. Whenever you decrease your heel-to-toe drop, get your shoes from a shoe specialist. For one thing, shoe specialists know how to analyze your running. This lets them direct you faster toward shoes that could be best for your forefoot running. For another thing, you may not be good at identifying your current foot-strike pattern. For proof, look at a study cited by Runner’s World.

More than 90% of traditional-shoe wearers were correct in identifying their foot-strike pattern. But, less than 58% of minimalist-shoe wearers were correct with this same task. Quoting from Runner’s World:

“This study supported prior research indicating that runners who wear minimalist shoes do not automatically transition to an anterior foot strike pattern.”

So:
[Tweet “Novice AND veteran forefoot-runners should get minimalist shoes from shoe specialists.”]
Time-Saving Tip: Get a printed copy of The Running Revolution. I read it as an ebook, which was fine, especially with an e-ink reader in bright sunlight. But, when I was ready to follow the training instructions, I had to create printouts from the ebook. I won’t bore you with how I created those printouts. Suffice it to say that creating printouts was not easy. Yes, the printouts gave me an easy way to flip through the steps in a training session. This was much easier than trying to bounce among several ebook pages. But, if your time is worth anything, then a printed book is the better way to go.

Injury-Avoidance Tip: Follow the training schedule in The Running Revolution to the letter. Don’t hop, skip, or jump ahead, even if you feel as if you have mastered a skill. You are training your body to run in a different way. This takes time. If you speed up your training, then you can get hurt. Ask a shoe specialist at a running specialty store. He or she likely has stories of customers who got too excited about forefoot running. These customers ran too far on their first outing. They then complained to the shoe specialists that forefoot running was not for them. In fact, forefoot running was for them, but they did not ease into it over several weeks and months.

For other injury-avoidance tips, check out Injury-Avoidance Habits for First-Time Marathoners and Half-Marathoners. You will like it even if you are a veteran marathoner.

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Image Credit: Pixabay