Going Shoeless: A discussion about barefoot living

I love going barefoot in my yard. When we bought our property there was goat heads (stickers) all over our yard. It took about 3 years to eradicate them by pulling them up by the roots, but they are all gone now. So I am able to go barefoot in the yard and love going in my garden barefoot.

I watched Clint Ober's documentary about Grounding or Earthing years ago and in summer I take off my shoes when in the grass. I made my own grounding mat using copper for indoor use while sitting at my desk but I wonder if it works. This thread encourages me to be brave and take small steps walking outside while being careful not to step on glass shards, prickly things, rocks, dog poop and other nasty things.

I've looked at "grounding" shoes online but they are quite expensive.

How do you correct a one sided problem?

Often a one-sided problem is due to an asymmetrical holding pattern in the pelvis or an old knee or ankle injury on one side that creates an uneven gait. Working with a bodyworker or PT or chiropractor to resolve the old pattern will help rebalance your gait so your feet take the stress evenly. We can do some of this ourselves, but we are so accustomed to our old patterns that they can be hard to see, and working with someone else can provide not only support for the process but also a vision of ourself that doesn't arise from our own personal history. And I'll say again what everyone else is saying: Take it slow, be gentle with your feet and care for them through the process.

Alexandra Clark wrote:For cramps and plantar fasciatis, using magnesium oil massaged right into the soles of the feet and then let it dry (it isn't really an oil, but does feel oily) helps tremendously==it helps the area relax.

Magnesium oil is critical, I think for everyone and not just the feet (but yeah: definitely great for the feet!)

Caroline Dean's "The Magnesium Miracle" covers most of the salient arguments. Google it.

A few points:

Don't use epsom salts (for anything) unless you know the source. Most magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) is taken directly from the wood processing industry and almost certainly polluted.

Magnesium chloride (MgCl) makes the best "oil". Great for baths too. Don't buy expensive liquids, just get a bag online or from your favorite health store (sometimes called "dead sea salts" - check the label) and dissolve in hot fresh water 1:1 or more. Use a bottle of commercial RO if you don't have a good well.

Freshly washed warm feet absorb best, but I regularly douse my whole body once or twice a day. You would not believe how much it helps allergies, digestion, cramps, etc. Magnesium is critical to almost everything we do and almost nobody gets enough.

It can itch, although you quickly get used to it. Rinse off after 20 minutes or so if it's bad, and you will still absorb plenty (hundreds of times more than oral supplements). I find a bit of any reasonable ointment quickly clears the itching if you can stand to leave the oil on to fully absorb.

Consider potassium (K) supplements as well (K pills or powder digest and absorb well, where Mg likely won't). Every cell needs magnesium, potassium, and sodium, and quite a lot of each. You probably get enough sodium, but the rest are dependent on diet and of course our soil is so depleted...

~r

Alexandra Clark wrote:As soon as the temperature goes about 50 I am barefoot unless driving or in a store. IN NY you can't go into a store without them.

Being barefoot also allows the body to ground...rubber soles do not make the connection with the negative ions of the earth--it is really healthy to "earth" or "ground" and can help with pain.

For cramps and plantar fasciatis, using magnesium oil massaged right into the soles of the feet and then let it dry (it isn't really an oil, but does feel oily) helps tremendously==it helps the area relax.

My only issue with bare feet is forgetting to wash my feet before going to bed after gardening-LOL yeah I can't tell you how many times I got my sheets all gross because of this. LMAO!!!

Hey, fellow Long Islander!
I have completely flat feet.  From childhood to about 10 years ago I was barefoot as much as possible.  Now I am shod in Merrells & Birkenstocks, and my orthotics are my best friends.  No low back pain, no more hip bursitis, and as a bonus NO DOG POOP BETWEN THE TOES!  

I Love to be barefoot as much as possible.
As a child I couldn't wait until summer time came so I could ditch the shoes.
It took a lot of learning to not stub my toes and get stung all the time.

When I was a young man, I used to be all ferocious about it- running barefoot in the city in the winter and doing everything barefoot.
Keeping a box of gravel inside to walk in place to keep my callouses strong during wintertime.
Then occasionally my toes would go numb randomly, so I don't do that anymore.

