Brittany Schulz started running two years ago to lose weight.
She succeeded, losing 85 pounds, but it was fraught with pain and misery.
"I constantly had pain," Schulz said. "It was in my calves. It was in my shins. It was in my hips.
"I thought it was just because I was overweight. But then I got to my goal weight and I still had all of those pains."
She said she discovered the source of her pain when she read Christopher McDougall's book "Born to Run" (Knopf, 2009). She now believes that she was running incorrectly, and her shoes were the culprit.
"I originally picked (the book) up to just read it. I didn't pick it up realizing I was going to not wear shoes anymore," Schulz said.
She joined a new wave of runners who are wearing toe shoes. The unique footwear has very minimal sole, and each toe has a pouch -- like a glove for the foot.
Schulz gave the shoes a tryout, running just a short distance. The results were amazing.
"I noticed when I started running in them, my stride was longer and wider. My chest was straighter. And I felt better," Schulz said. "My times actually got better."
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