Episode 264: The Most Important Barefoot Study Ever Done

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Mar 31, 2026

Erin Futrell, PT and physical therapy professor who runs the FiTT Lab studying foot function. She discusses a trial showing minimalist shoes improved balance and lowered fall risk in older adults. Practical topics include a 16-week gradual transition plan, reasons calf pain occurs, stride changes with minimal shoes, and how footwear affects the whole kinetic chain.

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INSIGHT

Minimal Shoes Lower Fall Risk In Older Adults

Minimalist footwear improved balance and reduced fall risk in older adults.
Erin Futrell ran a year-long trial where older adults with fall risk switched to minimal shoes and showed meaningful Mini-BEST test improvements.

ANECDOTE

Personal Motivation From Family Fall Tragedies

Steven shared personal motivation: his father and mother both suffered fatal or life-altering hip fractures from falls.
He connected those losses to the importance of preventing falls in older adults.

INSIGHT

Use Mini BEST For Meaningful Balance Measurement

The Mini-BEST test captures vision, vestibular, somatosensory and cognitive load for balance assessment.
Futrell used the Mini-BEST and the minimal detectable change (≥3.5 points) to show meaningful balance improvements.

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What if something as simple as changing your shoes could dramatically reduce your risk of falling and improve your overall mobility?

In this episode of The MOVEMENT Movement, Steven Sashen interviews Erin Futrell, PT, MPT, PhD, Associate Professor of Physical Therapy at Springfield College and a researcher in natural movement and foot health, who shares groundbreaking findings on how footwear affects balance and fall risk. Her research shows that transitioning to minimalist shoes can significantly improve stability in older adults, potentially reducing the risk of life-altering falls. Drawing from her work in physical therapy and exercise physiology, Erin explains how strengthening the intrinsic muscles of the feet can transform mobility, prevent injury, and enhance overall function.

Key Takeaways:

→ Minimalist shoes can greatly enhance balance, which directly lowers the risk of falling.

→ A gradual switch to minimalist shoes is crucial to prevent negative effects like calf pain.

→ Sensory feedback from the ground improves balance.

→ Footwear impacts the whole kinetic chain of the body.

→ Switching to minimalist shoes often results in a shorter stride length.

Erin Futrell, PhD, has been a physical therapist since 2007 and a board-certified specialist in orthopedic physical therapy since 2010. She has practiced clinically in Atlanta, GA, Boston, MA, and Springfield, MA, working with the general population as well as recreational and professional athletes. Her doctoral dissertation focused on impact-reducing gait retraining methods for runners and was conducted at The Spaulding National Running Center in Cambridge, MA. Futrell is the founder and director of the Foot Intrinsic Testing and Training Lab (FiTT Lab), where she and her team conduct research to better understand and enhance foot function for people of all ages and ability levels. Futrell teaches courses related to therapeutic interventions, physical agents, and musculoskeletal physical therapy.

Learn more about Erin's study here: https://karger.com/ger/article/doi/10.1159/000550264/942122/Effects-of-Long-Term-Minimal-Footwear-Use-on-Fall

To learn more about the other articles mentioned, please visit the following:

The (FiTT Lab) Foot intrinsic Testing and Training Lab: https://gulick.springfield.edu/fitt/

Study by Curtis, et al. They measured "experienced" minimal footwear users (avg. of 2.5 years of use) and found they had higher arch and greater foot strength than conventional shoe users. They also had a separate group of conv. shoe users wear minimal footwear for 6 months and found it resulted in similar foot strength as the experienced group (but they didn't see a change in arch height after 6 months): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-98070-0Curtis R, Willems C, Paoletti P, D'Août K. Daily activity in minimal footwear increases foot strength. Sci Rep. 2021 Sep 20;11(1):18648. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-98070-0. PMID: 34545114; PMCID: PMC8452613.

Connect With Erin:Email: efutrell@springfieldcollege.edu Connect with Steven:

Xero Shoes: https://xeroshoes.com/ Join the MOVEMENT Movement: https://jointhemovementmovement.com/ X: https://x.com/XeroShoes Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xeroshoes/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/xeroshoes