The first 3 months in barefoot shoes were painful as hell. After that, it’s been so nice, I stand all day with no pain. Lifelong “flat feet” disappeared almost instantly, arches are very strong now
@@LuZu_ no leg injuries but I train frequently. Focusing on feet with Bosu ball balance work & sled helped develop my muscles quickly too. Arches showed up quickly but bunions are taking longer to correct for me
If someone is incapable of a healthy barefoot gait, then they have a deficiency that ought to be corrected just like any other deficiency discussed on this channel. Agreed completely that shoes can be an essential rehab component. Barefoot/minimal shoes ARE for everyone, in the sense that healthy biomechanics are for everyone. But I agree with Conor that it may take some rehab for some people to end their shoe dependence. What Conor leaves out here is that many of these deficiencies are CAUSED by a lifestyle of rarely walking barefoot. Barring physical deformity, which is rarer than the frequency of shoe dependence would suggest, anyone can have a healthy barefoot gait if they correct for the deficiencies Conor discusses.
How do I know if i can walk normally barefoot? And if I can't walk normally barefoot I'm confused about what i need to do to actually make that possible?
Exactly. Shoes alone are not going to fix whatever you got going on, you have to actively change your movement if necessary. For me, I overpronate, so there were a number of things to change for me to walk in barefoot shoes without ankle pain and so on. When I stand, my feet naturally point outwards, so I have to point them straight, this allows me to shift my weight to the outside of my feet, which straightens my ankles, lifts my arches, and then I can also put my hips where they should be instead of tilting one way or the other. This also applied to how I walk and run. Overpronation is a habit, and habits can be changed. I wore stability shoes for a decade, and while they made moving much less painful, they didn't teach me how to move when I wasn't wearing them. I've only worn barefoot shoes since August, and I worked 13 hours on Black Friday at a sales job in barefoot shoes, and all I ended up with was sore feet. No ankle pain, knee pain, back pain, nothing, just natural soreness from standing all day. Fix the problems, don't just sell people products. It can be done.
One of the best things I've done was switching to barefoot shoes about 2 years ago, especially for hiking, where I've noticed elimination of knee pain and a significant difference in ankle stability after a history of rolled ankles from sports and a construction injury. That said, two years in and I'm not fully adapted yet. It can take a long time for the feet and lower legs (achilles, calves, etc) to adapt back to a natural state after many years of being in supportive/elevated type shoes, and there can be setbacks along the way. Wearing barefoot shoes is a hard workout for the feet and lower legs and not easing into it is like going to the gym for the first time in years and trying to go hard in the first few months, it's a good way to get injured.
I had horrible knee issues. Then about two years ago, my trainer, who was helping me rehab, had me start doing our sessions in my socks. Then I started wearing barefoot shoes for the workouts, and now use them almost all the time. What a world of difference for my knees.
Same here. For steeper hikes, I still use my conventional shoes, but after a few hours, my left knee gives in and turns to the inside That never happens with barefoot shoes How supportive are hiking boots style barefoot shoes on the ankles? I’m tip-toeing around them and would love some input!
I think my favorite thing about barefoot shoes is the mid foot roominess vs. traditional. To be fair I probably should've been buying "Wide" traditional shoes but they looked too ridiculous and were always huge and clunky. I wear only Xeros now and when I put on an old pair of traditional shoes I can't believe the restriction at mid foot. My body now rejects them like I put my shirt on backwards. Another thing I noticed about barefoot is it allows for a simpler construction that lasts a lot longer and the bottoms wear down much more evenly for me, a very noticeable amount. I use Xero trail runners for my lawn business and Xero street runners or trainers for my handyman business.
You are amazing in the way you explain everything so objectively, and with the full intention to educate your audience. There is all of a sudden so much push and hype around barefoot shoes, but I believe I personally have felt the negative effects of a hasty transition. Thank you for your work
I wear barefoot shoes when walking on trails (no pack). It started as more of a mindfulness thing but I was surprised when it also helped with some pain. I don't think it's a miracle but I always loved walking without shoes as a kid and it's like that but without splinters or dirty feet
It benefits me EXCEPT when DRIVING. Lots of pain, specially on right foot. I found out this too late and now had to buy conventional shoes to use until I heal as I got rid of them when I decided to only use barefoot shoes. Please keep a pair of regular shoes in the car!! I was doing well with Vivo’s and Saguaro’s until I had to get office shoes and went for Xero Phoenix Knit, very bad for long walks and driving.
