Disclaimer: This article is by no means a substitute for professional medical advice. The purpose is to review existing knowledge on the subject and allow you to dive deeper on your own. If you experience foot pain it is important to have someone qualified examine you.

Short Version

Do not neglect the kickers! There are so many muscles within our hooves for their size, and by wearing conventional shoes with narrow toe boxes, high soles, and inflexible material we are putting ourselves at risk for a variety of problems. But the good news is, there are a number of solutions we can use to take control of our dogs! We can walk around barefoot, do exercises, or buy minimalist sneakers. But remember that a slow and steady progression is key to avoiding injury.

Check out the bottom of the article for some resources to get started!

Long Version

Have you ever said, “Today, I am going to work out my feet”?

The answer for most people is probably, no. And if this is the case, no worries! I was in the same boat until recently. No one ever teaches us why it would be important. But there is a growing movement of people that have ditched conventional shoes and are barefoot as much as possible. So let’s dig a bit into why that is…

In general, there are two distinguishable movements, there is the Earthing movement, which encourages being barefoot because of the electrical connection between our bodies and Earth (check out this documentary if you are interested). But this article focuses on the movement that encourages being barefoot to gain strength, stability, and prevent injury.

Before we dig into what is wrong with most of the shoes we wear today, it is important to understand just a bit about the relevant anatomy of our feet.

You may have heard about the “arch of a foot” before; in reality, there are actually three arches. There is the medial arch (on the big toe side of your foot), the lateral arch (on the little toe side of your foot), and the transverse arch (which goes across the top of the foot from the big toe side to the little toe side) (Babu & Bordoni 2021). Typically, when people refer to “The Arch” of the foot they are referring to the first one mentioned, the medial arch. The Arch has been referred to, by a group of researchers as the core of the foot, because of some anatomical similarities it shares with the abdominal region (the core) of the body (McKeon et al. 2015). In both the core of the body and the core of the foot, there are local stabilizers (muscles that function within the core) that create internal strength and stability, and there are global movers (muscles that connect to the region) that support the movement of joints in that area (McKeon et al. 2015). When discussing the foot, the local stabilizers are referred to as intrinsic foot muscles (IFMs) (there are 19 IFMs) and the global movers are referred to as extrinsic foot muscles (EFMs) (there are 10 EFMs) (Card & Bordoni 2021). It is predominantly the IFMs that receive a lot of the attention in the foot health movement, as they are responsible for the support of the arch (Gooding et al. 2016).

When we strengthen our IFMs and enhance the neuromuscular connections within our feet there are a whole host of benefits, such as better stability, arch support, posture and significant injury prevention (which I discuss further down in the article) (Wei et al 2022; Soysa et al. 2012; Gooding et al. 2016; Mann & Hagy 1979). Having strong feet plays a part in our general wellbeing. Many of the movements we do on a day to day basis, do not isolate one part of the body, they require its function as a whole. When we run, jump, swim, throw, climb, sit, or even bend down to pick up our phone from the floor we are engaging so much of our body (Wang 2014). So when one part is not properly functioning, or is injured, it can negatively impact the parts that are nearby (Wang 2014). Poor foot strength can negatively impact the ankles and knees, and those in turn can impact the hips, back etc.

The way we treat our feet today, by wearing conventional sneakers, high heels, and not working out the IFMs can create a number of problems for us, both within our feet and throughout the rest of our body. The cushioning and springs in conventional sneakers minimizes the amount of work our IFMs have to do, leading to weaker muscles (Miller et al. 2014). This by itself is problematic because it leads to less arch stabilization, which can cause foot problems such as plantar fasciitis, bunions, hammer toe, claw toe and even problems further up the leg such as shin splints (Miller et al. 2014; Soysa et al. 2012; Garth & Miller 1989). Furthermore, when our IFMs are weak, it can lead to a loss of balance and worsened posture (McKeon et al. 2015; Kelly et al. 2012). The soles in conventional shoes only exacerbate those problems. Even something as thin as a sock can disconnect our feet from sensory input in the ground, so imagine what a shoe does with an inch thick sole (Shinohara & Gribble 2009).

