Barefoot shoes imitate the comfort of being barefoot, while still providing the necessary protection against weather and injuries. They also allow for the adaptation of our appearance to modern cultural norms/fashion.
Table of Contents
What makes a shoe barefoot?
The sole is
– zero drop, without a raise in the heel (and, ideally, in the toe box)
– flat = does not support the arch because
- artificial support would lead to further weakening of the very muscles that may not be strong enough to carry our weight in the first place
- plus, it would disable the natural tightening and flexing of the arch that is supposed to raise and descend with each step
– thin, thus providing excellent ground feel so the over 7.000 nerve endings in our feet are constantly fed the stimuli they have been made to intake
– flexible so as to not hinder the natural rolling of the feet during each step (it is not by mere chance that our biological foundation is not a thick and stiff layer)
The toe box is
– wide, letting the toes splay freely which is a key element in our overall stability; the best shoes can even accommodate toe spacers*
– light, often like a feather
(Groundies Berlin – Martens style barefoot boots: 640 g/pair, Ahinsa Trek water resistant barefoot boots 460 g/pair, Veronella traditional boots 1.050 g/pair – see picture 4 above )
– soft, unrestrictive, with no squishing or pinching; the best ones are like second skin, often from the very first moment without a break-in period
The main attributes are easy to remember: WTFF = wide, thin, flat, flexible 🙂
That’s all very interesting, you may say, but why aren’t all shoes like that then?
I’m afraid that the answer is rooted in old, unchanged habits that the developed world simply forgot to question.
About heels
Raised heels originally appeared as a status symbol. As sense of position and power spread more and more widely among the general population, so did the heel. Modern science inherited this from the past, scientists – just like all of us – were raised within this paradigm, and the question ’why’ simply never occurred to anybody till recently. So here’s the question spelt out: Why do we disregard the optimum shape of the foot developed by evolution? And what do we lose by doing so?
High heels do make female feet look thinner and thus contribute to an aesthetically more valued appearance. In addition, the swinging of the hips enhanced by the lack of stability adds even more to the overall sexy impression. The price female bodies pay for this goes far beyond tired feet in the evening and, at least in the Eastern part of Europe, isn’t really acknowledged. At the same time, it is very inspiring to see young Scandinavian ladies recently elected to high positions making their public appearances in comfortable, stable, non-squishing shoes.
About width
We, highly civilized Europeans, loath and ridicule the ancient Chinese foot-bounding method used to force young girls’ feet into impossibly small = sexy shoes:
right: The Drifter Leather
What we fail to realize is that in the 21st century, our own beauty standards still favour narrow-looking feet squished into an undersized toe box, with toes cramped all over each other. Well, yes, we don’t need to actually look at what happens to those toes within the shoes… It is the external sight of elegantly narrow footwear that counts, never mind the bunions caused by the distortion or the degrading toe muscles. In such shoes the big toe hardly participates in bearing the weight of the body either while standing or while walking, although it should actually play a key role in both. As we expect men to disregard their physical needs in favour of compliance with social standards to a much more limited extent, their feet suffer somewhat less.
Outdated concepts
It is not unheard of that an unscientific concept bringing harm to patients prevails for decades (or even centuries) in a certain scientific field. For instance, giving birth on your back is another such practice, although it is slowly starting to get less dominant nowadays. While it is comfortable for the doctors, it incapacitates both the birthing mother and her baby. It eliminates the supporting forces of gravity and hinders the use of abdomen muscles. More and more people realize that natural birth giving works perfectly in poses that are more convenient for and supportive of the mother even if the auxiliary personnel (yes, I mean the doctors) need to adapt at the cost of losing some of their own comfort. The old custom is actually supposed to go back to as far as Louis 14th: wishing to witness the birth of his children, he ordered his mistresses to lie down during labour. Nota bene, the behaviour of today’s doctors is often analogical with that of kings of the past…
(Regarding birthing poses, I have my own experience. I have tried both lying on my back and freely choosing what is best for me, and believe me, the difference is crucial.)
Barefoot and/or in shoes
It is common knowledge that walking barefoot is good for your feet. OK, but good compared to what? Well, to shoes. And why so? Because it saves us from overprotective effects of footwear limiting our body functionality.
Tons of people have zero problems while staying barefoot, experiencing pain only once back in shoes. So, what can they do? After all, it is not an option to go to the street / work / shopping etc. without any footwear!
Well, first of all – it actually IS an option :). Some, although an insignificant minority only, choose to live respecting the needs of their bodies even if it means going against the prevailing cultural standards to that extent.
Our pampered feet, however, are typically not used to such hardship. In our civilized surroundings, as opposed to a natural setting, it is doable for few.
The solution to this problem is called barefoot shoes.