How the Barefoot Shoe Industry Lies to You

The problem with people saying that they put on barefoot shoes and all their problems were fixed is that they dont tell you what they did in those shoes Personally, when I fully transitioned to barefoot shoes, I completely stopped having chronic foot and lower back pain and increased my ankle mobility that's a true statement, but that ignores all of the physical therapy and mobility training and intentional changes I made to my posture and how I walk that it took to complete that transition

So there isn't a big lie, barefoot shoes aren't in themselves magic, and individual results will vary? I'm stunned.

At the age of 66 my transition to barefoot was quick and the best decision I,ve made in years.i think my generation basically grew up with almost zero drop footwear with limited choices.the wide toe box has changed my hiking experience for the better.really appreciate your advice and experience on all the topics you cover.cheers mate.

Biggest reason barefoot shoes are failing is nobody wants to buy shoes for 150-200 dollars for less shoe. They are absolutely out of their minds with the prices. Then they don't even have your size in stock when you go to check.

I'm not an athlete nor a runner nor a mountain climber, but what I can say is that I hated shoes with burning passion before using barefoot shoes. Past my 21st birthday I just couldn't find anything that didn't cause pain and that I didn't know why. Now I (mostly) know why. The toe box and the flexibility matter a lot to me now. Sure, barefoot shoes don't replace every other kind of shoe out there, but for me, a city dweller that occasionally walks and runs, they are great, and I no longer hate shoes, nor do I want to kick them off a canyon after being in them for a long time.

Started to use minimalist shoes almost a year ago. Now I've got 4 pairs, for different purposes. Because of foot pain I was advised by an orthopedic doctor to use wide toe shoes because I have bunions. Much to my surprise, I couldn't find wide toe shoes, so I tried some Xero shoes that were on sale. What a lesson it was! I became aware my right ankle was much stiffer than my left one; I experienced back pain for the first time in my life! I noticed my big toe had no strength whatsoever and was almost "dead", relying on the stiff sole of "normal" shoes. So, yeah, I had to learn how to walk again, learn not to smash my heels into the floor (took me 2 weeks), learn to use my big toe, learn to look where I step on to. Now, not all the minimalist shoes are created equal. I do have now the Xero Mesa that compared with the Merrell Vapor Glove feel like an overbuilt shoe, while they're definitely not while compared with any hiking shoes or boots I previously owned. All in all, I became aware of my Achilles tendon stiffness and cured it and foot pain is reduced by 98% at least. Now I've "only" to fix my right knee and hip flexor...

My experience has been that transitioning to barefoot shoes was step 1 in improving lower body health. Focusing on bellow the knee function by using barefoot shoes and doing limited exercises for that same area has been a huge game changer. I actually feel like I can balance now on foot!

I am just so glad that more options are open for "foot shaped" shoes that don't squish the toes.

I've been wearing barefoot and/or minimalist style shoes for about 8 years now, and I've found 2 huge benefits: 1. Many styles have a wider toe box. I have flat, wide feet, and it's always been a huge struggle finding “regular” shoes that fit me properly. This was a case where foot pain resulting from shoes squeezing my feet was basically gone overnight for me. No longer did I have to deal with forcing my foot into a shoe; they simply just fit. 2. Ankle stability. I had a pretty severe ankle injury in college and stretched and partially tore ligaments in my foot and ankle… the doctor said I would have been better off breaking my leg. Ever since then my ankle has felt unstable in any shoe with a thick sole. Barefoot shoes eliminated that unstable wobble because I was now planted as close to the ground as possible without actually being barefoot.

