Flat Feet, High Arches, and Running Barefoot

Not infrequently, when the topic of barefoot running comes up, or someone takes a look at my Xero Shoes, whomever I’m speaking with will say:

I can’t do that. I need support.

Oh? I’ll respond. Why do you need support?

Then something happens that I love. I get one of two seemingly contradictory answers. Either:

  1. “I have flat feet!”
  2. “I have high arches!”

They usually like to add to their proclamation some form of external validation. Like, “I’ve seen one of the best podiatrists in the world and he agrees that I need orthotics.”

Oh? He agrees that you need to spend an additional $300-1,000 with him? What a shock.

From the perspective of barefoot runners and researchers, high arches and flat feet are not a problem.

First of all, the height of your arch is largely genetically determined.

Secondly, the problem isn’t your arch height, or lack thereof, but whether your arches are STRONG.

That is, the “cure” for the problem is not putting your foot in a cast (which is essentially what an orthotic is), it’s using it, working on strengthening it.

One reason that running in bare feet could help strengthen your feet and arches is that landing with a mid-foot or forefoot strike can actually engage the muscles in your feet.

Think about it: When does immobilizing something make it stronger? Never!

Personally, I had flat feet my whole life. If I stepped out of a pool, my footprint looked like an oval. After a few months of running and walking barefoot, I started developing arches! I ruined all the family jokes about the flippers I had at the end of my legs.

Now, I get out of the water, step on the ground, and you see the outline of a FOOT. Granted, I don’t have drive-a-bus-under-them arches but, again, that’s genes. All I know is that I haven’t used my expensive shoe inserts in years and my feet haven’t had problem in all that time.

  • Mike

    You guys are awesome. I have flat feet, I’m eager to see the results from running.

  • http://www.xeroshoes.com/ Steven Sashen

    Hi Tammy… you’re talking to someone who had life-long flat feet and who has had a broken spine for 30 years… check this out: http://xeroshoes.com/flat-feet-high-arches-and-running-barefoot/ and also: http://xeroshoes.com/barefoot-info/why-barefoot-running/ (I know that says “running” but it’s just as true for walking)

  • http://www.facebook.com/rachel.a.chase Rachel Anne Chase

    Could this help people with shin splints? I have extremly bad shin splints but I dont have enough money to buy custom shoes. I think these would be a great fit and I really am intrested in buying from you but I need to really know the honest truth if they will help me with my shin splints. By the way I saw you on shark tank and I really loved your presentation. :)

    • http://www.facebook.com/christopher.prather.56 Christopher Prather

      Engineered running shoes and improper conditioning increasingly catch the blame for shin splints, new research suggests that running barefoot (Lieberman) — if done correctly — assists a runner in moving form away from the gait that is in effect the injury mechanism.
      If you got to WebMD and such, you will see that shin splints are separated into four distinct categories. Medial tibial stress syndrome, the most common form, results from pain along the posterior tibial muscle along the inner part of the lower leg. Tibial periostitis occurs when the front of the shin bone, the periosteum, is injured. Anterior compartment syndrome occurs when the muscles along the front of the lower leg swell and build pressure against the membranous walls that cover them. Finally, stress fractures result from small cracks in the lower leg bone. All of these injuries result from excessive and repeated impact on hard surfaces.
      Shin splints result from the way your feet make contact with the ground. The support from running shoes tends to force runners to land on the heels of their feet. Over time, this type of impact can lead to shin splints and other injuries. Barefoot running, however, more likely results in a runner landing on the balls of his feet. This shifts stress away from the shins and to the Achilles tendon and calf muscle. The key is take it slowly, though, since over-worked Achilles and calf muscles fail just as easily (although can heal much quicker) as tibial stress. In short, if done right, barefoot form can not only help people with shin splints, it can eliminate them altogether (that’s what happened with me).

      • http://www.facebook.com/rachel.a.chase Rachel Anne Chase

        Yeah. I dont run anymore. I dont really like running yet I STILL have terrible shin splints. So I am really looking forward to ordering my pair and learning if they help.

        • http://www.facebook.com/Blipe27 Michele G Rogers

          Barefoot running alone won’t fix the problem, and could potentially make it worse if you do too much too quickly. Tight calves are responsible for foot instability and need to be addressed. With self myofascial releases techniques (check YouTube), proper stretching, and barefoot training (walk and workout barefoot, don’t just run) shin splints will resolve permanently.

      • http://www.facebook.com/rebecca.ward.94695 Rebecca Ward

        hi chris!

  • Martha H

    Just saw the Shark Tank episode. A few questions: I’ve been running in Bareform shoes. I can run up to 3 miles, but since I’m training for a half marathon, it’s hard to fit in short runs like these and keep up my mileage. Thoughts about this? Also, thoughts about whether barefoot running will help my plantar fasciitis? What do you do when it’s cold out? I live on the east coast, it’s been 20 degrees?

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000547064729 Kenneth Scharf

    I’ve always been told that I had flat feet. I’ve worn shoes with a “Thomas heel” for years as a kid to help ‘correct’ the problem. I’ve been wearing minimal sandals (Lunas) and walking barefoot part time for about nine months now (shoes come off as soon as I get home from work and I don’t wear any over the weekend). Now when I examine my feet carefully I can see that I actually do have archs in my feet. Quite noticable actually.

    • http://www.xeroshoes.com/ Steven Sashen

      I had flat feet my whole life until I took off my shoes and started running/walking barefoot and in Xero Shoes (which, BTW, are closer to barefoot than any other sandal).

  • http://www.facebook.com/marilyn.wagner.9615 Marilyn Wagner

    I have found that if I wear anything other than birk’s or hafflinger’s I develope plantar’s faciaitis. any thoughts about this?

    • http://www.xeroshoes.com/ Steven Sashen

      How are you barefoot?

    • http://www.xeroshoes.com/ Steven Sashen

      How are you barefoot?

    • http://www.facebook.com/Blipe27 Michele G Rogers

      Gastrocnemius is tight.

  • Kyle

    Brian mackenzie from crossfit endurance gives an excellent instructional video on rebuilding the feet for anyone looking to strengthen their feet. Simply go to youtube, type his name and rebuilding the feet. He is a huge expert on barefoot/posed running.