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Not sure exactly why you started walking barefoot, but here is an interesting article and some vids about grounding. I wouldn't mind trying it myself but with the amount of dog crap littering the streets here in France I would look like Gene Kelly prancing down the road.
Grounding is bollocks. It makes about as much sense as homeopathy or acupuncture. It's a pseudoscience that looks at the positive effects of not wearing shoes and attributes them to negligible electrical charge flow which actually takes place whether you where shoes or not every time you open a door, sit on a chair, lie on a bed, lean on a wall etc.
Some of the nonsense from grounding includes the idea that energy can flow back into your body from the Earth, that toxic chemicals can be purged, and that you even draw in valuable nutrients.
What really happens is mix of biomechanical benefits from easier walking due to all the bones and muscles in your feet free to work togethet optimally, and the psychological benefits you get from all the sensory information- our brains love knowing as much as possible about where we are. That's why sounds sound better with reverb added giving a sense of whay kind of room it's in, and why we like to see things in colour.
It also helps to have air circulation around your feet for temperature regulation and to stop the unhealthy build up of stagnant sweat on which all kinds of microbes thrive, that would cause nasty foot conditions.
Now if it were grounding that gave us these benefits then copper soled shoes would be just as good for us as going barefoot.
I made a video on this a year ago, one of the first vids I made so it's not amazing quality unfortunately.
Grounding is bollocks. It makes about as much sense as homeopathy or acupuncture. It's a pseudoscience that looks at the positive effects of not wearing shoes and attributes them to negligible electrical charge flow which actually takes place whether you where shoes or not every time you open a door, sit on a chair, lie on a bed, lean on a wall etc.
Some of the nonsense from grounding includes the idea that energy can flow back into your body from the Earth, that toxic chemicals can be purged, and that you even draw in valuable nutrients.
What really happens is mix of biomechanical benefits from easier walking due to all the bones and muscles in your feet free to work togethet optimally, and the psychological benefits you get from all the sensory information- our brains love knowing as much as possible about where we are. That's why sounds sound better with reverb added giving a sense of whay kind of room it's in, and why we like to see things in colour.
It also helps to have air circulation around your feet for temperature regulation and to stop the unhealthy build up of stagnant sweat on which all kinds of microbes thrive, that would cause nasty foot conditions.
Now if it were grounding that gave us these benefits then copper soled shoes would be just as good for us as going barefoot.
I made a video on this a year ago, one of the first vids I made so it's not amazing quality unfortunately.
The closest I've got to all this barefoot stuff is from reading 'Born To Run' by Christopher McDougall.
He goes into a lot of detail about the design of modern trainers and how the excessive cushioning and arch support actually weakens the foot, reduces the amount of info being received, creates bounce and instability and causes injury. He talks a lot about the Tarahumara Indians in the Copper Canyons of Mexico and how they run barefoot or in very simple sandals.
It all makes quite a lot of sense to me. I think most of the minimalist and 'zero drop' running shoes and Vibram Five Finger stuff is based on that. I actually got a semi-(only semi) minimalist pair of shoes but it didn't really work out for me because A) I'm about a stone overweight and it fcuked up the front part of my foot and B) Certain uncouth members of this forum took it upon themselves to mock their ghastly appearance.
Brooklyn I stopped reading your post after you declared you got a semi.
Sax, as I live in costa rica, we basically wear flip-flops here, nothing else. About 4 mths ago I came out of the water after a surf, got on my quad and drove off and, for about the 6th time, left my flip-flops behind in their hiding place under the quad. I was so pissed off with myself I decided I didn't deserve another pair. So I've been barefoot for 4 mths now. Walking on tarmac (when you can find some) can get a bit heated at times, and when the rains come you do wonder what the hell you're walking in sometimes, but overall I have to say my feet have toughened up, walking on gravel/jagged stones etc is now very easy and my dodgy lumbar-sacral disc has not played up once. It's normal for me now. And you never have to worry about leaving shoes behind anywhere.
The closest I've got to all this barefoot stuff is from reading 'Born To Run' by Christopher McDougall.
He goes into a lot of detail about the design of modern trainers and how the excessive cushioning and arch support actually weakens the foot, reduces the amount of info being received, creates bounce and instability and causes injury. He talks a lot about the Tarahumara Indians in the Copper Canyons of Mexico and how they run barefoot or in very simple sandals.
