Barefoot shoes won’t fix your feet.
The whole point of barefoot shoes is to help you restore the natural ability, strength, and spring ability of your feet.
But that won’t happen if you put on your barefoot shoes and then simply walk around on flat surfaces all day.
While this will prevent further damage that would be done by traditional shoes, it won’t really change anything for you.
To see real progress and gain back your natural ability, you need to give them a real challenge to make them adapt.
Now of course challenging them while being barefoot or in barefoot shoes is the way to go.
For strength,
balance on one foot, and if that is easy, try it on your toes, or on narrower beams.
Try different shapes and forms with weights to make it even more challenging.
For springiness of the arches,
try jogging and jump roping. Make sure to do this in barefoot shoes if the surface is too hot or you’re new and don’t want the rope to get stuck between your toes.
For general mobility,
the best thing you can do is ditch the cushioned shoes and walk, jump and move around on uneven surfaces. This will allow your feet to feel more, connect and find the micro dosage of muscle tension required to restore mobility.
Know that there are no shortcuts, barefoot shoes are not a magic pill that will solve all your problems, but they are your best bet if you want to restore your natural ability to move and use your feet.
Try them when you get a chance and keep moving!