In mild to warm weather  I am barefoot on the farm.  
I am frequently getting thorns, stickers and the like in my feet, but I don't mind much.
But if I'm working in an area with a bunch of spikey stuff I put on some muckboots or something.
I have some croc shoes that are worn thin with holes in the bottom that protect my feet somewhat.... and I get partial grounding through the hole in the sole.
They are easy to kick off in a moments notice to free my feet.

I am shod when I work in the town, but as soon as I get home the shoes come off, as well as about 52% of the town-stress.
Tender feet get tough if you let them.

Ellen Lewis wrote:

How do you correct a one sided problem?

Often a one-sided problem is due to an asymmetrical holding pattern in the pelvis or an old knee or ankle injury on one side that creates an uneven gait. Working with a bodyworker or PT or chiropractor to resolve the old pattern will help rebalance your gait so your feet take the stress evenly. We can do some of this ourselves, but we are so accustomed to our old patterns that they can be hard to see, and working with someone else can provide not only support for the process but also a vision of ourself that doesn't arise from our own personal history. And I'll say again what everyone else is saying: Take it slow, be gentle with your feet and care for them through the process.

Just noticed the post, thanks. Strangely enough I did break my ankle and I have screws in from back about a decade ago. It is the same ankle/foot which always seems to give the problem. Never would have thought about that causing any kind of problems.

I found a very effective way to eliminate the goats head seeds on my 1/4 acre property in CA. I paid my grandkids a penny each for them. They wore foamy flip flops and soon discovered the most profitable places to tramp. Over all, I paid out about $20 the first year and $5 the second year and after that goatsheads were few and far between.

While my first word was "no", my first sentence was "Mommy doesn't like shoes very much." And I'll tell you, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. If I can be barefoot, I am. Most of the time when I can't, I'm wearing Teva sandals. I also have some Chucks for formal occasions, some trail booties for snow, and some felt slippers for being in the house in the winter. I'll fetch the mail barefoot down to 10-20F, that's about a 150 foot walk -- but a lot of our winter is colder than that and I'll put on shoes when I need to.

It's interesting reading this thread about how it's a lifestyle for some folks, Joseph most notably, but it feels like just a moment-by-moment preference to me. Maybe it was growing up in southern California beach towns where barefoottedness was entirely normal.

Deb Rebel wrote:...These days I have hard heel crusts that like to crack and crack and crack until they rip and can need stitches so I am minimally shod and have to religious callous paring to keep the cracks at bay (with a small flush cut nippers no less)...

I used to have that problem, also created by barefoot living in an area with very alkaline soil, but I found that the combination of a diamond dust nail file used regularly to keep the calluses to a minimum (it's the hard dry skin that cracks) and cocoa butter on my heels every night has worked to stave off further cracking.

Katie Dee wrote:

Deb Rebel wrote:...These days I have hard heel crusts that like to crack and crack and crack until they rip and can need stitches so I am minimally shod and have to religious callous paring to keep the cracks at bay (with a small flush cut nippers no less)...

I used to have that problem, also created by barefoot living in an area with very alkaline soil, but I found that the combination of a diamond dust nail file used regularly to keep the calluses to a minimum (it's the hard dry skin that cracks) and cocoa butter on my heels every night has worked to stave off further cracking.

Sherri Lynn posted 5 years ago, something I'll have to try:
"For Deb Rebel, I find that any skin problem is mostly a matter of ph balance, if it's dry, use vinegar water, if it's oily, use baking soda water.  Apple cider vinegar water works great on my cracked feet.   I just soak them for about ten minutes a day until it starts going away (usually just a few days).  This also works on athlete's foot.  I probably use about a half cup of apple cider vinegar to enough water to cover my feet in a small rectangular plastic dish that my feet just fit in.  If I would have paid attention, they probably wouldn't have gotten to the cracking stage, but life is busy. . . "

Don't recall if I mentioned this before, but for cracking heels -- I use 150 grit sandpaper. It will take off cracky callus without harming live skin (unless you get carried away), leaves a smooth surface, and is quick. Just take it down far enough that the edges of any cracks are smooth, and if you're going to be out in the wet, or they still feel dry, vaseline works great.

