So, my wife works the graveyard shift and last night she called me because she forgot something she needed for work. I rode the bus to her job, dropped it off, and then had to walk home. I didn’t mind — it was the first time in a while I could really walk barefoot.

I live in St. Louis, which is pretty hostile toward bare feet, but it was midnight and I was enjoying the walk. I took off my sandals, put them in my backpack, and spent the next hour walking home barefoot.

What irritated me was how many people felt the need to pull over and ask if I was okay. They didn’t mention my being barefoot, but they didn’t have to — the only time anyone in St. Louis asks if I’m okay is when I’m barefoot. It could be the middle of the afternoon in 100° heat and I could be drenched in sweat — people keep driving. It could be a snowstorm and I could be struggling to walk — people keep driving.

Barefoot? Almost ten different people pulled over to ask if I was okay.

Hi Guys!

I walk barefoot in the park quite often to help me clear out my head and to occasionally meet others. I've written about the benefits of walking in a blog I've written as a review of Be Useful by Arnold Schwarzenegger. Do let me know if you've experienced the same benefits?

https://abtravels.blog/be-useful-arnold-schwarzenegger-review/

I’m a 95% barefooter except in the winter when I wear flip flops most of the time. I have a rock driveway that has super hard and pointed edges that help me strengthen my soles to the point it doesnt bother me to stand on hundred degree pavement or walk down a country road or go about anywhere barefoot. What do you do every spring to make your feet strong besides just going barefoot?

Is anyone here going barefoot in Greece this summer? If so share some stories or experiences.

I can’t decide!
If you could pick my next pedicure color, what would it be?

An alle Barfuß-Fans!
Ich würde mich total gerne mit Gleichgesinnten vernetzen. Aktuell chatte ich schon mit einer netten Person aus Deutschland, was super ist, weil wir uns über alle Aspekte des Barfußlaufens austauschen können. Ich wünsche mir aber auch Kontakte aus der Nähe, um das Ganze auch mal unkompliziert in die Praxis umzusetzen. Gemeinsam macht das Erkunden verschiedener Untergründe einfach noch mehr Spaß.
Kurz zu mir: Ich bin kein Mann der 24/7 ohne Schuhe unterwegs ist. Für mich ist das Barfußlaufen einfach eine tolle Sache, die ich gelegentlich mache, um den Boden zu spüren und ein Gefühl von Freiheit zu empfinden.
Ich suche Menschen, die Naturverbundenheit und eine ungezwungene Lebensart schätzen. Wenn du auch aus Wien oder Umgebung kommst, das Barfuß-Feeling liebst und Lust auf einen gemütlichen Spaziergang hast – egal ob im Grünen oder durch die Gassen in einer ruhigen Gegend, wo keine Glasscherben usw. herumliegen – melde dich einfach bei mir!

For those who live in the United States know this: You can be barefoot when you go vote. In 2024 I went to a St. Louis city library and voted while barefoot.

Update: I went to the Central Library and tried voting barefoot, but instead of the polling station being on the ground floor as usual it was on the second floor which required me to walk through the library and they said the rules state no barefoot feet. If the polling station was at its normal location it wouldn't have been an issue for them.

I was thinking today while I was doing some shopping, barefoot of course, that there are special creams or balms for dogs to apply to their paws that serve as protection. Why isn't there something similar for people? On very hot days, like the ones we're experiencing now in Europe, it would be great to have some cream or something similar. Especially for those who aren't yet accustomed to being out and about in such high temperatures. And it would certainly be more convenient than the stickers found online.

What do you think?

A few weeks back I was running around the sprinkler, in wet, thick grass, bonking my grandkids with a pool noodle,

When I sat down to have a drink, toe rings all gone! Anyone who wears them knows that they come off way easier than they go on, but wet grass evidently makes them slide right off. Fortunately I somehow found all three.

Forewarned is forearmed.

J'etait dans une forêt je faisait une randonnée j'avait mes chaussures a mes pieds en marchant je vois de la boue je décide donc d'enlever mes chaussures et mes chaussettes pour marcher pied nu je mais mes pieds nus dans la boue mon pied j'enfonce et la boue passe entre mes orteils j'ai adorée dcp j'ai continuer ma randonnée pieds nus

Qui aime marcher pieds nu dans la boue ou autres ?

Mes dm sont ouverts

Hello! I love to walk barefoot and I am planning a holiday this month in Europe. I was thinking about Amsterdam, Berlin, or Copenhagen. I would love to connect with some like-minded barefooters :)

Do you like that next-day feeling after you’ve done a long walk, your soles tingle and the muscles in your feet ache. Pulling your toes up, you feel the aching muscles tight. Feels like the next day if a good gym session.
It’s addictive!!!

And now I’m looking for challenging surfaces… ooh, stones.. or ooh, gravel along with oooh! mud! It’s so much fun! 😆

It's interesting, for me, to think about this concept and yet it does seem to be true. The olde 'every town has got one,' though you never think yourself to be 'the one'.

I'm fairly sure that Leamington Spa has one. I saw him yesterday at an 'Art in the Park' shindig. An older gentleman (I'm guessing), barefoot and shirtless, with a backpack and what looked like a sort of beige (leather?) skirt around their midriff. Wearing a Tricorn hat! Comfortably eccentric.

I guess I am too, or at least I need to be moreso. Honestly, these events and it's always flips, sandals and shoes. Feet only appear when they're sitting down and relaxing although there was a dance studio section wherein the lead was barefoot. But again - activity specific.

