This weekend, VIVOBAREFOOT athlete Andre Calitz will have no time to savour the cheeses and wines of France’s Provence region as he runs the 100-kilometre Verdon Canyon Challenge. As always, AJ will be tearing the course up with a pair of our finest barefoot trail shoes the Breatho Trail.

Calitz is expecting to be out in the mountains, on his feet, for at least 12 to 13 hours. “There’s 6,500-metres of positive ascent!” he says. Read more…

Chris Grant, from Glasgow Parkour, has produced another lovely short film for VIVOBAREFOOT.

In this episode he takes his free running skills and our barefoot shoes to explore the terrain at St Ninian’s Isle, Shetland.

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The first thing to notice is the thin sole. Immediately, you feel close to the ground. The barefoot feeling can never be fully replicated in a shoe but if you need protection from the weather or the terrain, this is the alternative. The removable insole also allows you to choose just how barefoot you want it to feel.

The 4mm sole achieves a nice balance of allowing you to feel the ground whilst at the same time protecting you from stones and thorns with its puncture resistant sole. The lack of heel to toe height difference will take some getting used to for those unaccustomed to it and some runners may feel like they are slapping the ground as they run. However, with a sensible ‘breaking in’ [learn more about transitiong properly to barefoot] period the muscles of the feet and lower leg will relax and adapt to the new sensations allowing the foot to land in a more relaxed fashion. This is when you can begin to enjoy the feeling of running closer to how nature intended and start to use your VIVOBAREFOOT shoes as a training shoe.

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Saaj from SB-Fitness recently completed a 1-day Instructor course workshop with the VIVOBAREFOOT Training Clinic.

I hope the title caught your attention. Fact is I had the most amazing experience learning proper barefoot running technique from the coaching team of VIVOBAREFOOT. I literally felt liberated and born again, no exaggeration.

Of course, it’s not as simple as just taking your shoes off and running. Luckily I had the priviledge of learning from the students of Lee Saxby, the authority on barefoot running. A lot has been made of this book called Born to Run, Chris McDougall. The book that allegedly sparked a revolution. Well, Lee Saxby was McDougall’s coach. Also present (as a learner) was a London Marathon expert and advisor to over 50 charities on long distance running, Greame Hilditch. His book on running marathons has even helped BBC presenter Sophie Raworth to complete her marathon, a year after collapsing in one. It was thus an honour to be in such esteemed company, training in a centre just down the road from me at Premier Global, North London.

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“When I made the switch to barefoot running almost 4 years ago, I had no idea the impact it would make on my life – not just in how I ran but also in how I moved, how I lived and how I learned. Barefoot living has opened my eyes to just how many other areas of our life we take for granted and how many things we do because that’s what we’ve always done. I truly believe that people shouldn’t just make the switch to barefoot running but also barefoot walking, which is why I exclusively wear Vivobarefoot, whether I’m playing disc golf, lifting weights, running, or working in the office. Read more…

The first post in our series of blogs about running marathons and preparing for a lifetime of sustainable and enjoyable long distance running.

There will probably come a time, if it hasn’t happened already, when you will consider running a marathon. If you’ve made it this far to the VIVOBAREFOOT blog then you’ve probably considered doing it in barefoot shoes.

Before you start your training and even before you sign up to a 26.2 mile race there’s probably several questions you’ll have before you believe you can actually run the distance and run it in barefoot shoes.

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Swap your trains for trainers this Friday (26 April) for the first global Run To Work Day. If you’re running to work in VIVOBAREFOOT shoes make sure you share you stories, photos and videos with us by posting on our Facebook Wall or tweeting us. You can run all or part of their daily commute, donating the money you would otherwise spend on travel and/or parking.

“Run To Work Day is not just an opportunity for runners around the world to ‘run for good’ it is also a chance for employers to encourage colleagues to create a healthy and active workplace. Further, we anticipate that many firms will agree to match-fund their employees’ charitable donations.” – Run to Work Day Organisers.

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