Today Dr. Rachael Bailey will talk about the many benefits that the practice of barefoot walking can bring, with a particular focus on knee pain.

We discuss in this interview:

• The origins of barefoot walking
• Improving balance and reducing impact
• The effect of barefoot walking on knee osteoarthritis
• The effect on blood circulation
• How to start with barefoot walking

Hey, it’s Rachel Bailey, and I’m here today to talk to you about a very exciting topic, and that is the benefits of walking barefoot. So we’re going to focus specifically on the benefits of walking barefoot on knee pain, but we’ll also talk about some of the other benefits that walk in barefoot can have on the body.

So firstly, what does it mean when we say walk in barefoot? So as the name implies, barefoot walking is literally the practice of walking without any footwear on. If you’ve heard about Barefoot walking before, you may have heard people mention minimalist footwear. And what this is, is its shoes that have been specifically designed with barefoot walking in mind. So these shoes are designed to allow the foot to flex and bend and move in its natural way and also to allow your foot to sense the ground underneath, so it very closely mimics what it feels like to walk with no shoes on. But these minimalist footwear items actually protect provide some level of protection to the foot. So the practice of barefoot walking originated thousands of years ago when our ancestors roamed around the earth before shoes were invented. And then it lost its popularity as we started to adopt footwear and appreciated the protection that this provided to our feet. But it’s starting to become more popular in recent years as we’ve learned more about its health benefits, and we know what it can do for our bodies. And that’s when we’re going to discuss today. Also as a society, we’ve started to crave a connection with nature again. So to feel the ground beneath our feet, to feel the way our body interacts with the ground. Walking barefoot is the most natural way for our bodies to be. So it allows our foot to move without any restrictions. It allows our muscles, tendons, and ligaments in our foot to move in the way that nature intended them to move. So now I want to talk more specifically about the benefits of barefoot walking and what they are. And at this point, it’s important to say that when I’ve been researching this topic to bring you this latest information, all of the claims that I’ve found have backed up with their scientific evidence. And think this is really important when you’re looking into new exercise routines or any change in lifestyle is to have that evidence to back it up.

So the first benefit of barefoot walking is better balance. So when we’re walking our foot is the first point of contact with the ground. And when we’re wearing footwear, this is actually masking that contact, so the footwear is the first point of contact. Whereas with barefoot walking, our feet are actually directly contacting the ground. And at the base of our foot, there’s lots and lots of nerve endings and these nerve endings, when they contact the ground, they send signals up to our brain and allow us to adjust the way we’re balanced and the way our foot strike in the ground. This is really important, especially for those of us with hip and knee pain and inflammation, because this can create an increased risk of falls and injuries. And obviously, if we’re learning how to balance better, this can cut that risk significantly.

The next benefit is a reduced impact. So like I said, our foot is the first point of contact with the ground. And if we’re not wearing any shoes, our foot itself is actually taken a lot of that shock absorbing the shock of our impact with the ground. And this then protects the hips and the knees from absorbing that shock. And obviously, if we’ve got pain in these areas, this can greatly help. Barefoot walking can also improve the way our foot is balanced on the floor. So the actual alignment of the foot, this goes hand in hand with better balance. So when those nerve signals on the bottom sense how our foot is placed, we can make adjustments to make sure it’s effective. It can also improve the way our foot moves. So the mechanics of our foot, the tendons, ligaments and muscles in our foot are moving more effectively when we walk without shoes on. And this then can help to increase strength in these muscles and building up strength in our feet can help to protect the hips and knees as well. And then finally, but equally as important, barefoot walking can have a massive impact upon our mental health. So it can actually help to improve symptoms of stress, anxiety, depression. And again, it’s that connection with nature of our bodies actually feeling the ground beneath our feet and that is really important benefit.

