My journey into barefoot / minimalist shoes
Often the journey into barefoot/minimalist footwear comes about by accident. It may be a personal need as a result of foot health problems or other joint problems or simply for the joy of them. Join me on my personal journey into barefoot shoes.
Birth
My feet were definitely cute, as with most babies! 5 cute little toes on each foot – beautifully splayed out and easily cupped in a doting person's hand.
Childhood
My mum always ensured that my feet were measured prior to purchasing any shoes.
I remember newly purchased summer sandals – open toes or closed in. My feet seemed to enjoy a life of ecstasy where my toes could spread out with lots of wiggle room!
Adulthood
Something awful happened!
My foot comfort was no longer being catered for.
My feet were described as big, wide with a low arch – described by a friend as ‘duck feet’.
Shoes were now problematic. Most shoe shops didn’t even stock size 8 – and it vexed me when a shop assistant would say (often in a loud voice) – “We don’t do a size 8 but we've got a 7. “ !! Really!! I often left feeling the embarrassment of big feet!
Every shoe that was deemed acceptable seemed to have a narrow toe box – in no way resembling the shape of my foot. However, my foot was flexible so it could be contorted to fit.
Foot problems
I experienced a whole plethero of foot problems: discomfort; squashed toes; corns; callouses; thickened toe nails; altered nail beds with nails growing sideways.
"It's one of the secrets of her long-lasting mobility, keeping her toes spread and feet grounded, same as all the other beasts of nature" - Bernadine Evaristo
The future for me
My mum had always had problems with her feet and I felt destined to follow down that same road.
At age 34 I had my first foot operation to correct bunions on my left and right big toe: bilateral metatarsal osteotomies.
Following this, I experienced a worsening of my metatarsalgia (pain in the balls of both feet). Especially when I hiked for 2-3 hours. This led me down the road to insoles – ¾ length insoles that were rigid and came with arch supports.
I tried but I couldn’t wear them. They were too rigid when worn in work shoes. One pair caused my leather boots to split – probably because my boots described as wide, were not wide enough to accommodate the custom insole.
I couldn’t even hike in them due to rubbing and discomfort.
Then I discovered DocMartens.
Doc Martens – the shoes with attitude
I loved them!
These became my everyday go to shoes – except for hiking as they weren’t suitable.
The air cushioned soles stopped my metatarsalgia.
However, they didn’t solve my other foot problems.
Along came barefoot shoes
I heard about them on a podcast by Dr Chatterjee, promoting Vivobarefoot.
I did some research and ended up buying my first pair in 2021 – Vivobarefoot Geocourt.
Heaven is a pair of Vivobarefoots
I was back to my childhood days!! My toes were in ecstasy. My first trip was to Aldi’s wearing my GeoCourt trainers with skinny jeans. I felt amazing. This was the turning point for me in footwear. There was no going back.
Improved foot health
My toes began to spread out; my corns and metartarsalgia vanished.
Hiking and Metarsalgia
Since 2000 I always experienced metarsalgia when out hiking - this changed in 2022.
In 2022, I walked for hours along the Pembrokeshire coastal path for 1 month (An Adventure: One step at a time) and experienced no metarsalgia in my Vivobarefoot Forest Tracker boots with their standard insole.
It gets better
The styling of barefoot shoes has come a long way – even since I purchased my first pair.
My recent purchase of Peerkho Empire boots thrills me. They are just like my DocMartens reincarnated into a cute boot but with a wider toe box. This equates to happy toes!
My collection
I own 4 pairs of everyday barefoot shoes and 1 trekking pair:
My Collection left to right: Vivobarefoot Geo Court II; Vivobarefoot Fulham Chelsea; Vivobarefoot Gobi Hi IV; Vivobarefoot Forest Tracker; Peerko Go
These carry me through every occasion in my life at present.
My future plans with barefoot
I will replace my cushioned running shoes with barefoot running shoes.
I will add a calf high barefoot boot to my collection – something I can wear in winter with dresses and skirts – I have my eye on a pair by Peerkho.
A personal wish
I hope to never have to wear a pair of ‘normal’ shoes again.
Maybe, I may have to don a pair for a cocktail party –or maybe I can get a dressy barefoot pair – I will see when and if that occasion arises.
For now, my 13 pairs of DocMartens are boxed up and ready to be sold.
Some of my heels and ‘normal’ shoes still sit in my wardrobe – unworn. I’m not ready to part with them just yet – just in case! Over time I am sure I will have the confidence to let them go.
Final thoughts
Whilst the bony changes that have taken place in my feet due to wearing ‘normal’ shoes are permanent, I hope that I have halted the decline in my foot health that I have seen in so many of my older patients and my mum.
You are either in your bed or in your shoes, so it pays to invest in both." John Wildsmith
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