Have you ever looked down at your feet, then over at your shoes, and had that funny realization that most shoes are not shaped like feet?
If your conventional shoes are making your feet hurt, try barefoot shoes! They are shoes shaped like feet.
Problems with conventional shoes with tapered toe boxes
Most conventional shoes taper at the toes. They take the general shape of a triangle, and come to a point in the middle. The toe box is narrow and symmetrical, like the photos show below.
Here, the big toe cannot lie straight. It’s forced to deviate towards the center, and the rest of the toes get squished together too. A wide, natural toe splay is essential to our balance and overall foot health, and this is compromised in a traditional tapered shoe.
Tapered toe boxes can cause a number of problems, including bunions, ingrown toe nails, hammertoes, and bunnionettes. They also change our natural walking gait, and can lead to other problems throughout the rest of body including our back, hips and legs.
Shoes shaped like feet
When I look at my baby’s feet, they are widest at the toes. And now that I’ve stopped cramming my toes together in narrow, triangular-shaped shoes, mine are regaining this natural, healthy shape as well.
My toes are also not symmetrical. Most feet have either the first or second toe as the longest toe. So when I’m looking for healthy shoes shaped like feet, I want them to have a wide toe box that allows my big toe to lie straight and enough space for all of my toes to properly splay. Essentially, I’m looking for a shoe shaped like my feet.
There’s been a movement around making and wearing shoes that reflect the natural foot-shape– they can be called a lot of different things, but most often go by the term barefoot shoes. Sometimes they’re called minimalist shoes, functional footwear, or even just shoes with a wide toe box. Here are a few examples of barefoot shoes:
Learn more about foot-shaped shoes on this blog
If you’re new to the world of shoes shaped like feet (aka minimalist shoes aka barefoot shoes) and want to learn more, then you’re in the right place! I’m here as your barefoot shoe guide to discover comfortable shoes and develop healthy feet. Here is an outline of what you can learn on this blog:
- Get the basics of foot-shaped shoes with these Frequently Asked Questions about Barefoot Shoes
- Tips on how to transition to barefoot shoes
- How to pick your first pair of barefoot shoes
- How to measure your feet for barefoot shoes
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