Is it weird for a guy to go barefoot?

I want to know what others think about a man going barefoot. Is it weird? Should I do it? I'm in my 40's and love to not have any shoes or socks on. It's embarrassing sometimes.......And I can't do it at home in front of family.

 

There's different types of others out there...
The others being other posters on this forum would readily say "No, of course it's not!" as us barefooters see nothing weird about preferring barefooting over wearing shoes.

However, the others being those mainstream society people out there would more than readily jump up and shout "Yes!! You're a weirdo!!" if you asked them. Since walking barefoot is something that does not follow the "normal" standards of society, people will see you as someone acting crazy, weird, etc. And only few people will be genuinely interested in your reasons and open about the whole matter. In a rough figure, I'd say only 1 or 2 out of 100 people will react positively. But even and especially those 1 or 2 are worth it - the rest can go and gather germs in their stinking foot cases for all I care.

I, as a barefooter, would say nothing else but: sure! However, this question is about you, not me.
So, if you consider all the benefits of barefooting - health, well-being, positive vibes from walking barefoot, beauty & grace of barefoot people (I have found that in quite many barefooters, be they women or men), etc. - and you feel like "Yes, I want all of this", then the answer should be: yes. My personal experience is that the pro aspects of barefooting outweigh the negative voices from the mainstream and "normal" side by far.

So am I, welcome to the club.
I have loved being barefoot since I was a kid - even though my parents were strict as to not being barefoot in cold weather. After moving out of the parents' home and living my own life, I was able to set my own barefoot standards, and have been an almost full-year barefooter for about 15 years now.
The only occasion where I currently wear shoes is at work (that being a necessity to keep the job - pure social pressure). You can imagine how much I love the time, when I am on vacation and am able to spend my days barefoot on a full-time basis.

I think it stops feeling embarrassing to you, as soon as you have tried your barefooting in everyday situations such as shopping, taking a walk around the block, going to the movies, whatever you wish to do, and have built up a toughness of your bare soles to different textures together with a certain toughness of yourself to possible taunts or insults. I have found a small technical device to be of great help in being barefoot: my MP3 player. With my favourite music in my ears, I can blank out those "normals" who are attempting (mostly with very lame jokes) to make fun of me or to insult me.

The family subject is kind of a toughie. If your family has expressed their dislike or even contempt at people being barefoot, it is more than often almost futile to try and change their minds. At least, it is quite difficult to do so in one big leap. Taking small steps (to stick with the walking theme) is the best strategy here. And if you can't persuade the family of the benefits of it, make your barefoot time your personal quality time outside of the family. This might not lead to 24/7 barefooting immediately, but it is one of those small steps I mentioned.

One source of help in backing up your pro-barefoot position is the Society for Barefoot Living (SBL) FAQ page:

http://www.barefooters.org/faq/

And if you encounter anyone making jocular or snide comments on your barefeet, the FAQ pages have their own sub-section of replies to passer-bys who make comments.

Wiggling toes encouragingly,

~*Ganesha*~

 

I don't think it is weird, but is not as nearly common for Men to slip off their shoes as it is for Women.
I am quite comfortable going barefoot, even in formal or public places.
I did see a Gentleman at my hair saloon the other day that was barefoot.

 

I say only in the house. Especially if a guy has nasty feet.

 

Cause and effect. Shoes=nasty feet. Ditch the shoes forever everywhere.

 

If a female can go barefoot, why can't a guy?

 

i do not need to restate the eloquent arguement of ganesha1967. i'm 47 and i am usually barefoot, if i am not working. who cares what the so-called "normal" people think. it is your life, live in the manner which gives you happiness. good luck on establishing your barefoot lifestyle. pardon the pun, but take ganesha1967's advice, begin with small steps and become comfortable.

 

Females tend to get pedicures more often.


I'd rather never wear shoes.

 

I never had a pedicure in my life and I doubt I ever will.