BTW this also works well on eczema/psoriasis.

Regarding heel cracks:
I used to have problematic heel cracks.
I used a pumice stone and lanolin daily but I had to really keep up with them.
Then my son suggested it might be athlete's foot.
I used tea tree oil with the lanolin for a short while - I no longer recall how long, I think a few days - and my heels have stopped cracking.

Anthony Powell wrote:...
Sherri Lynn posted 5 years ago, something I'll have to try:
"For Deb Rebel, I find that any skin problem is mostly a matter of ph balance, if it's dry, use vinegar water, if it's oily, use baking soda water.  Apple cider vinegar water works great on my cracked feet.   I just soak them for about ten minutes a day until it starts going away (usually just a few days).  This also works on athlete's foot.  I probably use about a half cup of apple cider vinegar to enough water to cover my feet in a small rectangular plastic dish that my feet just fit in.  If I would have paid attention, they probably wouldn't have gotten to the cracking stage, but life is busy. . . "

I was looking through this thread to find some information on DIY barefoot sandals for a friend. I did not find that here ... (to be continued)
But what I read in Anthony's post quoted here I'll keep in mind. I knew about a foot bath with some sea salt in the water. But when I read here: " if it's dry, use vinegar water, if it's oily, use baking soda water" probably the sea salt is like the baking soda and in that case my feet need the vinegar bath!

Continuing on the sandals. Suddenly I remembered it was Marjory Wildcraft who was talking about those. And then it was easy to find. I will share it here for you too:
barefoot
Direct link to the video mentioned:

Stacy Witscher wrote:I'm so envious. I'm struggling with plantar fasciitis and cannot go barefoot at all.

I have never liked shoes, and would also prefer to be barefoot all the time.

I put off trying to where shoes all the time to deal with the plantar fasciitis as long as I could. But now the pain is unbearable.

Oh well, hopefully things will get better quickly, until then I will live vicariously through you.

Hey Stacy, I don't know if anybody answered your question but I've got some info for you.I had PF as well until I decided to go barefoot...I was walking on cement floors all day barefooted. It hurt like craaaaazy....for about a week. I'm not sure why I pushed through it, I was in a weird headspace. I was not expecting it to go away...but it did! Now I don't have it anymore. (I don't go barefoot in public anymore either) Something worth thinking about trying

My grandfather said as a kid running the milk cows in, he would either heat up a flatstone by the wood stove to take with to stand on, or wait for a cow peeing.
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Too many sand burrs in my past to enjoy getting grounded nowadays.
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And for the gal above who's husband wears shoes inside, I don't blame him. My wife and son thinks the vacuum is for hangs clothes on. My 16 year old son actually said, "It's too soon to vacuum already." I think it had been a month. My Mom had vacuumed 2 times a week and her carpets lasted over 27 years.
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Baking soda in the foot bath with Epsom salts helps tenderize those callouses.

I've read a lot of advice here on how to start walking or running barefoot. And also that you need to start gradually and carefully. But few people talk about the existence of barefoot (minimalist) shoes. And they don’t even talk about transitional barefoot shoes.

Transitional shoes are a cross between traditional shoes and barefoot. No supination of the foot, thinner sole, wider toe. All this will have a positive effect on the health of the feet and will help make the transition to barefoot shoes more gentle. And only then you can think about walking and running barefoot. These stages will make your path less thorny

Casey Pfeifer wrote:fox-walking takes A LOT of work and attention. Entire muscle groups and gait patterns need to be relearned, individual muscles need to condition from their formerly lethargic life, and your body needs to learn to interpret all of the new sensory information coming in.

I've been doing the toe-heel step so long that when I'm barefoot or sockfoot it just happens automagically. It's like when barefoot I can't even walk the other way, cuz it feels weird. As soon as I put on boots, I walk differently. Brain habit, don't hurt your heels, vs heels protected.

