Somehow this seems like it belongs here: http://barefooters.org/
I discovered this website 9 years ago, during a year long barefoot escapade. It helped me feel sane in my bare foot adventures.
Right on Willem, I prefer going barefoot whenever possible. The only footwear I can wear comfortably for any length of time are sandals and mukluks (in winter), shoes always deform my feet and give me blisters after a few weeks of wearing them
I been walking barefoot as much as possible for more than a month now, my feet are getting these cool leathery pads like an animal, it’s awesome. I wish I’d tried it a lot sooner and it’s been a great entry point into rewilding from an experiential standpoint.
As we get more and more into summer and our egg-frying ground temperatures we’ll see how it goes. But I officially hate shoes now, its like wearing mittens on your hands and trying to write, that same feeling of loss of feeling and function.
Where do you live, mojomike?
Central Texas… we’ve already been having afternoons of 103-105 deg
So… I just bought a pair of these as a compromise…
http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/products_classic.cfm
Do those fit well? After I’d walked barefoot for a few months, I found that the proportions of my feet changed and I can no longer fit into shoes. Foxwalking uses a different set of muscles I guess.
I’d like to hear how you like those fivefingers after wearing them a while. A Japanese friend gave me some socks with separate toes and I found it really bugged me that my toes couldn’t feel each other–like gloves instead of mittens.
They definitely let your toes spread out… in the morning when I get off the bus and walk 2 miles to work the shoes come off - but so far they are ok for when I need to have them on like on the bus, in the workplace cafe, etc.
You get some tactile feedback from the ground but not the same as actually being barefoot… which I don’t want to be on melting asphalt in the afternoon…
I’ve been going barefoot for most of my life. The only times I wear shoes is at school. I think going barefoot is a much more heathy way of living, physically and psychologically. Have you ever taken a look at your grandparents feet before? Well, years of shoe wearing causes many abnormities in the foot. For instance, Morton’s neuroma, a condition that comes with numbness and pain, is relieved when footwear is removed. Also, many doctors blame the wearing of shoes for lower back pain, knee pain, and many other foot ailments.
Another thing is that for proper foot development, children should not wear shoes very often, because it can cause things like flat feet.
Since I was able to walk, I would roam the country side (I lived on a farm in rural Alabama) without shoes. Over the years, my feet have conditioned to me being able to run on gravel roads. Some people think that all that barefoot walking would make your feet smell and crack like no tomorrow. However, foot oder is mainly caused by sweat and dead skin cells sticking to your feet because of shoes! And my feet don’t have a speck of peeling or dead skin on them.
YAY BARE FEET…(sry had to say it).
Yea i jst love bare feet, always have always will. My parents seem to think it bad or smthg. I dont care tho. Back in india when i used to live in boarding school (Rishi Valley) the weather and climate was such and 400 acres of the land belonged to the school so barefeet was no problem. In fact a lot of poor people from around the area (in villages there) who worked at the school dint have good shoes or footwear, or have ANY footwear.
Altho i am starting to realise conscuiously the good of barefeet. It does allow for more feedback, and lets face it its fun.
Actually my feet are very nice for someone who never really pays any special attention to cleaning them, no blemishes, dry skin, athletes foot etc. In fact a lot of people compliment my feet (i know its wierd, i don’t get it either but it cant be bad if someone says “hey u have nice feet”).The only problem that i have EVER gotten on my feet are when i go running over 2 hours with shoes on. My poor feet are not used to taking such a beating in shoes. I have run on tar roads in 30 degrees for over 10K and nothing i cud complain about. I run my first marathon (in a western country thus i had to wear shoes) and my left foot is covered with blisteres and blood and puss etc. Shoes protect,… yea right!!
-Tj
Right on, TJ!
In other Bare foot news, the new yorker came out with an article on this, mentioning fox-walking too (probably all cribbed off of jason’s anthropik post 
).
I’ve been doing the barefoot walking thing for about a week now, and thought I’d share my humorous experience that the only place that gave me a problem was a hippie natural foods and herb store. Nobody at the supermarket or the library gave me a problem, just the hippie store.
hey all
because i love bare feet, i have to list some of the things i’ve done barefoot!
hiked in the mountains (numerous times, actually, i live in the mountains!)
taken the dog for a walk in the snow
protested in the streets
disney world (how i hate to admit i was at disney world!)
supermarkets
cinemas
restaurants
shopping malls
spent the whole day and evening in gatlinburg bare foot
drive
gardening, including using a spade
i so rarely put shoes on that i forget to put them on when i should, and leave them places when i manage to take them there. i spend the vast majority of my time bare foot. the only problem i have is that i have huge callouses on the sides of my big toes. i would try cutting them down, but then that would cause my toe skin to crack, so now i just leave them. people rarely notice i’m barefoot. disney threatened to kick me out! but other than that, the people who notice the most are hikers, especially if i’m hiking a rocky trail. they’re mostly astounded that some crazy dreadlocked girl will be charging down a trail, 40 pound kid on her back, barefoot. ;D
love all
tracy
I never knew there were so many good things about going barefoot. Of course, it how walking should be.
I’ve been walking around a couple days now without shoes and it’s been pretty good. The first time I did it though I went for a run on concrete. Bad idea. My feet were blistered and sore like crazy afterwards.