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"Barefoot" Footwear

Why Barefoot?

By ⋅ December 6, 2009 ⋅ Email This Post Email This Post ⋅ Post a comment


Why Barefoot?

Because being barefoot is healthy for you! Because being barefoot can feel great! Because being barefoot is how our bodies were designed!

 

Have you ever stopped to think about why we need so much support and protection? The answer is that we don’t. The answer is that the more we wear shoes, the more we damage and weaken our feet.

 

Bunions and hammertoes, smelly feet and flat feet – these are all the result of wearing shoes, and wearing shoes has caused us to walk wrong. In 2007, researchers at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, published a study titled “Shod Versus Unshod” The Emergence of Forefoot Pathology in Modern Humans? in the podiatry journal The Foot. The study examined 180 modern humans from three different population groups (Sotho, Zulu, and European) comparing their feet to one another’s as well as to the feet of 2,000-year-old skeletons. The researchers concluded that, prior to the invention of shoes, people had healthier feet. Among the modern subjects, the Zulu population, which often goes barefoot, had the healthiest feet while the Europeans—i.e., the habitual shoe-wearers—had the unhealthiest. One of the lead researchers, Dr. Bernhard Zipfel, when commenting on his findings, lamented that the American Podiatric Medical Association does not “actively encourage outdoor barefoot walking for healthy individuals. This flies in the face of the increasing scientific evidence, including our study, that most of the commercially available footwear is not good for the feet.” Read More

 

Shoe manufacturers are finally realizing the health benefits of being barefoot, and determined to break into a market that is, by design, not intended for shoes, have come up with shoes that mimic being barefoot. Most of us can’t walk barefoot all the time, and two of these companies have come up with ideas that show great promise. Vibram has invented the popular Fivefinger shoes. These shoes, shaped just like a foot, fit so perfectly that they resemble a glove for your foot. The Vivo Barefoot shoes, from the company Terra Plana, have designed a series of shoes that look like regular shoes, but have a minimalistic approach to the sole. The sole is felxible and very thin, and contains no heel or arch support, giving you a close-to-barefoot experience while keeping you feet protected (and not drawing too much attention to your naked toes). We have contacted both these companies to obtain samples so that we can give you an in-depth review – stay tuned.

 

What about a good pair of athletic shoes? Can they not protect our feet from the unforgiving concrete? A paper titled “Athletic Footwear: Unsafe Due to Perceptual Illusions,” published in a 1991 issue of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. “Wearers of expensive running shoes that are promoted as having additional features that protect (e.g., more cushioning, ‘pronation correction’) are injured significantly more frequently than runners wearing inexpensive shoes (costing less than $40).” According to another study, people in expensive cushioned running shoes were twice as likely to suffer an injury—31.9 injuries per 1,000 kilometers, as compared with 14.3—than were people who went running in hard-soled shoes.

 

There are of course other barriers to barefooting. Society has made it “dirty” to go barefoot, and common mythes and rules make it challenging to break into a barefoot lifestyle. It is commonly believed that barefoot driving is illegal. Bafefoot groups have done much research on the matter and have found almost no situations where driving barefoot is in fact illegal. The requirment of shoes within business establishments is another myth. While health regulations often have rules for employees and the wearing of proper footwear, few such rules exist for patrons.

 

The good news is that the enjoyment of barefooting does not need to be an all-or-nothing decision. In fact, if you wear shoes all the time, the transition from shoes to bare feet should be a gradual one. Your feet will adjust as you spend more and more time alowing them to strengthen. It will take a little time for your feet and body to ajust to the new flexabilty and movement.

 

Try it! Those of you with tender soles will soon find that regular barefooting will toughen the soles of your feet, and barefoot activities will feel more and more natural. It is a wonderful way to experience the world, with a whole new level of awareness as you feel the ground beneath your feet.

 

Our website is new, but growing rapidly. We aim to create a community for anyone who is interested in the health benefits of freeing your feet, and for those who are already convinced. Visit our new Forums to meet others who have the same interests.

 

If you have a barefoot friendly product that you’d like us to review and feature on our site, please contact us!





Other Great Living Barefoot Articles:

Buy Vibram FiveFingers at these quality online retailers:

REI
Rock Creek
Half Moon Outfitters
The Flip Flopper

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About Living Barefoot Reviews:

As you read our reviews, please keep in mind that our reviewers review shoes in terms of their suitability for those looking to find the highest quality minimalist shoe products. All reviews are as factual as possible. In an effort to be transparent and ethical, we will point out any defects found, even if these do not affect the usability of the product. Not all defects will be present in final production shoes as we are sometimes offered “seconds” or pre-release products in an effort to provide you with reviews in a timely manor. In the event that serious issues are found with a review sample we will give every opportunity for the manufacturer to replace to explain the review samples before the final review is released. We never accept payments for reviews. We do not guarantee a good review for any products sent to us. We do not review products that do not claim to be minimalist or “barefoot like” unless we receive a significant number of requests from readers or listeners.

