Sandals

summer's nearly here - hit me up with some sandal recommendations - for general use, bit of walking and likely going in the sea.

last few years i've been wearing these - which are ok, however:

*clip on ankle strap would be better
*the plastic triangle on the toe strap can rub a bit
*the foot bed gets a bit hot (probably a problem specific to me and other hot / sweaty feet people as I have this with lots of footwear)

https://www.teva-eu.com/en/gb/men-sandals/hurricane-xlt-2/1019234-P.html

I really love my Bedrocks but they're not good for plantar fasciitis. I'd buy another pair tomorrow if they made them with a proper supportive instep.

they look decent but as you say, pretty flat.

turned up some vivo barefoot ones which look interesting.

Having been wearing majoritively sandals again since about March this year I'm not super excited about having to cram my feet back into normy shoes as the weather deteriorates, anyone else wearing clogs or anything similar during non-sandal season?

I know Vivo Barefoot seems to be the de rigeur wide toe box option but I'm not really a fan of the seperate toe design and most of their stuff looks a bit...I dunno, childish?

Bedrock Mountain Clogs look like fun but the price! I also dunno how well that kinda design will do in wet/muddy environments. I've never tried sandals plus waterproof socks or anything.

Are you confusing vivobarefoot with vibram five fingers.

Lems are a good option, various styles available, still not cheap though, as you would expect, as barefoot is a bit of a niche market.

Yes I was. Googled “barefoot shoes” and they came up.

I think what’s one of the things putting me off most of the wide toe box shoes is that there seems to be an assumption that if you want toe room, you must also want a fuck all sole.

The sandals I’ve been wearing (Teva and some cheapo Quechua) both have fairly substantial some so they’re good for spiky flat pedals and rough, stony walking.

The mountain clogs also look like they have a fairly substantial sole.

Yeh, barefoot shoes usually have thin soles, no arch support and are zero drop.Be careful transitioning to zero drop if youve spent your whole life in 'high heels'. The fact that popular culture encourages us all to squeeze our toes into narrow toe boxes is bizarre. As you have found out, it's much more comfortable and healthy to allow your toes to spread.

I have Bedrock clogs, only worn them on dry city days so far but I like them. As someone with wide-ish feet the toe box is game changing.

The sole is grippy and great for cycling, but I haven’t really stress tested them on slippery or uneven surfaces yet. They have minimal cushioning though so I find them tiring to wear for a full day of walking.

I bought them from the Woods Cyclery so the price was a bit easier to come to terms with, the mark up from Outsiders Store is punchy.

I bought them from the Woods Cyclery so the price was a bit easier to come to terms with, the mark up from Outsiders Store is punchy.

I saw they had them, only a couple sizes in stock though.

I don’t think the flatness would be a problem, most of my life I’ve worn skate shoes rather than proper trainers. I think I’ve also had a habit of buying them too big for me up until very recently so this might be why I’m now feeling my feet will be a bit crammed into them. Also wearing sandals more will be allowing my feet to spread out during the summer I guess.

In the winter I have some cheap Karrimor waterproof hiking shoes which I wear for riding and any out of the city walking. I thought about spending money on a better version of these last year but didn’t find much I fancied. Im also also pretty hard on them, get them manky, soaked etc, don’t really clean them, so while I don’t mind doing this to £30 Karrimors it makes thinking about spending decent money on some a bit harder.

I have Bedrock clogs

damn - i want a pair of these now.

Agree - there seem to me to be at least three different “niches” caught up in the barefoot ideology: wide toe box, zero drop, zero cushioning.

I want a wide toe box, I don’t know whether I care about zero drop, but I definitely don’t want zero cushioning.

I’m heavy and not interested in the soles of my feet getting pounded, but I do want my toes to have wriggle room.

I suffer with Morton’s neuroma, a condition caused by shoes that don’t allow feet to spread out. Most shoes narrow toward the toes, the exact opposite of a foot shape. I had to buy some Hoka trainers this summer as I needed a wider toe box. I now also have to use custom orthotic insoles that have a cut out under the compressed nerve in my foot to relieve the pain.

I wear Birkenstocks indoors but the lack of heel cup leads to the skin on my heels splitting.

So I either get heel pain or metatarsal pain. Old age is great isn’t it?

Skate shoes arent flat. They still have heel drop. Spending your whole life in shoes with significant heel drop and then going zero drop can cause big issues with the achillies. You can,of course, transition by using inserts and reducing the heel-toe drop over time.

I wear Birkenstocks indoors but the lack of heel cup leads to the skin on my heels splitting.

My heels crack too but I seem to be able to control it fairly well with a combination of exfoliation, moisturiser and Morrisons cracked heel balm. I imagine there’s better ones out there than the Morrisons one but it does seem to work and it’s pretty cheap so…

Fair enough. Like I say anyway, the zero drop and zero cushioning aren’t really what I’m after, the toe box and/or just a less restrictive/constructive shoe are.

Reebok Beatnik as a cheap entry to clog lifestyle?

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I want a wide toe box, I don’t know whether I care about zero drop, but I definitely don’t want zero cushioning.
I’m heavy and not interested in the soles of my feet getting pounded, but I do want my toes to have wriggle room.

Altra 👍

Thought my Tevas would be pretty flat but they really aren’t. Or did they start out flat and I’ve just squashed them down? Nah they do look like they have drop in all the images on Google too.

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Have you tried a more built up Teva? I had Terra Fi Tevas as my only shoe (other than clipless riding shoes) on a long tour and found them pretty good. Hiked some pretty steep rocky paths in them and the sole lasted 18 months before wearing through.

I've been a flip flop wearer generally in the summer, wearing daily during the warmer months, but got fed up last year because I kept breaking them (strap just pulls through the soles), but they'd last the season at least.

I bought a pair of Tevas and broke them after a few months, 2 of the straps just broke right where the stitching meets the sole. I've just gone back to flip flops.

For those with cracked heels, O' Keeffes foot cream is excellent.

Also, Vivibarefoot have a reconditioned site at Revivo . Still pricey but less pricey than their main site.

I scrub my heels after soaking and then use o’keefes but I only do it as remedial action, I forget to do it when my feet aren’t causing me agony!