On a sunny morning in Gieten, a reader decides to take his daily walk without shoes. The grass tickles his feet, and he wonders: is this actually healthier than walking with shoes on?
According to the Dutch Association of Podotherapists (NVVP), it is absolutely advisable for healthy people to take out the shoes regularly. “Often shoes do not have the right fit, so that the function of the foot is canceled,” explains functional podiatrist Annabelle Pont. “The foot stiffens, the muscles weaken.”
And something else happens: under your feet are thousands of nerve endings that help with balance, stability and coordination. “Through shoes and socks, those nerves get under stimulated. That is at the expense of their operation.” Her advice is clear: let those feet occasionally feel what they were made for.
Pont has been researching the job recovery of the foot for years. From her practice she developed the Darefoot platform, which focuses on foot training and awareness.
“We are built to walk barefoot, but the world in which we do that has changed. We used to walk thirty to forty kilometers a day barefoot to collect our food. Now we use the car for that. In addition, there is mainly hard floors, and not much on natural surfaces.” That modern living environment sets different demands on our feet. “That is why I argue for a smart approach: stimulate those feet, train them, but gradually build it up.”
Walking barefoot was a hype a few years ago, but according to Pont that phase is now over. “What we see now is a growing group of people who are more aware of their bodies and their feet,” she says.
Yet switching to ‘barefootstyle’ is not just done. “If you have leaned on sturdy shoes and arch supports for years, it takes time to train your feet again. It takes an average of a year to switch completely, and that process is going on and error. Good guidance is essential.”
And you can find that guidance in Meppel, for example. Cor Knipmeijer and Wies van Nuenen help interested there to make the switch to walking barefoot, or to minimalist shoes. That is also called barefoot shoes. Every week they walk together.
Van Nuenen is a specialist in Rug health and sees that, among other things, sneakers can cause back problems. “The heel of a sneaker is getting higher and thicker, so you come up and lean forward. You constantly have to correct your knees and your pelvis and you actually no longer run the way it is ever intended.”
Reporter Wouter Westerveld went along with the weekly walk in Meppel, and also put on the bad shoes: