I allow my feet to do what they are designed to do.
After several decades following social pressure, I can finally be who I am: feeling the ground – no shoes!
For a couple of years, I took my shoes off at the first day of the summer break and put them back on when the fall semester started. In 2019, I asked myself why and since then, I enjoy feeling every step of my life again.
Free your feet and mind
(Based on ideas of the Society for Barefoot Living group)
- I go barefoot deliberately.
- I do not take my shoes off, therefore I do not put shoes on in the first place.
- I go barefoot to symbolize party and solidarity with all the other creatures of Earth, none of whom wear shoes.
- I go barefoot as an expression of sensitivity and compassion.
- I go barefoot as a practice of awareness and mindfulness.
- Every barefoot step I take is an observance of the planet we all live on.
- I have learned that every step is different.
- I have learned that dirt and grass are better than concrete.
- I have learned that moss in the woods is better than carpet.
- I have learned that shade feels different than a sunny spot.
- I have learned that snow can feel warm.
- Everyone is different.
- I have learned to accept people as they are and not ask them to conform to my way of thinking, doing, believing, or being.
- Pseudoscience of Earthing
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- Being barefoot is not related to the pseudoscientific belief of Earthing (Grounding)!
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The M&M Project at the College of Wooster: Microagressions
Blog about bare feet: From “No Dogs, no Negroes, no Mexicans” to “No Shoes, no Shirt, no Service“
Society for Barefoot Living:
- SBL Website
- Ohio Department of Health (PDF link) and Ohio Department of Agriculture (PDF link) about state laws requiring footwear in restaurants: NONE!
Looser Ana’s YouTube channel about her barefoot experiences:
- “How to Gain Confidence Being Barefoot in Public | 3 Tips” (2022 December 23)
- “1 Year of Being Barefoot / How my Life Changed” (2022 November 3)
- “Own Who You Are FFS! *barefoot diaries*” (2022 June 22)
- “Nobody Walks in My Shoes” (2021 November 25)
Being Barefoot:
- A New York Times article “He took his shoes off nearly 20 years ago” (2023 March 1)
- Interview with Harvard University’s human evolutionary biologist Daniel Lieberman (22 Nov 2022): Biologist Offers Insight on the Human Foot.
- I’ve studied thousands of the feet of barefoot people. And I can tell you, in general, they’re much nicer than the feet of shod people. I mean, sometimes they’re a little dirty, but they don’t smell. Athlete’s foot is a modern problem. I don’t think anybody gets athlete’s foot in the barefoot world.
But more importantly, people who are barefoot tend to have really healthy feet in terms of strength. About a third of Americans have flat feet. In the barefoot populations that we study, almost nobody has flat feet. We think it is possible either that children don’t develop an arch properly if they’re wearing shoes too early in life, or as grown-ups get older and bigger and heavier, [the arches] just collapse.
- I’ve studied thousands of the feet of barefoot people. And I can tell you, in general, they’re much nicer than the feet of shod people. I mean, sometimes they’re a little dirty, but they don’t smell. Athlete’s foot is a modern problem. I don’t think anybody gets athlete’s foot in the barefoot world.
- Canadian Story (25 May 2022): Your feet will become your eyes.
- Youtube video by Rob Greenfield Why I Almost Never Wear Shoes – The Many Benefits of Walking Barefoot (2020 April 30)
- BARBARIAN INVASION – Will society collapse if people go barefoot in public? Probably. (2016 October 12)
- Quote: “Imagine walking to school or work on a sunny day and feeling the warmth flood up through your body like a sense of well-being. Once you get inside somewhere, there are a hundred different textures on the floors. The surfaces can change dramatically or feel lush, a sensation that for the foot is like a delicious meal.”
- Story about the barefoot student club at the College of William and Mary’s.
- A Youtube video about the experience at an Indian airport (2021 November 5).
- Barefooting the Great North Walk. A documentary of a 250 km trail north of Sydney, Australia.
- Barfuss – Leben ohne Schuhe (Deutsche Webseite mit Blog und vielen nützlichen Informationen)
Something to start reading:
- 5 Reasons to Let Your Children Go Barefoot. An article on the Red&Honey website from 2021 January 21 by Kathleen Quiring.
- How We’re Wrecking Our Feet. An article in the New York magazine from 2008 April 18 by Adam Sternbergh.
The Pseudoscience of Earthing:
- Staying grounded: are shoes the most dangerous human invention?. An article in Physics World from 2022 September 2 by Chris Holt.
- Earthing (Grounding) is the modern-day snake oil. A blog entry on the ‘Born to live barefoot’ webpage from 2019 February 6 by Kriss Sands.
Barefoot running:
- Barefoot Runners Society
- Ken Bob’s Original BarefootRunning.com
- Bare feet in sports (e.g., running, gym, rock climbing, and many more) on the Society fo Barefoot Living webpage.
- Youtube video “Why Running Shoes Have Increased Our Risk for Injury“. A scientific approach explaining why we need to use ALL of our foot muscles.
Web pages about barefoot living:
- Born to Live Barefoot, a blog about barefoot living by Kriss Sands.
- A good post about Earthing (Grounding), the modern-day snake oil. (2019 Feb 6)
- From “No Dogs, no Negroes, no Mexicans” to “No Shoes, no Shirt, no Service” (2019 Aug 10)
- Run Bare: Feel the earth barefoot and experience the freedom.
- The Barefoot Alliance: An alliance of humans who stay barefoot – even while out in public places.
- Article “Take off your shoes and walk” on unshod.org.
A couple of (more scientific) reading:
- In Daniel Lieberman’s Skeletal Biology Lab at Harvard University, they have been investigating the biomechanics of endurance running, comparing habitually barefoot runners with runners who normally run in modern running shoes with built-up heels, stiff soles and arch support.
- This is a direct link to their Barefoot running webpage with several other info pages.
- Article on Science Alert about “Is It Really Better to Run Barefoot? Another Major Study Just Weighed In” from 2020 April 27 by Peter Francis, Lecturer in Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Science, Leeds Beckett University.
- “Born to Walk Barefoot“, a Phys Ed in The New York Times from 2019 July 17 by Gretchen Reynolds.
- Article in the Nature about “Foot callus thickness does not trade off protection for tactile sensitivity during walking” from 2019 June 26.
- Article in the Nature about “Foot strike patterns and collision forces in habitually barefoot versus shod runners” from 2010 January 27 by Daniel Lieberman at Harvard University.
Living barefoot is the ultimate change but getting there takes time and good intermediate options are minimalistic shoes. Or, you can just stick with those to avoid the opposition of society.
Some minimalistic shoes:
- Vibram Fivefinger Shoes: My shoe brand for a couple of years. I had a variety of types: nice black ones fitting to a formal outfit (e.g., suit), casual walking or hiking, indoor gym, or outdoor running.
- Xero Shoes: from Huarache-style sandals to hiking shoes.
- Ghost Barefoots: Another interesting approach for protecting your feet, using a chainmail.