t.com Archive-Name: barefoot-faq/part1 ================================================================ SECTION 1: Introduction and table of contents ================================================================ DOCUMENT: Frequently-Asked-Questions for alt.lifestyle.barefoot AUTHOR: Paul J. Lucas http://www.best.com/~pjl (with contributions from fellow barefooters) COPYRIGHT: Copyright (C) 1994,1995 Paul J. Lucas. Permission to copy all or part of this work is granted, provided that the copies are not made or distributed for resale (except a nominal copy fee may be charged) and provided that the AUTHOR, COPYRIGHT, and NO WARRANTY sections are retained verbatim and are displayed conspicuously. If anyone needs other permissions that aren't covered by the above, please contact the author. NO WARRANTY: THIS WORK IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS. THE AUTHOR PROVIDES NO WARRANTY WHATSOEVER, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THE WORK, INCLUDING WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO ITS MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. ftp://ftp.best.com/pub/pjl/alb/FAQ with archive mirrors at: http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/barefoot- faq/part1/faq. html and also available from the author directly. SLOGAN: Set your feet free and your mind will follow. ================================================================ SUBSECTION 1A: Table of Contents ================================================================ SECTION 2: Why? Q1: Why walk barefoot? Q2: Doesn't it hurt? Q3: What about broken glass? Q4: What about hot surfaces, e.g., asphalt? Q5: Isn't is gross with all the dirt? Q6: Don't toughened soles lose feeling? SECTION 3: Health Q7: Is it actually healthy to go barefoot? Q8: How do I get my feet in shape? Q9: What should I do if I get a blister? Q10: What about catching diseases? Q11: Should I walk differently when barefoot? Q12: What can I do if I develop "cracks" in my soles? SECTION 4: Getting by in a Shod World Q13: What can I say to passers-by if they make a comment? Q14: Is it legal to drive barefoot? Q15: Why don't many stores permit bare feet? Q16: Which stores do permit bare feet? Q17: What do you wear when you are forced to wear shoes? Q18: Is there such a thing as soleless footwear? SECTION 5: Reference Q19: Is there anything published about bare feet? Q20: Are there barefoot groups? ================================================================ SECTION 2: Why? ================================================================ Q1: Why walk barefoot? The simplest of answers: Because it feels good! Having your feet free of confining, hot, sweaty, uncomfortable shoes, open to the air, able to _feel_ as you walk, able to wiggle your toes, is _wonderful_! It is one life's most simple pleasures. It's completely natural to walk barefoot. In fact, it is quite healthy and good for your feet to do so. (See Q7.) Additionally, there's something to be said for the "barefoot aesthetic." Bare feet on a person just plain look attractive! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q2: Doesn't it hurt? This is almost a silly question. The obvious answer is no. We are not masochists. Again, walking barefoot feels _good_! Occasionally, you do step on something uncomfortable and it especially hurts if it presses into the soft arch. But stepping on uncomfortable things is greatly reduced by doing one simple thing: Watch where you're going! You ordinarily do this to avoid walking into fire hydrants, deep puddles, etc., anyway. But, despite watching where you're going, you will still step on something uncomfortable eventually. That's life and you just have to accept it. Do you know how many times I've injured my hands in my lifetime? (Getting fingers caught in doors, smashed by hammers, sliced by knives, burned, knuckles scraped, for example.) Nobody thinks, "This would not have happened if I wore gloves." You have to have the same mind-set about your feet and not think that you ought to have worn shoes because you injured them. The injuries are few an far between and the intervening pleasure of going barefoot far outweighs them. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q3: What about broken glass? Yes, broken glass exists, but it is not "all over the place" even on city streets. Unless it's a recent breakage, it gets kicked/swept into cracks, against walls, or right against curbs and isn't strewn about. For the little glass that does remain, again, just watch where you're going! But, for the seasoned barefooter with tough, thick soles, broken glass is not a problem even if you step directly on it. