But I love My Flip-Flops!!!

Enough is enough! I can’t wait for summer to be over! It’s not that I don’t like sunshine and warm weather (because I do) I just can’t take another trip to a major metropolitan area and watch people putting around in their flip-flops and little strappy sandals. I have had it. I know it feels nice to let your feet breathe on hot days and you just could not resist the new pair designer pair of sandals that Jessica Simpson had on in US Magazine..but just about everybody that I see over-pronates and that thin little piece of rubber is not going to give the support needed as you walk down a paved road or brave the Subway in Manhattan (“ewww” in open toed sandals by the way). I am seeing way too much eversion and the poor transverse arch is just getting crushed due to muscular imbalances and proximal weakness (core stabilizers and especially the glute complex). I wonder how tired these sandal wearers are at the end of the day? They are not using their active system to propel then through the gate cycle but slogging along by dissipating forces through their passive systems. Very inefficient and a good way to put unwanted stress on the knees and low back.

Save the flip-flops and sandals for the beach or a date where you will not be walking very much. Get yourself some supportive footwear to help support your body and stop beating in your knees and low back.

I can hear it now…”But what about barefoot training? And developing the musculature of the foot and all of the proprioceptors that get dumbed down from shoes and sneakers(tennis shoes for my Midwest and southern friends: ?”

The Kinesis Sytem The "Original Movement"

I am not talking about training for a short period of time with little impact (think Yoga or Kinesis vs. Step Aerobics). Unless you have been running barefoot since you were 3, your body probably can’t handle running barefoot now. The human foot is an amazing and resilient structure but it was designed for “grassy savanahs” Thank you Dr. Laitman!) not cement sidewalks. I am all for teaching the body to do what it is SUPPOSED to do, but our environment is mostly artificial (think sitting and sidewalks) and we must support our body as such.

“But Eric Cressey trains barefoot sometimes!” I do too, but we don’t run on cement and we do not allow uncontrolled pronation of the kinetic chain. This is evidenced at the foot and ankle complex as eversion of the calcaneous, abduction of the foot and dorsiflexion-which most people don’t have so the flattening of the foot and adduction of the knee becomes more pronounced.

Do you think that we do our corrective work as well? You bethca’. We do not go from 8 hours at a desk and two 45 minute commutes to whipping our shoes off and doing plyometrics or jogging on the grass.  We follow the corrective process and are dedicated to preparation and recovery. The average person who is on the barefoot kick simply believe that removing a Jimmy Choo will transform their nervous system, cure their back pain and melt off the pounds.

Great for a date, horrible for posture and alignment

Enjoy the rest of your summer..just wear some sneakers around town and save the flip-flops for the beach:)

Thanks for reading.

Eric Beard

Corrective Exercise Specialist

CEO A-Team

http://ericbeard.com

• January 31, 2010 -- FLY This-Eric Beard Shows a Cool Variation for Core Stability plus Another Fitness Challenge (1)
• September 16, 2009 -- NASM PRO Almost Live? This Corrective Exercise Specialist is Getting Excited! (0)
• July 29, 2011 -- Barefoot Training Part-2 (0)
• August 21, 2010 -- Corrective Exercise 2010 Summer Update (0)
• May 16, 2010 -- Love These iphone Apps! (0)
• February 12, 2010 -- Will Smith Needs Corrective Exercise…but He Helps Me this Time (0)
• February 8, 2010 -- Revist, Recite, Re-Write Your Goals Dailly to Manifest your Dreams (0)
• February 6, 2010 -- Chunking Goals: Breakdown the Big Goals Into Smaller Actionable Steps (0)
• January 27, 2010 -- Overhead Squat Assessment-Excessive Forward Lean from Ankle Restriction at NASM CES Workshop by Eric Beard (0)
• January 15, 2010 -- Boston CPT for NASM Ends up With Some After Hours Corrective Exercise Action for Eric Beard (0)