It's been a month now since making the decision to go BF as often as possible - the only time I wear shoes now is when I'm in a business meeting. As you may know, i've made a set of fake flip-flops to get past the 'shoe police'; they've been working GREAT! Had dinner last night at McCormick and Schmick's; not a peep from the hostess or the waitress about my footwear - or lack thereof. Finally had a couple of people notice - one was my daughter's doctor. She notices my flipts were a bott 'odd', whated to know how small the soles were. I showed her. "Those are SOO COOL!", she exclaimed. She now wants a pair. Anyway - the amazing part: I've had foot pain on and off for the past ten years, nearly opting for surgery a while back. Foot paint is completely gone - zip, zero...nada. What's really freaky, though is I've also had bouts of lower back pain - sometimes so bad I can't sleep thru the nigh or sit inna chair for more than a half hour. Yesterday, I helped move my sister-in-law into her new condo - schlepping furniture and appliances up and down stairs all day long. I'm an old guy; nearly 50. After a moving day, I'm usually totally incapacitated; laid out flat with a bottle of ibuprofen nearby. Not this time. Got up this AM - and - nothing hurts! aside from a little muscle soreness in my calves from running up stairs with boxes - no pain. Back is loose as a goose, and I feel like I could do it all over again today! That's NEVER happened - not in twenty years. Would not have believed it had I not experienced it personally. Shoes suck.
Hi Relaxed, i've had a similar experience with my right knee. I twisted it many years ago and it was never quite right afterwards, but when i started going bf, it started getting better and cleared up completely in a few months. I assume that shoes put your body off balance enough to prevent joints healing themselves after injury. Since everyone wears shoes (including doctors) poeple think that joints are incapable of self-repair, which is not true, it would seem!
I'm used to going barefoot everywhere, but I tried wearing shoes for a while a few months ago and after a couple of hours of walking my feet, legs, and lower back were killing me. The next day I walked around barefoot all day and had no pain at all, and kept walking late into the night and all day the next day without pain (as usual for me). Shoes really do suck and it's sad how most of the western world seems to think that pain from walking is normal.
It does wonders for me. I not only can work barefoot in the outdoors, on all kinds of surfaces, but I also hike bare foot. The toning to my feet and legs is absolutely awesome and it feels delicious! (And, I might add, I don't look so bad for one my age, at least down there!) It has helped with minor back problems, but I never had any serious ones. In fact, I find the only thing that ever bothers my back is--- too long sessions here at the computer!
I wanna see the make shift flipflops. I wear shoes but take them off as soon as I get there. I work at a community college and I'm always barefoot around there.....i'm waiting to get spoken to. LOL! People's reactions are funny. The other day I was walking my dog in the rain and my neighbor told me how crazy I was. Shoot, to me it felt good. Such filters people have.