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q4: What about hot surfaces, e.g., asphalt? [The following paragraph was contributed by Neil Kelley .] The actual temperature of a surface depends on a number of factors such as how dark or how efficiently the surface absorbs the sun's UV and IR radiation. A surface that appears very dark to the eye may not be as dark in the infrared. Also, the surface temperature can be affected by how much the soil below conducts heat away from the top layer. The better the conduction, the lower the surface temperature. Therefore, you can't look for what you might hope is a cooler surface based on its color. In general, for me, most asphalt is either pleasantly warm or at or at least tolerably hot _unless_ the ambient air temperature is 90F or over _and_ it's mostly sunny. In such cases, there isn't much you can do. [The following paragraph was contributed by Ross Thompson .] On particularly hot days, I will go from shade patch to shade patch, and hang out until the burn subsides before continuing. One trick I've learned is that if you walk briskly, then the time your foot is in the air is enough to dissipate a lot of the heat absorbed during the previous step. Also, if you concentrate on the foot that's in the air, you will be focusing on where the heat is dissipating, not where it is accumulating. This gives you a psychological edge. Note: Prolonged exposure to hot surfaces can cause burns and blistering; pain is an indicator that tissue damage is not far behind. However, some barefooters report that, through gradual acclimation, one can greatly increase one's resistance to hot surfaces. Tip: When you cross at intersections, the white stop-lines are cooler; you can walk on those. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q5: Isn't it gross with all the dirt? It depends on your point of view. Personally, I don't think so. Walking barefoot is natural and dirty soles are the natural result. It is to be expected. Your body sweats and your hair becomes oily. So your soles get dirty...so what? Ever play sports or engage in any other prolonged physical activity? You still do it even though you will get dirty and sweaty. A shower later and you're clean. Walking barefoot is the same thing. Personally, I can't stand sweaty, smelly feet which is what you get if you wear shoes: to me, _that's_ gross. But other barefooters I know and I myself actually think it's _fun_ and cool to get dirty feet, as black as you can possibly get them. You can have "Black Sole" contests with your friends. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q6: Don't toughened soles lose feeling? [Contributed by Mike Berrow .] Most barefooters don't get really thick and hard callouses. More usually, the sole simply becomes thicker while retaining flexibility (not really stiff or hard). The actual degree of toughness seems to vary a lot among barefooters. Any slight reduction in sensitivity due to thickening is more than compensated for by continued development of the sensory receptors in the soles (possibly also the relevant part of the brain). Did you ever get too much wax (or some water) in your ear for a while and then when you get it out all sounds seemed to be really LOUD? If you did, you'll understand the following: For some, when they first start going barefoot, the ground is too "loud" -- it's like listening to a lot of unpleasant noise. After a while, however, your body adjusts and you begin to "hear the music." Really, if we couldn't feel the ground, that would take away a large part of the pleasure of walking barefoot. We enjoy everything from the "rough, scratchy" feeling of gravel to the soft, damp moss on fallen trees. Many of the sensations are nothing short of delicious! ================================================================ SECTION 3: Health ================================================================ Q7: Is is actually healthy to go barefoot? Very much so. I quote from the following article published in Women's Sports & Fitness, August 1994 issue: A recent study demonstrates that the skin on the soles of your feet resists abrasions and blistering and that going barefoot is _beneficial_ to the musculoskeletal structure of your feet and ankles. ... Kicking off your shoes can help prevent a host of foot injuries: bunions, heel spurs, and bone deformities, among others. "Shoes act like casts, holding the bones of the foot so rigid that they can't move fluidly," [Steven] Robbins [MD and adjunct associate professor of mechanical engineering at Concordia University, Montreal] explains. "The foot becomes passive from wearing shoes and loses the ability to support itself." ... -- Cheryl Sacra Some people hold the ignorant view that human feet are somehow uniquely inadequate among all the Earth's creatures and that they need support and protection. Nonsense. The human race could not have survived and flourished if the human foot were somehow "flawed" and thus incapable of being bare. Evolution (or God, depending on your beliefs) has provided well. The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art. -- Leonardo da Vinci Additional info: Barefoot populations universally have a very low incidence of running "overuse" injuries, despite very high activity levels. In contrast, such injuries are very common in shod populations, even for activity levels well below "overuse." ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q8: How do I get my feet in shape? Walk barefoot. Walk barefoot some more. Go barefoot everywhere you can. Your soles, foot muscles, ligaments, and tendons are like any other parts of your body: you have to use them to develop them, otherwise they will atrophy. Note that you wouldn't need to build up your feet if you went barefoot from birth as nature intended. What you're actually doing by "building them up" is getting them _back_ to their natural state. Regardless of whether you have been mostly barefoot since birth, you can still build up your feet -- there is no such thing as a permanent tenderfoot. Walking on gravel is an _excellent_ way to develop the soles of your feet quickly. A few jaunts daily will thicken and toughen your soles in a few weeks. (It is within the realm of human capability to _run_ barefoot on even the most punishing gravel.) --------------------------------------------------------------- Q9: What should I do if I get a blister? Once your feet are in good shape, I would be _very_ surprised if you ever got a blister from walking barefoot. Blisters are caused by continual rubbing in the _same_ spot over and over; while walking barefoot, your soles get rubbed all over and no one "hotspot" develops. But, should you "over-do" you barefoot training and get a blister, you can follow the procedure below. [Note: I am not an MD and the following does not constitute medical advice. It is my own personal experience and is what works for me.] What worked for _me_ when I used to get blisters was to lance the blister with a sterilized needle and squeeze the fluid out. Leave the flabby skin on! If the blister is small, it may "reattach"; if not, it will protect the soft, "virgin" skin under it until it becomes harder. Then, after a few days if is does not reattach, carefully trim it off with a small pair of scissors or a nail-cutter in a chopping manner. After treating a blister, the the best thing to do, believe it or not, is to walk barefoot more! (You _did_ leave the skin on, right?) Your body will recognize the "need" for thicker skin and this will help prompt the skin to reattach. A blister, if you followed the above procedure, will get to the point where you don't notice it in under a week. You will still see a "crater" for up to 3 weeks, though. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q10: What about catching diseases? Athlete's Foot (fungus): It makes its home on warm, moist (sweaty) feet. If you go barefoot, the perspiration from your feet evaporates just like it does from the rest of your body; your feet then remain cool and dry in the open air. The fungus can not survive under these conditions. Therefore, going barefoot will _cure_ athlete's foot. Hookworm (parasite): This is almost entirely confined to tropical, third-world countries where people habitually walk in soil contaminated by the excrement of infected humans and domestic animals. In the 1940s, hookworm occurred in some regions of the southern USA but has largely disappeared even there thanks to improved sanitation. The chance of getting hookworm from barefoot hiking on trails in a temperate region such as North America or Europe is very small. Hookworm is easily treatable with vermifuges such as tetrachloroethylene: its prevalence in tropical regions is largely a matter of public health, due to poor sanitation and lack of access to medical facilities. Ringworm (fungus: this has nothing to do with worms--it's a misnomer): The same text about Athlete's Foot applies for Ringworm. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q11: Should I walk differently when barefoot? No, but some people do not walk properly to begin with. You should walk by placing most of your weight on the balls of your feet (the pads in the front behind your toes) rather than your heels. Heels are rigid and many people "slam" them into the ground, "shocking" the legs and knees. Instead, while you should still make your heels touch the ground first, you should shift most of your weight forward onto the balls of your feet. The balls are flexible and will "mold" to the contour of the surface; they also have a wider surface area to better distribute your body's weight. Once you get used to walking this way, it will become natural for you. Aside on foot anatomy: The above shows off one of the most beautiful and functional aspects of the human foot: the arch. Just like the arch of a bridge, the arches of your feet "carry" your weight across from your heels to the balls of your feet where it can better be distributed. Structurally speaking, an arch is extremely strong. As for walking barefoot, you should _always_ step down and never slide or shuffle your feet. If perchance you do step on something uncomfortable or sharp, you will notice before you