Summary
Steve Sashen of Xero Shoes joins the Wise Traditions podcast to discuss how modern footwear damages foot health and why returning to natural movement starts with the feet. The episode covers the full journey from the oldest known 10,000-year-old sandals to today's padded, heeled shoes that weaken and deform feet. Sashen explains that the foot and ankle contain one quarter of the body's bones and joints, and the soles have more nerve endings than anywhere except fingertips and lips. He describes how arch support weakens feet by 17% in 12 weeks, how a podiatrist visiting Kenya in the 1960s found no foot problems in an unshod population, and shares powerful stories including an 82-year-old man who threw away his walker after two weeks of barefoot walking. The conversation also covers plantar fasciitis as frequently misdiagnosed tight calves rather than true inflammation, and how heel-elevated shoes cause overstride patterns that strain the plantar fascia.
Key Points
- Foot and ankle contain 25% of the body's bones and joints; soles have more nerve endings than anywhere but fingertips and lips
- Arch support weakens feet up to 17% within 12 weeks according to research
- A podiatrist visiting 1960s Kenya reported finding zero foot problems in the unshod population
- Plantar fasciitis is often misdiagnosed -- many cases are actually tight calves
- Heel-elevated shoes cause overstriding which puts plantar fascia in a weakened position under load
- An 82-year-old man threw away his walker after two weeks of barefoot walking
- A blind customer described barefoot shoes as gaining a whole new sense
- Foot problems trace back roughly 50 years to when major shoe companies added padding and heel elevation
- Walking in minimalist shoes for eight weeks builds the same foot strength as a dedicated exercise program
Key Moments
Feet contain 25% of the body's bones and joints
Sashen opens with the foundational case for natural foot function: the foot's extraordinary density of bones, joints, and nerve endings means it's designed for complex movement and sensory input.
"Your foot and ankle have one quarter of the bones and joints of your entire body, and the soles of your feet have more nerve bendings than anywhere but your fingertips and your lips. Clearly, that means you're supposed to use these things, and they're supposed to bend and flex and move and feel the world."
Podiatrist found zero foot problems in unshod Kenya
Sashen cites a podiatrist who visited Kenya in the 1960s and reported finding no foot problems among the unshod population, illustrating how modern shoes create the very problems they claim to solve.
"And his report back was: a podiatrist will go broke in this country. Whoa. So in other words, they were doing better with their minimalist or barefoot experience than we are with our expensive boots and shoes that are especially modified to give us arch support and whatnot. Yeah, well, let's just do the simple thing. Your foot and ankle have one quarter of the bones and joints of your entire body, and the sole."
Plantar fasciitis is often misdiagnosed tight calves
Sashen explains that many plantar fasciitis diagnoses are actually tight calf issues, and describes how heel-elevated shoes cause overstriding that puts the plantar fascia in its weakest position under maximum load.
"First is it's often misdiagnosed. So, many people are told they have plantar fasciitis. What they really have is tight calves. In fact, I've met more people who where it's a tight calf issue."
82-year-old threw away his walker after two weeks barefoot
An 82-year-old man who was searching for vibrating insoles found Sashen's blog post instead, started walking barefoot, and discarded his walker within two weeks.
"He said that was two weeks ago, and he just threw away his walker."
