Do you enjoy hiking but dislike the discomfort from walking for long distances along a trail, such as painful feet, blisters, and pinched toes? Congratulations on taking the first step toward unlocking inner superhuman power and allowing your feet to develop themselves and function at their absolute best as a result of your decision. You may say goodbye to twisted ankles and hello to robust feet if you follow this advice.
While spending time moving about in minimalist shoes is a significant step in unlocking your foot functioning, it is evident that a wide variety of strengthening and mobility workouts can assist in this endeavor.
When going on a challenging hike, you need serious shoes. However, if you are serious about maintaining healthy feet, consider purchasing barefoot hiking boots rather than conventional stiff and tight hiking shoes. These boots will allow your toes & ankles more freedom of movement.
Barefoot Hiking Shoes: The Consideration Factors
The barefoot shoe industry has increased over the past year or two, and there are now several excellent choices for anyone seeking barefoot hiking footwear. Each pair of hiking shoes on this list has been hand-picked because it satisfies the following requirements:
Zero Drop:
Every one of these barefoot hiking shoes includes a roomy toe box that mimics nature. Toes won’t get squashed or trapped.
There is no heel drop, arch support, or other abnormalities to the footbed.
Ultra-Thin And Extremely Malleable:
Sole thickness varies across different models of boots. While others aim to provide additional cushioning and comfort without restricting the foot’s natural range of motion, they all aim to give you the best of both worlds. The more you’re used to walking around barefoot, the more you’ll appreciate shoes with a more minimal design, especially the sole.
Choose a shoe with only a thicker sole if you’re starting with minimalist footwear. As a result, you can quickly evaluate which boots offer excellent cushioning to those with a more direct connection to the ground by looking at the outsole thickness or total stack height.
Barefoot Hiking Shoes: The Turn Off’s
To prevent blisters and toe cramps, how often do you need to “break in” this type of hiking boot?
Can’t decide? Shoe width and toe box depth won’t expand with use, nor will the shoe’s weight or flexibility. While some wear may help soften the leather on these boots, several design issues will be addressed. They will make your feet feel worse. As time goes on, your feet will adapt to the contour of the shoe.
Narrowness & Design
The toe area is oddly formed, with a sharp point that doesn’t correspond to the shape of human toes. Your big toe will constantly be forced out of its comfortable, unrestricted position within this footwear. In its place, it will be bent inwards. The toe may become permanently crooked if you wear them too often.
More hammertoes or crooked toes may develop due to the restricted space in the toe box. It could be a more lovely, enjoyable, or cozy picture.
Heeled Shoes
While you wouldn’t want to wear high heels on a mountain trek, the typical hiking boot has a heel lift of roughly 10 millimeters from the front to the rear.
When you wear heels, your forefoot and knees take on extra weight, and your pelvis is forced into an awkward position. Because your body is forced to redirect the importance elsewhere, you may experience discomfort all the upwards from your neck.
Inflexible Soles
You may believe you are providing your feet with the necessary support, but in reality, you are restricting their range of motion. Put your foot in a cast when you wear shoes with arch support and hard footbeds.
5 Best Barefoot Hiking Shoes To Discover
This isn’t simply a list of resources; you need every pair of shoes and boots listed here if you want to go hiking barefoot. We’ve spent a lot of time walking across the world in bare feet and tried hundreds of other pairs of shoes, but we’re positive these are the most incredible barefoot hiking boots available anywhere. When I’m trekking, barefoot hiking boots are the way to go.
Vivobarefoot Tracker
Vivobarefoot is the undisputed leader in outdoor footwear. Waterproofing, lugs for grip, and a removable heated insole make the Vivobarefoot Tracker a superb, long-lasting barefoot hiking boot.
Although these boots are built to last, they are initially uncomfortable due to their stiffness.
The various outdoor soles are ranked according to how well they grip and hold up over time. Outsoles with FG and FG 2 traction patterns are ideal for our outdoor activities, and the Esc sole is exceptionally tough and long-lasting (a little beefier than we need).
Be Lenka Barefoot
Two pairs of Be Lenka’s bare feet are perfect for the trail. The Be Lenka Ranger is the first. This is a weatherproof boot with a rigid non-slip sole and a durable top lined with fleece. We like these since they are well made and comfortable. The extra room in the toe box and the cozy fleece inside are very nice touches (we do a lot of cold-weather hiking).
These are the best hiking boots we’ve ever had for chilly weather, but we wouldn’t recommend them for warm weather.
The Be Lenka Trail Walkers are great if you need shoes for warmer weather. The soles of these hiking shoes are designed to feel like bare feet, so they are incredibly soft and provide excellent traction. The overall quality of the boots is excellent because of the large toe box that they feature as well as the high-grade materials that were used in their production.
Because of how shallow the tread is, we have been fine with muck collecting in the groves, and they’ve helped keep me stable even on uneven ground.
Softstar Switchback
The Softstar Switchback is an innovative new barefoot hiking boot with incredible technical specifications. The ones That have are Wide, & They mean EXTREMELY wide! we’ve tried a few different brands of hiking boots, and these are the largest ones. The Regular Switchbacks are more tapered and have a narrower width than the other switchbacks (see photo below).