place your full weight down. Sliding your feet puts them as risk of being gashed, getting splinters if walking on wood, etc. You ought to slide or shuffle your feet only when you úÿ _know_ the surface you're dealing with. Carpeting or tile floors do feel nice. There is one technique that contradicts the above advice. When walking through prickly, dried grasses, you can put your feet down, but, within the last couple of inches, sweep them sideways in a semicircular fashion. This will knock over the grass and you'll step on the sides rather than the pointy ends. Doing this does increase your risk of them being gashed, however. (Hey, you can't have everything.) In time, you will develop a "sixth sense" about placing your feet since your soles are a wonderful sensory organ. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q12: What can I do if I develop "cracks" in my soles? Sometimes, parts of your soles can become too thick and the callus can crack which is often painful. This generally happens around the edges of your heels. To prevent the cracks in the first place, file some of the callus with pumice from the edges _only_ and use skin lotion or Bag Balm* to keep the _edges_ supple. Do it just after you trim your toenails; this is a good frequency. That's all the maintenance bare feet need! ---------- * Bag Balm is a lotion/paste product that contains a mild antiseptic (0.3% 8-hydroxyquinoline sulfate in a petroleum, lanolin base). It's made by the Dairy Association Company of Lyndonville, VT, 05851, and comes in a 10 oz., 2.5" square green tin with the red letters "Bag Balm" and a picture of a cow and flowers on it. Its intended purpose is to treat cow's udders to keep them supple and to ward off infection. As such, it's strictly a veternary product, but it appears people have been using it for years with success; so much so that it's available at Walgreens and other drug stores. (I don't think too many Walgreens' customers have cows.) ================================================================ SECTION 4: Getting by in a Shod World ================================================================ Q13: What can I say to passers-by if they make a comment? If it's just a comment, ignoring them is always an option. If they ask a question, ignoring them is still an option. However, being polite sometimes helps and some barefooters have gotten into some interesting conversations. Maybe you can even make a few converts! The responses get nastier or weirder the farther down the list they are. It depends on your mood at the time. (Some of the responses can be used in response for more than one remark.) + You're barefoot! - You're not! - You're observant! - You're right! - Thanks for the tip. - No shit, Sherlock. + Why aren't you wearing shoes? - Don't like 'em. - They make my feet sweat/stink. - My feet like the fresh air. - My feet were hot. - One less thing to do in the morning. - Why aren't you wearing gloves [hat]? - To annoy people like you. - Why do you care? - I'm allergic to them. - I'm not wearing a tie either. - I'm off-duty. - I'm opposed to wasting petrochemicals/leather. - I'm performing a scientific foot-toughening experiment. - If I don't keep in contact with the ground, I build up a static charge. - My feet were jealous of my hands. - I'll give you three-thousand guesses. - They are a conspiracy by multi-national plastic and leather merchants. - I knew I had forgotten something! + Why are you barefoot? - I like the way it feels. - It's much more comfortable. - I think it looks cool. - I want to toughen my feet. - It's good for my feet. - Because feet are beautiful. - It gives me this wonderful feeling of freedom. - I want keep in touch with the earth. - Because I'm not wearing shoes [duh!]. - Try and work it out. - Because I m not concerned with your contempt. - Dunno. - Because you don't pay my salary. - I'm in a time-warp from the '60s. + Where are your shoes? - At home [where they belong]. - I don't know. [Have you seen them?] - Somewhere else. - What do you mean? These are God's Reeboks. - On vacation. - Don't have any. - My what? - What are shoes? - Up there. [Said while pointing up.] - Aliens took them. + Aren't your feet cold? - Not unduly. - No...My feet are _cool_! - Obviously not. - Aren't your feet hot? + Nice shoes. - Thanks. - Very comfortable too. - Do you like them? My parents made them for me. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q14: Is it legal to drive barefoot? YES!!! (At least in the United States and England; I don't know about other countries.) The statement to the contrary is urban folklore and believed by so many people, even some police officers. However, if you call either your local or state police and ask them, they will say it's legal. If the cop on the phone says otherwise, ask him/her to give you the statute number. S/he won't be able to and then will admit their mistake. One guy actually did write to all 50 states asking the question. All the letters he received back are available via anonymous ftp from: ftp://cathouse.org/pub/cathouse/urban.legends/legal/driving.barefoot ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q15: Why don't many stores permit bare feet? There are a few reasons: 1. Mind-set. Some store-owners have hangups about bare feet for absolutely no good reason. Many people are brainwashed into thinking you _need_ to wear shoes. They just can't handle the concept of bare feet out on the streets. People tend to dislike what they don't understand. Note that mind-set varies with locale: In the Chicago area, for example, many large chain stores and supermarkets forbid bare feet. If you go to warmer climates like California or Florida, barefooted people are much more common so nobody thinks anything of it. Also, if store-owners chased out barefooted customers, they'd be doing that all day long. On a more global scale, countries like Australia and New Zealand are _very_ barefoot friendly. Many, many people go barefoot regularly everywhere. Nobody cares and they think it's completely natural (which it is). 2. Alleged health laws. I have written to my township and my county and state health departments. There are _no_ laws stating that customers may not be barefoot in _any_ kind of store _including_ food-service establishments. I know others in other states who have done the same research: nothing. I know a guy who complained to the health department in CA about McDonalds displaying the sign, "No Bare Feet by Order of the Department of Health." It turned out that McDonald's removed the signs (in CA) and wrote a letter of apology to guy who complained! For an exercise, I called the headquarters of a large supermarket chain in the Chicago area. The woman on the phone was just as ignorant: she thought it was illegal to go barefoot into stores. I asked her to give me the statute number (knowing full well that she couldn't because it doesn't exist). She said she'd have to call me back. She actually did and told me that there is no law, but it's their "store policy." Of course, the bottom line is that a store-owner can refuse to serve you for any reason so long as it isn't sex, race, religion, veteran status, sexual orientation, etc, etc. Bare feet, unfortunately, are not "covered" by anti- discrimination laws. But you can spend your dollars elsewhere. As an aside, what does _health_ have to do with it? Do they sell food off the floor? Yes, when I go barefoot, the soles of my feet get very dirty...so what? Are shoe-soles any cleaner? Dirt is dirt. At least I wash myself daily which is most likely more than people wash the soles of their shoes. 3. Broken glass. Store-owners are so afraid that you will step on broken glass and sue them, that they just forbid bare feet altogether. In one respect, this is a ridiculous thing to say. For avid barefooters, broken glass is not too much of a problem. The soles of my feet are _very_ thick and tough, the way they are naturally supposed to be. I rarely injure myself with broken glass. The store-owners, however, don't realize this. In another respect, I do have some sympathy for them. The USA is, by far, the most "sue-happy" country in the world. And the worst part is that dumb-ass juries enable people to win! Did you hear about that ridiculous case where a woman sued McDonalds because their coffee is too hot? She _won_! The store-owners are just protecting themselves. (It's a coincidence that I'm using McDonalds as an example again. They are a popular chain after all.) Even if I were to cut myself, I would not sue. I am a big boy and realize the possible consequences of my actions and realize that most things that happen to me are _my_ fault. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q16: Which stores do permit bare feet? Despite the above answer, there are many stories you can go barefoot to. From my personal experience: most any (non-chain) shop in a strip mall, Baskin Robbins, laundromats, pizza joints to pick up your pizza, the Post Office, Subway, video stores, among others. I try to give these places my business. No shirt, no shoes, no money! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q17: What do you wear when you are forced to wear shoes? Soft-soled (treadless) moccasins: there's just a thin layer of leather between you and the ground. Unfortunately, they don't work well when they get wet since they absorb water. For wet conditions, Birkenstocks. (I don't like rubber-soled Tevas because they make my feet sweat and _stink_ -- kind of against the whole point of wearing sandals.) I was able to find soft-soled moccasins at a western-clothing store. Another source is described below. [The following was contributed by Don Weber .] Soft soled moccasins may be purchased from Tandy Leather Company. If there is no store near you, then request a catalog from: Tandy Leather Company Advertising Department Box 791 Fort Worth, TX 76101 They are a bargain at under $10. They come in the form of a kit that you sew together yourself with shoe laces. It's easy because the holes are already punched for you. Make sure you get the ones without those stupid hard soles stitched to them. The foam insole can easily be ripped out as well. [Another good thing about soft-soled moccasins is that they can be folded up and easily stuffed into a fanny-pack. This way, you don't have to carry shoes, but you have them in case you are forced to wear them.] * * * [Don also likes Knoppy Birkenstocks.] Super Knoppy Birkenstocks may be ordered from any store that sells Birkenstocks. They rarely stock Super Knoppies because very few customers order them. Think of them as a sandal with very wide, but blunt and rounded, plastic nails sticking up from the footbed. These "nails" are called "knops." They breath better than any soled footware I know. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q18: Is there such a thing as soleless footwear? Yes -- three items that I know of. The first are "Bare Bottoms" or soleless sandals. You can get them from: Name: Bare Bottoms Catalog No.: 21488 Supplier: American Science & Surplus 3605 Howard Street Skokie, IL 60076 Hours: M-F 8:00am-5:30pm (central time) Phone: (708) 982-0870 Fax: (800) 934-0722 Colors: dark brown, light brown Price: $1.00/pkg (2 pair) Payment: Check (continental US only), MO, MC/VISA From the description: A pair of 1/2" x 33" leather straps with a buckle on one end and a couple of small slits with brass studs along the way. The idea was to thread the strap around your big toe and arch passing through the slits on the way. Viola! Something that looked like a sandal but wasn't. Perfect to get into a "No shoes, No service" spot. Made in 1967 for the anti- establishment soleless folks. A GIF is available showing them being modeled (by me) from: ftp://ftp.best.com/pub/pjl/alb/barebots.gif The second are "Hawaiian Sno-Shoes," also a type of soleless sandal. These are more intricate than Bare Bottoms. They look around your "index toe" and your ankle. A catalog of these, in various styles and colors, may be obtained by writing to: Hawaiian Sno-Shoes Beach Hut 125 500 B Monroe Turnpike Monroe, CT 06468 The third are "Barefoot Gaiters," leather coverings for the tops of your feet and your arches: the toes, balls, and heels of your feet remain bare. These are good for warmth. If you can't get these ready-made, a good leather crafter can make them for you inexpensively. Or, if you would like to make them yourself, there are detailed instructions on pp. 74-78 of The Barefoot Hiker (see the Reference section). ================================================================ SECTION 5: Reference ================================================================ Q19: Is there anything published about bare feet? Yes. An excellent book: Title: The Barefoot Hiker Author: Richard K. Frazine Publisher: Ten-Speed Press Year: 1993 ISBN: 0-89815-525-8 Price: $7.95 US Order direct: 1-800-841-BOOK It's a "how-to" book on barefoot hiking, a _very_ pleasurable experience. You get to _feel_ the ground, soft soil, grass, fuzzy moss, and mud squishing between your toes. But it's also on bare feet in general, thoughts, perceptions, attitudes, etc. It's a great little book...and at $7.95, it's a bargain. [See Q20 for information on how to contact Richard.] ---------------------------------------------------------------- Q20: Are there barefoot groups? Yes. There are a group of barefooters on the net: * * * The Dirty Sole Society, of which I am a member, is a group of folks who prefer life unshod. There is a "recruiting" ad posted monthly to alt.lifestyle.barefoot and to other groups. Watch for it! Or, you just write me. An excerpt from the ad: Real-life stories, experiences, trip-reports, thoughts, feelings, and tips having to do with bare feet and barefootin' as well as upcoming barefoot-related events are the sort of material we discuss. They also have their own World-Wide-Web page: http://www.best.com/~pjl/dss/ that, among other things, has trip reports along with photos. * * * The Barefoot Hikers are groups of folks who prefer to hike barefoot so they can _feel_ the ground. There are three groups that I know of: the original one in Thomaston, CT led by Richard Frazine himself: Barefoot Hikers 50 Leigh Avenue Thomaston, CT 06787 Don Weber also has one in Durham, NC; Mike Berrow has one in the East San Francisco Bay region. úÿ * * * Windjammer Barefoot Cruises is a company that has cruises on masted sailing ships wherein you are _encouraged_ to go barefoot the entire time. How about that? A vacation especially for barefooters! Write them for more information or surf over to http://www.windjammer.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------- END OF DOCUMENT -- - Paul J. Lucas (avid barefooter) .oooO Oooo. http://www.best.com/~pjl/ ( ) ( ) Maintainer: alt.lifestyle.barefoot FAQ \ ( ) / Set your feet free and your mind will follow. \_) (_/