Your thoughts in my book on barefoot running?

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-mouse-that-shook-the-world-744870.html

Mice?!

Apparently they have also make "humanised bovines." Which explains a lot of things.

 

All,

"From Cheetah Conservation Fund website: The cheetah is aerodynamically built for speed and can accelerate from zero to 40 mph in three strides and to full speed of 70 mph in seconds. As the cheetah runs, only one foot at a time touches the ground. There are two points, in its 20 to 25 foot (7-8 metres) stride when no feet touch the ground, as they are fully extended and then totally doubled up. Nearing full speed, the cheetah is running at about 3 strides per second.

Yes, the peregrine falcon often gets credit for being the fastest animal but one must remember that in the case of the cheetah it is all self-generated speed and when speaking of the peregrine falcon people are usually pointing out the speed it is free falling. I’m not sure how much self-generated speed a peregrine falcon has flying horizontally."

regards
CF

 

Interesting, Jack Daniels and other big time running coaches have found by observing elite runners on film that they average 180 strides/min or 3 strides/second. Of course stride length is far from 7-8 metres.

Dana

 

The question is not about speed, it's about the duration of sustained running gait. So a cheetah can run fast, but not for long. How long in time does any animal other than a human sustain a running gait for? i.e. if I wanted to run down a water buffalo, and I could run at the same speed as it, how long would I have to run for, before it stopped running and walked?:drinks

 

Simon,
I don't think water buffalo do much running. According to this they spend most of their time in the water !

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/water-buffalo-facts.html

Perhaps you'd like to chase something else?

CF

 

What about a domestic cat?

 

OK SS, so you want to chase one of my pals. I'll look up some info on their running speeds.

In the meantime I found this.....


http://barefootwaterbuffalo.blogspot.com/2009/08/usain-bolt.html

CF

PS The domestic cat has poor stamina and can only sprint in short bursts - http://animal.discovery.com/cat-guide/cat-behavior/hunting.html

PPS. This is interesting but I can't find out which animal has the most stamina. I'll work on it.

http://www.petsdo.com/blog/top-twenty-20-fastest-land-animals-including-humans

 

I have split off Simon's excellent question on animal locomotion into a new thread:

Endurance Locomotion in Animals.

 

Human running over "thousands of years" has been to attain food, avoid being food or a prelude to procreation. Animals run for the same reasons, except when they're "playing" which is practise for the above. The animals mentioned in subsequent posts attest to this - none run more than they have to and they stop as soon as they don't need to. Humans whipping sleigh dogs or bovines to make them run doesn't count - they can be put down when we've destroyed their feet/hooves (now there's an untapped market - 'critter orthotics'......... bugger, horseshoes, sleighdog boots already invented - maybe sheepshoes and sheep endurance events and then sheep inserts to overcome the subsequent hobbling).

"Sounds like you need to realize that not everyone thinks that walking is the best form of locomotion for the well-being of the human animal" - Sure, I realise this but can you name me the best, or even a better, one?

Owen Greenfield

 

Human running over "thousands of years" has been to attain food, avoid being food or a prelude to procreation. Animals run for the same reasons, except when they're "playing" which is practise for the above.
The animals mentioned in subsequent posts attest to this - none run more than they have to and they stop as soon as they don't need to.
Humans whipping sleigh dogs or bovines to make them run doesn't count - they can be put down when we've destroyed their feet/hooves (now there's an untapped market - 'critter orthotics'......... bugger, horseshoes, sleighdog boots already invented - maybe sheepshoes and sheep endurance events and then sheep inserts to overcome the subsequent hobbling).

"Sounds like you need to realize that not everyone thinks that walking is the best form of locomotion for the well-being of the human animal" - Sure, I realise this but can you name me the best, or even a better, one?

Owen Greenfield

 

I been thinking about what I would like to be quoted on... quote me on this:

"Barefoot running is an economic stimulus package for anyone who treats running injuries."

 

I just started reading this thread from the beginning and the turn that it took about 15 posts ago is absolutely amazing. I literally went from "Is this thread a joke?" to "Does this guy have ANY education/experience in the area of science in which he is hoping to write a book" to "hmmm...I wonder how far a water buffalo WOULD run if Simon was chasing it."

