What type of shoes do you wear if you are not barefoot

Definitely. Men don't even participate in that event. I looked at a few examples online, but mine look better than that. The front part looks like a women's ballet flat.

 

These will be my next pair of shoes. Don't know if anyone has mentioned xero shoes already but I'm going to give this newly released version a try.

 

Rhythmic gymnastics has been somewhat popular in eastern Europe for a long time, especially Russia, but it was almost unknown in the US until the last Olympics. A quick Google search showed me several styles of those shoes available online that don't look as feminine as the ones I have.

For some of the competitive dance events, you need to have the ability to spin fast on carpet without getting friction burns, so the soles are made to be very slick. You use your bare heel to stop the spins. Walking on rough pavement just a little will put an end to the soles being too slippery. The dancers would never wear them outdoors, for that reason.

A friend of mine put me onto that particular store, near where she lives. She goes there to buy flats that are made for contemporary dance. She wears them to work out at the YWCA because she hates the way sneakers and athletic shoes look on her. Flats built for serious dancers let you safely do almost anything indoors that you can do in sneakers.

For outdoor winter walking (except in deep snow), I stocked up on some nicer looking minimalist flats the last time I was in Boston during cold weather. On the subway, I noticed that almost every college girl I saw had on the exact same kind of shoes; simple flats in dark colors that come up only about an inch all the way around, except at the front where they cover about 2/3 of each toe. It's about the least and simplest shoe that will stay on without any kind of a strap on top. They keep out the subway grime, and there is no high heel to risk a broken ankle when you have to stand up on the Green Line. All the department stores downtown were selling them. Those Boston girls have good taste.

 

I'm not sure why you quoted that particular line but the reason I mentioned it is before this new model came out they had an issue with a knot under the sole of the shoe that supposedly could be felt while walking and wore out quickly. I was kicking around the idea of getting those when this new version came out that resolved the issue.

 

xero's are great. I used to keep a pair of the Teva Zilch until I left them on the train in France. I picked up a pair of Xero's a couple of months ago at a trade fair and they are awesome for when you need them. Really comfortable once I got the strapping right.

 

I haven't had the chance to try them on but they look very comfortable. Looking forward to trying them.

 

Shoes wi' no fuckin' socks, man!

 

Not sure exactly what kind of new model you're talking about.

 

Having looked I'm not sure either..Mothman do you have a picture/link?

 

Shoot, I thought for sure I had a link there. Okay let's try this again. http://xeroshoes.com/index-nav-mwc.php

and this one has a video
http://xeroshoes.com/shop/feeltrue-products/sensori-venture-mens-barefoot-sandals/

 

They look like plain old sandals to me.

 

Birkenstock sandals/clogs/mary janes or regular sneakers/boots (with arch supports - ugh!)

 

I put myself in some one else's shoes.

 

That's cool. They are modeled after huaraches which is a running sandal so that makes sense. The soles come in 4mm or 6mm thick which is very thin and they allege that you can still feel the terrain beneath when you walk in them and gives you the closest thing to barefoot feel while still giving you a thin layer of protection.

They are made to be trimmed to the shape of your foot when you get them. People that like to run barefoot have endorsed these shoes heavily for marathons. They may not look as radical as vibram 5finger shoes but if you find yourself having to wear shoes, these are quite minimal.

 

These:

 

Those are pretty cool.

 

flip-flops or some thin-soled trainers

 

When going bare foot is socially unacceptable, I opt for Havaianas or Amuri Ventures.

 

When not barefoot, I wear Slim Havaianas. Prefer the womens rather than mens as they usually have thinner straps and soles. I've also just got some with transparent straps, which look great. Wish you could get some with transparent soles, that would be even better.

 

When I'm not barefoot it's warm winter boots or sandals.
Sometimes I wear my thighhigh rainbow toe socks too. <3