While I agree with the main point of the video, I’m definitely one of those people who saw drastic improvements in foot health after getting barefoot shoes. I got the xero z-trek as a camping/river crossing shoe, just because they took up less volume than crocs. I always test out gear before hiking season, so wore the z treks indoors and out. I immediately realized I was heel striking, so saw videos on better barefoot walking technique and minimalist shoes/hiking (including your videos which are great). I have wide feet, and really enjoyed the wider toe box and zero drop. After a week, my stamina walking barefoot increased dramatically, and ended up purchasing several xero and vivo shoes (returning most of them, but keeping my favorites). After about two months of this, I wore some new Altra Lone Peak 7s (in wide), and couldn’t believe how cushiony they are (in a bad way), how disconnected from the ground. I wore some Common Projects for a date, that I hadn’t wore in a long time. The tiny bit of heel drop was extremely annoying. I never noticed that before. Minimalist shoes really changed my life, for the better. Foot fatigue problems shortened my hiking mileage per day. I’m confident I can go way longer and more comfortably thanks to both the shoes AND changing my walking technique. Jupiter Hiked recommend training in minimalist shoes, and I train in my z-treks and Mesa Trails. But I love them so much, I’m not sure I’ll ever go back to even medium cushion trail runners. I’m like the annoying vegan who won’t shut up about vegan. I told a nephew in college (where he’s annoyed about everybody’s obsession with pronouns) that my gender identity is “barefoot”. Really changed my whole life.

Well that's a breath of fresh air. As someone for whom the switch went perfectly smoothly, I still find myself cautioning beginners not to expect a footwear change to result in perfect foot function or running form.

They main aspect of the whole barefoot shoe movement are wide toe boxes and zero drop aspects for me. I don’t care for the whole proposed strengthening angle, but wearing shoes with extremely wide toe boxes and small heel drops helped my CRPS toe and forefoot area significantly.

I see barefoot shoes as a tool, but you still have to do the work. Just like weights. Weights don't make your strong. They're a tool that you use to do work which makes you strong. Thank you for a very balanced and nuanced perspective.

Thank you for making this distinction :~) It's not the footwear that does these things, it's the way they allow or don't allow your feet to move & function that enables those changes.

It’s all good and well using the “appeal to nature “ argument that we should be barefoot as our ancestors, but unfortunately we now walk around on concrete

Thanks for making this video! I am lucky to wear barefoot shoes since I am 18, and really getting intro the topic a year later, training my feet (also thanks to your exercises) and being aware. This has changed pretty much how I walk and move and I feel how my feet get stronger. Last summer I did a alps solo hike for 5 days in barefoot shoes (after a training period of a few weeks taking barefoot walks every day), and it went amazing. The way how these shoes are advertised have always been my biggest problem with the shoes. Back when I was 18, I bought my first pair with my mother in a Leguano store in Germany, and the seller was making all these bold claims about how barefoot shoes solve every problem. They don't. Online they are often advertised as "wonder shoes". They are not. We are adapted to big chunks of material under our feet that limit movement in a major way since we are kids. Changing to a much more natural way of moving the feet takes time and effort. But it's a great process with a lot of eye opening moments. I hope the understanding of this will grow together with barefoot shoes in general in the future (I hope decathlon will make some).

Thank you for this video. I fell into the barefoot/zero drop hype, bought altra lone peaks because every thru hiker recommended them. I hiked 2500+km over the next months with a pack and had no issues with foot pain and my longstanding lower back pain was hardly a problem anymore. Now I'm dealing with ongoing foot/lower body issues because I didn't train my body at all to adapt to zero drop. It all started with anterior tibialis tendinopathy, then plantar fasciitis, peroneal tendinopathy, knee pain etc etc. Your body will compensate for a sudden change in footwear and activity levels and over time it can really cause issues. Don't think just because it feels fine initially that everything is good. Build up to it! Happy hiking! Wish I saw this video before 😅

I hope no one is put off transitioning to more natural footwear due to watching this video. If transitioning is a challenge, then it is better to start sooner rather than later.

I started my minimalist shoe journey in December 2022. I started wearing Vibram 5-fingers a month ago. Hands down best shoe I've ever worn. I have the V-Alphas and I live in Alaska. My feet don't get too cold and I love how much grip they have. I wear them everywhere, even the hospital I work at.

Thanks Chase, we learn a lot from you. Without a solid base, a performing musician isn't up to standard. From our feet to our fingers, to our vocal cords, it's all connected.