The biomechanical differences between barefoot and shod distance running: a systematic review and preliminary meta-analysis.

Background: Distance running continues to experience increased participation in the Western world, although it is associated with high injury rates. Barefoot running has been increasingly proposed as a means to prevent overuse injury due to various biomechanical differences, including reduced joint loading rates and altered kinematics and muscle activity patterns compared to shod running.

Objective: The aim of this review was to systematically evaluate biomechanical differences between running barefoot and shod, including the quality of available evidence, in order to provide guidance on the phenomenon of barefoot running to the running and sports medicine communities.