 

If it feels good and it's something you enjoy, and if you have nice looking feet, go bare!!!!! So what if you are in your 40's. So what if you're a guy. And, of all the people to be bare in front of, why can't you be barefoot in front of your family????? That's the weird part... Don't any of them go bare, at least, around the house? Why would y'all wear socks and shoes in the house all the time? That is so uncomfortable... Start going bare. At first it will feel like EVERYBODY is staring at you but they really aren't. You might get some looks but who cares. Just take small steps and by summer you can be bare all the time....

 

Its not wierd to go Barefoot Im a guy and I ware toe rings!

 

It's not weird to go barefoot and age does not matter.Take your shoes and socks off and enjoy it gradually. Just don't push it too quickly.

 

For those of you replying, I need to fill in some info. At home, both my mother and sister go barefoot. The problem is that I have this shame associated with it. I think I know what it is. Since I overcame that in my own apartments and with a few select people I've known, I think I can overcome it at the home situation too. But I am not sure how to go about it in a way that is easy for me. I think I need encouragement. Constant encouragement by a friend that understands what I am going through. Maybe then in time, it will happen.

 

Why does the appearance of a person's feet have anything to do with going barefoot?

Why is going barefoot treated like a religion by some? I've always just done it an never given it much thought.

 

It isn't that my feet look so bad. I just feel like I'm exposing myself. With pants on, I can feel the coolness different from that of my legs. It feels so good but it feels like I'm naked too.

 

put flip flops on then then slip them off when you get inside when sitting at the table or something

 

any1 can go bare foot but somepeople think its weird cos they cant come to terms wiv it if u do it n some1 says somein like u weirdo or somein then just say ur doin it to try and get in touch wiv mother earth and that they should too. i try as much as possible but sometimes its too cold in the UK (i live in the UK).

 

Society seems to perceive barefoot guys as weird, in the sense that it's unusual, and it catches people off guard. With more and more guys wearing sandals and flip flops, though, it's not so weird for people to see the toes exposed - just weird to see absolutely nothing on them. Even then, in some spheres, it's not so weird for guys to go barefoot, like musicians for instance.

But who cares if it's weird? Everyone is weird and does weird things in their own way or another. Could you imagine how dull the world would be if we all were conformists? Just bare them, man! (Unless it's way too cold to do so - then, preventing frostbite is more important, especially if your feet aren't tough.)

 

i go barefoot whenever possible, cold winters here. i have to use shoes outside during winter months. i can't imagine being embarrassed to be barefoot in front of family and at home. i take sandals for stores and places that have a shoes policy.
peace

 

It doesn't, IMO... however, the people (those others as I called them in my post) already seeing walking barefoot as a weird and crazy thing would easily and readily see bare feet which are not looking like the perfectly pedicured and pampered examples they see in advertizing and the like as ugly and something that shouldn't be exposed to the poor public... Personally, I couldn't care less what a person's feet look like, since I administer minimal care to my feet as well, such as clipping my toe nails from time to time and file down the extra callous on the sides of my heels occasionally... that's about it. On the other hand (or foot, rather...), I am sort of an advocate for barefooting and its benefits when baring my toes to the public and therefore wouldn't want to have my feet look too unkempt, so to speak.

There are people to whom barefooting actually is part of their religion and worshipping practice. Other barefooters believe that there is a strong level of spirituality in baring one's feet. And certainly, there is hardly anything better than touching Mother Earth's living body with your bare feet compared to insulating your self (this space was set there deliberately!) from Her by wearing shoes and having artificial soles between you and Her.
That would be a topic for a different discussion though.
To always "just do it" (isn't it ironic, don't you think - to quote Alanis Morissette - that a shoe company has coined the perfect phrase for barefooting...?) surely is the best thing to do. Perhaps it's even better to take the words of a barefoot master as a general rule for barefooting: "Do or do not. There is no try" (Yoda never wore shoes, either).

wiggling not ugly but not model's toes, either,

~*Ganesha*~