Another issue with conventional shoes is the narrow toe box. It prevents our toes from spreading out, and can even decrease blood flow in the foot. For people with pre-existing foot conditions, this would be particularly bad because reduced blood flow slows down healing processes (Jacobs et al. 2019). In a review of 18 articles on foot injury, between 63-72% of the participants were wearing shoes that did not properly fit their feet (Buldt & Menz 2018).

The unhealthy design of conventional sneakers is not isolated to adults. Shoes have been shown to change the movement of feet, restrict arch support and even impact the development of feet in children (Wolf et al. 2008; Hollander et al. 2017). There is even a study that shows a correlation between footwear and flatfeet in children, likely due to a lack of IFM activation with conventional footwear (Rao & Joseph 1992).

The weakening of the IFMs and the existence of narrow toe boxes in conventional shoes are big root causes of foot problems, but another big piece is how we move. When we wear conventional shoes, we are more likely to heel strike (landing on our heel first). Heel striking as opposed to toe striking (landing on the front part of our feet first) or midfoot striking (landing on the whole foot at about the same time), increases the impact on our feet when we walk or run. The increased impact can be a further cause of injury to the feet (Webber & Raichlen 2016; Murphy, Curry, Matzkin 2013). That being said, there are trade-offs between heel striking and non-heel strike motions, but in academic literature the distinction is primarily highlighted in discussions of barefoot running.

When we walk barefoot within our capacity to do so, we strengthen our IFMs, which enhances our balance and posture and prevents a whole host of injuries (McKeon et al. 2015; Kelly et al. 2012). But being barefoot all the time is not realistic for many people, whether that is because of work, school, sports, etc. There are also potential dangers to walking around barefoot. The first is rushing into it. Your skin progressively adapts and becomes more tough with exposure to the ground, so if you jump right into full barefoot activity before you have given your skin the chance to adapt you are increasing your risk of injury (Hsu 2012). This is also true of your muscles, bones, joints, ligaments, and tendons which all also need to adapt to the new movement and impact that come with being barefoot, so comfortably progressing with time is key. Another problem is foot infections. If you are barefoot, you expose your feet to any sharp objects on the ground that could break through your skin and cause an infection. Underneath the toenail is a particularly common place to see infections, so if your toenails experience trauma which is more likely to happen barefoot, that can also increase risk (Oppel & Korting 2003; Purim et al. 2005). That being said, shoes are also not ideal in terms of potential for infection. The dark, warm, sweaty environment in a shoe is an optimal place for fungus to grow. Even poor foot positioning which happens more frequently in conventional shoes can be responsible for fungal toenail infections (Oppel & Korting 2003). Clearly, there is always a risk of something bad happening, so, be safe and do what you find will comfortably promote your health in the long run.

So, if safely being barefoot all the time is not an option. What are the alternatives?

One alternative is to phase out of conventional sneakers and switch to a minimalist brand. Minimalist shoes have significantly smaller soles, wide toe boxes, and flexible material, with the goal of promoting as close to biomechanically barefoot function as possible while still protecting your feet from potential damage from sharp objects or extreme temperature. Minimalist shoes, unlike their conventional counterparts, have been shown to activate our IFMs, increase stability, and to even promote an automatic change from heel striking to midfoot or toe striking (Johnson et al. 2016; Miller et al. 2014). At the end of the article there are links to minimalist shoe brands…

Even though they can be less expensive than conventional shoes, they still cost money to purchase, and for some, that can be a barrier. But no worries, there are still other ways to improve your foot health! The easiest way is to build a quick foot exercise routine into your day (see some suggested routines below), this is a good idea even if you are making the switch to minimalist sneakers. Because foot exercises work the IFMs, they accomplish many of the same things as actually being barefoot. The main difference being that you are not building the neural connection within your body for what it is actually like to be walking barefoot.