Another interesting point that I realized when I was trying to work out what is different about how my nonhumans (in my science fiction novels) walk, compared to humans... seems it's more like a horse. Instead of swinging the whole leg like humans do, they lift the knee and let gravity swing the lower leg forward. So I experimented with this and found 1) it's more energy-efficient and naturally produces a 10% longer stride (I measured), plus it easily becomes a running walk, and 2) this motion wants to naturally glide into a toe-heel footstrike. So I've kinda gotten into the habit of "walking like an alien" outdoors. (My guys are civilized yet still active predators, and often go barefoot, so their style of motion matters.)

I've sometimes seen people who do a lot of long-distance hiking walk this way, now I know why.

Try to use your heel less when walking. This will strengthen your heel. Heels are a joint not a landing Point. Land on the pads of your foot they have shock absorbsion your heel does not. I only use my heel for stationary resting.

Are you all still barefoot?

I am new to the ancient idea. We have a neighbor who goes barefoot. We have lots of fire ants so I guess his feet are tough enough that it does not affect them and I imagine he watches his foot placement.

My stance on fire ants is that I'd rather they start biting me while there's only ten of them on my feet. If I'm wearing boots, by the time I start feeling the bites on my leg, or worse, higher up, there might be hundreds that I have to get off. This was especially bad the time I stopped my mower on their nest to mess with some low branches and they were swarming both the vehicle and myself by the time I noticed.

Christopher Weeks wrote:My stance on fire ants is that I'd rather they start biting me while there's only ten of them on my feet. If I'm wearing boots, by the time I start feeling the bites on my leg, or worse, higher up, there might be hundreds that I have to get off. This was especially bad the time I stopped my mower on their nest to mess with some low branches and they were swarming both the vehicle and myself by the time I noticed.

I picked up a heavy piece of wood and carried at waist level with my arms hanging down. Fire ants under the log and all over my midsection. I understand what you are saying here.

How long have you been going barefoot? What is a good way to start out? We don't wear shoes inside. I am not sure that helps at all.

I go barefoot as much as I can.  I try to set up my home areas so bare-footing is easy.  
In winter I just stay out as long as I can comfortably, then come in and get warm.  Each year I can do longer times in the cold.  I think it is good for circulation to learn to run extra energy through my feet and hands to keep them warm.
In summer I run around in nature barefoot when I can tolerate it.  If I get a cut or something I have to wear shoes until I am all healed up but every time I get tougher.

Josh Hoffman wrote:How long have you been going barefoot? What is a good way to start out?

I honestly don't know. I've never not spent as much time as possible barefoot. My folks were southern Californians and my first nine years were there and people just spend a lot of time barefoot when not at school/work/shopping.

I have lived habitually barefoot for eight years now. I dropped the macho surrounding it. I wear (very thin) shoes when there is snow on the ground, or when the pavement burns from summer heat.

I use 40% urea salve and/or pumice stone in the shower as needed to avoid cracked heels.

I love going barefoot but hookworms became an issue from a lot of local cats.

After going to the doctor the first time ,and suffering through their oral ivermectin and antibiotic regimen, some old always barefoot friends told me their fix, which is the ivermectin horse paste put on the skin lumps over the worms, and that worked like  a charm.

As far as fire ant bites, DMSO on them can provide quick relief.  DMSO can do lots more too. Search "A Midwestern Doctor, the forgotten side of medicine DMSO" for all that.

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:I'd like to discuss living barefoot. The ergonomics, economics, strategies, adaptations, health effects, etc...

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For the past few months, I have been learning to live barefoot. I don't like the idea of having intermediaries in my life. So if I stop wearing shoes, that's one less thing that I have to buy from The Corporation. It's a slow and gradual process. This morning, I went to town barefoot, and took care of some shopping and business transactions. Then I worked six hours barefoot planting my fields. Then my feet were done for the day. They just had enough energy left for a barefoot photo.

