Why I Quit Barefoot Shoes (Not Clickbait) 

Are these the solution to walking on concrete?

Why is this so hard to find? Foot-shaped shoes with cushioned soles?! Altra is the only brand I found and you can't buy it in my county. Yes, I can order them online from overseas, but I don't even know my true size. I have WIDE feet and have worn like 2-3 sizes+ for several years. Barefoot shoes are not an option as I have a painful joint condition and cannot even stand on soft floors without feeling pain in my feet and hips.

I alternate between higher/lower stack height shoes for normal wear & even with my running shoes, but always wear wide toebox; its great having options depending on how your feeling / recovery!

I've come across the same situation. After years of use I have pain almost everyday. Mostly due to me waking on concrete more. I will be continuing to wear wide toe box shoes but will transition to something similar to what you tried out.

The crazy part I started with altras because of the zero drop. And now Lems. But I guess in my situation knowing I’m mostly on cement I figured I would always need more cushion. I thing for everyday shoes they need have more padding. For specific use case like weight lifting and other sports you will need more barefoot less padding shoes. My approach has always been to go gradually first before going all out.

I LOVE my Lone Peaks. I’ve had several pair. From everyday wear, the gym, and plenty of hiking/backpacking, they have been amazing.

I'm 564lbs mentally ill and addicted to cannabis. One day I hope to take up running to lose fat. Seems nice.

Dude you are rolling with your heel first on concrete. It’s supposed to be toes to heel on hard surfaces. The heel to toe is only for walking on grass, forest or very soft surfaces. If you switch that you are fine. I’m a 120kg and I run on concrete all day. If you have the right technique it does not hurt a bit.

About the sizes... your shoe size changes throughout the day. I used to wear 42-43 but i bought my vivo shoes at 44 (even though they were a bit big). Turns out, in the morning (which is when i bought them) they were big, but in the evening they fit me just right. This goes on on your whole body btw. We get "bigger" as the day goes on. Not a big difference for clothes but for shoes it is

My Bahé shoes just arrived yesterday. I ordered them because of your review video 😅 now I will have to try these

You should buy Freet shoes. They are a UK company and use a durable rubber for their soles. My soles last a really long time. I recommend them. I always buy the extra 6mm insoles for extra comfort, it makes them extra comfortable on pavements and stones.

You bought the wrong altras if you’re going for ground feel. They have a plastic shank which takes away from that experience. More protection, less ground feel. The superiors don’t have the shank and will give you less cushion by a few mm. Still wear more comfy than barefoot on tarmac. They actually do a gym shoes aswell called the solstice. (I’ve never used them) The lone peaks have taken the place of my hiking boots, I use them for 15k plus or if it’s really wet out and entering woodlands (got waterproof ones)

In the event that the Altra quality goes down. Try Topo Athletic. I've switched to Topo after seeing my Altra Escalante's wear out after like 4 months of intermediate use.

Thanks for posting this! How many milimeters of sole with insole (total) would you say would be sufficient for support on concrete. I keep seeing this same comment over and over again- that barefoot insoles aren't enough cushion for concrete. I just ordered the Icarus because it has more cushion, 4mm sole plus 4mm insole. I also just ordered some Vivos, but think their thin insoles won't be a good fit for hard surfaces. I'm looking at the Topo brand now. Obviously, I'm just getting started, so thanks so much for underlining this concern.

I have a tip for you. When you're looking for new shoes see if there is an option for wide width it will most likely just say ww then the size. I think that will really help ❤

I can vouch for this shoe. I found the Loan Peaks around 3 years ago when I bought them for trail running. However I didn't get on with them for trail running as the grip is uselss for wet UK trails IMO. BUT they were so comfy to wear, I have used them every day since (on my 3rd pair) as my general shoe. I run in usual shoes with varying drops, but I find wearing the loan peaks for general everyday use has been a game changer. I really think it has helped me stay injury free (touch wood) as it helps to stretch out my achiles and maintain stronger feet. I would recomend these to anyone as you get the benefts of zero drop with lot of cusion. I only wish they did a jet black pair so they look better when wearing to the office. Very comfy and recomend to anyone!

I own hiking shoes, and trail runners but when I bought my latest pair of shoes, got a barefoot shoe. For me the difference is like moving from a sedan to a small SUV. The majority of walking I do on a regular basis is on soft carpeted spaces or patches of paved road/sidewalks and the barefoot I've found is the most comfortable and user friendly for those type of environments. If your life is centred around a modern city, I don't think you need much more.

I'm really trying to get my head around this issue myself as i have knee pain but i've also spent a lot of my working life on my feet. The way i see it is this if you're walking mainly on uneven surfaces such as a builder you'll need a stiff sole to protect your feet from igegulaties in the ground. If you're skipping though meadows or out in the country a lot on a soft surface you may not neeed cushioning underfoot. As most of us live in towns and cities where it rains a lot I would sugest a minimalist sneaker made of leather which can withstand the rain. I think a zero drop height seems nore natural to me but I don't get the naratvie that pointy toed shoes create problems as they don't. I have pointey shaped shoes and I',m not at all resictred in them. If you buy an unstructured shoe with very little heel suport or stucture you will force your foot to adopt to adapt to a bygone past. Wer're not there anymore most walk on conctete and The whole point that shoes developed over timie is times have changed. I've bought five pairs of minimalist trainers which are zero drop quite decent looking and on sale so I'll see how i get on with them. I 'm an older guy I appriciate this chanell and the content this guy has hared with us I just think if you remove your insole and look at your inprint on it that should tell you weather you've bought the right shoe size . I expect most of you have. This idea that your foot ends at the end of you're shoe or boot is ridiculous. I supose it might be appropriate for women width their heels.

