Feet and shoes: Welcome to my site and my blog!

Each of our feet has 26 bones, 33 joints, more than 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments, and over 7000 nerve endings. As a result, the foot is one of the most complicated body parts. It evolved to have many functions, including standing, walking, running, body stability, shock absorption, and ground sensing.

Shoes were created and served as protection against injury in uneven terrain or against cold, so people could migrate and inhabit colder regions. They still serve as a functional barrier against parasites entering the body through the skin. However, in many instances, the mainstream shoes are overprotective, respectless of individual foot shape differences, or serve as a decoration and fashion accessory. Many shoe types do not protect feet, but on the contrary, hurt them.

Crunched toes, toe numbness, blisters, blue nails, hallux valgus, Morton neuroma, are only a few of the long list of foot pathologies caused by ill-fitting shoes.

It took many years and many different shoes, I began to question the mainstream choice of shoes. Shoes that crunch your feet and displace your toes from their natural position only to appear slimmer; high heels which disbalance your body and discourage you from walking more than necessary; the cushioned running shoes completely disregarding the naturally present spring of your feet; high supportive hiking boots eliminating ground sensing and reducing the natural body balance and stability. Except for particular sports or professions, like cycling, skiing, climbing, etc., our feet do not need technical shoes. As they say in Vibram Fivefingers: "You are the Technology." We need only our feet.

Here, in my blog, I will dig into history and uncover how and why the shoes evolved to the shoes we know and wear now. I want to show you how shoes can impact our feet, bodies, performance, society status, and our whole life.

Each of us has a different shape of feet. So, let's free your feet and discover your original footprints!

Happy reading!