Category: Barefoot Walking

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Is Barefoot Standing Better For You

Steven Sashen, Xero Shoes CEO, at his treadmill desk

I gave up shoes in 2009 when I started walking, running and, well, living barefoot or in Xero Shoes.

Soon after that I gave up sitting, too.

Okay, not gave up… but I got so sick of being planted in a chair all day that I throw away the chair, propped up my desk, and started standing instead.

After a while, that got a bit old, too. So I found a free treadmill on Craigslist, ripped off the handrails, mounted the controller on my wall, and started walking while I worked.

Steven Sashen at his treadmill desk

Now you may not go as far as I did, but I highly recommend that you spend less time sitting and more time standing. And doctors agree (seriously, get off your butt right now!).

One “problem” with standing, especially if you do it 8-10 hours a day like I do, is that, well, it’s kind of boring for your feet. You’re standing on the same surface, at the same angle in, roughly, the same place.

So I loved when my friends from Quitting Sitting showed me their new product, Topo (not to be confused with the shoe company of the same name).

Standing Desk Mat TopoTopo gives you varied surfaces to stand on, with angles you can explore, a mild texture, and some cool colors.

Here’s a video they produced about Topo:

I’m writing this a bit prematurely, I’ll admit, because I haven’t received my Topo yet (and, yes, I’ll put it on top of my treadmill for the times when I’m standing instead of walking). But for those of you who do stand (and that could be in the kitchen or anywhere else, too), I thought I’d give you a heads up.

Check out Topo here… and if you get a Topo, let me know what you think!

 

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What are the benefits of barefoot walking and running?

I got a message on Facebook from Ben:

I have a pair of your sandals and I really enjoy the freedom, strength and all around sensation I get running free!

My only hurdle has been steeping on rocks on the ball or knuckle of my feet and bruising an irritating the nerves. I have had bouts with mortons neuroma and whenever I land on that spot with a rock or hard object – I am back to my cushy runners. Maybe I am destined to be a shod runner or maybe in time my feet will toughin’ up? Any advice would be helpful!

Thank you!
Ben

Now, I’m not a doctor, and I don’t play on on TV (or anywhere else for that matter), so the best I can do is tell you what I’ve noticed since I ditched my shoes and started walking and running barefoot (in 2009).

I replied to Ben:

My experience has been that 4 things happened over time:

  1. My feet became stronger and more flexible (so they bend around the things that used to be painful). In fact, I was at a clinic for chiropractors not too long ago and the teacher said to his students, “If you have to, pay Steven to let you check out his feet… you’ll be amazed at how strong they are, but really relaxed and flexible.” Sadly, nobody paid me… but a lot of people did check out my feet 😉
  2. My reflexes seem to have improved, so I step off things that might be painful faster, and therefore they don’t hurt.
  3. My gait changed, so that I don’t have my weight on my foot until it’s a bit more flatfooted as I walk — with more surface area, there’s less force/stress on any specific part of my foot.
  4. I pay more attention (effortlessly) to where I’m stepping, so I don’t put my feet on painful things as often. It seems like a combination of using peripheral vision, plus feeling what’s underfoot more quickly.

I hope that’s helpful.

And I hope that’s helpful for you as well.

If you’ve been barefooting, what have you noticed about your walking and running over time?

Leave your comments (and questions) below…

 

The content of this post does not constitute and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions or concerns you may have about your health or a medical condition.

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Bare feet, strong feet

Dr. Mark Cucuzzella and the Natural Running Center have put out a great ebook about the benefits of being barefoot and natural movement.

According to the NRC site, the premise: Healthy Feet = Healthy Running.

I’d add healthy walking, hiking, strolling, yoga, working out… and everything else you do on your feet.

The free ebook looks at a study done in 1905 by Dr. Phil Hoffman, where he compared the feet of barefooted and shoe-wearing (shod) people, and includes commentary on the study by Mark, Dr. Casey Kerrigan, and Dr. Phil Maffetone.

It’s stellar.

And did I mention: free

Click the image below to pick up your copy.

healthy barefoot running book

The content of this post does not constitute and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions or concerns you may have about your health or a medical condition.