 

"I was a chronically injured runner for twenty years, saw many well-known podiatrists, orthopedists, etc., wore inserts, orthotics, etc., until in frustration one day I threw away the shoes, against their advice, and I've been fine ever since. Although older, heavier, etc. Many others have the same story. Does that not at least pique your curiosity?"

hiya all,
a quote from unshod from earlier in the thread before it became a bit surreal with me thinking about chasing horses etc ( does McDougall not talk about something like this in his book?)
replace " i threw away the shoes" with "i started wearing ascis" and there you have a load of my patients. However if i came on the forum saying everyone should wear asics because they cause less injury and the science backs it up i would get slaughtered (and rightly so).
and as far as the whole "well our ancestors didnt wear shoes" rubbish, - our ancestors didnt use cutlery to cut their meat either, but i wouldnt suggest going out and trying that in a restaurant. (and mcdonalds dont count!).
how do you know our ancestors were not plagued by injuries anyway. the barefoot community have perpetuated this mythical figure who could run all day and night with no problems.
cheers
JB

 

Ashish, if all of our running were on golf courses or sand, barefoot running might be ok for some people. Unfortunately, that's not the case - - we run on concrete and asphalt, across broken beer bottles, tacks, nails and the occasional porcupine. In modern society barefoot running is merely a passing fad that should be placed in the same category as looking for flying saucers, big foot and seeing the Chicago Cubs in the World Series. As for you writing a book on the topic - - I'm all for you doing that and I hope your successful; people have made money authoring books about less noble pursuits.

 

So this is a little off topic, but the thread did wander a while back and it seems due for a resurrection.
The horses comment got me wondering. Firstly, when I run through a field of horses, they seem to be running around for the hell of it as often as not — just like me.
Anyway, my point: the horse must be well up the list of animals that have their running gaits analyzed and injuries treated. And yes, I know that when they race they usually run on soft ground. But all the horses I see around here are loudly clip-clopping on the roads, i.e. they are not wearing nice soft comfy shoes.
It would be interesting to see a debate of equine specialists on the subject of soft shoes for horses.
No doubt, someone will show me where to go to find one.
And what about that other animal that receives more love and care than most humans, our friend Fido?
Ok, wrong forum.

I wonder if the book's out yet?

 

"....because the really informed people know that the only way to run injury-free is without any clothes on and with a pumpkin on their head!"

Ha ha ha Kevin!! But I do notice that they have footwear on................

 

I see it was published a few months ago, good for him.

 

so published a few months ago yet asked for quotes as if he is was still writing it?? Another person with a hidden agenda and a pre-detemined aspect on the actual concept of barefoot running. Aside from the lack of scientific evidence, this behaviour only makes it worse!

 

I hope Ashish included how important Naked Pumpkin Head Running is to injury prevention also within his landmark book!!

 

Tools are usually invented to fix a problems. If there is no problem then there is no reason to invent a tool that fixes it.

What I'm trying to say is if human were so great without shoes why did we invent them in the first place?

 

Tools are also invented to make a task easier, such as a lever. Why were shoes invented? I'm no historian but I would imagine they were invented along with other items of clothing: to protect the body from being damaged eg. by sticks, stones, heat and cold.

 

I don't think the reasons for invention are particularly relevant. They have long since been overtaken by subsequent designs based on fashion, marketing trends, new technology, research, media attention, profit, etc, etc.
What is relevant is deciding what inventions (or designs of), are best suited to the intended application.
I'm just about to go for a run over the fields in my welly boots — it's raining.

 

A friend just sent me this link, l dont think its been here before, enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYTb-ataCc4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

 

One thing in this all that no one seems to have brought up is that when we were "developing" as humans and running unshod as it were that we also had a very short life expectancy in those days as well. For instance as little as 250 years ago in France human life expectancy was about 25.

http://www.research-horizons.cam.ac.uk/spotlight/a-brief-history-of-ageing.aspx

Hardly a testing pool for showing any real long term benefit from barefoot running activity. To go back in time further to our "early days" I think at best one could only hazard guesses at life expectancy. So to say people did it I would agree. To say that it is better long term than shoes I would say there is no proof of any long term benefit other than from those who enjoy doing it in this time and for as long as THEY have been doing it.

And for those doing it...hey great. That's just you enjoying what you do. However, it does not make it the best for all.

It's a good thing I do not take this approach in what I do. Otherwise everyone no matter the problem would get the same solution simply because it worked for someone else. Individuality must take precedence over assumption when looking at a human. If it does not that means you have stopped thinking.

 

Brightened up the day, excellent, thanks.