[www.npr.org]

Oh my.
If I walked without shoes,my feet would blister and bleed all over the place.

check it out, interesting stuff regarding the mighty foot

oh haa! it's the same link...nevermind!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/22/2008 06:50PM by rawangel.

May be we should remove the shoes when we get home and may be at work too?

I can't stand shoes! I kick them off first thing in the door, and as soon as it's above freezing, I get out the sandals.

I was thinking about how nice it would feel to prance through some unadulterated grass today... =)

I have actually walked through a downtown shoeless (my flip flops were cutting into me!). Even after wearing shoes outside of the house all winter, my feet were still smart enough to sense any dangerous objects, and tough enough that glass most likely wouldn't cut them. Feet are great! Just practice walking around barefoot in safe places and they will gain both sensitivity and toughness.

rost0037 Wrote:
<snip>
> Just practice walking around barefoot in safe
> places and they will gain both sensitivity and
> toughness.

For how to use your feet properly when you walk, try walking in that safe place backwards.

Observe which part of your foot hits the ground, how it rolls, and how it pushes off.
When you walk forwards, what are you doing differently?

Are you using your feet to drag you through life, or are you using the mechanics to propel you into movement?

I have a pair of moccasins that I like to wear at home. They are very comfortable and don't have any sole on them. They are very close to barefootin feel.

i used to walk around in toronto without my shoes all the time, a few of my friends did too. we were like the urban bare foot crew. i never cut or injured my feet. i kick off the foot gear all the time, i love bare feet. i do wear slippers at home though, the floor here is very cold. and i do find that my feet ache if i have been walking on concrete bare foot. that is not a natural substance, i don't think there is a way to walk right on that.

God,
first thing I put on in the morning is SHOES.
I haTE THE FEELING OF MY FEET FEELING EVERY LAST DUST AND PEBBLE ON THE FLOOR.

I love going barefoot. The only thing you gotta be careful about is your feet chakras (located where your arch is or the center of your foot) pick up all kinds of energy. If you're walking through a particularly toxic area or around alot of negative people, you're going to pick up the toxic energy from your feet. I personally just enjoy doing it in nature, I'd never walk barefoot in a metropolitan area in this day and age.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/23/2008 03:22AM by rawangel.

If there is negative energies on the ground, does it matter whether we have shoes or not, the energies will go thru the shoes.

anything that separates our foot from the ground will insulate us from both positive and negative energies. Pure rubber being one of the most insulating of materials to shield or prohibit transfer of energy. I would be careful and thoughtful walking barefoot anywhere on concrete for any length of time. i walked 50 miles barefoot on natural terrain and although i developed some blisters that were easily treated with hot water and tumeric, my feet and health were for the better for it. The people i walked with never wore shoes in their lives and their feet were what i think human feet should look like... each toe spaced nicely and flat on the ground ; wide spaces between toes. Pads that thorns could not puncture....

Our feet are our electrical connection to the earth and toxins naturally gravitate out of them. It is part of the puzzle of living symbiotically with the earth.

a recent barefoot article:

[nymag.com]

Anyone here remember those tire sandals from the 70's? The ones with tire tread rubber soles?

My Dad is first generation to wear shoes in our family due to extreme poverty of growing up in Nicaragua. He was in his teens before he got his first pair of shoes and was only allowed to wear them on special occassions. He still only wears shoes if he's leaving the house. I'm barely second generation to own shoes and I wear them all the time. I have more foot problems than him. I used to have painful plantar fasciitis before raw.

DIY tire sandals:
[www.hollowtop.com]

It makes perfect sense to go bare foot doesn't it. my partner goes bare foot most of the summer and can run over gravel and other 'ouchy' surfaces without noticing. this year as it warms up I am going to go barefoot too.

Thanks for this topic - it's really touched a chord for me

If you've ever stepped on a rusty nail you'll know the answer to that one. Yes, yes, in an ideal world...

Interesting about the origin of high heels though, I sent that to my girlfriend.