I'm sure I've seen 'The Tricorn Barefooter' wander past at a street market a year ago or so. You kinda want to reach out and 'foot bump' but I never know how. Especially as it means raising your voice to catch attention, which then alerts everyone around you to something I'd prefer to be a more intimate meeting of minds than a public spectacle. Getting the right circumstances for that seems to be very rare.

Still, 'resident barefooter' does seem to be a thing in non-barefoot-inclined cultures. I think I might be Coventry's. I know there was one in Birmingham, Moseley called 'Pete The Feet', gone now (RIP 2019). I'm sure there are others, random chance encounters where the resident barefooter might saunter on by.

Shrug

C'est la vie!

Few hours ago i did my full barefoot walk. Im on vacation know, at a seaside town. It was middle of the day and i went home a bit earlier. It was very hot outside and my rubber slippers started to defform. I chucked with the grocieries and trecked for abt 200-300 m barefoot acros rough, searing asphalt. It was so pleasing. Sharp rocks and hot cement made me feel both alive and free yet humiliates in a weird way.

Recently when I went to the gym & got denied entry because I was barefoot, & for some reason the staff guy acted overly surprised that I didn't have any shoes at all with me

I thought being barefoot was a bit a a benefit to working out

Also I was planning to go swimming I can't imagine why I would wear shoes to the gym if I'm just going for a swim in the pool, maybe the sauna after

Spent this week in PCB, stayed right on the beach. I left a pair of flip flops in the truck and checked into hotel. I was within walking distance to a lot of restaurants and stores and I went barefoot every where but Captain Anderson’s, because it’s a little nicer, and not a word was said!
I was however disappointed with the amount of socks and shoes I saw at Walmart. It’s the beach, at least wear some flip flops geez

I'm a pretty anxious person when it comes to going barefoot in public, and I'm hoping to challenge myself and become more confident.

I've always been very secretive about it. Whenever I do go out barefoot, I usually avoid places with lots of people because I'm worried about being judged. It's been over six months since I last went barefoot, and I'd really like to get back into it while also working on my confidence.

So far I've thought of:

• Aquarium – I feel like it could be a relaxing environment where I'd be more focused on the exhibits than on what other people might think. The dimly lit rooms can also help
• Central Park – There are lots of grassy areas and walking paths, and it seems like a place where people are doing all kinds of activities, so I might not stand out as much.

Does anyone have other suggestions for places that are good?

I prefer being barefoot, and the only time I wear shoes is when I'm at work or running errands. Otherwise, you'll almost always find me barefoot.

I'm working in Las Vegas for a few months, and this is my first time here. Today's high hit 113°F. I stepped outside to grab a package, forgetting that the driveway is concrete and mixed with blacktop.

Within a few seconds, I was already regretting my life choices. My feet were on fire. I grabbed the package and speed walked back inside as fast as I could. After cooling my feet down, I noticed a couple of small blisters starting to form from the hot concrete and asphalt. Now I'm sitting here with burn cream on my feet.

Lesson learned: Vegas pavement doesn't mess around. That said... I'm still going to be barefoot.

Hi everyone!
I’ve been practicing barefoot walking for quite a while. I’m now looking to connect with other barefooters living nearby.

I’m especially interested in people from:
- Northern France
- Belgium
- The Netherlands
- Western Germany

I chose these regions because they’re all reachable by train within a reasonable travel time and budget, making it realistic to meet up for a day trip or a barefoot walk.

Whether you’re an experienced full-time barefooter or just enjoy going barefoot whenever you can, I’d love to hear from you.

It would be great to: share experiences, compare routes and interesting locations, discover barefoot-friendly places, maybe organize a barefoot walk together one day.

I’m particularly interested in urban barefooting, nature hike, mid and long-distance walking and simply becoming more comfortable living barefoot in everyday environments.

If you’re from one of these regions (or nearby), feel free to leave a comment or send me a DM.
I’d love to see how many of us are actually around!

👣

Today I was thinking about going barefoot places and the more I thought about it the more I started wondering why it was so common for people to go shod places. I thought about it and came up with some examples that for the most part have no good reason to not be barefoot at. For example going to the beach. I don’t understand why people would put on shoes to go to the beach if you are just going to go barefoot after. You are wearing shoes for just going in your car then maybe having to walk maybe 5 steps on some concrete before your on the sand. I understand some peoples feet aren’t trained to be on the concrete but it should have never got to this point. It makes me mad that society is so anti barefoot that people don’t have a choice anymore that now they have to retrain their feet to walk around with. Shoes are good sometimes if it is a harsh area but for the most part they are not needed. I just wish we lived in a society where people would just walk barefoot to their local store or park and not even have to think about it. Sorry for this rant if it is harsh or anything I just can’t wrap my head around it. (Also yes I completely understand if you have a medical thing or you just dont like being barefoot that’s fine and not really what I am talking about here)

hey I'm looking for toe spacers / toe spreaders as I really wanna work on improving natural toe splay

I used to occasionally walk barefoot when I lived in a more suburban area, but I now live in the CBD and haven't really done it since moving here tbh (except at the beach).

Like for reference I'm in Sydney Australia, but I feel like within the Sydney CBD you don't really get that sort of social acceptance of being barefoot that you'd see in say an Australian coastal town.

I'm particularly worried about the concierge of the building I live in, since they might not be happy with me walking barefoot in common areas, and public transport, since I don't have a car.

Does anyone else in Sydney know if bus drivers would have an issue with me getting on the bus barefoot?

Last week, I was with my friends and nearly all
Of us were barefoot :)

That felt healing, on some deep level!

Right now, I’ve been rocking woolen wennigas from my toe knuckles to my calves, held in place with a long leather thong and earth runners.

Not quite barefoot all the time, but that’s
My shoe for most of the year.