The Case for Cushion
It was October 25th, 2021 – this blog was released. The barefoot community gathered angrily outside my home, toes splayed and all. I stood in my workshop and peered through the 1x1 window, forming hammer in hand. I tried to reason with them through my megaphone and explain that these were only my thoughts on the matter, and nothing more. There was no need for violence. Alas, I slipped my sandals on and prepared to destroy every single one of them.
Just kidding.
There is a barefoot movement occurring at this moment. To return people to more natural footwear. Wider toe boxes and zero heel drops. Fantastic. The shoe industry has, knowingly or unknowingly, ruined our feet. And disconnected us from the earth. The foot has undergone a de-evolution as a result, and insulation carries with it its own arsenal of negative health consequences. I am thankful that there are good people and good companies out there who wish to put a dent in this industry.
However, I would like to share my thoughts on the matter. Barefoot footwear CAN be dangerous. There. I said it. I finish work at 7pm if you want to meet outside. If someone tells you to switch to barefoot shoes and wear them all day, every day, right away. Then politely walk away. If you had just recently began training in MMA, would you like to be thrown into a fight ASAP? Probably not. You’d probably get seriously f****d up. Let’s take things nice and slow. I in no way wish to undermine the barefoot community’s mission, because I am a part of that community. Hell, that’s the essence of what TGA is built on – GROUNDING. But to say that we are ready for that kind of lifestyle right off the bat is nonsense, especially with the synthetic surfaces that exist today.
I do not implore people to wear my sandals every day, at least not to begin with. I first and foremost push for barefoot grounding in direct contact with grass and soil - natural surfaces. I tell them to build up the strength for it OVER TIME. Most of you have worn over-cushioned shoes for most of your life, and to jump into barefoot shoes FULL-SEND would probably not be the smartest thing. Your foot is used to the nice, fluffy interior of your old shoes. The foot/ankle complex has accommodated itself for such footwear. Switching this up can lead to injuries if not approached carefully. To be quite frank, you’re not ready yet. Most of you.
The most immediate issue here is two-fold. We have the foot which, for the most part is not structurally accommodated for barefoot shoes after what could be decades of detraining due to over-cushioned shoes. It needs time to be trained for such footwear. The second issue here is our external environment. Artificial surfaces. To be particular – flat, hard surfaces. This is not a natural surface or stimulus for the foot to be in contact with, especially for the long hours that we spend on these surfaces at work (flooring), outside (cement, asphalt, etc.), and at home. The foot has evolved for soil, grass, sand, rock, etc. – not hardwood flooring and cement. This puts us in quite the pickle, doesn’t it? It is a tricky situation. The most logical solution here, and it saddens me to say so, is to compensate for unnatural surfaces with unnatural footwear. I’m not saying let’s throw a brick’s worth of cushion underneath our feet like Hokas, but a little protection at least. A LITTLE cushion. A Van’s shoe worth, I’d say. At most. Still flat, but provides enough protection for these surfaces.
I cannot go to a synthetic, flat rubber track 5 days a week for training in barefoot running shoes and expect nothing bad to happen. My f*****g feet would have 5 stress fractures after a month. I can’t power clean 1.5 times my bodyweight in 4mm thickness shoes on a lifting platform and expect sh*t to be sweet over the long term (I do lift in flat shoes, though -This is essential for weight distribution). As meticulous and good as my foot and ankle strengthening program is – it wouldn’t be sustainable. This is the unfortunate situation that we find ourselves in, we must compensate for unnatural surfaces with unnatural footwear. At the track I have a normal pair of running shoes, as minimal as can be, because I understand the complexity of the situation, and I understand my body. In an ideal world the track would be grass and well-suited for my feet, but that’s not the case.
I enjoy the thickness (12mm) of my GAIA sandals on hard, flat surfaces. I think it’s just enough.
Remember, these are only my thoughts on the situation. Nothing more. Nothing less. As the infamous Hodge Twins would say – do whatever the F**K you wanna do :)