Free eBooks The Barefoot Book: 50 Great Reasons To Kick Off Your Shoes Available To Downloads
Our addiction to wearing shoes has been linked to conditions ranging from foot fungus and bacteria to bunions and fallen arches. Ill-fitting and high-heeled shoes cause damage to the knees and spine, and continuous wearing of any kind of shoes builds up these problems. Daniel Howell describes the benefits of a simple alternative: going barefoot. The barefoot lifestyle corrects misalignments and increases foot strength and flexibility, and it is practiced in many other countries. In a reader-friendly, accessible style, this practical book explains the health advantages of going barefoot, provides tips for increasing barefoot time, and encourages everyone to experience the health benefits and the natural, vital pleasure of a barefoot connection with the earth.
Paperback: 168 pages
Publisher: Hunter House; 1 edition (August 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0897935543
ISBN-13: 978-0897935548
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.4 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #428,965 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #370 in Books > Medical Books > Medicine > Sports Medicine #52637 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for a review.I didn't realize how much time I spend barefoot until I read this book. I'm constantly barefoot at home (I'm a stay-at-home mom, so I'm home pretty much the whole day); and when I do venture out, I tend to wear sandals so my feet can breathe and I can kick them off while driving or sitting at a restaurant. And yes, my feet need to breathe. It is amazing how much feet regulate the body temperature-- and my feet need to stay cool because I'm going through menopause right now. If my feet get hot, my temperature goes up immediately and I literally feel like I can't get a decent breath. It's a weird feeling.I think this book is a nice introduction to a barefoot lifestyle. Probably more for people thinking about it more so than the ones who actually practice it. I'm from that generation where shoes were put on kid's feet to "support the ankles." I was told never to go barefoot because I would get hookworm and as a kid, the thought of any kind of worm working its way inside your feet is scary! And when I stepped on a nail out in the woods that went deep into the arch of my foot, my mother triumphantly proclaimed, "See? I told you going barefoot was dangerous."I was impressed with the anatomy lesson on the foot and I appreciate the research done and the bibliography of other sources to check out in regards to barefoot living. Dispelling myths about the foot and going shoeless, I learned that maybe some of my aches and pains in my hips and lower back might just be because of the shoes I choose to wear. After all these years, I might not be able to fix damage that has already been done, but maybe I can make what I have left work better.Lots of food for thought here, and I recommend this book.
I recently read The Barefoot Book: 50 Great Reasons to Kick Off Your Shoes by L. Daniel Howell. Mr. Howell, PhD, has a doctoral degree in biochemistry and teaches human anatomy and physiology at Liberty University in Virginia. His bio states that he is an avid barefoot runner with more than 2000 shoeless miles on his feet, and leads a barefoot hiking group.That gives him credibility in my eyes.As the author of Fixing Your Feet: Prevention and Treatments for Athletes, this book caught my attention. I am seeing more and more people joining the barefoot and minimalist movement.Fixing Your Feet: Prevention and Treatments for AthletesThe premise of The Barefoot Book is that feet and shoes are at odds with each other. The author promotes a barefoot lifestyle and the subtitle, 50 Great Reasons to Kick Off Your Shoes, supports his cause - to get readers to shed their shoes.The book starts with a chapter that covers a short history of how shoes came to be. Chapter 2, "Living Barefoot," shares the stories of 10 people who have to live a life barefoot. I liked how chapter 3 went into detail about the foot and how it works. It was very informative and helpful, especially if the reader has little knowledge of the structure, form, and function of the foot.The title, of chapter 4, What Your Shoes are Doing to You, carries forward the author's premise that shoes are bad for you. Readers learn a bit about the history of shoes and their construction and purpose; a lot about how shoes change the way stand, walk, run and feel the ground; followed by a discussion of negative conditions and injuries common to feet.
Here I am writing this, Barefoot (and NOT pregnant)...just had to emphasize that last detail. As a child, I was one of those ruffians who preferred running around the house buck naked and barefoot. Now, I realize our society does not look favorably upon my youthful preference for nil attire. Instead of running off to a commune amongst leftover Woodstockers, I relegated that fantasy to my edgy counterculturalists. Barefooting may challenge the norm, but it will not send me to the jailhouse for over-exposure. Bared feet are only immodest to those Victorian-era females forced to lace up for fear that a man might lust after that pointy ankle joint.For the past twenty months, I have been experimenting with minimalist footwear, specifically the Vibram FiveFingers. This natural progression lead me to The Barefoot Book: 50 Great Reasons to Go Barefoot by Daniel Howell. Affectionately dubbed "The Barefoot Professor," Howell has appeared on various popular media, podcasts, and radio shows proclaiming his message of barefoot living for foot health and overall wellbeing. I watched a Today show interview of shoeless Howell with two well-heeled females, and I was intrigued by his audacity to buck the normal attire prerequisite. Can you think of any other interviewee who has appeared on mainstream television without shoes? Nor could I.Having a Kindle, I can mark my favorite portions of the book for future reference. Here are five of my highlights.* There have been injuries caused by trying to do too much barefoot activity too soon, before the feet and body can make the necessary changes that need to occur. This can take months to years.
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