fallen arches

hi esther, i recentley finished your book and it really reinforced some things i learned in some other postural practices ive undergone (yoga and the egoscue).im 18, ive had minor back pain for a few years,i belive cuased by posture as well as my fallen arches, im wondering if your familiar with all the barefoot running walking and barefoot alternative shoe hype? well given that , im confused as to whether i should be wearing my custom orthotics or my barefoot alternative vibram five fingers? the only reason i question changing from going mostly barefoot back to the blocky shoe/orthotics route is becuase my hip joint feels incorrectly aligned which causes some hip clicking and medial knee pain.ive started working on strengthening my arches, glute medius, and tibialis. i read all this information that being barefoot is healthier for our posture but im at a loss as to what i shoudl do, thankyou so much for any help, nick

Hi Nick,

I am still forming an opinion on the barefoot versus support debate. I think it depends on

1. What shape your feet are in currently.
2. How much you know about using your feet when you stand and walk.
3. The terrain you are on

If your feet are not too badly distorted, you know about good walking form, the terrain is a natural surface with some give in it and you are able to pay attention to what you are doing, I think it is good to walk around barefoot.

When you can't pay attention, or if you are walking on concrete, your feet are not in good shape and your don't have good walking form, I think you are better off using shoes with support. In general I prefer soft arch supports to hard orthotics, especially if you are working on your feet which will change their shape continuously.

About running barefoot, I know lots of people who swear by it and have evolved their feet by doing this. I think you need to have fairly strong feet to begin with for this to be a sound practice.

I recommend a mix of barefoot and supported walking. For running, probably the same with most of it supported. The most important thing is to observe your feet closely as you do these different things. If they improve, you've got a good formula!