Barefoot Benefits

I'm just back from the most beautiful weekend which saw me spending time with an old friend sharing good food, beautiful wine and walks on the beach. It was such a delight to escape and just 'be' for a precious couple of days. We were in a lovely old BMW convertible, and with the weather stunningly warm for October were able to pop the roof down and enjoy the sensation of the wind in our hair.

We visited a couple of beaches but ended up at an old favourite. Lestrevet is stunning. We've always known that in summer the sand here is golden and the sea warm, but even in mid-October it didn't fail to impress. We waked and chatted, paddled and splashed before retiring back up the beach. My friend started collecting pebbles and making shapes with them which resulted in the images below.

As it was making this it struck me that the first thing I'd done upon my arrival was to whip off my socks and shoes. I love the feeling of the sand between my toes, and of having me feet immersed in sea water; looking around at the others sharing the beach with us it quickly became evident that I'm not the only one!

What are the benefits of being barefoot?

Firstly feet weren't really designed to be in shoes all the time, though shoes do have their important benefits (protection from infection, damage, cold etc.). As a result the shoes we wear can have a massive impact on the health of our feet, with ill fitting ones potentially causing such things bunions, corns, fungal infections, hammer toes and ingrowing toenails. Then moving up through the body they can be responsible for back, hip and knee pain.

So, its important to 'get 'em off' as much as possible (when its safe to do so of course). In addition to wearing well fitting shoes going barefoot can help avoid the problems listed above. Walking without shoes and socks can help you become more grounded (always welcome in such a stressful world), and can allow the feet a chance to 'breathe', spreading and moving naturally without constriction.