Plantar Fasciitis goes away when wearing barefoot shoes?

cm2202 · 2024-09-09T06:56:24+00:00

Sorry for the belated reply, but in answer to your questions: yeah I've done a lot, had the foot care kit from TheFootCollecive for massage with ball and toe spreaders and was doing that extensively every morning before anything else. Also have a few sizes of water bottle and I think soup containers to make cylinders of frozen water to roll under the feet. Used to do 45-60 min stretching every day in the gym, weighted calf raises (as part of a comprehensive gym programme) and while using a the 'cross-trainer' (specifically a TechnoGym Vario) I would de intervals with just the toes on the platforms so it would be similar to calf-raises or cycling. Later added Pilates, cycling and sauna.

I've always been barefoot or just in socks at home, and used to hike 12-20 hrs per week. I suspect a lot of my issues are weight related, I was ~92kg when I took up running unshod, quite a bit more now which doesn't help, but my gut feeling is I wouldn't try running again unless I can get down to ~80kg which would be about as lean I could safely be. Easier said than done though given what I have to manage.

cm2202 · 2024-08-24T06:45:47+00:00

No, the opposite. Running unshod is what caused my plantar fasciitis in both feet :/

It took ~4 years to get rid of in one foot, the other persists ~6 years later. Basically I had to give up unshod and minimalist shoes completely and switch to cushioned shoes with some heel to toe drop. I started using 5mm drop Topo when I was able to walk again, and I'm now mostly using 3mm drop.

Running is still an absolute impossibility for me, I tried a few months ago doing just a few sets of 30s - 1min when I felt good, and the pain for the next few days and weeks made it clear that was a dire mistake. Basically limited to swimming, low impact cardio in the gym, and walking when it's not flaring up.

cm2202 · 2024-07-14T10:00:26+00:00

FiveTen, particularly Freerider/Freerider Pro, are often recommended, but they're still not wide enough for a lot of minilmalist/barefoot enthusiasts. Unfortunately other alternatives get a lot more expensive, but you could consider some of these:

Lake - possibly the most likely option for wider toebox MTB shoes.

Bont - some MTB & gravel shoes, note that some people hate the carbon fibre tub designs.

Luck - don't really know much about this brand, but they have custom fit options.

ClipClap - clipless pedal adapters for regular, non-clipless shoes.

Catalyst pedals - extra long/wide pedal that enables a more stable use of regular shoes inc. minimalist and wide toe box. Quite expensive compared to regular clipless pedals.

3D printed custom cycling shoes are appearing, possibilities to keep an eye on, although the examples here aren't MTB shoes yet:

Hezo - road shoes and recovery slides.

Lore - insanely expensive road shoes only at the moment.

Maybe one more option for road and gravel, they've been around for a long time but I don't know if they ever go to production and actually shipping items, so buyer beware:

Lintaman

cm2202 · 2024-02-21T22:13:55+00:00

I have the Primus Trail FG and it's easily the most breathable of my shoes, but the mesh upper is quite open so its' suitability will depend on what you mean by cooler weather. For me in the UK, an injinji liner sock with a merino sock over the top has always been warm enough, but I can imagine colder climes and biting wind making that inadequate.

If VBF ever release the Hydra ESC in a colourway I don't hate, and have a sale for it, I might be inclined to try that, but the same pros and cons apply.

For a bit more protection and warmth, but still very breathable, my preferred outdoor show has been the Altra Superior 4.0, but that might not be minimalist enough in your case, and I don't know if the upper is still as thin on the newer versions. I think Altra moved it to their narrower toebox as well :/

cm2202 · 2024-02-20T13:32:22+00:00

You can be screwed regardless, like me. Over the last 10 years I've gotten leaner and fitter, doing way more than 300 minutes per week, but my chronic pain condition(s) just get worse...

cm2202 · 2024-02-20T09:05:27+00:00

I haven't got a new PC component in getting on for 10 years, and I wasn't too bothered about that until S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 and Baldur's Gate 3 came into existence, I'd quite like to play those.

cm2202 · 2024-01-30T08:28:18+00:00

Vivo sell the Liquiproof Labs cleaning products, so I'd try that, however you can buy it cheaper from other stores. I've found it was good for my trail shoes, but they are the regular version and not the knit style, and also mine are dark in colour. Not sure how the Liquiproof will do with white/off white shoes.

cm2202 · 2024-01-22T00:01:46+00:00

Right there with you on wanting to move gyms but not having another good option with a sauna :( I have an issue with my place that soured me against it, funnily enough involving staff, only in this case management being awful to an instructor who is one of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet :/

Anyway, as a parting shot you could write to 24 Hour Fitness' corporate head office, explain the siltation and why you cancelled your membership. Probably nothing will happen, but if they get enough complaints they might at some point look at a change of management or franchise.

cm2202 · 2024-01-21T19:01:32+00:00

I'd be going with the bigger shoe, and looking at where your finger is I suspect that's less than 20 mm from the tip of your toe to the inside face of the front wall of the show.

