In this video Dr. Daniel Lieberman explains the differences between barefoot running and shod (running with shoes on) running.
According to Lieberman, the running shoes we wear these days encourage us to land on our heels first. The initial heel strike sends a great deal of stress up the leg and into the body. For barefoot runners, there is less of this stress…though there is more stress on tendons and muscles in the lower leg, especially for those who were formerly heel strikers.
But once the proper muscles are developed, it would make sense that landing on one’s forefoot would yield less overall stress. For one, because we’ve been running barefoot for millions of years and this is how we’re designed to run. And two, by displacing downward energy slowly (forefoot to heel) there is less of sudden impact when our feet hit the ground.
Is it better to keep rolling when you jump off the train or better to stop suddenly? If you stop suddenly, you’ll break your legs. If you keep rolling, you’re spreading out that momentum and giving yourself a chance to survive.
The same is true for running. A heel strike is much more like jumping off the train suddenly while a forefoot strike is more like rolling a bit before coming to a stop.