| Take off your shoes and have a look at your | | | | reduce blood pressure. |
| feet... Do you have pretty feet? Are they well | | | | · Improved gait. This is the motion of the foot |
| shaped with smooth skin and no corns or calluses | | | | (and legs) in walking. By strengthening the muscles |
| in the wrong places? Do you have straight toes | | | | of the feet and improving the foot's mobility and |
| pointing straight out from your feet? Or are they | | | | flexibility, the gait cycle can be vastly improved. |
| deformed with flattened arches, hard, dry skin, | | | | This puts much less stress on the joints of the |
| crooked toes all squashed together? I thought as | | | | feet, ankles, knees, hips and spine. This alone can |
| much... | | | | lead to a reduction on knee, hip and back pain as |
| Modern day trends tell us that it's taboo to walk | | | | the joints are moving in a more natural way as |
| around barefoot, especially outside. Are these | | | | they are designed to do. |
| people crazy?! Walking around with no shoes on?! | | | | In conclusion |
| Why on Earth would anybody choose to do that?! | | | | Wearing fashionable shoes with high heels, pointed |
| Let me tell you...Our feet have evolved along with | | | | toes, sports shoes that provide us with cushioning |
| us, for as long as humans have had feet. For | | | | and support, heavy boots and protective shoes, |
| thousands, maybe millions of years we have | | | | all work in unison to make our feet and leg |
| roamed the earth with nothing on our feet but | | | | muscles lazy, underdeveloped and more prone to |
| skin. This is why, like the palms of our hands, we | | | | injuries. |
| have thicker skin on the soles of our feet - for | | | | Along with the fact that over the last 100 years |
| protection. | | | | or so we've flattened everything in our paths |
| How many shoes do you own, or have you seen, | | | | (literally), with smooth roads and pavements |
| that resemble the human foot? Yes, in a | | | | everywhere we go, and it now being a rarity to |
| round-a-bout way they do as they have to fit | | | | go walking on grass and uneven surfaces. This |
| around a foot; but look at your feet, and look at | | | | results in even fewer areas of the foot being |
| a shoe. Is there really much resemblance? | | | | stimulated when walking. |
| Squeezing our feet into these unnatural "boxes" | | | | Your feet are similar to your hands in that they |
| for our feet creates all manner of health | | | | both have 26 bones, 33 joints and more than 100 |
| problems. And right from the middle ages, with | | | | muscles, tendons and ligaments. Like your hands |
| the introduction of the elevated heel and the | | | | (and every other muscle in your body) the |
| pointed toe, foot problems have gradually | | | | muscles in your feet need to be worked regularly |
| increased - this is no coincidence! | | | | to be kept healthy. |
| So why walk barefoot? | | | | Imagine how well your hands would work if, for |
| · There are around 200,000 nerve endings in the | | | | around 12 hours a day, you wrapped them up in |
| soles of your feet and toes. This is your only | | | | a cotton sock and stuffed them into a rigid |
| contact with the world around you and provides | | | | leather mitten, restricting their movement.... I'm |
| sensory feedback to your brain about what is | | | | not sure your handwriting or typing would be |
| going on underneath you helping you to keep | | | | quite so good! |
| equilibrium. | | | | Walking barefoot is what nature intended, and |
| · Walking barefoot will stimulate the muscles in | | | | admit it - doesn't it feel great at the end of the |
| your feet and lower legs, strengthening dozens of | | | | day to take off your shoes?! And when you're on |
| muscles and tendons and also the joints around | | | | holiday, walking barefoot or in simple flip-flops for |
| them (this includes ankles, knees and hips) | | | | the majority of the time or walking barefoot on |
| · Improved agility and balance | | | | the cool grass - Doesn't it feel more energizing |
| · Greater flexibility in the leg muscles | | | | and relaxing? |
| · Improved posture due to a lower heel position, | | | | If you're worried about damaging your feet |
| leading to stronger legs and feet and a straighter | | | | (which you should be) with the sharp stones on |
| spine, which may help to reduce or eliminate | | | | our solid concrete floors, and broken glass, along |
| lower back pain | | | | with whatever else is on our streets nowadays, |
| · Reduced risk of fungal infections (as fungi | | | | then invest in the thinnest, lightest, most flexible |
| require dark, warm and damp conditions for | | | | shoes you can find. My recommendation would be |
| growth - such as that provided by shoes and | | | | to spend some money on a pair of Vibram |
| socks). | | | | FiveFingers shoes, these are as natural as you will |
| · Improved circulation - This is due to the | | | | find, allowing the feet to move naturally, but |
| muscles of the feet being much more active than | | | | providing the necessary protection from all of the |
| if you were wearing shoes. This helps to prevent | | | | nasties lying around on the ground. |
| blood pooling in the feet and legs and helps pump | | | | So kick off your shoes and get back to nature, |
| blood back to the heart. This can help to reduce | | | | walk barefoot as much as possible! |
| the stress on the cardiovascular system and help | | | | |