Vivobarefoot: Exposing the Cracks in Our Body’s Foundation
We’re all familiar with the experience of coming home after a long stretch on our feet, sitting down, taking our shoes off, and breathing a sigh of relief.
Man, that feels so good.
Have you ever stopped to consider why it feels so good to take our shoes off?
It’s because our feet are not meant to be confined within the rigid structure of modern day shoes.
We are meant to be barefoot.
Weak Foundations
Our feet are our body’s foundation.
The foundation is the most important component of any structure.
If you have a flawed foundation, the rest of the structure won’t have the support it needs to stand strong. The rest of the structure is weakened when the foundation is not well built, and issues will become compounded over time, resulting in a whole slew of things that need correcting. The integrity of your entire structure is at risk if you ignore the symptoms or try to correct them with mere Band-Aids.
But, because our feet are not allowed to thrive, we are living on damaged foundations. And it’s affecting our overall health.
The health of our feet sets our bodies up for success or failure. It determines if we will have joint (ankles, knees, hips) and back pain, misalignment and inflammation, or if we will live and move in strength, balance, and flexibility.
When we heal our feet, our body’s foundation, recovery will develop from the ground up.
Uncovering the Cracks: Our Pain is Self-Inflicted
Unbeknownst to most people, our feet have been subject to damage since the invention of stiff, synthetic, cushioned shoes. Simple evidence of this fact is that despite continuing “advances” in footwear technology meant to eliminate injury, 65-80% of runners suffer injuries every year.
“A lot of foot and knee injuries that are currently plaguing us are actually caused by people running with shoes that actually make our feet weak, cause us to over-pronate, give us knee problems. Until 1972, when the modern athletic shoe was invented by Nike, people ran in very thin- soled shoes, had strong feet, and had much lower incidence of knee injuries.
“The more cushioned the shoe, the less protection it provides; when they sense something’s squishy underfoot, your feet and legs instinctively come down hard because they’re searching for a hard, stable platform; when you wear cushioned shoes, your feet are pushing through the soles in search of this stability.”
–Born to Run, Dr. Daniel Lieberman, pg.168
In Christopher McDougall’s book Born to Run, Gerard Hartmann explains the harm brought on by modern-day shoes, why our feet thrive when under pressure, and why we should let our bodies move naturally:
“the reconditioned musculature of the foot (resulting from modern-day shoes) is the greatest issue leading to injury. Pronation has become this very bad word, but its just the natural movement of the foot- the foot is supposed to pronate. The thought that excessive pronation contributes to runner’s knee is only correct in the sense that you have to land on your heel to overpronate, and you can only land on your heel if its cushioned, as it is in the case of severely wedged and structured shoes.”
God created our bodies to move, heal, and self-correct. The architecture of our feet is a marvel that engineers have been trying to match for centuries. Our feet don’t need any extra artificial support, because as Hartmann explains:
“Putting your feet in shoes is similar to putting them in a plaster cast. If I put your leg in plaster, we’ll find 40-60% atrophy of the musculature within six weeks. Something similar happens to your feet when they’re encased in shoes”
To summarize: when shoes are doing the work, tendons stiffen and muscles shrivel. Our feet live for and thrive under pressure. If you let them laze around, letting shoes do the work, their structure and strength collapse.
Unfortunately, we as consumers have been misinformed as to what we really need in the shoes we buy and wear.
We have unintentionally been contributing to the decline of our own balance, flexibility, and strength by buying, and constantly wearing, shoes that weaken our feet.
If you look into it, nearly every foot ailment you can think of- corns, bunions, hammertoes, flat feet, fallen arches- are nearly nonexistent in countries where most people go barefoot. According to Dr. Paul Brand, we could wipe out every common foot ailment within a generation by kicking off our shoes.
So, how do we restore our damaged foundations?
How do we heal our feet, and so our bodies?
Go barefoot.
Or as close to barefoot as possible.
Go Vivobarefoot.
What Is VivoBarefoot?
Vivobarefoot is a brand of shoes that aims to make the perfect shoe for feet.
They believe our feet are meant to be barefoot, and our bodies function best when our feet are not constrained within rigid modern-day shoes.
It’s our shoes that change the shape of our feet, which throws our bodies out of balance and alignment.
It’s when fashion overtakes function that the shape of shoes starts to seriously deviate from foot-shape. So much so that in the last few centuries, trends in shoe design have even distorted our idea of what the foot itself should look like. Bonkers shoe shapes have become fashionable, even normalized, and this may be to the detriment of our feet and, ultimately, healthy human movement.
Vivo is determined to improve the health of our feet, and our bodies, one pair of shoes at a time.
Their shoes are wide, thin, and flexible to allow a range of movement that’s most like going barefoot, while still protecting your feet from the outdoor elements. Because while barefoot is best, it’s not always practical.
So, they believe shoes should let your feet do their thing, mimicking the natural movement and strength found in being barefoot.
Vivobarefoot’s shoes mimic barefoot movement and ensure that your foot health is optimized during wear. They are always:
~Wide, allowing your toes to provide a stable base of support. In standard shoes, toes become tapered, wearing muscles and reducing functionality.