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Vibrating insoles, bare feet, and balance

The Wall Street Journal online published an article describing the research of James Collins from Harvard. James wondered why people get less steady on their feet as they get older.

His conclusion: They get less feedback from the ground and lose the ability to balance.

So far so good.

His solution: An insole that provides random vibration to stimulate the nerves in the feet.

Can anyone here think of another way of doing the same thing, but without all the electronic bells and whistles? Anyone? Beuler? Beuler?

If you said, “Take off your shoes!” you win any prize on the second row!

If you said “Take off your shoes! And if you don’t want to step on unpleasant things, wear Xero Shoes!” you get a prize from the TOP row! 😉

If you think about this, it sheds light on another bit of research on balance and the elderly: Studies have shown that Tai Chi can help elderly people regain their balance. But it’s probably not the Tai Chi that’s causing the effect (BTW, I have nothing against Tai Chi… I did it and taught it for years). It’s the time spent barefoot, FEELING the ground.

I hope that someone does a study with Xero Shoes and balance sometime. I’d place a bet on the outcome.

The content of this post does not constitute and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions or concerns you may have about your health or a medical condition.

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Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro Barefoot

Congrats to Ross Tucker and his co-climbers who climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro totally barefoot!

One of the things Ross discusses is how, when he told people that he wanted to make the barefoot attempt, he was met with disbelief, mocking, and all manner of non-support.

Sound familiar, barefoot runners?

I emailed him in advance of his trip to show him my video of shoveling snow barefoot and let him know I was positive he would make it, and have fun doing it. In fact, I was totally jealous and wished I could make the flight to do the trip with him (besides, since I live at 5600′, I thought I’d have an advantage).

Now, Ross and his team didn’t take this mission lightly. They didn’t wake up one morning and think, “Hey, let’s take a hike… barefoot… up the tallest mountain in Africa!”

They did a lot of preparation — Ross did less than the others because he joined later. I argued that they did more than they needed. But the point is that they built up to the task rather than simply pretending they were still wearing shoes. I say this to the runners who think that they can simply take off their shoes and pop a barefoot marathon (I know people who’ve done that without a problem, but they’re the exception, not the rule).

I can’t wait to see what new barefoot adventures people tackle in the future.

Congrats again, Ross and the team!

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Barefoot hiking and walking are fun, too!

Barefoot hiking may be the next minimalist/barefoot trend.

While barefoot running is the thing that became popular (thanks in large part to Christopher McDougall’s book, Born to Run), I’ve noticed in the last few months that:

  • Many new barefoot runners haven’t read, or even heard of, Chris’s book
  • A significant percentage of our customers are not runners, but hikers, walkers, gym-goers, yoga practitioners, and CrossFit-ers

And, more and more, I get emails and photos from people showing them at the top of some mountain, either barefoot or in their Xero Shoes. A lot of times their emails will say, “I brought my running sandals with me to use around the campsite or if I was going through water and didn’t want my shoes to get wet. But it was so much more fun to feel the ground as I hiked, that I just put my hiking boots in my pack and wore my huaraches instead.”

I know the feeling. I haven’t worn real shoes for anything like a hike since the Summer of 2009, and the idea of balancing on my stiff hiking boot soles instead of gripping the rocks and roots isn’t at all appealing. And it’s  definitely one of my favorite moments when I come upon a small stream to cross, and see a handful of hikers trying to figure out how to make it without getting their feet wet… and then I just plod through the water without breaking stride 😉

Frankly, I love the idea that minimalism and barefoot and natural movement make it beyond the world of running, beyond the question of performance (e.g. “do you run faster barefoot?” or “is barefoot running better than shod running?”). After you’ve been barefoot for a while, you simply love the way it feels in every circumstance.

Granted, I also think that being barefoot or truly minimalist has other advantages — all those nerves in the bottom of your feet are there for a reason; use ’em or lose ’em. But if the only reason people take off their motion-controlled shoes is for fun, that’s good enough for me! And if they decide to wear Xero Shoes for those times where a little bit of protection or style are needed, I won’t complain 😉

Oh, backing up to the reason I wrote this post: There’s a great story today about a woman who climbed Kilimanjaro barefoot.