That’s crazy, thanks for letting us know, will keep that in mind Keeping some pair of conventional back up shoes really comes in handy! Nearly got rid of them hehe
I got problems with barefoot shoes when I first tried them. I accidentally trained bad habits because I was hitting the ground too hard and bruising my feet. I went to more cushioned shoes and kept some of those habits and now I'm back with minimal shoes but I'm slowly mindfully retraining good habits
Yeah one is trained to go faster with conventional shoes On yesterdays hike I had to tell my friends to slow down while we were walking on a rocky path, they were able to go at a faster speed with their cushioned trainers while I felt the unevenness of the path and had to balance it out
You have helped me realise what I was doing wrong with my posture, which caused me a bit of recurrent pain in my lower back, a pinching pain at the bottom of my shoulder blade, to have my ribs flaring, a weak core and to have low torso mobility. Everything is fixed now thanks to you and I will forever be thankful!
@@cicicici42 Nothing actually, but I understood the cause from him showing it on the skeleton. The source of my problems was weak hamstring and tight quads which many have from sitting too much and which cause internal hip rotation. Which then caused tightness in my lower back and weak abdominal muscles from the body compensating by arching the lower back. I also believed that I had to bring my shoulder back to have good posture but it only added pressure on my lower back. Once I realised that, I started working on my weakness by strengthening those muscles, focused on stretching the tight muscles and tried to always keep my ribs tucked in by keeping a constant core tension. All of my problems melted away in a few weeks and I feel so much better!
Great Video. thanks for the good explanation ! I myself went from normal to minimal instantly several years ago. I was quite lucky as i did barefoot sports all my life, and even did Parkour barefoot when the temperature allowed it. And even I had around 4 Months of pain in the morning, and had to listen carefully when i realized some points have too much pressure etc… it went well - i never went back to normal shoes , neither for sports nor for every day life. Still i would not also not recommend doing the change instantly.
This is fascinating as I have been confused about heel-striking. I saw other videos that recommend trying to strike in the middle of the foot in one's gait, but I am higher-arched. I believe it may have made my plantar fascitis worse. I'll check out the other video and see how this goes, thank you
Walking gait is different from running gait. It is necessary to heel strike while walking. You are correct that heel striking is typically a sign of poor running form. However, a lot of people think too hard about it, leading to an equally bad "prancing" forward on the toes.
From all the studies I have looked at, people that are used to arch supporting shoes won't have an immediate benefit from barefoot shoes. It seems as though one must take probably more than 2 months to actually adjust and see the benefits.
What sort of shoes would you recommend for someone who's arch is pretty collapsed because it is trying to find pronation as a result of lacking internal rotation elsewhere in their body? I think that's me and barefoot shoes / minimalist zero drop shoes didn't work great for me. Trying to find what to try next. Thanks!
Yeah, I tried transitioning to barefoot/minimalist footwear post plantar fascia release, but little did I know beforehand that I also have a couple of hammer toes (still flexible), plus a very stiff lower calf. Tried metatarsal pads, orthotics, toe spacers, foot exercises, but nothing has worked. I assume I need to fix something higher up the chain? I'd try your gym out if I lived in Portland still, but being in Eugene isn't quite feasible for that.
What is your opinion on tight toe boxes? Are the modern shoes toebox design good for a healthy feet. What would you recommend someone who doesnt have any feet problems/preconditions but want healthy feet. What shoe is good for a normal healthy feet?
Would you say barefoot is dangerous for those with Posterior Tibial Tendon Dysfunction? I would love to go barefoot but I don't know if I should because of my flattened arches and tendon pain.
Shoes or barefoot shoes, this is the question. Like our feet doing naturally “resistant stretch” to the ground, they deserve a pair of nice shoes to assist however n🎉o perfect match in reality to be honesty with that. Like this channel always cos it says genuinely the truth, for the sake of healthy feet this time just heart it no doubt. Btw, feet can be directly impacted by the lower body exercises including hips, why not try on for we always have choices.
Interesting video. I have overpronation on both feet caused by lifting heavy weights. Would wearing barefoots shoes with orthotics be beneficial for me. Currently trying to work on internal rotation and also foot strength. Hip also is starting to bother me from lots of walking.
Why waste $$ on barefoot shoes only to add in a device that absolutely prevents pronation. You're doubling your cost and wasting time, because orthotics don't train anything. They just prevent pronation. Why are you working on internal tibial rotation?
We - me and my son - transitioned to barefoot in a quick way, in 1 month after only walking the improvement was visible and we did not consider these reflexions at the time. Our Foot are stronger and elastics, calf muscles and achilles tendons had to build their way up gently and now we running on barefoot shoes consistently- no marathons or long distance efforts by the way - On the oher hand our foot arches are there, really evident and we both pronate bu I am not sure what was our starting condition. Were we flat type or arch type? We both had the difect of duck-type like of running so internal hip rotations could be a issue as well as others factor. My desire is to be contacted by Connor and see if we can find somebody in our nation to make the right analysis. There is also the barefoot channel who claim something slighlty different, for instance right here. th-cam.com/video/KFNr0o8rtGA/w-d-xo.html
Good video Conman. I forget most losers crying about pain are not athletic, and have ZERO foot strength. Baby steps is good advice for the Portland clubfoot community. Most can’t even walk barefoot in their kitchen without pain. - Maybe in a future video dive into the importance of the toes. Specifically pinky toe engagement. Ask your clients to move their pinky toe, it’s usually dead.
The first 3 months in barefoot shoes were painful as hell. After that, it’s been so nice, I stand all day with no pain. Lifelong “flat feet” disappeared almost instantly, arches are very strong now
Just 3 months?! Did you suffer from any leg injuries pre-barefoot ? Do you lift/do sports?
Interesting, For me it also was around 3-4 Months with pain at some times on the day, especially mornings. Since then - no problem.
@@LuZu_ no leg injuries but I train frequently. Focusing on feet with Bosu ball balance work & sled helped develop my muscles quickly too. Arches showed up quickly but bunions are taking longer to correct for me
I had not even much pain. The transition has been pretty smooth for me even if I have collapsed arches. Best choice of my life 🔥
If someone is incapable of a healthy barefoot gait, then they have a deficiency that ought to be corrected just like any other deficiency discussed on this channel. Agreed completely that shoes can be an essential rehab component. Barefoot/minimal shoes ARE for everyone, in the sense that healthy biomechanics are for everyone. But I agree with Conor that it may take some rehab for some people to end their shoe dependence. What Conor leaves out here is that many of these deficiencies are CAUSED by a lifestyle of rarely walking barefoot. Barring physical deformity, which is rarer than the frequency of shoe dependence would suggest, anyone can have a healthy barefoot gait if they correct for the deficiencies Conor discusses.
Minimalist shoes are not for everyone. Lame comment
@@andrewg2032 Your comment adds nothing of substance and is by default lamer.
How do I know if i can walk normally barefoot? And if I can't walk normally barefoot I'm confused about what i need to do to actually make that possible?
Exactly. Shoes alone are not going to fix whatever you got going on, you have to actively change your movement if necessary. For me, I overpronate, so there were a number of things to change for me to walk in barefoot shoes without ankle pain and so on. When I stand, my feet naturally point outwards, so I have to point them straight, this allows me to shift my weight to the outside of my feet, which straightens my ankles, lifts my arches, and then I can also put my hips where they should be instead of tilting one way or the other. This also applied to how I walk and run. Overpronation is a habit, and habits can be changed. I wore stability shoes for a decade, and while they made moving much less painful, they didn't teach me how to move when I wasn't wearing them. I've only worn barefoot shoes since August, and I worked 13 hours on Black Friday at a sales job in barefoot shoes, and all I ended up with was sore feet. No ankle pain, knee pain, back pain, nothing, just natural soreness from standing all day. Fix the problems, don't just sell people products. It can be done.
I am using the Hykes Pinnacle barefoot shoes and love them, best shoes I have ever owned.
One of the best things I've done was switching to barefoot shoes about 2 years ago, especially for hiking, where I've noticed elimination of knee pain and a significant difference in ankle stability after a history of rolled ankles from sports and a construction injury. That said, two years in and I'm not fully adapted yet. It can take a long time for the feet and lower legs (achilles, calves, etc) to adapt back to a natural state after many years of being in supportive/elevated type shoes, and there can be setbacks along the way. Wearing barefoot shoes is a hard workout for the feet and lower legs and not easing into it is like going to the gym for the first time in years and trying to go hard in the first few months, it's a good way to get injured.
