Running barefoot is alot different than running with shoes on. The reason why companies have to make "Barefoot" running shoes is because shoes have been tradit

Running barefoot is alot different than running with shoes on. The reason why companies have to make "Barefoot" running shoes is because shoes have been traditionally manufactured with thicker heel and thinner forefoot. This promotes a heel footstrike rather than with the balls of your foot. Shoes like the Nike Free or the Vibram Five Fingers were designed to promote natural foot movements. If you try running barefoot, I think you'll notice that when you land with your heel, you're actually not putting much weight on your heel at all - it's more of a gentle support to pivot and most of your weight is only put on your forefoot. When I run in running shoes, my cadence/form does change slightly. I am used to running by landing on my forefoot, but I personally find it more difficult with running shoes on. I made a conscious effort to land with a bit more weight on my forefoot. I don't think there's any particular secret to running like this; I do martial arts and am barefoot all the time, so running with such a stride seems pretty natural to me -- it ultimately just works better for barefeet, whereas shoes promote an "unhealthy" foot movement.