The allure of moving naturally, with the potential for fewer injuries and stronger feet, has captivated runners and walkers for years. 🦶 Recent studies highlight the advantages of going barefoot and minimalist footwear. While the research about the barefoot movement is promising, don’t throw out all of your shoes just yet. Learn how barefoot and minimalist footwear can enhance foot strength, and how to transition to avoid injuries: https://lnkd.in/e47j_u-F
I’m one of the early adopters and using barefoot shoes for over 20 years now. The only real foot/leg related injury I ever had was trying to do the Cape Wrath trail (230 miles/370 km) through the Scottish highlands with an additional load of 30kg, after 2 weeks of being sick, without any prior training. My knee couldn’t handle that. But that was a pretty extreme case. Once a running coach offered me video and computer analysis in exchange for some kitesurf lessons - he said he never saw such good feet biomechanics in any of his clients. And I wasn’t even running or doing much besides maybe a little bit of hiking at that time. I can definitely recommend them to everyone. Only take your time to transition, don’t rush it. It’s pretty crazy how weak feet become when you use “normal” shoes (there is nothing normal about them though, they will just slowly kill your feet).
All's good until you step on a sharp object, bruising or cutting your foot!
I can't stand being barefoot, but I've had less knee pain since I swapped to wide toe box shoes. Loads of great options from leather sneakers to hiking boots, and with my feet not bound up in narrow shoes, I have better balance and overall joibt pain in my knees and feet has decreased. I love my vibram KSOs or REI zero drop minimalist sneaks for running trails and such, but toe shoes aren't always going to work for everyday wear. The wide toe box brands are a nice compromise where both form and fashion can coexist.
barefoot on grass sounds great. Not so much on concrete.
I would walk barefoot on trails only with barefoot-like shoes or in a clean, controlled environment like my house or on the beach. I would pave my house’s floor with stones-like pavement, i think it’s healthy.
I hope that the move towards barefoot running leads to the seldom-frequented path of real change and a greater consciousness of the body rather than the highway rushing off to capitalize the next dollar off of it.
Been using Vivobarefoot and Vibram Group shoes for years. Our propioception starts from our feet. We ground our energy through our feet. Kent Morimatsu who is a brilliant sports performance specialist and physical therapist has explained to me a number of times how being connected to the ground through our feet is critical for our overall physical health and performance.
Not on a hike! I need ankle support. I’m a newb. And I fear snakes. 😅 I’ll be barefoot in my backyard all day, though!
I tried barefoot first time this year (in the Alps, 6 hours tour; my Profile picture is the evidence 😁) meanwhile it had become a regular practice, also in our village; except for strange looks, no negative side effect; I can really recommend it👍
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1moDid a ringworm write this post?