I had horrible knee issues. Then about two years ago, my trainer, who was helping me rehab, had me start doing our sessions in my socks. Then I started wearing barefoot shoes for the workouts, and now use them almost all the time. What a world of difference for my knees.
you're right
Same here. For steeper hikes, I still use my conventional shoes, but after a few hours, my left knee gives in and turns to the inside
That never happens with barefoot shoes
How supportive are hiking boots style barefoot shoes on the ankles?
I’m tip-toeing around them and would love some input!
I think my favorite thing about barefoot shoes is the mid foot roominess vs. traditional. To be fair I probably should've been buying "Wide" traditional shoes but they looked too ridiculous and were always huge and clunky. I wear only Xeros now and when I put on an old pair of traditional shoes I can't believe the restriction at mid foot. My body now rejects them like I put my shirt on backwards. Another thing I noticed about barefoot is it allows for a simpler construction that lasts a lot longer and the bottoms wear down much more evenly for me, a very noticeable amount. I use Xero trail runners for my lawn business and Xero street runners or trainers for my handyman business.
You are amazing in the way you explain everything so objectively, and with the full intention to educate your audience. There is all of a sudden so much push and hype around barefoot shoes, but I believe I personally have felt the negative effects of a hasty transition. Thank you for your work
Heel strike is only necessary in walking. Arch support is NOT needed in a normal healthy foot.
I wear barefoot shoes when walking on trails (no pack). It started as more of a mindfulness thing but I was surprised when it also helped with some pain. I don't think it's a miracle but I always loved walking without shoes as a kid and it's like that but without splinters or dirty feet
It benefits me EXCEPT when DRIVING. Lots of pain, specially on right foot. I found out this too late and now had to buy conventional shoes to use until I heal as I got rid of them when I decided to only use barefoot shoes. Please keep a pair of regular shoes in the car!! I was doing well with Vivo’s and Saguaro’s until I had to get office shoes and went for Xero Phoenix Knit, very bad for long walks and driving.
That’s crazy, thanks for letting us know, will keep that in mind
Keeping some pair of conventional back up shoes really comes in handy! Nearly got rid of them hehe
I got problems with barefoot shoes when I first tried them. I accidentally trained bad habits because I was hitting the ground too hard and bruising my feet. I went to more cushioned shoes and kept some of those habits and now I'm back with minimal shoes but I'm slowly mindfully retraining good habits
Yeah one is trained to go faster with conventional shoes
On yesterdays hike I had to tell my friends to slow down while we were walking on a rocky path, they were able to go at a faster speed with their cushioned trainers while I felt the unevenness of the path and had to balance it out
@@salsadip7453 It took me an hour and 30 minutes to get from school to home walking, with water shoes it took 30 more minutes
You have helped me realise what I was doing wrong with my posture, which caused me a bit of recurrent pain in my lower back, a pinching pain at the bottom of my shoulder blade, to have my ribs flaring, a weak core and to have low torso mobility. Everything is fixed now thanks to you and I will forever be thankful!
What of his program you applied
@@cicicici42 Nothing actually, but I understood the cause from him showing it on the skeleton. The source of my problems was weak hamstring and tight quads which many have from sitting too much and which cause internal hip rotation. Which then caused tightness in my lower back and weak abdominal muscles from the body compensating by arching the lower back. I also believed that I had to bring my shoulder back to have good posture but it only added pressure on my lower back. Once I realised that, I started working on my weakness by strengthening those muscles, focused on stretching the tight muscles and tried to always keep my ribs tucked in by keeping a constant core tension. All of my problems melted away in a few weeks and I feel so much better!
I swear 9 inch heels in a size 14, my ankles are indestructible
Great Video. thanks for the good explanation ! I myself went from normal to minimal instantly several years ago. I was quite lucky as i did barefoot sports all my life, and even did Parkour barefoot when the temperature allowed it. And even I had around 4 Months of pain in the morning, and had to listen carefully when i realized some points have too much pressure etc… it went well - i never went back to normal shoes , neither for sports nor for every day life. Still i would not also not recommend doing the change instantly.
I loooove my barefoot shoes but I had to ease into wearing them slowly. Been wearing barefoot style shoes as my primary shoes for over 10 years now
This is fascinating as I have been confused about heel-striking. I saw other videos that recommend trying to strike in the middle of the foot in one's gait, but I am higher-arched. I believe it may have made my plantar fascitis worse.