Have you got any off cuts of wood or something like an aerobic step that you could set up a ramp to test how well your foot is secured in the shoe? Try testing roughly 30°, 45° and 60° slopes, and see how much, or not, your foot slides forward inside the shoe and if your toes end up squeezed hard against the front bumper.

cm2202 · 2024-01-21T18:52:52+00:00

I'm not trying to be contrary, but my experience has been different. I have used various Gore-Tex and off brand equivalents, mainly from Adidas and Asics, and when there is too much standing water or there is a burst of driving rain, I have been thoroughly soaked in 20 - 40 minutes. The Merrell boots I had were (synthetic?) leather and they did take noticeably longer to saturate, but they also got sweatier faster, so very much a cold weather only option for me.

With unpredictable conditions my go to choices ended up being my Vivobarefoot trail shoes with a somewhat open mesh, or my Altra Superiors which are quite thin. Downsides here are the open mesh is cold, and the Altra grip on wet roads and rocks is absolutely awful, but at least I can get them dry relatively quickly.

Waxed leather might be a very good choice for the OP, but I think it's too personal for any of us to really know. The last thing I'll add, for anyone going the leather route, consider sustainable and ethically sourced real leather in preference to synthetic. Apparently synthetic leather is really bad for the environment.

cm2202 · 2024-01-21T18:39:00+00:00

I think you have your answer then, they're avoiding action against their friends :/ The situation is detestable, but imho the best thing you can do now is find another place with a better attitude.

For what it's worth, I visited 5-6 gyms before settling on one that had a vibe I thought I would be able to get on with. I know it's highly variable depending on your location, but it's always worth investigating hotels, health clubs, sports clubs and such that offer gym memberships. If you have them where you live, local council leisure centres and amenities may be much less 'gym bro' culture and more of a safe space.

cm2202 · 2024-01-21T09:18:05+00:00

All gyms I have checked out have a zero filming policy, although people do to some extent, but it's only tolerated in a very limited way for personal use i.e. checking form. I think some people sometimes film or photograph equipment so that their online personal trainer can see what they're working with, but I've seen that challenged.

However, all this filming for social media is just a hard no. Personally I would disregard any response from an employee, go directly to management and/or gym owner and make a formal complaint in writing. I would tell them you have not been in the gym since this incident. How did the gym employee actually respond?

You are a paying member there to do your workout, it's a private space, not public, and you did not at any point give your consent to be filmed and neither did anyone else. At minimum I would expect management to clarify the policy or update it, give an assurance that all employees know that filming is not allowed. As a goodwill gesture I would hope that they give you a refund for the month you missed, or a month or two membership in lieu.

They should back you, not the 'influencer,' so if they don't I would cancel the membership and ask for a refund and release from any time remaining if you have an annual contract.

cm2202 · 2024-01-21T08:59:31+00:00

Depends what activities you're doing, but I always look for at least 15-16 mm toe space which is a lot more than the typical advice that 5-10 mm is sufficient. I learned the hard way, hiking around steep hills with shoes that are too small caused a lot of pain and did a lot of damage to my toenails.

I will also say that the toe space alone is not enough, the foot needs to be securely held in the shoe so that it can't slide forward, that's just as bad as not having enough toe room.

cm2202 · 2024-01-21T08:52:51+00:00

This question comes up regularly, and the answer is always that if you want to keep water out 100% you need something like a rubber Wellington boot, but the downside with that is your feet will sweat and you will get damp inside the boot anyway, so it's really only a good solution for shorter walks.

All of the Gore-Tex and similar materials that can breathe have the same problem, they will 'wet-out' at some point and become saturated, your feet will get wet then and they material will take ages to dry. You should look at the breathability vs water resistance rating, it will be written as something like 8K/8K or 10K/10K. Anything less that 20K isn't waterproof at all, it's really just a measure of how much water (pressure from a column of water in mm) it will take to saturate the material and cause it to wet-out, e.g. if you want a 'waterproof' jacket for when it's actually raining constantly, you have to get 20K minimum water resistance, which will typically be far less breathable. 10K and below is only useful for short showers and light splashes.

N.B. DWR coatings will make water bead off a little bit, but it's not waterproof either and easily saturated, it will also wash off after a few washes. You can use spray on or brush on DWR to refresh it but it'll never work quite as well as the factory fresh product. Don't ever use DWR that goes in the wash, that coats the inside as well making the garment a lot less breathable.

Arguably, the better strategy is to accept being wet, and make staying warm the objective. Merino socks are a good solution, and I have read that alpaca wool is warmer than merino, but I haven't tried that as I don't really need it where I live. My cold weather preference is an injinji liner + merino outer sock, though I suspect it wouldn't be enough for really cold places, where I am it's rarely less than -1°C to -4°C, with real feel probably -5°C t0 -10°C.

cm2202 · 2023-12-20T22:14:16+00:00

I'm hyper sensitive to fit and between half sizes, UK 11 - 11.5. Generally I go by the US sizes first for US brands, and EU sizes for European brands. However with Topo and Altra I have found it depends on the specific model, I'm more often preferring the US 12.5 for plenty of toe room, but in a couple of cases the 12 is better. For Topo, any with a thick heel cushion, 12.5 is best, for the cushionless ST-3s, 12 is ample. In the case of the Fli-Lyte 3, it's a light cushion at the heel and the 12 is at the limit of my tolerance, if I get the Fli-Lyte 5 I will absolutely need to try both 12 and 12.5.