cyber-greetings my permie barefooted sisters and brothers! 👣

i just had to sole-fully step into this conversation…

any wo/man who has had the pleasure of sharing energies in-density with the i, man, alive known by the appellation “attilio-cesare”, during the past decades of time, can testify that this man is barefooted, more often than not, no matter on where he is and no matter what the weather or terrain may be there;

it was long ago that, i learned about the wholistic health benefits of no longer wearing shoes, particularly those with plastic soles, in order to receive the antiinflamatory and overall healing ❤️‍🩹 energies of our motherly earth-plane of existence;

if i do attach any thing to the soles of the feet 👣, now, it is only specifically designed and marketed “grounding”/“earthing” footwear; there are a few companies in this specialized business model;

i, also, have loved pushing the envelope by telling airline stewardess 👩‍✈️, while boarding commercial aircraft ✈️, “i was forced under threat and duress to remove my shoes by TSA and never told it was okay to put them back on!”  and, when the WAL-MART PERSON told me: “you can’t be in here without shoes!”  i stated: “WOW!  i must be some sort of super-man… because i AM in here without shoes…” as i continue walking [barefooted] down the aisle, arms bowed-out and exaggerated flexing my muscles 💪 [and Creator-endowed Rights]!  lol 😂

when living on the african continent and strolling thru the ancient Moroccan medina souks, the vendors selling their cheap chinese imported western-styled sneakers 👟 would ask me: “why you no wear shoes?”  to which i would reply:  “why do you wear shoes?”

while on the senegalese savannah assisting with genesis designing/building of the bolo eco village https://boloecovillage.blogspot.com/2014/11/tour-on-bololand-sustainable-community.html?m=1 and picking broken-off thorns out of my bloodied soles 🩸, the local “natives”, wearing their “NIKE” knock-offs and texting on their cellphones, would cringe and gasp 😱 in horror because of their perceived fear of non-existent blood🩸born dis-eases.

here’s a pic of my kicks while strolling/surveying along the water 💦 pipe line, which ran from the southern brazilian rainforest waterfall/stream to the rustic old structure i lived in on the coastal mountainside permaculture common-unity:

I barefoot as much as possible in my 20s and 30s, all in urban and city environments. Stores, clubs (only kicked out once), sidewalks, subways, parks, everywhere I could get away with it.  Started running heavily and learned the hard way about how to transition slowly. Ended up running the NYC marathon in Vibram 5-fingers as it's so crowded you can't even see what you're stepping on (manhole covers can be brutally hot). My kids did barefoot too in NYC and I was often judged for it. Was offered shoes by a man once when coming out of the subway late at night, so told him it was  by choice and got a rather incredulous look in response. Joined the dirty sole society in Chicago and ended up being interviewed about my barefooting and getting mentioned in Ripleys Believe it or Not as a result. Sad that it was considered that unusual!
Flew to Bangkok once for a week, stowed my sandals in the cheap lodge I stayed in, and didn't put them back on until I was back in Chicago for several days.  
I've not done it as much since I moved to the woods but live in a gravel clearing at the moment.  Reading this forum is making me want to go back to it again! Currently I live in flat flip flops for 7-8 months of the year.

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:

From the perspective of being barefoot. I pay attention to where I walk. The goat heads grow in a certain microclimate (rocky, not irrigated), and have a certain look about them that is easy to see on approach. I used to pick up a lot of seeds in my shoes, but I don't in my bare feet.  

At a reading for his book Born to Run, Christopher McDougal was asked about whether he ever cut his feet on glass or anything else when he ran barefoot. His answer (I'm paraphrasing) was that he has high tech sensors just above his nose and below his eyebrows that allow him to detect sharp things on the ground.

I have always been an avid hiker but having nothing to do now, and living close to both the mountains and ocean, I started really hiking a lot this past year.

One day while hiking up a mountain that had lost of dew laden grass I figured it was better to hike barefoot for an hour until the dew evaporated off the high grass I was hiking through then hike in damp footwear all day. To my surprise even summiting a mountain was not difficult while barefoot. Since then, I have hiked 80 miles barefoot and summited more than six mountains, so hardly easy barefoot hiking.

I have always had plantar fasciitis REALLY bad and was shocked that barefoot hiking cured that. What was happening was my high arches were collapsing because they were always supported by arch supports. In hiking barefoot, I strengthened my arches naturally… and the first 30 miles I could feel the strain, but after that it just went away. I also strengthened my calf’s immeasurably. That is because with shoes on you strike with your heel first; always the heel first, but barefoot you might with the toes, of more of the middle of your foot, etc, but you use your calf muscles a lot more. Doing so has taken away my knee and heel pain.