These boots contain a sole manufactured by Vibram called Megagrip, which offers substantial traction and durability and should last for a very long time and distance. And if it does become worn out, you may have a skilled cobbler resolve it for you. The inside is finished with wool which is quite acceptable. The exterior of mine is constructed out of Super Fabric, a material that is incredibly robust, waterproof, and still breathable. There is also a variation made entirely of leather.
Freet Barefoot
Freet Barefoot is home to several barefoot hiking shoes and boots that perform exceptionally well, and the company even offers vegan versions. The fact that Freet Barefoot boots are already comfortable to wear without requiring a significant amount of break-in time is the brand’s defining characteristic. They are the lightest pair of shoes we’ve ever worn, and the soles may be as thin as 4 millimeters if the insole is removed.
The fact that Freet Barefoot shoes have a great foot shape and provide sufficient room for all of the wearer’s toes is yet another significant advantage of this brand.
When it comes to barefoot hiking shoes, these are an excellent purchase because of how long they last and how comfortable they are.
Joe Nimble WanderToes 2.0
Joe Nimble’s WanderToes 2.0 are lightweight hiking shoes that can handle the elements and have a firm grip thanks to their rubber outsole. Compared to other footwear, this boot offers the best traction.
Water and filth are kept out by the fully gusseted tongue, which can be tightened or loosened according to the size of your foot (colossal perk). The upper is soft, water-resistant leather, except for the strong microfibre toe guard that protects your toes and the shoe’s material from scuffs.
The bottom has a thickness of 10mm and is relatively rigid. The heel cup has reinforced and irritated my heel, and the sole can be bent only with much effort. Furthermore, the included footbed is just not zero drops (this provides a 3mm heel rise); therefore, you will need to swap it out for a barefoot insole if you want to use these boots for barefoot trekking.
This shoe is for you if you value traction over flexibility on challenging ground.
Barefoot Hiking Shoes: Know The Real Benefits
Foot Muscle Strengthening
By conforming to the shape of your foot, barefoot shoes enhance your balance and stability. This allows your feet the freedom to move in a more anatomically correct manner, as nature intended. With proper posture, you’ll be able to lift heavier objects and move more effortlessly. Learning to engage the foot muscles directly and absorbing impact force requires strong foot muscles.
An Elevated Toe Strength
Increased toe strength equates to enhanced biomechanical movement and improved foot control. Your ability to maintain balance and proper posture in your lower body is directly influenced by the complex bones and joints that make up your foot. It is essential for the stability of your posterior chain that you have solid toes and feet.
Balancing Leg Movements While Mitigating Injuries/Risks
Your ankles will strengthen from barefoot, making you more balanced and in control. In addition, poor posture is a leading cause of knee and hip ailments; thus, working the foot muscles can help prevent future injuries.
A barefoot shoe, as opposed to a shoe with a raised heel (like most of us wear), will put these muscles and ligaments in a more relaxed and less injury-prone position.
Increased Neural Balance
Barefoot shoes allow your foot to get more sensory input, improving its interaction with your brain and allowing you to walk and run more normally. The thinking behind these shoes is based on the idea that “in feet, sensory input is crucial information our foot transfers onto our brain; it helps us understand what’s underfoot and make quick decisions.”
Pain-Free Movement
Pain is experienced by runners and walkers who have a heel-to-toe stride, which can have a harmful influence on their knees or joints. You can learn to walk or sprint on the soles of your feet more efficiently by wearing shoes designed for barefoot use. As you just read, walking barefoot has several health benefits, including improved posture and balance, strengthened foot muscles, and better arch support.
Wrapping It Up
It’s time to give up those cumbersome, cumbersome hiking boots and go for something better for your feet. These minimalist barefoot hiking boots have a large toe box, a lightweight design, and flexible bottoms with zero drop.
There are hiking boots that are conducive to barefoot hiking that is still capable of performing their intended function, and you can find these boots no matter how severe or informal your hiking is. Because even the alternatives on this list that are designed to be the most durable still have a flat sole and a roomy toe box.
People Also Ask
Do barefoot shoes have any health benefits?
Your ankles will become stronger when you wear barefoot shoes, which benefits your overall control and stability. Strengthening the musculature in your feet improves improved posture and reduces the likelihood of harming yourself in the subsequent. Additionally, many knee and hip problems are caused by a fall at the feet; thus, doing so can help prevent future injuries.
Should you go hiking without shoes?
It benefits the feet, ankles, and lower legs because it helps strengthen them: A more muscular body allows one to move more quickly and with less risk of harm. Although shoes are fantastic for providing additional stability, this prevents the normal development of foot and ankle stability.
When walking for a long distance, are barefoot shoes an intelligent option?
Even while these shoes may appear comfortable, they cause muscle atrophy and weaken the foot muscles over time. This can factor in various health problems, such as joint discomfort, poor circulation, migraines, and insomnia.
Is there any scientific justification for going shoeless?
After only eight weeks of wearing minimalist shoes, a foot muscle’s size and power were shown to have significantly improved, according to the findings of one study. This is because removing the cushioned heels and arch support forced the muscles in the foot to work harder.