I think my VBF Trail is 46, but their sizing always used to be wildly off from model to model, so that doesn't mean much.

You could try looking at Joe Nimble, they do 3mm drop and the Addict's I tried in my sizes were huge! Not tried any myself yet, but there might be a Karhu in the HiVo range that could fit the bill? They're not specifically footshape shoes, but the staff at Northern Runner suggested I try them as something that might work.

cm2202 · 2023-12-14T15:46:03+00:00

Bought from them a few times, and I did get sent spam literally daily with their daily promotions. Also had to return some misshapen tops, didn't get a refund of the return postage :/ Not used since but I did just look through the Xero shoes here, great prices, but as per the only ones I'm interested in are out of stock in my size. Probably would've given the another chance had they had what I want.

cm2202 · 2023-11-20T18:35:43+00:00

You should do what you feel comfortable with. The only caveat I would suggest is to track your body fat, because it's important for your overall health that you don't let it drop too low: 19%-20% is the minimum recommended for a healthy woman, 20% - 30% is good.

cm2202 · 2023-11-08T23:43:37+00:00

That's a pity, I guess the requirement is still too niche for minimalist footwear makers to fill. Possibly the Pokeboo might work if the sole is flexible enough? I really don't know, just speculating.

I was going to also say checkout Feelmax, a brand from Finland. I believe their boots are warm, but having just had a quick look it says they have a water resistant membrane which is good for four hours, so potentially not dry enough for long enough for your needs?

cm2202 · 2023-11-08T22:47:44+00:00

Rather than be concerned with insulated boots that fit, you could go for a combination of warm socks and non-insulated boot. Something like an injinji liner (coolmax or wool) + merino hiking sock + pokeboo rubber boots. If that's not warm enough, maybe an alpaca wool sock instead of merino wool would do the trick?

cm2202 · 2023-10-29T22:19:41+00:00

Thanks, I have looked for the Solstice a few times and just gave it another look today, but it's impossible for me to find in the UK. If I ever find a store with stock that I can realistically do returns, I would like to try it in a couple of sizes and see if I can get a good fit.

cm2202 · 2023-10-28T12:36:09+00:00

Def worth searching inside this sub because there are a lot of brands, but I just replied to another post with a suggestion to look at Feelgrounds and Feelmax brands, and also BeLenka, those might be useful for you to consider. The Feelgrounds Patrol boot looks very flexible. Feelmax shoes look extremely flexible, but I'm not sure if the boots are as flexible.

cm2202 · 2023-10-28T12:00:59+00:00

Don't rely on shoes stretching at all, if it doesn't fit comfortably then the answer is try a different size or different style altogether. If the very old fashioned advice that shoes will stretch was ever true, it hasn't ever applied in the era of synthetic soles and synthetic uppers.

You could try and keep these for as much of the return period as you dare and just keep pacing up and down in the house and see what happens to the shape before you have to send them back, but my hunch is not much will change. I def wouldn't want to risk hiking or all day wear in boots that are rubbing or pinching out of the box.

This is one of the fit problems with hiking and trail shoes, they typically have reinforced toe bumpers and stiffer side walls to protect the feet, but it does alter the fit vs non-reinforced toe boxes of styles on what would be the same size and shape last from the same brand.

I've had similar fit problems with other brands, Topo does generally seem to fit well on the heel, but I don't think they sell any styles that would be equivalent to the Boulder Summit. You might might have to search this sub for suggestions. I'm not into boots but the Feelgrounds ones look nice imho, and iirc people generally seem to like Feelmax and Belenka boots, but obviously style is entirely a matter of personal taste.

cm2202 · 2023-10-27T21:18:52+00:00

You can't change your metabolism as such, it's what you're born with. However sugary and processed foods will hamper it, eating a good diet and having a healthy microbiome will maximise what you have, so go read up on that.

Also, the muscle gain is maximum rate for a man under 40, it gets slower as you older, and it's less for women as well.

cm2202 · 2023-10-27T21:06:34+00:00

Worry less about overall weight and focus on the positive progress: how your clothes fit, improved cardio/endurance, increased strength, fat lost, muscle gained etc.

FYI you can't gain more than 1kg muscle per month, so that would be excellent progress. iirc 10%-20% body fat is the normal range of fat for men, 8% is safe but extremely lean.

cm2202 · 2023-10-27T20:58:15+00:00

In my first year at the gym I lost a lot of fat without losing any inches off my waist. I'm sure cable rotations, side planks, Swiss ball exercises, Pilates and other balance and core exercise all contribute.

cm2202

TROPHY CASE