I wouldn't normally go through a downtown barefoot--but my shoes were really cutting into me and the pain was awful. It's nice to know I *can* if I need to!

negative energy... oh my. i'd think the stuff flying through the air would be more toxic than what's coming up at you from mother earth. personally i can feel her healing vibe straight through the concrete and beleive that it is stronger than any negative energy from us ants roaming her surface. not only that, what you are suseptible to has a lot to do with what's already happening inside you. no matter where, there is a balance. if all you can feel is the bad it's time to leggo the neg-o vibe my friends 'cause you are holding on to it.

madinah Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If there is negative energies on the ground, does
> it matter whether we have shoes or not, the
> energies will go thru the shoes.


not if you've reinforced them with your own protection energy ;-)

to your point i guess you could do the same when barefoot, but i still wouldn't do it in NYC for example...yuck!

walking bare soled on sand
careening wide and making a swathe low
this is nice i say this is nice
all the meridians are alive now
active and buzzing

hey jairama

nice post
newcomer?

cool

I love bare feet! Whenever I dance I must have bare feet. There's just no other way to groove!

We have a neighbor who complains that we don't keep shoes on our daughter. Well, she doesn't complain much anymore, but when our daughter was very young the woman wouldn't leave us alone about it.

My daughter goes outside in the snow with bare feet and gets upset when I tell her to put socks and shoes on. :-P

Bare feet are sexy in a way, too, I think.

Lots of love to all of you,

Wendi
XOXOXO

GypsyArdor Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bare feet are sexy in a way, too, I think.

You haven't seen my mutant little feet, hahah! :-)

i despise shoes.
they are off the instant i get off work.
i only own 2 pairs of shoes-
tennis shoes for work
flip flops for play...i wear them all year. living in florida allows thast opportunity.
i barefoot aorund the house, doing yardwork, beach ,etc.
nice threaD.
Brooke

Bare feet + beach = I am so happy

phantom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bare feet + beach = I am so happy

Bingo!

My suggestion for people to practice walking barefoot backwards was to show how the muscles of the feet are meant to work when walking.

Most people walk as if they're wearing shoes even if they aren't wearing shoes. By wearing shoes they've trained the muscles in their feet not to work properly.

Walking backwards will make the difference more obvious.
Walking barefoot on a sandy beach will make the difference more obvious as well.

If your house is too filthy to walk barefoot in it, its time to adjust the Feng Shui. Clean the place up.

Walking on hard pavement is an issue if you're walking improperly (backwards barefoot walking and walking barefoot on a sandy beach would point that out.)

Walking (or sitting) on cold surfaces is said in Trad. Chinese Med. to send one's Chi/Ki downward which could eventually contribute to having one's internal organs prolapse.

It is possible to walk properly in shoes IF the shoes fit and are designed properly. I think most people wear shoes that are too narrow for their feet.

Anybody used these [www.vibramfivefingers.com]

Woah those vibram look cool! I might have to try a pair of these! Thanks for posting the link.
Uma

A few things changed my view of shoes:

I knew a healer who felt that shoe wearing was a big factor in modern-day back problems. This resonated with me.

Also, I did a trek in the Himalayas. I'd done backpacking and always had high-tech, expensive hiking boots, for foot and ankle support, traction, weather protection, etc. The Westerners doing these treks also had state-of-the-art hiking boots (as well as fancy ergonomic backpacks!). The sherpas--the local men who were hired to carry HUGE loads (often for fancy-booted Westerners) on their backs which hung from a strap across their forehead--literally ran up and down these mountains in FLIP FLOPS. It made me rethink things.

I then read Raw Family where the Boutenko family hikes the entire Pacific Crest Trail, in Tevas!

Love,
Uma

the proper way to walk barefoot i'm told is to not invest all your weight until the front pad of your foot deems the ground suitable. in other words - front pad goes down first, lightly, then, full investment is made, repeat with other foot. There is a way to walk a trail w/o looking down, if you stay in the moment, and always look straight ahead, seeing your reality slowly pass by like a tunnel, you will step in the right place. try it and see!

this is the way to tread lightly and track successfully w/ minimal vibration.

yes i'm new to the forum and thanks for the thanks