I’m a big fan of going barefoot, when it’s safe to do so, and especially for children. As a mother and a natural health practitioner, I wrote an article for Kiwiparent magazine titled “Barefoot Babies”. Detailing how our feet and ankles contain sensors that feed information directly into our lower back. This primes their protective inner unit and cues their body to activate appropriately and respond to the terrain that we are on. They also learn natural joint movements. Barefoot time and time spent in fitted and flexible shoes means the child learns to move like a human being.

When wearing shoes, the soles should be flexible through the foot where the body bends in nature. If shoe soles are stiff, the movements are affected all the way up the body. Restricted foot bend can affect the leg positioning, also altered ankle bend, knee bend, hip position, the back and neck can all be affected. This can result in pain, injury from tripping, and altered ways of moving.

Helping my young son

Due to a congenital issue on my part, my son was born with one leg twisted out of position. This meant when he tried to stand he would fall sideways, and this prevented him from walking. It was hard to see, as his mother, but I was really lucky to have skills to help him. Over six weeks of summer when he was just 14 months old I assisted him walking barefoot on a variety of surfaces; grass, pebbles, mud, and hills. I watched his leg correct its own position and become functional. I used safe barefoot walking to drive sensory information into his system, via the information superhighways that take information from the feet and ankles and drive it directly to the nervous system in the lower back. By the end of those six weeks my son was running and his leg was straight. He continues without shoes, whenever it is safe to do so, and now at age 9, he is a powerful runner today.

Using nature to connect

Shoes also alter the information your body receives. For instance, you might walk on a rocky river bed, but your cushioned support shoes report a soft terrain. This mismatch disconnects your body from the environment. It might sound strange but in my field, shoes are often referred to as “little leather coffins” for your feet. The feet are impeded in receiving, so they cannot transmit vital environmental information to your body. Your body is left to do its best, with the limited and faulty information it is getting and your body can be caught off guard. Lack of connection to the environment can increase chances of injury and can make the world seem more dangerous.

I like to take every opportunity to be feeding my body with information about nature and the environment. 

Using ‘down time’ to stimulate and teach my body and reduce the risk of injury, I made a rock mat with river rocks stuck on it.  When I’m at the kitchen sink, doing the dishes, I stand on a special mat that I made with small pebbles from nature on it and love having a good long foot massage while doing the dishes. In the bathroom I have an air cushion at the sink and this gives a different but equally valuable experience. I invest previously wasted time, to bring aliveness back, reduce my risk of injury and increase my ease and interaction in the world. 

What can you do to increase the input into your feet to increase your interaction with the world? My job is to connect clients with their body to identify and experience their strength. At times I work with clients’ bodies to influence foot placement, which being the foundation then helps movement and wellbeing all the way up the body. I work directly with the feet as well, firing up key muscles, to get the feet and core participating in movement. Some conditions like bunions and conditions influenced with a back shift of weight like shin splints and plantar fasciitis respond well. With time spent barefoot, the body becomes more interactive, movements and posture improve and the feeling is one of more aliveness. I love putting the spring back into people’s steps and into life.