Should you have any questions about our review process or would like your product reviewed on our site, please do not hesitate to contact us using our contact page.

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Featured Interview: Christopher McDougall – Author of Born to Run

Listen HERE

Christopher McDougall is a well-spoken, humble man who has through the popularity of his book brought about some of the biggest changes in the perception of feet and running in recent years.  Join us in learning about how this talented author wrote his book, discovered his feet, and how he feels about barefooting and running.  This interview should not be missed.
We Talk about:
- Chris’s recent appearance at the TED Conference
- Thoughts on Interviews In General
- His first exposure to barefoot running
- How he came to find the Tarahumara while on assignment for the New York Times.
- He thoughts on his influence over barefoot running and ultra running
- How he struggled with writing Born to Run
- This thoughts on minimalist shoes
- And much more!
To learn more about Christopher McDougall visit his website: http://chrismcdougall.com

Buy His Book: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
Download the Audible Audiobook

Find “Living Barefoot” in iTunes and download it onto your iPod / iPhone or listen online

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Discussion

20 comments for “Why Barefoot?”

  1. Can you speak about parasites? I’ve read conflicting arguments. Of course, the medical industry, which always seems intent on scaring the #%^@! out of society, paints a very negative picture. As I understand it, human-borne hookworms are rare in our society. And that hookworms from dogs/cats etc. don’t have the necessary biology to enter our digestive system. I have a new pair of FiveFingers but go barefoot in my yard.

    Posted by craig adamski | July 14, 2009, 08:04

  2. I have been running, walking, hiking and mostly living barefoot all summer 2009. I am hooked, sold and totally happy with it. My achilles tendonitis is healing, after 15 years of wasting money on expensive shoes and insoles. My knees, hips and back feel better than ever.

    I have walked all over London, UK, recently, and contracted nothing more serious than a severe case of dirty feet—which was remedied each day, after walking from the hotel to work by washing my feet in the bathroom sink.

    The best thing is the rediscovery of feet as a living, flexing, feeling part of my body. My soles on the ground or pavement feel right. My posture is better, I feel better all over. Enough said.

    Posted by Willvis | July 18, 2009, 07:02

  3. Try Soft Star Mocassins:

    http://www.softstarshoes.com/

    Great, if you must be shod.

    Also, cheap water shoes with a decent insole. Recently hiked in the Rockies with these and they were just fine—not that I had broken these in and already gone through a couple of small blisters on my heel. Now they are fine.

    But barefoot is my favorite.

    Posted by Willvis | July 18, 2009, 07:04

  4. We are in the process of testing the Soft Star Mocassins ourselves and look forward to being able to post a full review.

    Posted by Al Gauthier | July 18, 2009, 16:42

  5. Really nice site Al. I’ve been going barefoot a number of years. I really started to help strengthen my feet as a partake in the martial arts. But I found that it just felt good and somehow made me more much more concious of my surroundings. I find as I get older and despite of an unrelated leg injury my feet are in superb condition. I do wear ‘barefoot shoes’ regualr too. I find the Vivo’s superb.

    Posted by Dave Johns | August 30, 2009, 01:36

  6. Hi Craig, There are three common types: the New world hookworm and American murderer and the Old world hookworm. The first two enter through the skin, while the last enters through the mouth. The most infected individuals are concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and East Asia/the Pacific Islands. The worm thrives in warm earth where temperatures are over 18°C. They exist primarily in sandy or loamy soil and cannot live in clay or muck. Rainfall averages must be more than 1000 mm (40 inches) a year. Only if these conditions exist can the eggs hatch. The usual method of infection is through the skin; this is commonly caused by walking barefoot through areas contaminated with fecal matter. Treatments are easily available in developed countries. So to answer your question one would have to know where you live. In order to even be at risk for infection, however, you would need to live in a relatively wet and hot climate and then walk through an area contaminated with human fecal matter. Those are not conditions that most of us would easily find and thus hookworm infection (though common in third world countries) of the average barefooter is very unlikely. I hope that helps to answer your question. Welcome to our site.

    Posted by Al Gauthier | August 30, 2009, 04:43

  7. I have just been reported to social workers for allowing my 3 and half yr old to walk bare footed along the pavements, I always had her shoes with us so this has been completely her choice,
    now having to defend myself against the wheels of regulation for one of the most natural activities we can do…..please any comments? sarah…uk..

