Has anyone heard of this? I think it's ridiculous!!
By chaygylmommy
@chaygylmommy (2470)
United States
February 27, 2007 8:35am CST
Ok, my sister is a 2nd grade teacher and she has 5 kids of her own. She went to pick up her 15 year old daughter (about to turn 16) and take her to driver's ed. When Sam came out of the school, she was walking slowly and on the sides of her feet. She got in the van and showed my sister the bottoms of her feet...my sister said she had 6 or 7 HUGE blisters on the bottoms of her feet and they are red and raw. Well, come to find out, her track coach made them run ON THE TRACK yesterday BAREFOOT! She said it would strengthen their feet!
I find this ABSURD!!! Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? If you are running on sand, I can see being barefoot, but on a TRACK! Do you know how rough those tracks are? Anyhow, they have a big track meet Saturday...I know my niece can NOT be the only child who's feet got torn up. I told my sister I would be up at the school complaining, but she is a 2nd grade teacher and she knows what it is like to have mad parents. But, I told her that THIS is an instance where complaining is necessary. At least in MY view!
Anyone heard of running barefoot to strengthen your feet? If this was your kid, would you complain or write a note or something? After her bath last night, they popped the blister, put iodine on them and covered them with bandages. I just think it's ridiculous.
14 people like this
50 responses
@Blazing15 (333)
• United States
27 Feb 07
I have never heard of that. I think that the track coach should be reported. I guess that he's not too worried about winning his track meet on Saturday since all of his students have blisters all over their feet and can't walk or run very well.
5 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
He should be banned from coaching, obviously he knows nothing about how to strengthen the soles of our feet.
@lillake (1630)
• United States
27 Feb 07
OUCH!I've never heard of such a thing. Your poor neice. I would definitly complain, that coach was out of line. She has huge blisters, that's not going to make her feet ready for running a race. Your sister should contact the other's children's mothers and see if any of them also have blisters. if so they should complain together, it will make a better point if all the parents are united on the issue.
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
I agree, no coach has the right to cause severe pain to their students.
@sharon613 (2321)
• United States
27 Feb 07
If your sister don't want to get involved is it a possibility for you to step into the picture and go to whoever to make the complaint?
5 people like this
@SKLC_PT (1234)
•
28 Feb 07
I have to agree with orcanut, making someone run with or without shoes to the point of blisters can not be healthy. There is such a thing as over exercise, if you push your body to far it can retaliate and she might have other damage in a long run then just blister feet. Running bare feet can be ok, so can with shoes but it all depends on what you're running on, how long you're running, you own feet no 2 feet are the same some people's feet are extra sensitive others are harder. I'd definitely go see the person head of the school and file a complaint, and if I could I'd try speaking to the other parents of the children with the same teacher to go with me!
@ScrappinHappyMom (914)
• United States
27 Feb 07
Someone has to complain! This is the most insane thing I have ever heard of in my life. If your sister doesn't want to start the complaint because of her job you should.
If a parent did this to a child the teachers would be up in arms and hollaring child abuse, because this is what it is.
You simply have to go to the prinicpal and let him know what is going on, if that was my daughter or neice that coach and school would have one angry lady on their hands.
4 people like this
Exactly
@retardedrugrat (4791)
• Canada
28 Feb 07
This is crazy! How can a track coach make them do something like that?
I've never heard of running barefoot to strengthen your feet before. All it's done is tear up their feet. How is your niece going to run in the meet on Saturday with her sore feet like that?
If your sister doesn't want to complain I certainly would. This isn't just a concern, it's a genuine complaint about the way the track coach is going about her business!
3 people like this
@lingli_78 (12822)
• Australia
28 Feb 07
that is utterly ridiculous... i never heard before that running barefoot on track will strengthen the foot... she can get an infection on her foot for God's sake... i will definitely make a big complaint about it and won't let it go just like that... i will make sure that the coach gets fired right away... otherwise, i will be moving my daughter to another school... either way... the principal can choose between having my daughter in the school or the coach...
2 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
I think the coach should be fired as well as sued for child abuse.
@NewHeart (528)
• Canada
28 Feb 07
well the thing i don't see here is the health issues that this could cause like loosing feet or legs. yes thats a real possibility especially if you happen to be a diabetic. as any one who is can tell you the feet are the most important part of the body you have less feeling there so you might not even feel the cut you might get and she had lots of blisters well let me tell you it would take about 8 weeks for me to heal with just 1 blister what would i do with 6 or 7 of them. with the infection i might get could loose legs so how right is the coach now did he see everyones medical to make sure there were none doubt it i will just bet there was at least 1 kid there that is a diabetic. tell you one thing i think the coach is just one lucky son of b!tch that there wasn't one. well i've vented better quit while i'm ahead. just makes me mad that someone like that with an education and can't think...
2 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
I'd want to know who hired that coach and have that person reprimanded for not doing proper background checks
@wmaharper (2316)
• United States
27 Feb 07
sometimes coaches make poor descesions, although I do not believe that this justifies termination, some kind of discipline or probationary period could be put into place. I ran Cross Country and Track my whole highschool career, Running barefoot does streangthen different muscles than running with shoes on, just like running in sand streagthens different muscles and running backwards works on different muscles. Once we were running sets for cross country and we had to run backwards around the track, which would have been fine, except that someone left a bench sticking out into one of the lanes, A girl tripped, and I fell over her, catching myself on my hands, spraining both of my wrists. I wasn't mad a the coach, it was an unforseeable accident. No one thought anyone would trip, and certainly didn't think someone would get hurt, but, since then, the coach always checks the entire track when he does these kind of sets, and spaces the runners out more too. I def. think it needs to be brought to the coaches attention though at the very least.
