Well, a few of my patients, especially the athletes in my practice have asked quite a few questions about barefoot running or barefoot shoes. In general, barefoot technology is just not as prolific as the non-barefoot shoes. What is a barefoot shoe? I know, the term is contradictory. Many health care providers, chiropractors, physical therapists etc. try to help encourage your body to be as pain-free and efficient as possible. In my office, I often see feet that are dysfunctional causing low back pain, back pain in general, knee and hip pain and even headaches! How is this possible? Well, forces are transmitted through our body through various structures. If those forces are transmitted properly, we can handle them, if not, tissues break down and we may notice symptoms anywhere along the road.
When we are barefoot, and our foot structure has not been malformed by more modern, stylish shoes, every time we take a step, the long bones leading to our toes spread apart, the big toe is aloud to extend freely; this tightens-up your plantar fascia and various ligaments related to your long arch creating a spring mechanism. In addition, your heel is at the same level as the rest of your foot which allows your various arches to do what their supposed to do (support and transfer motion). This means a feet that are allowed to work the way they are supposed to will support you, stabilize you and help to properly transmit forces through your body. This results in less pain and more efficient running and walking, jumping etc.
For there to be functional movement in the body, there must be a balance between mobility and stability (stability = the right muscles are contracting at the right time and motion is controlled). Without proper foot mobility and stability, you are setting yourself up for ankle, knee, hip, low back and neck problems and pain. The foot is THE FIRST structure to begin transmitting force through your body when you are walking, running, jumping or even just standing there, in awe at what you are reading.
An efficient and stable foot structure is paramount to functional movement and can shave time off your runs and miles off your body. Where does it start? With arches; "arch Support" is a silly term; think about it, how much sense would it make to put giant pillars underneath the arches of bridges? It wouldn't, the arched bridged is designed to distribute force through the arch so that it only needs to be supported on either end of the bridge. Why would we insist on supporting our arches when they can support themselves?
Now I know some of you are reading this saying to yourself, "I have flat feet, I NEED arch support because I don't have great arches."
OK, sometimes, you can't just start wearing barefoot shoes, you need to "wean" yourself into them by using more flexible shoes, using a metatarsal pad and doing specific arch-building exercise like the "short foot exercise". But trust me, when you start wearing barefoot shoes, your feet will become stronger and more mobile than ever. For instance I have never had much dexterity with my toes but after wearing barefoot shoes for 3 months I can move my toes around like never before. In addition, my feet and calves are much stronger.
Imagine what a disaster it would be if we were to jack up one side of a bridge; that's what you are doing every time you wear shoes that put your heel higher than your toes. I am not just talking about high heels! Go grab your running shoes, workout shoes, casual shoes, chances are, most of them do this and it is killing our feet.
Lastly, like I wrote earlier, the long bones of our feet need to spread apart with every step you take. Here is a test for your shoes; pull out the inserts, put them on the floor, place your foot over them like they would be if the inserts and your foot were in a shoe, put your weight on your foot. Does your foot "spill out" over the sides of your shoe insert? If so (and most of you will find that this is the case), your shoes are not letting the long bones of your foot spread apart with every step creating a higher risk of foot pain, neuromas, plantar fascitis and more.
Choosing footwear that allows your feet to support the rest of your body is incredibly important. If you walk or run on a regular basis, it is absolutely necessary and, according to some experts (including me), one of the reasons foot, ankle, knee, hip and low back pain is so prevalent in societies that wear shoes designed to literally squeeze the life out of our feet.
There are many resources on this topic; if you want to learn more, feel free to contact me.
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