It all makes quite a lot of sense to me. I think most of the minimalist and 'zero drop' running shoes and Vibram Five Finger stuff is based on that. I actually got a semi-(only semi) minimalist pair of shoes but it didn't really work out for me because A) I'm about a stone overweight and it fcuked up the front part of my foot and B) Certain uncouth members of this forum took it upon themselves to mock their ghastly appearance.
[Post edited 9 Jul 2014 16:25]
Vibram have recently got into trouble and lost a lawsuit over their claims that their Five Finger Shoes are as good for you as going barefoot.
They're not. They're shoes. They may appear to be like going barefoot to someone who hasn't given going barefoot a real go, but they have far more in common with shoes than bare feet.
But if you would rather wear shoes then there's no reason why you shouldn't wear those than any other, apart from how expensive they are, that you draw almost as much attention from people as you would were you barefoot, and the fact they will make your feet hot and sweaty with no room for socks (given that there are individual toe pockets making socks impossible) which means they'll stink and probably increase your chances of getting athletes foot, warts, etc.
I wouldn't be all that bothered about them if their marketing strategy were based on "look at this new design of shoe. It's designed to give your feet a lot more freedom to move naturally". But instead they say "Go barefoot, by paying us for the privilege, and we promise that it's exactly the same as actually going barefoot!". Which is as much bollocks as Grounding.
Jamois, it was only a semi-semi. Barely a nipple I mean ripple.
Yeah, I don't like those Five Fingers anyway. There far more minimalist than I'd ever go and people wearing them in 5k races looks like slow hopping dinosaurs.
I always walked round bare foot in the summer and I used to play tennis barefoot, for years, on gravel courts. I didn't like trainers but in the end (about 3 years ago) I had to start wearing them for tennis as it was taking it's toll on my ankles
I have (as saxbend already knows) a real aversion to bare feet stemming back to junior school, if anyone come in my house and takes their shoes off and aren't wearing socks I get really funny, I do wear flip flops if I'm on holiday by a pool. I could never do martial arts as the actual thought of some blokes feet touching me makes me feel sick! I hate women in sandals or even those shoes with just their toes poking out with a passion, it took years to get used to my mrs feet lol
favourite cheese mature Cheddar. FFS there is no such thing as the EPL
I have (as saxbend already knows) a real aversion to bare feet stemming back to junior school, if anyone come in my house and takes their shoes off and aren't wearing socks I get really funny, I do wear flip flops if I'm on holiday by a pool. I could never do martial arts as the actual thought of some blokes feet touching me makes me feel sick! I hate women in sandals or even those shoes with just their toes poking out with a passion, it took years to get used to my mrs feet lol
you could try some gentle exposure therapy - sucking on a small toe first, working up to the big one over a period of time
I have (as saxbend already knows) a real aversion to bare feet stemming back to junior school, if anyone come in my house and takes their shoes off and aren't wearing socks I get really funny, I do wear flip flops if I'm on holiday by a pool. I could never do martial arts as the actual thought of some blokes feet touching me makes me feel sick! I hate women in sandals or even those shoes with just their toes poking out with a passion, it took years to get used to my mrs feet lol
I have (as saxbend already knows) a real aversion to bare feet stemming back to junior school, if anyone come in my house and takes their shoes off and aren't wearing socks I get really funny, I do wear flip flops if I'm on holiday by a pool. I could never do martial arts as the actual thought of some blokes feet touching me makes me feel sick! I hate women in sandals or even those shoes with just their toes poking out with a passion, it took years to get used to my mrs feet lol
There's a good reason to be averse to someone wearing shoes without socks. Their feet will stink and probably be growing all kinds of bacteria, fungi etc. in their shoes as well. I recoil as much as you do when someone takes off their shoes and reveals no socks, which I can smell before I see, and I've come to expect feet that are usually in shoes not to be in a great state.
Saxbend, I Very much respect your barefoot lifestyle, you doing what you want to do and not what society dictates.
I've developed in recent times a bunion on my right foot. Maybe due to all the running I do, I'm not sure. I guess you will be free of bunions this lifetime??
Saxbend, I Very much respect your barefoot lifestyle, you doing what you want to do and not what society dictates.
I've developed in recent times a bunion on my right foot. Maybe due to all the running I do, I'm not sure. I guess you will be free of bunions this lifetime??
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