Bare feet & sore knees

anaquay
anaquay Posts: 150 Member
edited January 18 in Fitness and Exercise
I've just started exercising gently - with the wii fit plus, but I'm about to start doing more. I'm hoping to have some kettlebells at home and also use some dvds for jumping around to. I have knees that really hurt sometimes, which I put down to when I did a lot of sport at school (many years ago) and we had to do it in very flat white tennis shoes. My knees occasionally start hurting when I've not been doing anything physical. I hate wearing anything on my feet, but have a good pair of trainers for when I start going to the gym. I would like to know if I'm going to damage anything by working out with bare feet? I'm not having a problem with the wii fit but wonder if it's going to be suitable when I'm following high intensity dvd workouts?

Replies

  • anaquay
    anaquay Posts: 150 Member
    Is there anyone who can give me advice please :smile:
  • divemunkey
    divemunkey Posts: 288 Member
    You were born with bare feet for a reason. You should be able to do any exercise bare footed. Until the guys at Nike came along, shoes were just something to protect your feet rather than the big puffy-soled apparatus they have become. The closer your feet at to the ground and the wider you can splay your toes, the better. your feet were made to grip the ground, send feedback to your brain about the terrain and help provide balance. Most shoes keep you from doing all those things very well. The more you can do barefoot, the better.
  • queenbea77
    queenbea77 Posts: 404 Member
    Personally I would find the best, most comfortable shoes to wear when working out. I like Brooks & Aasiacs. But I have orthotics I have to wear & I have wide feet so I can't wear Nike or any of the other well known brands.

    If you are doing new workouts or even just increasing your moving around (walking, etc) that could be part of the knee pain. I think I read somewhere just losing 5# takes something like 30# of pressure off your knees. I know for me since I've gotten heavier my knees.

    Is it worth the risk to go barefoot & end up with injuries to you knees & feet? I only go barefoot when I'm in my house or a stroll around my yard - but that's my choice because I've been through the foot problems. Good luck
  • I3ernadette
    I3ernadette Posts: 34 Member
    I have two bad knees from a car wreck, and I exercise in bare feet - though not at the gym, because it's unsanitary and unsafe, and generally it's not even allowed. It's actually better for you to some extent - or at least me - because my body notices more quickly when my form's off and adjusts so I don't do anything rude to my poor knees. Kettlebelling is a little more exciting than cardio in bare feet for two reasons: a) the kettlebell swing involves a squat and it's actually easier to shift out of alignment on bare feet (though really, you have to watch your form *very* carefully anyway. kettlebelling is a great workout, but it's easy to screw up) and b) at the end of your workout, especially when you're just beginning, you're gonna be *tired.* Be careful not to drop anything on your toes!

    I'd like to point out, though, that the thing that helps the most is stretching - not just basic, three minute warm-up and cool-down, but spending maybe 15 to 20 minutes a day going through a measured stretching routine; it strengthens the ligaments and tendons that you're stretching, and it really, really helped me with that sort of ambient, chronic pain. I do a cool-down after I exercise, of course, but I generally stretch before going to bed, too. I'm not talking yoga, here, but... I started with the "slim and limber" video on you-tube, if you want an example.
    Hope this helps!
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