Purpose:
Excessive external load is a likely cause of running injuries. Although minimal running has been suggested as a possible approach to reduce impact and injury risk, an abrupt transition from conventional shoes to minimal running is also related to injuries. Therefore, the partial minimalist shoe has been suggested as a training strategy for a safe transition to minimal running. The study investigated if 8 weeks of training in partial minimalist shoe could improve impact control of shod and barefoot running.

Methods:
Recreational runners (12 men, 2 women), inexperienced in minimal running, performed 3 training sessions/week in partial minimalist shoes for 8 weeks. Before and after the intervention, the participants ran on a treadmill at 2.5 m/s under two conditions: in their habitual shoes and barefoot. Vertical ground reaction force (VGRF) was recorded.

Results:
After the intervention, reduced values of the first peak (16.7% for shod, 36.7% for barefoot), time to reach the first peak (7.7% for shod, 30.2% for barefoot), and the load rate of the first peak (9.8% for shod, 9.5% for barefoot) were observed for both conditions (p < 0.001). Six subjects dropped out from the intervention.

Conclusions:
Partial minimalist training improved VGRF variables related to shock attenuation. Thus, the 8-week running training program with partial minimalist shoes was an effective approach to increase impact control. The intervention reduced the impact force in both shod and barefoot running, arising as a feasible option to progressively transition to minimal running.