    Posted by sarah | October 5, 2009, 15:09

  8. That sounds extreme. What are the regulations for you in the UK? Kids round around barefoot all the time. Why have they singled you out? Please join our forums and perhaps our members can help you through this. Al

    Posted by Al Gauthier | October 5, 2009, 19:30

  9. I started going barefoot last year most of the time. I cant at work, but pretty much everywhere else with the exception of restraunts. I love the feeling of my barefeet touching the ground beneath my bare skin. It’s a feeling that can’t be described. I love it. Even be stings feel good, just to be able to feel it is fun. My feet are sensitive so it feel like a boost of energy for the body and soul or sole lol.

    Posted by Eric | November 10, 2009, 12:43

  10. It is great to be barefoot. I have a hard time wearing shoes. Some find it difficult to give up their running shoes. We have written about this on our blog and how to get into it. http://barefoot-running.com/blog/?p=29

    Posted by Jeremy | November 16, 2009, 16:26

  11. Barefooting is great because it allows your feet to feel free – but alot of people live in unforgiving environments so barefoot shoes are an amazing invention!

    Posted by rebecca | December 10, 2009, 05:24

  12. I wear Feelmax Niesa for the ultimate barefooting experience. I have mine in Black which are pretty much suitable for most work environments if wearing under trousers. I have tried Fivefingers but found Feelmax looks more appropriate in certain situations/environments where you dont want them sticking out like a sore thumb. Feelmax gives you one of the best (im my opinion) barefoot experiences!

    Posted by Sarah | December 10, 2009, 07:03

  13. Thank you for the web page and the great information on the podcast;really appreciated.

    Suggestion for future shows: Please become more interactive with your interview/guests. Responses like “Great” and “Super” rather than follow up questions leave us (the listeners) wondering “why didn’t he/she ask more in depth questions.

    As we say in NYC ; Youse guys are great but don’t be scared to ask and be more interactive/entertaining.

    Be Well and stay barefoot-Claude

    Posted by Claude | May 2, 2010, 18:19

  14. Hi Claude,

    Thank you for the honest feedback. We will work on being more interactive. I think that is an area we can improve on. Is there an episode in particular that made you think of this comment?

    Also, we always post information about who we are going to be interviewing and often even the date, so don’t be shy and send in your own questions. You can do that through the site or better yet, call our feedback line

    Thanks

    Al

    Posted by Al Gauthier | May 3, 2010, 03:22

  15. Hi barefoot pals,

    While browsing the web, found more interesting research on barefoot running and conversations with Lieberman from Harvard University about minimalist shoes. Thought you might be interested !

    http://www.stevenrobbinsmd.com

    Posted by chelsey | September 13, 2010, 14:18

  16. I never wear shoes at the college i’m dual enrolled in. So many people ask me about it. It can be over whelming… Nah! I’ts fine. I make friends like that. People ask me why i don’t wear shoes in the winter. Well, if im not wearing gloves, i’m not wearing shoes. It feels so good just to feel the ground, no matter how sharp and cruel it can be… Go Atheists!!!

    Posted by Blaise Constantine | December 14, 2010, 07:32

  17. Great website. I’ve been barefoot inside ;) all my life and really have a hard time finding shoes that fit comfortably thanks to having small wide feet with high arches. I’m researching minimalist shoes now so thanks for all the great info.

    Posted by Amanda | June 12, 2011, 05:57

  18. Thanks Amanda!! Let us know if we can help you personally with any questions!

    Posted by Al Gauthier | June 12, 2011, 08:12

  19. I just bought two pairs of minimalist tredsafe shoes for my job at a buffet. I’m trading them out daily so they can dry out properly. I get sweaty feet. I bought some speedo water shoes that are totally flat too for casual wear. I’ve been looking at barefoot and minimal foot wear for over a year, but I decided to take the plunge almost two weeks ago. Had to scrub a very uneven callus off the bottoms of my feet courtesy of my old, nasty shoes rubbing me the wrong way. My feet shrank from 8 1/2W to 6 1/2 so I was sliding around in my shoes like a slolam. Cheer me on, guys! I’ll tell y’all how I’m getting along soon. Oh, and the feet shrank due to finding out I have Celiac Disease, and getting it handled.

    Posted by Jennifer | July 29, 2011, 13:36

  20. Hi Jennifer. Nice to hear from you. Tell us about these minimalist shoes you bought. We are not aware of any minimalist shoes called “tredsafe”.
    Although it’s really not related to our site I must say I’m curious to find out how an intolerance to wheat has made your feet shrink.

    Posted by Al Gauthier | July 29, 2011, 22:24

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