Stability and balance through barefoot training
Barefoot training has therapeutic effects on your body including, but not limited to, better circulation. Your unshod feet allow more free blood flow through the leg muscles en route to the heart, as opposed to your feet confined to fastened shoes, in which blood flow is often restricted. Training barefoot improves your balance, as you adapt to the sensations during the movements. It strengthens your feet and weight-bearing bones, and increases your flexibility. There is no range of motion restriction
Instructions
Adaptation phases
1. Bouts of barefoot walking or slow jogging will gradually toughen your soles, as your feet adapt to the surface temperature. In this beginning phase, work on good running form, with the toes up as the ball of your foot hits the surface with limited heel strike. Shorten your stride to master the strike phase, foot- hitting-surface, of the run. "Running barefoot", said Michael Yessis, Ph.D., author of Explosive Running, "forces you to land mid-foot, increasing the work of the foot's soft tissue support structures, thereby increasing its strength and possibly reducing the risk of injury."
2. Progress to sprinting as you naturally develop the ball-of-the-foot to heel foot-strike on the surface which enables the muscles and tendons of your foot to withstand the forces. Your unshod feet naturally allow a more rapid stride rate than with shoes on; consequently, you will develop the muscles and tendons of your feet and calves and, at the same time, recruit your legs' fast-twitch muscle fibers, associated with speed in sprinters. At this stage, start with 10 to 15 sprint intervals of 40 yards as you remain conscious of your newly-adapted running form.
3. Once your feet adjust to the barefoot training style, and your sprint intervals have increased substantially, alternate sprinting on different surfaces to "shock" your muscles into growing stronger. The harder the running surface, for example a polyurethane running track, the more stress you will put on your calves and bone structure. With proper rest and nourishment, stronger feet, calves, and more explosive power will result. To the other extreme, sprinting in sand on the beach will get your legs working harder, since you need more force to cover ground fast in an unstable surface. As a result, a significant amount of fast-twitch muscle fibers will be recruited to enhance your growth in speed and power.
4. Plyometrics done barefoot will enhance explosive power
In the advanced stage of barefoot training, try plyometrics. According to Dr. George Dintiman, founder of NASE, doing box jumping, depth jumps and leap bounds barefoot will maximize the benefit of the stretch-shortening cycle, in which muscle recruitment can be facilitated faster than with shoes on. And to receive the full benefit of creating more explosive power in plyometrics, get off the ground quickly. Pretend the ground is hot
Tags: your feet, barefoot training, explosive power, Your unshod feet, allow more, barefoot will, blood flow