Barefoot Running!

Last week, I registered myself to join the 5th VFF Barefoot Clinic at Mall of Asia Complex. As this was my first time to try running barefoot on the streets, I took the shortest distance available, which was 3km. The other distance available in this clinic was 5km distance.

There were a total of 80 people who joined the clinic that day, with some wearing Vibrams Five Fingers or other minimalist running shoes while others opted to run bare.

You may think that 80 was a small number but it was a significant increase from just 3 people who joined the very first VFF Barefoot Clinic some months ago. This was also the first time they had a barefoot running clinic as previous running clinics focused on wearing VFFs.


At about 6:30AM, we started our 3km run around MOA complex. It was quite fun to run "naked" and feel the hard ground on your feet. But it was also painful as I ran on pebbles and on the sharp concrete roads. I grimaced in pain for some time until I found out a small secret: running on the smooth sidewalks gave a relief to my sensitive feet!

Similar to trail running, I had to focus on where I was stepping on to make sure there weren't any broken glass, used bubble gums, dead insects, etc. that may lie along the path. Stepping on any one of these things would definitely make me regret taking off my rubber shoes in the first place!


Shot from behind done by Per


Nice shot made! Feet taking off!


About 18 - 19 minutes, we were back from where we started from. I was tired and exhausted and felt some minor muscle pains in my thighs. Surprisingly, there were no pains in my heel. Could the solution to plantar fasciitis be barefoot running? Hmmmm.....

Overall, this was a fantastic experience for me and I was glad to be a part of it. Running barefoot may also be a good leg strengthening exercise as you work the other muscles in your body that you don't usually focus on when you wear running shoes.

Looking forward to doing more barefoot running in the future!


Before and After the Barefoot Run


Group Shot




For those people who are interested in this experience, add "Barefoot Running Philippines" on Facebook so you can be notified of future events around the city.