I'll check out the other video and see how this goes, thank you
Walking gait is different from running gait. It is necessary to heel strike while walking. You are correct that heel striking is typically a sign of poor running form. However, a lot of people think too hard about it, leading to an equally bad "prancing" forward on the toes.
From all the studies I have looked at, people that are used to arch supporting shoes won't have an immediate benefit from barefoot shoes. It seems as though one must take probably more than 2 months to actually adjust and see the benefits.
Wish my PT was this thorough. I tell mine I can’t find comfortable shoes and he just shakes his head lol
What sort of shoes would you recommend for someone who's arch is pretty collapsed because it is trying to find pronation as a result of lacking internal rotation elsewhere in their body? I think that's me and barefoot shoes / minimalist zero drop shoes didn't work great for me. Trying to find what to try next. Thanks!
Conor has several videos with exercises if you search for "conor harris internal rotation"
there is a lot to take under consideration for transitioning SAFELY time is the main thing
I am one of those people who tried barefoot shoes for months and I would consistently start to get worse. I wasn't ready.
Yeah, I tried transitioning to barefoot/minimalist footwear post plantar fascia release, but little did I know beforehand that I also have a couple of hammer toes (still flexible), plus a very stiff lower calf. Tried metatarsal pads, orthotics, toe spacers, foot exercises, but nothing has worked. I assume I need to fix something higher up the chain? I'd try your gym out if I lived in Portland still, but being in Eugene isn't quite feasible for that.
What is your opinion on tight toe boxes? Are the modern shoes toebox design good for a healthy feet. What would you recommend someone who doesnt have any feet problems/preconditions but want healthy feet. What shoe is good for a normal healthy feet?
I work as MA and on my feet all day long. What are your thoughts on wearing Desko shoes?
Would you say barefoot is dangerous for those with Posterior Tibial Tendon Dysfunction? I would love to go barefoot but I don't know if I should because of my flattened arches and tendon pain.
Shoes or barefoot shoes, this is the question. Like our feet doing naturally “resistant stretch” to the ground, they deserve a pair of nice shoes to assist however n🎉o perfect match in reality to be honesty with that. Like this channel always cos it says genuinely the truth, for the sake of healthy feet this time just heart it no doubt. Btw, feet can be directly impacted by the lower body exercises including hips, why not try on for we always have choices.
What about for bunions?
Opt for shoes with a wide toe box.
What are some examples of shoes you’d recommend for people with high arches and lacking pronation?
Can u talk about shortness of Achilles tendon
Interesting video. I have overpronation on both feet caused by lifting heavy weights. Would wearing barefoots shoes with orthotics be beneficial for me. Currently trying to work on internal rotation and also foot strength. Hip also is starting to bother me from lots of walking.
Why waste $$ on barefoot shoes only to add in a device that absolutely prevents pronation. You're doubling your cost and wasting time, because orthotics don't train anything. They just prevent pronation.
Why are you working on internal tibial rotation?
Thank you 🎉
RIP to those with ankle bone spurs
We - me and my son - transitioned to barefoot in a quick way, in 1 month after only walking the improvement was visible and we did not consider these reflexions at the time. Our Foot are stronger and elastics, calf muscles and achilles tendons had to build their way up gently and now we running on barefoot shoes consistently- no marathons or long distance efforts by the way - On the oher hand our foot arches are there, really evident and we both pronate bu I am not sure what was our starting condition. Were we flat type or arch type? We both had the difect of duck-type like of running so internal hip rotations could be a issue as well as others factor. My desire is to be contacted by Connor and see if we can find somebody in our nation to make the right analysis. There is also the barefoot channel who claim something slighlty different, for instance right here. th-cam.com/video/KFNr0o8rtGA/w-d-xo.html
stop with the clickbait ~do this first~ titles. you're one step away from ~99% don't know this~
Good video Conman. I forget most losers crying about pain are not athletic, and have ZERO foot strength. Baby steps is good advice for the Portland clubfoot community. Most can’t even walk barefoot in their kitchen without pain. - Maybe in a future video dive into the importance of the toes. Specifically pinky toe engagement. Ask your clients to move their pinky toe, it’s usually dead.
Oh lord that crazy guy on here that hates you literally because you wear shoes is about to lose it 😅
Wut?