Running Barefoot | Steven Sashen

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25% of the bones and joints in your entire body are located in your feet and ankles. Also, you have over 200,000 nerve endings on the sole of each foot. So why are we covering up these sensory powerhouses with padding and cushioning? Walking around or even running barefoot, or with footwear designed to let the feet be feet, can improve our overall physical health in ways we never imagined.

WELCOME TO THE DARIN OLIEN SHOW.

Steven Sashen dives into things feet first.

In fact, it’s his company motto. Xero Shoes was built out of a need for Steven to free his feet. After picking up sprinting again following a 30 year hiatus, Steven would injure himself constantly. Every couple of weeks would bring another pulled muscle or ankle strain. When a friend suggested a barefoot run, everything changed.

After his first run with a barefoot running group, Steven was awakened with a new awareness of how his feet interacted with the ground. He ran 5K on that very first go around and was shocked at how easy it felt on his body. He was even able to pinpoint a reason for why he was injuring one leg more than the other. All this knowledge was too empowering to ignore, and Xero Shoes was born.

In this conversation, Steven and I get into how incredibly powerful and intuitive our feet really are. We explore the foot to brain connection and how the modern day athletic shoe is counterproductive to the way we physically interact with the ground under our feet. Steven gives us the origin story of Xero Shoes, which gives you an understanding of why I refer to him as a “Master of Movement”. So kick off your shoes, and take a listen to this one, guys!