Reactions from other hikers can vary from indifferent to outright contempt, but when am I ever going to see them again anyway. So I just enjoy just hiking barefoot.

Time wise, I clock a 15 minute mile while shod on flattish trails and 20 minute miles on steep mountains, but barefoot it is 25 minutes on flattish trails and 30 minutes for steeper trails; so slower, but not that much slower. A shod day maxes out at around 14 miles, but barefoot my best days have been at only 8 miles…

Here is my first mountain summit while barefoot, a mountain so steep they embedded iron bars on the cliff face for hikers.

In my work as a therapist I studied carefully what the foot does when walking. The design is that the toes grip the ground so that the leg and hip muscles can pull the center of gravity forward over the foot. The heel presses inward and  the big toe outward to lock knee and keep the hip strate.  When the ankle is bent far enough to stretch the calf it signals the  knee to bend and the  thigh to lift to swing the leg forward as the other foot grips the ground.  Efficient walking is controlled falling with the  feet pulling and the hips keeping you level so that gravity supplies most of the energy.

With foot wear the tendency is to depend on the tred of the shoes and push yourself forward.  This is inefficient because muscles pull  they don't push except pulling the bone against something. If you wear out the toes of the insoles first then you are probably gripping and pulling on the tred.

That is interesting that you can tell that from the treads of shoes wearing out just how people walk.

For me, I wear out shoes prematurely via the heel collar, that inside padded part where the back of your heel rubs against the inner portion of the sneaker. Shoes only last 300-400 miles on average and with me hiking 7-9 miles per day, that is 50 miles a week, or shoes wearing out every 6-7 weeks. Being frugal, I try replacing this heel collar to get more life out of my shoes. They have preglued patches you can put in your shoes, but I found the glue never holds because as you slip in your foot, it drags down that heel collar that glue just cannot hold back against, so I sew mine instead.

If I am to be honest, it does not always work. Sometimes it just does not feel right and pushes my foot to far forward. Out of five fixed heel collars, two just won’t ever feel right, but three will be fixed and I can get another few months out of them. But by the time the second heel collar is worn out the treads are worn out too and I have to replace the shoes. But 600-800 miles is a lot on a pair of shoes.

One thing barefoot hiking has really made a difference for me with, is giving me much better balance. I can improve on that still, but my balance is about twice as good as it used to be and just from hiking barefoot. My goal is to hike barefoot at least twice a week, and for at least two miles each time, so four miles a week.

Why?

I read somewhere that hiking twice a week just keeps your acclimated to walking on tough surfaces like gravel, but two miles was a measurement I found was needed. In short, when I first start hiking barefoot my feet get pretty cold. My body temp is 98 degrees and the ground is 60 degrees or less so my feet get chilly. I mean everything in my being WANTING to put back on my shoes at the 20 minute mark. But then something curious happens, there is this shift 20 minutes in and suddenly my feet don’t notice the temperature difference anymore. Since I hike 22 minute miles, I found I need to hike at least two miles or it’s a miserable hike.

It is called Peripheral vasoconstriction, where your body withholds heat from extremities to protect your core temp. But it shocked me how cold it can be out and still hike barefoot in complete comfort. The lowest temp I have barefoot hiked in was 28 degrees, but frost was on the ground and after 20 minutes the cold just did not bother me. Our bodies are quite remarkable.

Barefoot hiking is interesting for me because NOT every step I take is comfortable, yet it is the totality of the hike that makes it invigorating. It is just this personal challenge.

Like this woman hiker and I were discussing barefoot hiking one day and she was just like… “I just have one question…WHY?” But this same woman had hiking boots, canvas pants, and trekking poles… really the only thing missing was the escalator taking her to the top. A dozen people would be summiting that mountain that day, but how many would be doing it barefoot? I was probably the only one. A year ago, I would not even think it would be possible as I am just not a barefoot kind of guy, and yet there I was, at the top and not needing shoes to get there.

But then there is just being outside in nature barefoot. It just seems right. I mean what adult has not been hiking on a beautiful warm day and not wanted to take their shoes and socks off and go running through the forest like they did when they were kids?