So, you want to run barefoot? Or at least run in minimal shoes.  You’ve heard all the hype about a stronger foundation, a reduced injury risk, and transitioning to a more natural way of running…you know, the type of running our ancestors did. Well, now is the time to get started! But that’s the question, where do you start?  But first things first. If you’re unsure about barefoot running, I’d first tell you to read “Using Barefoot Running to its Maximum Potential,” which outlines the Barefoot Run Review philosophy. Now in this post, I will introduce the first step everyone must take to transition into barefoot running!  This first step is backed up by multiple research studies and requires almost no change in your day-to-day life. No extra workout sessions. No reduction in your current training plan.  Just one simple switch.  How to start with Barefoot Running? It sounds like an obvious answer, doesn’t it? Just start running….. But please, do not immediately start barefoot running!  Running barefoot exerts an entirely different stress through the muscles and joints, a stress you’re likely not used to.  And as you know, starting any new movement or exercise hurts, and when done in excess, it can injure you!  Instead, we need to focus on slow improvement and the compound effect.  Using the Compound Effect Put simply, the compound effect is the incremental improvements that you make to produce significant results in the long term.  That’s what we want. Big results!  To produce the compound effect, we want to progress little by little, regularly.  For barefoot running, that doesn’t mean one run per week, nor does it mean every run should be barefoot. Quite the opposite.  We need to slowly build week by week with simple yet gentle practices to produce sizeable long-term effects. […]