Going sockless, Odor Eaters~

So today I bought some "Odor Eaters" shoe insoles (they go over your existing insole) and I'm gonna try them sockless and hopefully, if they work as advertised, I won't need socks from this day forward~

Anybody have advice on going sockless?

 

Dude, that's one of the worst things you can do, putting your bare feet into the filthy inside of shoes without some barrier (like socks) between your feet and the accumulated dried sweat, fungus growth, dead skin cells, and the virtual petri dish that is the inside of hot, dark, moist shoes. All these "Odor Eater" insoles do is provide an extra place for the sweat to go. Hardly a blip in trying to fight foot odor - assuming that's your reason for doing that - and you're fooling yourself if you think that's going to solve your problem. If you have to wear shoes, never wear the same shoes two days in a row. If you can wash the shoes, do it often. And always wear clean socks when wearing shoes. Take those steps and it will help, though not completely, eliminate foot odor. Of course the only real way to completely eliminate foot odor is to always go barefoot.

 

Ditch the closed shoes. For ever. Better yet, ditch sandals too, but for many people that'll be impractical. However, even sandals will allow your feet to breathe quite a bit.

 

Well, obviously Karubs needs these for work or something... Dock shoes, that's the best i can offer.... Made to be worn sockless - they breathe quite well, and they're somewhat dressy looking. Wore them for years in the summer on the water when barefeet weren't appropriate.

As for the idea of no socks.... i gotta go with frank on that one... if you're gonna wear dress shoes of some kind, bite the bullet and put on socks... you can do like I do and pull them off the instant your shift is over.

by the way.... what are you doing for work now anyway?

 

I no longer wear shoes without socks due to the fact that over time the shoes would adsorb sweat and bacteria that I would end up throwing them out. Washing them only seemed to enhance the odor.

If you can find an all rubber shoe or at least something that is washable and won't adsorb sweat then go for it. Other than that, bite the bullet and wear shoes with socks. The rest of the time wear sandals or flip flops weather permitting.

 

Whichaxe,

In what circumstances are bare feet , in summer AND on the water not appropriate?

I am really puzzled by this

 

an upscale boating club, perhaps? Not that it'd stop ME, but I'm not the classy type.

(course, I'd never been in the upscale boating club in the first place...)

 

....at work... in a fine dining restaurant... when it really is too hazardous to go barefoot (which probably isn't that often) ....

There's a multitude of reasons one might NEED to wear shoes. Believe me, I'm all for the cause, but I'm not so proud that I need to push the envelope ALL of the time.

McDonalds, Seven Eleven to - go ahead and walk in there barefoot... but don't go in a nice restaurant when you're going out to eat with your family, or on a business meeting... If I had to choose between keeping my job and wearing comfy shoes vs. going barefoot all the time, I'll take the former.

 

I work barefoot; went in for the job interview that way and I wouldn't have gone any other way. I also go to nice restaurants barefoot, to funerals, to weddings, to parties... and indeed it isn't too often going barefoot is too hazardous. I just cleaned out a pretty big bramble bush last week, branches a quarter inch thick, barefoot. Of course everyone's entitled to their own choices, but I would not even consider wearing shoes for work, if my boss told me to wear shoes or leave, then it's bye-bye!

The thing is, no matter that almost everyone is wearing them, shoes do mess with our feet. Almost all shoes, even the extra-wide ones press the toes together to some degree (especially women's shoes -men's are somewhat better, but just out of curiosity I went to a specialty shop and they had not one pair that didn't push my little toe in at all) Even a slightly elevated heel throws off the alignment of your knees & back. Nowadays, we have all these things like ergonomic chairs, ergonomic keyboards, and often companies are required to provide them... there are rules about heavy lifting... required break time... no smoking in the work place unless it's outdoors... Here in the Netherlands the rules are even more strict than in the US, you aren't allowed to do anything that is bad for your posture/skeleton/health at work. Except, for some reason, everyone totally overlooks that almost all footwear messes up our feet. It's only generally known about high heels, sure, everyone knows those are bad for you (and somehow, even with all the rules about ergonomic work environments, most places allow them ). But hardly anyone realises slight heels throw our alignment off too, all but the widest shoes play hell with our toes, and closed shoes are a breeding environment for bacteria. I'm not going to wear shoes or even sandals for work any more than I'd work all day sitting next to a smoker, or wear a corset that messes with my ribs, or work for 10 hour shifts without a break, or any of these things.

 

Hey well it's been a while but I'm back. Yeah I had the shoes off after ten minutes of being sockless. I'm gonna have to find some other way to be sockless and still look dressy.

 

Why do you have to be sockless if you're wearing shoes? What's the point?

 

I dunno.. I'm just trying to wear the least possible on my feet.

 

Of course, but man use some common sense. You've heard the expression, "Don't cut off your nose to spite your face"? I think that's what you're doing. Wear what least damages your feet. It's bad enough to have to wear shoes, but when you do, shoes without socks are murder on your feet, whereas shoes with socks at least protect your feet just a little from the bad effects of the inside of shoes.

 

Yeah, exactly. At least I realized my mistake 10 minutes after trying it out, rather than go for hours. I'm going to start a new thread about shoes designed to be worn without socks, or perhaps descreet sandals.

 

the only ones that come to mind are the Keds "deck" shoes and those stupid water sock/shoes things people wear at the pool

and of course flipflops/sandals which look really stupid with socks

 

I agree. Occasionally I see some people, usually very old men, wearing sandals with socks. Totally stupid and unnecessary. If your feet are pretty much exposed to the air and light, like in sandals or flip-flops, you don't need socks - and you look like an idiot if you wear them. It's with the closed-toe shoes that you should wear them.

 

I'd would'nt be caught dead in those silly water shoes. The only real use for those would be where you might protect yourself in waters where sharp coral is present.

I think wearing flip flops with socks is really stupid if you ask me. Afterall, what's the point??? Isn't it defeating the purpose? That's like wearing a t-shirt over your windbreaker. If you want to wear footwear with socks, then just put on a pair of shoes.