by April Wilson

Created on: January 19, 2010

"Barefoot" shoes have become a new talking point.  For years podiatrists have given people shoes with special orthotics and inserts and yet, those people's feet and joint issues don't get better.  Runners use shoes with more and more gadgets on them, and yet... they still get injured.  What we are coming to learn is that the human foot is meant to be free.  We are the only animal in the animal kingdom that wears shoes, aside from dogs, but that's the fault of the owners who put them in shoes and outfits trying to make them furry little people.

The human foot is really meant to be barefoot, so that our feet can properly sense and interact with the ground, thereby ultimately protecting our joints, having a more natural gait, and better posture.  However, we don't live in a barefoot world.  We live in a world where people spill unidentifiable liquids wherever they please, drop trash, leave gum and candy on the ground, throw down broken bottles, etc.  Clearly the actions of people whose bare feet don't have to walk on those surfaces.  If we were all barefoot the litter problem would go way down.  Barefoot people are dirty? They aren't the ones littering.

So I'm really going somewhere with this, I promise.  Here is the thing... we don't live in a barefoot world, as good as that would ultimately be for our feet.  Plus there is weather to contend with. Hot pavement and cold winters will make most people wear shoes.  The ideal situation then is to find the closest shoe to barefoot you can find.  Meaning, no super thick soles and cushions. Nothing that impedes your ability to feel the ground underneath you. 

The "most" barefoot shoe out there is called the Vibram Fivefingers.  However, Vibrams are like if shoes and toe socks got together and had a baby.  The toes are individually separated on these glove-like shoes, and some people call the shoes "monkey feet."  Most people aren't brave enough to step out in some Vibrams (though I will be in the Spring). So if you can't go barefoot and you won't be caught out in Vibrams, Vivo Barefoot Shoes are for you.  (Yes, I finally made my way around to the actual topic of the review.)

Vivo Barefoot shoes are comfortable, simple, and fairly affordable as these things go.  They are made by a company called Terra Plana and can be purchased at terraplana.com.  Vivo Barefoot follows the same "better to be barefoot" philosophy. 

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