Yep I went the same way at least for running. A sort of half half is the vivobarefoot that have a decent tread.

I bought a shoe called Arcus from a swedish company called Wyde Footwear. It is wide at the toe and has some cushion, and it feels better than the other barefoot brands I’ve tried. (For reference my feet are 25.3cm long and 10.3cm across at the toes. I have a narrow midfoot and heel.) My problem with the Arcus is looks awful on me. Too chunky for my short, squat legs. But for long legs and high volume feet, it might look better. I bear with the weird looks because these are the only shoes I’ve tried wide enough at the toe for me.

Very, very interesting. Just bought vivo barefoots, and i live in the city. So im curious about how fast they wear down. Its an expensive hobby probably as we say in dutch.😂

Unless you're a Kenyan or have been wearing barefoot shoes since childhood, its gonna be an extreme shift and not healthy to wear

I use minimalist barefoot sandals for everyday walk and road running, and altra shoes for trail running. I think you should consider road running altra shoes if you want to use altra for daily walk.

I am using the Hykes Pinnacle barefoot shoes and love them.

Every person is different and for the way your shoes age it looks like is something with the way you walk because is always the same spot that got damaged. I do use a wildling shoes to walk on concrete daily with no pain!

Interesting. I have the same thoughts but not about Altra. Joe Nimble "Nimbletoes" - very expensive, ...but I'm thinking of an experiment. Why? Unfortunately, I also walk on asphalt 90 percent of the time.

The Xerox HFS 2 have some padding....so maybe they are a good option.

Not sure if they'd be wide enough for you but maybe try giving the Lems Primal Pursuits a shot. I know you weren't too much of a fan of the Primal Zens but since youre looking for some more cushion now I think the Pursuits would be worth a try. They look better than the Zens imo as well.

If the issue with the barefoot shoes was that the sole wore down, why do you think it took 3 years for you to experience pain? Were you wearing the same pair for all 3 years? Just curious.

Where you felt pain at the ball of your foot by wearing barefoot shoes. Did you get the same pain by wearing Fivefingers that is full freedom for your toes? If you limit your toes while full ground connection at the same time is asking for trouble because it's like lifting heavy weights in a weird angle and you risk injury. I walk on concrete 8 hours a day in my fivefingers with no issue while vivobarefoot hurts me after an hour because the toebox is a bit too narrow for my wide feet. Never got any pain from Realfoot or Softstar either because their toe boxes are the widest ones on the market. It's all in the freedom for the toes and looking how snug you like to wear your shoes, the problem might be there.

Did you order Altra shoes wide or regular size for your wide foot?

Are you still using these? And do you rotate with barefoot shoes or are you done with them?

I don't understand the argument that barefoot shoes should be used on concrete. It's hard to compare it to "the ancestors of people who used to run barefoot all their lives." There was no concrete then, people had a different anatomy of movement, for example, they were shorter. With the development of technology, it is possible to combine the knowledge of healthy movement and comfort. Do not squeeze your toes, however, have some protection from continuous hard ground and choose the right drop.

A lot of times the pain from barefoot shoes is due to calf tightness from the altered striking patterns which pulls the culcanius back and stretches the plantar fascia. Stretching of the lateral calf before walking may help with this if it is the cause. But of course, pain is an ambiguous term and the kind of pain you were encountering could have been from a lot of things including a lack of calcification of the bones. That being said, I have been pain free for the most part wearing vibram 5 fingers for about 12 years so...

Altra's are way better if you take the insole out. Was a game changer for me. Try Lems as well for casual if you like a bit of cushioning.

You should try the Jem green bare foot boots

All I’ve hear about Altra is that their expensive and fall apart very quickly

Really water resistant?

Oh hey, these are straight up what I just commented on on your old video hahaha! There's also Topo, another brand like Altra.

For knee pain. Try Ben Patrick's protocol brother.

If you think barefoot shoes wear out quickly, you’ll be shocked how fast the Lone Peak’s wear out. Mine lasted me about 1 month (approx 500km) before they were completely done!

have you checked out topo

Don’t know about you, but i use ultra-boost as daily driver, never felt better in ma life 👌

Back to heel to toe walking there Pete?

Try topo

You gotta try Lems or a Lems review, they are just as good as altras.

2:09

"Nai-key" ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Y5xWgxmP-S0.htmlsi=5hciLuxMl-BE71Fj

All the same picture

Mistake. I've been using barefoot shoes for 4 years now. Only good things to say and no more painful feet, as long as you walk in a natural way, i.e. the same as you do with no shoes on. No heel striking.

I'm 564lbs mentally ill and addicted to cannabis. One day I hope to take up running to lose fat. Seems nice.