Barefoot living?

[Jasonlant86]

I did post this in another part of the forum but was reccomended to post in this section to get more peoples views/oppinions;

Hi all im not on any other fitness forums and most of my friends are very sedentary so asking them is less than usefull lol, and after such a fab responce on my screen protector post i thought id ask you guys

So i went to a chiro and got popped about and learnt my posture is awfull and that my £180 trainers were messing me up, the guy suggested barefoot shoes for training, running and just about everything. I have ordered some mid level ones to try them out (merrell vapour glove 3) has anyone else jumped on the barefoot bandwagon? If so id love to hear your experiences

Vapour gloves coming on monday so after some advice from PureEvil will ease into them for the first week and see how it go's.

[DanielleinDC]

I prefer exercises I can do barefoot (or in socks), which may be why I love my barre and Pilates classes. I even do my walking videos barefoot. I've also read that doing weightlifting barefoot might be better for your form. Tell me about barefoot shoes; I'm kind of curious about that. 

[Jasonlant86]

>From what I have gathered is the barefoot shoes main goal is to provide as
little a sole as possible to make you feel and perform just like you would
by being barefoot but without actually being so. Plus it stops you having
to go out in public with naked feet and put up with the stares and head
shakes lol

[Esya]

If you have poor posture, I am not sure the shoes are going to change that, though they might help. I am curious about the experience you are going to have with them. Posture is also something you can train (think about yoga).

[Jasonlant86]

>From what the chiro said being in normal shoes puts you off balance
although most of us don't feel that imbalance, this causes little
misalignment from the ankles traveling Upto your knees then hips and lower
back all the way up apparently. I'm still in two minds if chiropractors are
even legit tbh but I'm game to try anything lol. I've done all the other
little things he suggested like only one pillow at night so to keep neutral
spine alignment and sitting in chairs with my hips higher than my knees. He
did say not to use my sofa and buy a ridged chair but that ain't happening
haha.
I've tried yoga before and it was just an hour of pure pain 😭

[DanielleinDC]

Well, if yoga was pure pain for you, then barre will probably be utter agony. It's a good thing if you start shaking during some of the exercises. 

[Esya]

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@Jasonlant86wrote:
I've tried yoga before and it was just an hour of pure pain 😭

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Then you had a bad teacher. In yoga you respect the limits of your body and don't do anything that really hurts. It does not matter how far you get into a pose, but what you feel while doing it. I have been going at it for years now and still can't touch my feet with legs straight. It depends on body structure, bones, muscles and training how far you can get into each pose. However, by doing it you will see improvement over time which I also see back in my posture.

[Jasonlant86]

Maybe I'll give it another go and find a better instructor. I do like the
idea of doing it alongside my weight training.

[Corney]

@Jasonlant86 Going barefoot is OK if you have perfect Bio-metrics with weight bearing, but few of us have.  Being a Physical Therapist I have very little respect for chiropractors. Did he explain how your trainers were messing you up.  I am totally against running barefoot, runners land with 3 times their body weight and any deviation from perfect bio-metrics will be magnified 3 fold.  I agree sleeping with just one pillow, preferably a feather pillow that cups your head and neck thus keeping you cervical spine in neutral. I can't believe a pair of shoes is the main reason you have bad posture.  If you go back to the chiropractor, which I'm sure he has scheduled you for more treatments, ask him to explain all your postural faults and how a pair of shoes are the cause, and how going barefoot will alleviate those problems.  Perhaps he will suggest a series of spinal adjustments to cure your "vertebral subluxations" since that is their reasoning behind everyone spinal and health problems.  You may want to Google vertebral subluxations.  Good luck!

[Jasonlant86]

Hi @Corney thanks for the input, he didnt say the trainers were the main issue just one of many, he said my shoulders were rounded so ive been doing some things given to me by my friend (a phsyiotherapist) to losen off my pecs, lats, delts and serratus anterior with a tennis ball aswell as shoulder streches and mobilisation. Its funny he also said not to bother with the chiro and it was all hocum, but to me how can it be if theres still alot of chiros all over the world seeing and seeming to help many people? After just one session seeing the guy my shoulders felt a hell of alot better, granted it could very well be placibo but whatever works lol.

I dont intend to do a great deal of running in them tbh im mainly into weights and bodyweight stuff and get my cardio in either sprints or battle ropes and actually have never sprinted on my heels i've always felt faster on the balls of my feet. I am going to get more info on the shoes from him tho coz tbh he was rather breif on the main overall benifits of them, just showed me how much more stable i was with my trainers off and i was sold lol.

[Corney]

@Jasonlant86: Listen to your Physical Therapist. Poor posture occurs over
many years due to bad habits. Not even seeing you I can tell you have a
forward head, slouching shoulders and a flat back posture( loss of the
normal Lunbar Lordosis). Flat back posture is probably due to tight
hamstrings. The hamstring muscles attach to the posterior pelvis, being
tight they pull the pelvis into an anterior tilt causing the flat back
posture. Most postural defects can be cured by developing good habits,
stretching tight muscles, strengthening the muscles that are under
developed due to the bad habits. Running barefooted is inane, you are
providing no support for the transverse arch other than the Plantar fascia
and the Tibialis Posterior tendon, plus you are providing no protection to
your foot if you run outside. Yes there are a lot of chiropractors out
there and people either swear by them or swear at them. Check out these
web sites: www.laser spine institute.com vertebral subluxation.
www.painscience.com/articles/ subluxations.php. How many people have you
seen who run barefoot versus those that run in shoes? I would never walk
outside barefooted, I don't walk inside my house without shoes or sandals
with a good arch support. One reason chiropractors are popular is they lay
hands on people while other Dr.s don't. They are being conned and often
see the chipropractor on weekly basis for years because they are convinced
that there spine is out of alignment and by using adjustments the chiro
puts it back in alignment, but it needs frequent adjustments to keep it in
proper alignment. No ones spine is in perfect alignment, but are pain and
symptom free. No one who believes in chiropractic ever sees the
chiropractor just once.

[Jasonlant86]

That's a very valid point about the chiros actually. He said he'd need to
see me once a week for a few months I knew that couldn't be right. I got a
free session this week tho so likely won't go back after that. I've done a
bit more reading into barefoot and after considering all the points on both
sides am only going to use them for the weight training and calisthenics.
Thanks for your input it's helped me think and study more about all of
this

[Corney]

@Jasonlant86  Congratulations it seems you have come to your senses and made the right decision. If you have further questions about improving your posture consult your Physical Therapist, they should give you a home exercise program that you can do yourself, instead of bringing you back again and again just to generate revenue, because they are professionals!