Strength From the Ground Up (Fix Your Feet First)

[@barefootstrength]

The Barefoot Strength Academy: bfs.fit

[@natalieminnis]

I am also a keen hillwalker, and I often do the "toe splay exercise" after taking my boots off following a big walk, simply because it feels good. I always feel it helps to prevent cramp in the legs too - having watched your video I can see why this might be the case.

[@RainBoxRed]

Could you just walk barefoot?

[@natalieminnis]

@@RainBoxRed Not in the Scottish hills! There are some areas where I've definitely thought about trying it though, once the weather improves.

[@programystic]

What a great piece of knowledge! Thank you, it adds a lot to my understanding of feet.

[@terwils7492]

Another great video. Short Foot taught by Dr. Emily Splichal is also excellent for foot arch strengthening.

[@barefootstrength]

Yes, we teach short foot in our academy. It serves as the foundational foot shape for all our weight bearing exercises.

[@MelodicMethod]

your videos are always super helpful, thanks!

[@barefootstrength]

Awesome to hear 😁Thank you for your feedback, and your continued support 🙏

[@angiedamian681]

Thank you so much for such an informative info. More power!

[@m1kmain]

this is something new to me

[@barefootstrength]

What was the most significant takeaway for you from the video?

[@michelemarch8606]

Very interested in learning more! If toe splay can make glutes fire better, perhaps knee and hip joints would align better and perhaps less need for joint replacements.

[@barefootstrength]

The knees are interesting because they are influenced by both foot and glute function. Consequently, if they are dysfunctional, the knees are affected from both sides. We plan to do some content next year on knee injuries.

[@jamessmithers4456]

Thank you. Very informative

[@barefootstrength]

Thank you for the feedback 🙏🙏

[@kathywratt7790]

Very informative - just what i needed to view as i have bunions that ache by the end of the day. Will give all the exercises an other recommendations a go. Thank you.

[@barefootstrength]

It’s a pleasure! Let us know how you get along!

[@natalieminnis]

I'm a keen climber, and climbing shoes usually constrict the toes. The more advanced the level of climbing, the more constricting the fit of the shoes recommended. Yet climbers need to have strong and flexible legs and feet. I have looked for climbing shoes with a wide toebox, but I don't think they exist. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this.

[@Parmesito]

Have you tried the five finger shoes for climbing? You can have a tight fit but with toes free?

[@natalieminnis]

@@Parmesito Yes - I bought them to try climbing in them. It was a disaster! They have no grip.

[@RainBoxRed]

Saltic Eliots

[@gemacquah4135]

Keep it up brotha.

[@barefootstrength]

Thanks my brother 🙏 We will try our best 😁

[@gemacquah4135]

@@barefootstrength Yes you can - keep it up.

[@gardenballer6619]

Very cool , very fascinating

[@mikebitcoin2024]

Using the fact that newborns have wide toe splay as an argument for why it's good is a bad argument. Newborns are also born with soft skulls and are colorblind.

[@mikebitcoin2024]

Also, the difference in hamstring/glute activity between toes being splayed vs. pushed together is statistically insignificant.

[@ettanelo6509]

Nice. Thanks.

[@barefootstrength]

Most welcome 🙏

[@airstreamer]

It has not occurred to me to strength train with toe separators on! Do you recommend walking with the toe separators on toes inside a barefoot shoe? Michelle

[@barefootstrength]

Yes, definitely. But the shoes have to be wide enough to accommodate them. Not all barefoot shoes have enough width. Another option is to wear five-finger shoes, which are designed to splay the toes. They are not everyone’s taste, but are my personal favorites for walking and running.

[@airstreamer]

@@barefootstrength Great! Thank you. We have been doing this in our xero shoes. It seems to really help with feeling more whole and having less pain.

[@RainBoxRed]

Anya's Reviews for all you need to know about barefoot shoes and they're widths.

[@DevelopingNL]

So Vibram Five Fingers is a great way to work your feet?

[@barefootstrength]

Five-Fingers are like having barefoot shoes with built-in toe spacers. For this reason they are the shoes I choose to wear most often while training.

[@pascalepei7708]

Enjoy your videos a lot. When i explained this to my friend, she said she is born with flat feet, is there anyway to rebuild her arch?

[@barefootstrength]

Thank you 🙏 Everyone is born with flat feet, and the arch starts developing properly a few years later. However, some individuals are genetically predisposed to having lower arches compared to others. The crucial aspect is to maintain the arch you have while walking and running. If the arch collapses further during physical activity, it indicates foot weakness rather than genetic predisposition. We cover this concept in detail here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eIa4i3dnjbejpZIsi=LkWPpHq-pD_0aHrw

[@RainBoxRed]

Don't worry about the arch at all. Do all the other things (barefoot shoes, strengthening, stretching) and the arches will build themselves as required for a healthy foot.

[@crimsoncat2]

hey man, can you check your newsletter system? It doesn't seem to work properly, I'm not receiving anything in my mail box. btw, thank you for the good info!

[@barefootstrength]

Hey thanks for your feedback 🙏 are you trying to get one of our guides? Have you checked if it perhaps went to spam? Please let me know 🙏

[@crimsoncat2]

@@barefootstrength They were sent to the promotion folder, I found them.🙏 Thank you! I whitelisted your newsletter now.

[@barefootstrength]

@crimsoncat2 you’re a legend!! Thank you very much 🙏🙏 reply to any one of those emails if you need anything. I would be happy to help 😁

[@surya_mahalingu_19]

Very helpful full

[@dylanfors9970]

15:04 buddy's toes look like they have no circulation 😅

[@thomashall7035]

I love how this channel goes against so much accepted wisdom on feet. Quick question though- my son suffers from flat feet, and while bare foot shoes have really helped (Vivo are making a killing from my household right now!), he's not got on at all well with spacers, as they simply seem to push the smaller toes even further round- leaving the big toe out of alignment. Any ideas more than welcome. Many thanks for you good work!

