Running on treadmill: barefoot vs running shoes?

Recently I’ve bought a ProForm Power 995i treadmill on Amazon. I use it as a warm-up before and after active workouts. Before the strength training, running on the treadmill is a great start. After that, the effectiveness will increase, because of rising metabolism.

I always keep to this rule while training in the gym:

  1. First, I run on the treadmill to warm-up
  2. In the same way, I finish the strength training

What are my feelings? I feel a relieve after a hard load. Running on a treadmill, I feel mood and strength increase, it gives me energy and vitality. I feel lightness in the body, a wave of strength and good mood improves my well-being.

Running on a treadmill barefoot

I have a question: how do you feel about running barefoot on a treadmill? Is it safe, and what are your feelings? Do you consider it more effective?

Personally, I got used to training in special shoes. Riding the stationary recumbent exercise bike, I always use women’s spin shoes. They’re made for increased comfort and safety during workouts. Choosing high-quality footwear is an essential component of workout for me.

Recently, I heard about the possibility of running barefoot. So I’d like to read your opinion. Share your experience:

  • Running barefoot on a treadmill vs running shoes?

Looking forward to your answers, thanks!

5 Answers
Best Answer

Why should you try running barefoot on a treadmill?
Some scientific data showed that running barefoot is healthier than wearing special shoes. Nevertheless, there are pros and cons of such activity:

Pros

Running barefoot is a natural process for a human. It affects the body in a positive way, like an antidepressant, as massaging the foot, affects biologically active points.
Barefoot workouts improve the running technique as your body gets beneficial signals from skin receptors and during muscle movements.
Your body will be able to react more flexibly, determine the correct movement options.

Cons

This is unhygienic, as bare feet gather dirt, dust, germs possible even in the cleanest gym. Dust gets stuck in the treadmill, causing unnecessary friction and even damage.
The pressure that feet produce can change the pressure of the treadmill surface. Especially if you do not distribute the load on feet correctly.
The biggest danger for a treadmill is the skin sweat that quickly absorbs into the running surface. It gradually accumulates and worsens quality.

So it is your choice how to run. Good luck!

Frankly speaking, I do not support running barefoot. If you decided to take off your running shoes, you should know some disadvantages of running without footwear:

  • The absence of breathing space. The treadmill has a perfectly smooth surface, and there are no load changes – falls and rises. Constant movements lead to fatigue, especially your feet suffer.
  • Feeling the heated treadmill surface. It is made of hard and rough material and your feet have comparatively soft skin. During the running process, there will be friction with a heated surface, that will cause unpleasant feelings.

Of course, sometimes running barefoot seems more useful and pleasant. But for your feet health and maintaining the surface of your sports equipment it is not the best choice.

Running barefoot on the treadmill is forbidden!

You should choose special running shoes to keep your feet safe. It is desirable to choose the running snickers with good amortization. The high-quality footwear creates the necessary clutch with treadmill surface and do not allow slipping.

 

What do you know about doing exercise with jumping rope barefoot? Share your experience, please.

Actually, it is not allowed to jump, as well as do exercises with weights, without the footwear!

In these cases, a great load is on feet. So a probability of ligament damage or bone displacement in joints appears. For example, squats and lunges with a barbell or dumbbells, dumbbell presses or standing kettlebell lifting, jump rope exercises.

That is why it is important to always use special shoes protecting the feet. See the following video:

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