3 people like this
@blueskies (1186)
• United States
27 Feb 07
I think your sister should definitely complain. It seems to me, that there must have been quite a bit of running in order to cause such foot injuries. When the track coach decided to use this as an exercise, she made herself responsible for the safety of her team member's feet. She should have been checking their feet every few minutes to ensure that no one had any injuries.
Is the track at your niece's school made of rubber, or is it dirt and small stones like ours? I would give the coach a little more leeway if it were a rubber track, as she might have thought the rubber would prevent injuries. If she made them run on a crushed stone track, she should be disciplined.
3 people like this
@chaygylmommy (2470)
• United States
27 Feb 07
It was just a mile and a half, but that was enough to mess up her feet really bad. It is dirt and small stones for traction...that is what is ridiculous about it. Plus, my niece has very soft feet. She NEVER goes without shoes and socks..doesn't even wear flip flops so her feet are always protected. I mean, I never meant that the coach should be fired or anything...just told that this is unacceptable and a bit ridiculous. She should go out there and run barefoot first which she did not. She sat on the sidelines and watched. LOL
3 people like this
@jillmalitz (5131)
• United States
28 Feb 07
I could not run or walk barefoot. I alwys have on shoes so my feet are tender. I don't see how running barefoot would make feet stronger. Running also uses leg muscles, what does bare feet do for that? Tender feet would surely blister. I would express my concern to the principal and if I didn't get a satisfactory answer I would let the school board know about the situation. Maybe there is a policy in place concering physical education or sports activities. Also get an opinion from a trusted doctor who might be able to discuss the issue from a physiology stand point.
2 people like this
@Cephoozee (373)
• United States
6 Mar 07
Hzve you ever seen a professional runner's feet? They have about an inch of callous of the bottom's of their feet because of all the time they spend on them IN SHOES, the impact and wearing of the bottoms of feet rubbing against the inside of the shoe cause this. This girl's blisters will heal, and the next time she goes for another barefoot run, they will be harder and more calloused, and soon she will be able to run much longer distances without harming her feet, and the whole thing about infection is kind of silly, all she has to do is wash her feet.
1 person likes this
@Michele21 (3093)
• United States
28 Feb 07
That is terrible!! I woudl think that would be abuse in some way! I would be furious if my daughter came home from school in that condition.
2 people like this
@artistmel2000 (438)
• United States
27 Feb 07
I find this absurd. The whole purpose of running shoes is to run in them. I don't agree with this coaches philosophy of strengthening feet by running without the shoes, and I would definitely recommend a podiatrist for your niece to make sure she hasn't done any permanent damage to her feet. I also believe some kind of disciplinary action is needed with this coach. Perhaps the podiatrist could give some medical statement as to the importance of shoes for shock absorption and protection of the feet. Even finding someone in sports medicine may help with the medical statements.
The bottom line is this... no sport should purposely cause damage or injury. Every precaution should be taken. That's not to say that injuries do happen, but to cause an injury on purpose is just so wrong. Good luck to your niece.
3 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
No coach should be allowed to force their students to harm themselves.
@Stephanie5 (2946)
• United States
28 Feb 07
I would be in there telling SOMEONE how I felt about it immediately! I think that is rediculous! She needs to go in there and say something. I think that's going just a little bit too far. I can see a lawsuit developing over this one, especially if she wasn't the only one...
2 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
I sure do hope they sued the pants off not only the coach but the people who hired him who obviously did not do a proper back ground check.
@hellsangelus (670)
• Oman
28 Feb 07
I was an athlete and we were never made to run barefoot. Thats the silliest thing I ever heard. Even when we were practising on the beach we wors our shoes. Our teachers always stressed on the importance of proper footwear. The track is the most difficult to run on and you should not if you dont have the proper shoes.
I would make a big deal about this because the teacher sounds a bit sadistic to me. I know it must be hard when parents make a big noise over nothing at all but this is crazy. If you dont bring her to task now what will she do next, make them run barefoot on stones.
2 people like this
@mourning_willow (50)
• United States
28 Feb 07
Ive never heard of such a thing. if it was me i would complain, yes the tracks are rough you also have to think about even if it is a schools track you never know what could be on it glass, nails anything.
2 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
It also shows how little effort is put into doing back ground checks on coaches.
@nosmas (3)
•
28 Feb 07
Has nobody heard of Zola Bud.
She ran Barefoot in the olympics a little while back...
A lot of african nations run barefoot in the olympics...
Every coach is different with their style of training.
However, if the child does not like itthey should not have to do it. I'm surpised the coach never got accused of child abuse for the state of the girls feet. The main reason they got rid of the cane in schools was so they didn't get injuries at school and were sued.
This is the sort of thing that the kids should have been asked if they wanted to try and then their parents should have been informed or asked in case they did not want to put up with all the after-effects.
Must be a case of mouth moving before the brain got into gear this time
2 people like this
@rebelann (111073)
• El Paso, Texas
17 Oct 19
I love this sentence Must be a case of mouth moving before the brain got into gear
I just hope that coach was stripped of his position and not allowed to coach anymore.
@answerguy (57)
• Canada
28 Feb 07
Just to clarify....
A gym teacher is making students who normally run every race in RUNNING SHOES (which have specific support structuring built for running) run around a track barefoot. As in without the support their feet are normally used to and that they will be USING DURING THE RACE.....
Whoever this teacher is, they are a complete moron. It's so much easier to sprain ankles running barefoot than with shoes, not to mention any NUMBER of things that you could step on. bye bye race then.
maybe he or she is just trying to cut out the slackers... bit harsh, and i would definitely complain about this. It's ridiculous, and students shouldn't have to damage themselves for school ANYTHING.
2 people like this