Another possibility is to find somewhere safe, could be a grassy field or even inside your house and consciously walk around barefoot. If you choose to do this, focus on feeling the muscles working within your feet, maybe even experiment with toe or midfoot striking to see if one is comfortable for you, and with each step you take spread your toes out as wide as they can go. You can gradually build up the amount of time you are barefoot.

One area where it may be difficult to make the transition to minimalist sneakers or being barefoot is in high impact sports like basketball, soccer, tennis, American football, etc. Those sports require a lot of running, jumping, and changing of directions, so if you have not tapped into the power of your feet you may increase your risk of injury. Certain sports require particular footwear for safety reasons, so the best you can do is choose footwear that gives you as much space as is safe and to continue to work on foot strengthening and barefoot walking when you are not playing that particular sport.

It was mentioned earlier that it is important to build up to being barefoot, and it is similar with minimalist shoes. If you jump right into full activity with your new shoes and go 100% your body will not have enough time to adapt and you may risk injury (Murphy, Curry, Matzkin 2013). I personally used to wear my minimalist shoes once every few days and progressively built up to wearing them every day. What works for me may not work for you, but it is important to be aware of what your body can handle and not push yourself past that point to avoid injury.

Switching to being barefoot is not risk free, but neither is accepting the status quo and remaining with conventional footwear. It is important for you to make the decisions in your life that promote YOUR best health, because what may work best for someone else may not work best for you. If you want to optimize the health of your feet then do the IFM exercises, gradually building up your capacity. Experiment with the resources I have attached below and see what works best for you in your life. Maybe after today, if someone asks you if you have trained your feet you will be able to say “Absolutely, and here is how you can too…”

Here are some recommendations to help you unlock the power hidden within your feet!

IFM EXERCISES

Intrinsic Foot Muscle Routine (Gooding et al. 2016)

1. Big Toe Lifts

• Tense the muscles within your feet, ankles, and calves

• Keep toes 2-5 planted on the ground

• Do your best to lift only your big toe off of the ground

• Repeat…

2. Other Toe Lifts

• Tense the muscles within your feet, ankles, and calves

• Keep your big toe planted on the ground

• Do your best to lift toes 2-5 off of the ground

• Repeat.

3. Toe Spreading

• Lift ONLY your toes off the ground

• Spread your toes out as wide as you can

• Place them back on the ground

• Repeat.

4. Shortfoot exercise

• Try to keep your toes relaxed

• Without moving your foot try to flex the muscles in the middle of your foot

• Imagine a string pulling the arch of your foot up towards the ceiling

• Relax, putting your foot back into a resting position

• Repeat…

Foot exercise routine with Beard

A guided 2-minute routine to help strengthen your IFMs and neuro-muscular connection

MINIMALIST SHOE INFO

Anya’s Reviews

Anya has been through her own barefoot journey and uses this website to recommend shoes for you depending on what you are searching for (i.e. style, season, vegan, running, sandals etc.)

She also has a discount section!

Vivobarefoot

Vivobarefoot is one of the more popular minimalist shoe brands. They even have a repair service if something is wrong so you do not have to buy new sneakers.

Xero shoes

My first pair of minimalist shoes were from Xero and I found them to be really comfortable, and a good starter shoe. But they did not last long, so I would not recommend for people who are very active.

Vibram

Vibram is famous for their toe shoes. There was even a study done on minimalist running that used Vibram’s shoes for the treatment group.

Instagram Accounts

HealthyFeetAlliance

They make informative posts about feet and share content from other experts.

MyFootFunction

They explain a lot of concepts surrounding foot health and post a ton of exercises and tips for what you can do for your feet.

The Barefoot Sprinter

Graham Tuttle has 288k followers, discusses a lot about foot and general bodily health, and even has a foot strengthening program which is available in his bio.

Vivobarefoot

On their Instagram, Vivobarefoot shows off their shoes and initiatives.

AndyBryan-Podiatrist

A podiatrist who explains barefooting concepts and goes over some ways to strengthen those IFMs.

Anya’s Reviews

Similar to her website, here Anya gives recommendations for shoes and even goes over some basic barefooting concepts.