USA Barefoot Training Summit – Featured Presenter – Dr Mike Martino

We are fast approaching the May 15 – 17 Barefoot Training Summit in Denver, CO!

As we prepare for the 3-day educational event we want to take a moment to speak with this week’s Featured Presenter – Dr Mike Martino of Georgia College and Bodyplex in Midgeville, GA.

Thank you for taking a few minutes to talk to EBFA.   Congratulations on recently participating in EBFA’s Master Instructor Program!  Can you tell readers how you have begun to apply barefoot science and where you find it’s greatest benefits in your practice? 

I began integrating barefoot evidence-based practice immediately after completing the BTS Level 1 workshop in California last June with Dr. Splichal. The MI Program has opened my eyes even more and I have been working with all of the athletic teams at Georgia College on implementing Barefoot Training prior to their traditional practices. In addition, I have assessed potential recruits from a biomechanical perspective to assess their abilities from a movement perspective from the ground up.

We are also in the process of conducting three different barefoot studies looking at vertical jump performance under 4 different conditions including barefoot warm-ups, barefoot warm-up vs general warm-up effects on vertical jump, and balance and postural stability in barefoot vs shod conditions. I have also presented at a NSCA Regional event in April and will be presenting along side Dr. Splichal in Orlando in July.  Finally, I have been invited to present on Barefoot Training at another NSCA Regional event in Vancouver, Canada, in August 2015.

As Coordinator of the graduate level Exercise Science Program at Georgia College do you see a future with barefoot training principles taught on the academic level?  Why do you think the next generation of health and fitness professionals should learn the benefits of barefoot training?

Movement does start from the ground up!! I believe that Barefoot Training and understanding the Closed Kinetic Chain concept are one in the same. Graduate students should be able to assess foot mechanics and how the foot interacts with the ground and how this is a precursor to outstanding performance, programming, and injury prevention.

So we are very honored to have you presenting at the first-ever Barefoot Training Summit this May 15 – 17 in Denver, CO.   Can you tell the readers what you will be discussing during your sessions? 

I will be sharing how we evaluate our athletes and clients at Georgia College and at Bodyplex Milledgeville. My sessions will focus on the integration of Barefoot Training into our program design. In addition, I will be sharing a plethora of athletic drills that focus on from the ground up training. This will include some of the research that we have collected in our laboratory plus an overview of the research that has been done by Dr. Benno Nigg, Dr. Grace Smith, and other prominent foot mechanics researchers and what role they play in understanding optimal human performance.

You can catch Dr Mike Martino at the Barefoot Training Summit on Saturday May 16th and Sunday May 17th!

To learn more or register please visit www.barefoottrainingsummit.com