The world of sports footwear is dotted with thousands of proposals and it is difficult today to decide what our next shoe will be!
Precisely because there are so many models from very important brands and of very high quality, it should be easier not to make mistakes. It's not always like this. Because it is not so much the quality of the product or the most cutting-edge technology that determines the success of the shoe best suited to our needs.
HI! I'm Gabriele from BF Mountain SHOP and in this article I'll talk to you about footwear with "natural" shapes that recall the shape of the foot.
Each of us has different feet, with different supports and different body structures. In this universe of proposals, the work of the specialist in the sports footwear sector is to select the brands he deems most appropriate, giving a very specific direction of product choice to his business.
In recent years, in BF Mountain SHOP the direction taken is that of footwear with wide shapes in the toe area. Specifically, it is called "wide area" to facilitate natural walking. What does it mean?
Our foot, from the metatarsal area to the end of the toes, tends to widen laterally. The shape of most shoes, however, tends to tighten this area, not favoring the natural shape of the foot. In technical jargon this footwear is called "barefoot shoes". Shoes, therefore, that give the sensation of being barefoot.
Look at these photos we took in the shop. I put my foot on an insole of a "normal" sports shoe (first photo) and on an insole of a shoe that adopts natural shapes (second photo)
You will notice that the foot on the insole in the first photo comes out with the big toe externally to the right and with part of the fourth toe and almost all of the fifth toe externally to the left.
On the more natural shaped footbed from the TOPO Atlethic brand, the forefoot can fit perfectly inside the entire footbed. It is right to specify that the insoles, even if they are of different brands, are of the exact same size. If you look at these images below you can see the outline of my foot, a normal insole placed on top where you can see that the big toe comes out and also the external toes. This means that the foot will be squeezed by the upper of the shoe. The insole of the
TOPO Atlethic shoe, on the other hand, fills my shape 100% and in this way the foot will not have lateral pressure.
All this to prove what? That shoes with classic shapes are evil and shoes with wider and more natural shapes are the solution? Absolutely not! In the future we will continue to deal with both types of footwear but, in BF Mountain SHOP, there is a strong desire to offer footwear with the most natural foot shapes because we strongly believe in the benefits of this approach. The foot has the possibility of having a wider base, therefore better balance. The low differentials between the rear and the front will favor the total support surface for the entire plant. This will strengthen the foot muscles and avoid injuries.
This approach is important to bring attention to our body. The foot is our base. If it can work to the best of its potential and we trust its structure without too many "supports" we will have positive returns on the muscles and comfort of the foot. We are convinced that this type of footwear should be tried at least once by everyone and that most of the time the feedback is super positive. There also remains the possibility that it isn't right for you but trying is always a good way to find out!
I end up saying that the rest of our body should also have the right attention and give confidence to its structure. Exercise, don't gain weight, stretch, eat healthy foods, sit as little as possible and move a lot. Walk or run. We are made for this. We must give our body the opportunity to move.
If you want to try this type of footwear, stop by the store and take a look at the
TOPO Atlethic!
Author: Gabriele Sanzi
