Mechanical and physiological analysis of minimalist versus traditionally-shod running

BACKGROUND: It has been purported that minimalist running shoes allow runners to be more biomechanically and metabolically economical, but evidence supporting these claims remains equivocal. This study's aim was to measure oxygen consumption (VO2), heart rate (HR), pulmonary ventilation (VE) and electromyography (EMG) of gastrocnemius and tibialis anterior in 12 recreationally-trained, college-aged males during minimalist and shod running. METHODS: Participants ran at 70% VO(2)max on a treadmill in both minimalist and traditional shoes for six minutes each while VO2, HR, VE, EMG and steps taken were recorded. RESULTS: Results indicated no significant differences in VO2 (2.39 +/- 0.17 vs. 2.43 +/- 0.15 L/min), HR (156.59 +/- 2.99 vs. 157.13 +/- 3.86 bpm), VE (46.97 +/- 3.19 vs. 47.00 +/- 2.83 L/min), EMG in the tibialis anterior (2.02 +/- 0.28 vs. 1.79 +/- 0.20 mV), EMG in the gastrocnemius (1.97 +/- 0.36 vs. 2.03 +/- 0.37 mV) or steps taken (946.08 +/- 13.50 vs. 962.42 +/- 19.68 steps) between running in traditional and minimalist shoes, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that there is no mechanical and physiological benefit when running wearing minimalist shoes as opposed to traditional shoes and warrants a cautious approach to transitioning to minimalist shoe use.