~Thin soles allow the 200,000 neurons of the foot to provide the brain with ample sensory feedback, allowing you to move skillfully and confidently. Thick soles reduce this ability because your feet can’t feel the ground. This results in clumsy and awkward moving when walking or running.
~Flexible construction that allows your muscles and tendons to load, splay, and recoil. Stiff shoes restrict the natural range of movement in the feet, weakening the muscles.
And they have shoes for every activity, whether it be casual shoes for running errands and cruising the town, running shoes for exercise, hiking boots for exploring your favorite trails, sandals for going to church or flats to wear in your next business meeting. They want to be sure our feet are treated well all the time- not just when we’re exercising.
Vivobarefoot is dedicated to quality products and sustainability in their materials. They have a variety of products for a variety of customers: shoes made of leather (most of their leather comes from ‘wild hide’, free roaming cattle reared by families and communities in and around Ethiopia), vegan materials, biodegradable materials, recycled materials…
And they’re always on the lookout for more durable and sustainable alternatives. They’re working towards a circular economy, where new material and product is made from existing resources, and minimal virgin resources are tapped- a very admirable goal, and something more companies should work toward.
For more information, see their Sustainability page
Don’t Ignore Your Body’s Warnings
Having run cross-country for three years in high school, I know the impact a pair of shoes has on your performance- for better or worse. Our coach really advocated for zero-slope shoes, where there’s no difference in lift from the front of the shoe to the back- these shoes are a great alternative to the clunky and highly cushioned soles of most brands which elevate your heel over your toes. They can help correct your form, and decrease your rate of injury, but you will find many of these shoes still have very thick soles, which can still result in clumsy movement, imbalance, and overcompensation.
I used zero-slope shoes for four years after high school. Unfortunately, pain eventually showed up in my feet.
When this happened repeatedly, I would stop running to try and give my foot a chance to heal. I tried different pairs of shoes and different styles when it was suggested that maybe mine were losing cushion and support (come to find out, this is not a bad thing! It just makes them one step closer to minimalist shoes). I knew my form wasn’t the problem, because it hadn’t changed and I’d never experienced any problems like this during high school.
I considered that maybe I had some sort of weird fracture, or that my hips were misaligned. But even visiting the chiropractor didn’t lead to the foot pain going away.
So after years of frustration, I got a pair of Vivobarefoot shoes, and I will never buy a traditional pair of running shoes again.
After almost six months of running in my Vivos, I have not experienced a single trace of pain in my feet.
My transition was faster than it would have been had I been switching from regular running shoes (rather than zero-slope), but I have still been going pretty easy when running to give my feet time to adjust and strengthen.
Running has actually been enjoyable.
My shoes are the women’s Primus Knit. I don’t see this specific color available anymore, but they do offer both a white and a black style.
These shoes are easy to wear, easy to run in, and so comfortable- as close to barefoot as you can be with shoes on.
I find these shoes to be true to size. While I have plenty of room to wear socks, I wear mine without. There is nowhere that this shoe rubs or sits uncomfortably that makes me feel the need to further protect my skin with socks. Also, the ankle area has a sock-like design- it’s stretchy, which allows you to easily slip these on and off, but also provides stability and a slight compression to keep the shoe secure on your feet when wearing.
The mesh material makes these shoes super breathable, while the leather pieces ensure that it’s sturdy to withstand even the most abusive wear-and-tear.
I chose these shoes specifically because of the rubber-colored soles. I appreciated that the soles weren’t white, because that shows so much more dirt. After six months, you can hardly tell these soles have been outside.
Finally, while these shoes are great for running, they are also stylish and minimal enough to wear all the time. Since they aren’t clunky or brightly colored like so many exercise shoes, you can wear these in place of stiff Converse or Vans, and still get the look of a nice clean shoe to tie your outfit together.
So What are You Waiting For?
If you have foot, joint, or back pain, take back control of your health and buy a pair of Vivobarefoot shoes!
This is a simple option to relieve your pain and discomfort, as well as avoiding the possibility of needing painful surgery and harmful medications to try and correct the problems caused by your mistreated feet.
If something as straightforward as changing your shoes could save you time, money, and hassle, why not try it? It will only do you good.
If you’re ready to take back your strength and your health, and to stop buying into the lies of the footwear industry, you can click here, or on any of the links in this post to shop directly through Vivobarefoot’s website and find the perfect pair of shoes for you! You will not be sorry.
Vivo also offers a 100 day trial period, so that if you do purchase a pair and decide they aren’t for you, you can return them for a full refund.
If you want to learn more about the technique involved in barefoot and minimalist running, Vivobarefoot has a Youtube channel with a variety of resources and information to help you make that transition. There are also a wide variety of books and resources where you can learn more about how the footwear industry has been contributing to our declining health over the last few decades.
Let me know if you have questions, comments, or further resource recommendations. And if you enjoyed this post, learned something new, or just find the topic interesting, please share it with your friends- everyone can benefit from this information, and it could lead to enormous healing for the people in your life:)
In the coming weeks I’m going to be sharing about a related topic called “earthing” or “grounding”, which connects back to the idea that being barefoot is healthier for our bodies. Keep your eyes peeled for that!
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