So in this slide, I just wanted to talk to you a little bit about what the science tells us about the effects of barefoot walking and specifically on arthritis of the knee. So well undertaken my research for this information, I found a lot of papers describing the effect of barefoot walking on knee osteoarthritis. So these are the references listed in the gray box below. What I found was that these papers were describing the positive effects that barefoot walking had on knee osteoarthritis patients. Specifically, barefoot walking was shown to reduce knee pain, and also loaded the knee, which represents the force placed on the knee during walking. Also, a reduction in peak knee adduction moments, which is basically just another way of looking at knee loading. The overall consensus is that barefoot walking has significant positive effects on osteoarthritis of the knees. Look more broadly at what the science tells us about the effects of barefoot walking on other conditions and processes in the body, and found one reference which is in the gray box below here that shows how barefoot walking can actually help to prevent injuries such as stress fractures, tendinitis and also plantar fasciitis, which is quite a common and painful problem. This is because barefoot walking, as we described before, improves balance, posture and agility. So it helps to prevent the risk of injuries.

And then finally, barefoot walking has also been shown to improve venous return. So this is the return of blood and back from the feet to the heart. And this is because walk in barefoot actually activates muscles within the feet and the lower legs. These are muscles that don’t necessarily get activated when we’re wearing footwear. And in these muscles then help to squeeze and push blood through the veins, increasing the blood flow and promoting circulation through the body. This can help with a number of circulatory diseases. For example, decreasing the risk of varicose veins in the legs.

Then for our last slide today, I just want to talk a little bit about how to get started with barefoot walking. And so if it’s something that you are interested in starting, where do you start? So the most important thing is that transition into barefoot walking should be a slow and careful process. So it’s not something that should be rushed and straight into just walk in barefoot when you’ve been used to wearing footwear. It’s important to start slowly and to start on softer surfaces, so your feet have been used to being protected if they’ve been wearing footwear. It’s important to slowly desensitize them to feeling the ground beneath them and just to make them stronger. Start on softer surfaces, for example, grass, sand and other natural surfaces such as wood chippings and. Who said anything that’s soft against the base of the feet. Slowly build up the amount of time that you spend walking bare feet, this will allow your feet to gradually adjust to the surfaces. Obviously choose safe environments, so the surfaces that you are walking on, make sure there is nothing that could injure your feet. And obviously avoid things like hot pavements, sharp or rough terrain, and any areas where there might be broken glass or other hazards. As with any new exercise regime, it’s important to pay attention to your body and stop if you feel any pain or discomfort anywhere. So if this exacerbates pain in the knee or hips or any pain in the feet and to stop. And when we’re walking barefoot, it’s also important to practice good foot hygiene. So wash your feet regularly and avoid walking barefoot in public places. And just to keep your feet as clean as you can. If you do try barefoot walking and you find. That it’s it’s an issue and that your feet are in pain or very sensitive, then you could consider wearing minimalistic footwear. So that’s what I mentioned earlier on. And these are things specially designed shoes. So they’re often very thin-soled shoes and they allow your feet to move naturally and experience the benefits of barefoot walking, but they provide some protection. So that is always an option and if needed. But most importantly, just enjoy it and enjoy the connection with nature and enjoy the massive health benefits that barefoot walking can bring to your life.

I hope you’ve enjoyed listening to this podcast today. Just want to end by leaving you with three key takeaway points that I hope you’ve learned from listening to me today. So firstly, barefoot walking is a very quick, effective, simple and also free way of helping to ease pain associated with arthritis, whether that be in the knee, the hip, the ankles. And when done correctly, it’s also been shown scientifically to reduce inflammation associated with arthritis and also to improve mobility, posture and balance. When done on natural surfaces like grass or sand, barefoot walking can have a positive impact on our mental health, so it can help to reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety. And as a result, this can have a knock on effect on rheumatoid arthritis symptoms as well.

I just want to end by saying thank you for listening today, I hope you’ve enjoyed listening as much as I’ve enjoyed talking to you. As some of you may already know, barefoot walking periodically forms part of the Rheumatoid Solutions program. If you’re not already a member, you can find out more at www.RheumatoidSolutions.com. And don’t forget to subscribe to this channel so you can hear more of these interesting videos. Thank you.