[@radnasirhill]

So following what you have said, if the foot size would match the body size in strength it will be in level. I mean if the bodybuilder upper body grows 3 times his feet should also grow in that ratio, but if not there is nothing he can do only use those straps. Logical enough?

[@radnasirhill]

I have had a dispute with to runner coach about the importance of the feet size in Olympic sports, would you be interested to know more about none fair play in running by Olympic committee?

[@jeffverveen]

Five fingers function as built in toe spacers. Prepare for your feet to be "ruined" for regular footwear.

[@jlbeeen]

I've been wearing them for just over 10 years now, and I love them! Unfortunately I didn't focus enough on actually strengthening my legs, so I'm having issues again. They still help a lot, as I have flatter feet due to a genetic condition.

[@skryptre]

​@@jlbeeendo you also have ehlers danlos? Ive used bandanas as toe spacers for years now, immense improvement since an episode of bursa inflammation so extreme I needed a cane and air cast for months in 2020/21

[@andrewhall6695]

The feet are much stronger than that I can move 1.5 times my body weight with my big toes Do exercises with toe spacers to strengthen the individual toes.All the fascia connects to the plantar fascia In my country people with strong feet one can see the impression of their toes and arches through regular shoes when they walk in soft surfaces The foot and hand are structurally the and ur lifting over 500 lbs with the hand and the foot has stronger connecting muscles The feet are subjected to several times the bodyweight with each step when running

[@srilakshmiraju600]

Where can I buy toe spacerd

[@barefootstrength]

You can find the toe spacers we recommend here: bfs.fit/products-we-use

[@anamorphicalan]

hi I love your content Chris, I checked website for shoes. is there function to find shoes that accept toe spacers? I current wear toe corrector's with my Ashina Jena, it spreads too much cramps my last toe. do. you know shoes that accept toe corrector's that are unisex? I was thinking to check Ashina chic 44 with toe corrector or Ashina vegan slip on m 44 with toe corrector, but I am size 43 man. thank you for info from barefoot lover in china. btw when you need help with barefoot I will to help. I am also videographer collaborating with barefoot/fashion shoe companies in china.

[@hastyscorpion]

1:12 it doesn’t indicate that at all. Having a whole in the middle of your skull before your plates fuse ( as newborns do) is not “ the most natural form.”

[@abellyold4859]

I am 33 years old and have flat feet . Is it possible to rebuild my foot arch ?

[@RainBoxRed]

Work on building strong feet and the arches will come themselves.

[@MaryWheeler-gu5fl]

👍👍👍

[@silverkarina]

American sizes? I tried looking it up, but apparently, everyone has different ideas on size conversations. I'm a female 8 wide.

[@dariuszbednarski8236]

😊

[@shawnseha]

Interested in more…

[@barefootstrength]

Stay tuned 😁

[@bobsandvegan8222]

4:37 the bar graph here is misleading. Just from eyeballing it, I can immediately tell that the bars either don’t start at 0 (standard good practice) or are just not indicative of the numbers at all. I’m a supporter of the idea but not of this bad graph

[@Kollobokk-z7n]

I tried the toe spread out exercise but whenever I do I get muscle cramps. Looks like the most easiest option is even too much for me. 😒

[@barefootstrength]

This is a common issue. It’s a sign of weak intrinsic foot muscles. Passive splay with the help of silicone toe spacers can be a great first step. Then regularly trying to spread the toes with short hold periods can get those muscles working without causing cramps. Try to just hold the splay position for 2-3 seconds, relax -then repeat.

[@Kollobokk-z7n]

@@barefootstrength thank you 🙏 I will be getting these toe spacers made of silicone. It sounds like the logical thing to do to undo 50 years of wrong shoe use 🦶

[@rosswiegel5649]

I've been wearing Vivos for about 6 months now and love them but when I stand on concrete or hard surfaces for a while my feet mainly heels start to hurt. What can I do to help this?

[@p0187]

Except exercises , can you suggest a brand and model of basketball shoes for overpronation?

[@barefootstrength]

If you go to find my shoes, use the quick filters at the top to select: fitness -> court This will give a list of barefoot shoes that are best for the court. They all have non marking soles and have some heel support.

[@anwarfatrassi]

Ankle sprain pain

[@vineetjain3393]

I cannot fix that bunion don't give me false hope

[@_Epictetus_]

Shoes are designed this way on purpose and it has nothing to do with fashion or biology

[@jpoupon66]

Ok, so what does it have to do with ?

[@cupiddstunt]

Wow well that has to be one of the worst “look I’m going to test“. I started watching in hope of getting some sound info then came the weird toe test. No isolation of the foot from the toes and so of course the “so called test” showed just what you wanted it to show. I lasted up to 5.18 and when you can't get a simple tecting concept right then what hope is there for the rest of the video, so thumbs down from me.

[@barefootstrength]

Fact: We replicated tests with high validity that are published in academic journals (PMID: 34545114). The seated variant we employed is shown to better isolate the toes than other techniques (PMID: 31837710). Additionally, we conducted this research in a university lab using a very expensive and precise dynamometer. While I welcome skepticism for all content published online, I do appreciate it when the person expressing their skepticism is well-versed in the topic and has done their due diligence. Make no mistake, our content is extremely well researched.

[@MaryWheeler-gu5fl]

👍👍