What are barefoot shoes and sandals? Are they useful? Do you really have to wear barefoot?

Yes, are we ready for old concepts for the world and new concepts for Turkey?

Minimalist Barefoot: Both barefoot and minimalist. What I mean by minimalism is that the shoes or sandals you wear on your feet are both thin, flexible and unsupported.

The most basic purpose of barefoot shoes is to give the person wearing the shoes or sandals the closest experience to walking or running barefoot. Therefore, it should not suppress or support the foot, and the footwear should not disrupt the natural movement of the foot.

We want a barefoot shoe or sandal to have the following 4 characteristics.

Wide toe box (toe shape) that follows the natural shape of the toes
zero heel
No arch support
Flexible and thin sole

Let us now clarify these concepts one by one.

1- Wide toe box

All of our feet are different from each other in shape. But three down, five up have the same appearance. A wide toe and tapering to the heel.

And in order to maintain this natural foot shape, we need to wear shoes or sandals that simulate the foot shape and have a wide toe box.

However, the shoe industry, which has evolved over the years, has taken an approach that ignores this, and has produced pointy-toed shoes as if assuming that the middle toe of a person is the longest toe. But for the vast majority (almost everyone) the longest toe is the thumb or second toe.

Due to the unnaturally pointed toe of normal shoes, the toes must be pinched together when wearing shoes. However, this does not allow your feet to carry the weight of your body, which is one of their main functions. As a result, you may experience back pain, bunions on your feet, different foot problems such as ingrown toenails.

2-Zero Drop

Zero drop means that there is no difference in height between your toe and ball.

Our body has a natural stance when standing. From the heel to the head, the body should be upright. The foundation of correct body posture is the right shoes.

Even a slight heel lift in the shoes we use on a daily basis affects body posture, distorts the posture angle, shifts your hips forward and stretches your back excessively. Back pain is also the result of this posture.

Flat shoes and sandals are guaranteed to help us maintain the correct posture and reduce the pressure on the joints.

3-No Foot Arch support

The arch of the foot is an incredible structure. It’s an engineering marvel. A belt can carry a lot of weight without special support. Just like on bridges. So why are we so eager to support her while she wears shoes?

It’s that simple. The arch of the foot does not need support. If we wear shoes with arch support, our feet get lazy. The muscles do not perform and become weak. And when we remove the artificial arch support that shoes provide, we are left with no muscles to hold the arch naturally. Weak foot muscles also lead to sports injuries and longer recovery times.

4-Flexible and thin sole

Thin soles offer many benefits. Thin soles help your feet work the muscles, and strong feet are the foundation of good health.

Thin soles also remind us that we don’t need to stamp our feet. Thick-soled, padded shoes teach us to land hard on our feet, especially when walking fast. This means that we are completely on our heels and the shock of it spreads to our knees, hips, spine and even neck.

When walking barefoot, we land on the toes or midfoot first, the heel comes last. It would be painful to walk barefoot any other way. Walking in barefoot shoes with thin soles teaches us to walk in the same way as shoes, thus protecting our body from unnecessary shocks.

Finally, walking in thin-soled shoes opens the door to an entirely new sensory experience. It may sound funny, but walking in thin-soled shoes is as enjoyable as tasting new flavors. Our soles are covered with thousands of nerves that transmit surface-related information to the brain. Walking on the stones massages your feet, while walking on the sand caresses your feet.

The flexibility of the sole is just as important. The flexible sole that moves with your foot allows your foot to move naturally. Hard-soled shoes make walking difficult as the sole does not cooperate with the foot. A good example is “minimalist sandals with flip-flops”. Of course, the best option here is Soulmate. If the sole of such sandals is hard, the toe ring tends to break easily as the sole does not move with the foot.