Wouldn’t you like to know how your whole body works together? Wouldn’t it help if you knew, from your head down to your feet, how various habits can induce excessive wear and tear on our bodies, and discourage them from repairing themselves as much as they are capable of?
Then maybe you can help fellow barefooter Stephanie Welch produce The Human Body User Manual.
Stephanie has an indiegogo project going right now (through the end of February) to help raise money to help her finish the book. Of course, she could just write the book and then try to sell it, but there are advantages (to her, and to us) in doing it this way.
For one thing, she does need to pay an editor and an illustrator. But if she has some money now then she will be able to devote the time to finishing it now and not have to try to slip it in between other commitments.
(Photo from The Human Body User Manual website.)
She has a nice website that does a good job of explaining what she is trying to do with the book. That’s here: The Human Body User Manual. As she points out there
Like any machine, the human body works well within certain parameters, and when something begins to go astray, dysfunction ensues. Regardless of how active or sedentary you are, if you are seeking to treat or prevent chronic pain, degeneration, poor posture, spinal issues, sports injuries, arthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, plantar fasciitis – almost any biomechanical pain or dysfunction – you need to know why it’s all related and what you can do about it (and the cost of not taking these steps even if you pursue other medical interventions!).
But wait . . . there’s more!
There is also a page about her own personal story, My Campaign Story. Stephanie is a Licensed Massage Therapist, but she also found that going barefoot provided the key to really learning how the whole body tied together for health. (I hope I’m not overstating that.)
She, at this stage, has a detailed outline, chapter summary, of what she intends to have in the book. You can see that here, but I thought I’d mention the chapters that are more foot-related.
(Note: when I focus on the chapters that are more foot-related, I’m really violating the whole premise of the book, which is how the body parts are inter-related. However, I’m justifying it to myself for the following two reasons: 1) This is mainly a barefoot blog—I need to pander to my audience 🙂 ; and 2) Most “whole-body” books still leave people wearing shoes, which screws up all the rest of the advice in those books.)
The book has five main sections, “Evolutionary Context”, “How the Body Works (Anatomy & Physiology)”, “How the Body Works (Kinesiology)”, Understanding Your Condition”, and “Treatment Approaches”.
Chapter 9 (under Kinesiology) addresses the lower body (including the feet).
The Lower Body: The Myth of Foot and Arch Dysfunction
We’re all born with flat feet, and, like everything else, arches develop based on use. Feet are like marionettes, controlled by the strings from above. Most of the things we blame them for must be solved by retraining the core and hips. They cannot do their jobs when they are 1) chronically elevated at the heel, 2) forced to operate as a single unit, or 3) deprived of sensory input from the ground.
I’m not really sure that we’re all born with flat feet—I’d probably
say it more as that we are born with undeveloped and unstrengthened feet.
The arches are there; it’s just that they haven’t been used and then had
the chance to develop their strength. And of course shoes work pretty
hard to prevent (or inhibit) that. [Based on Stephanie’s comment below, let me correct this. I just did a Google image search for baby’s feet, and they all look amazingly flat. I say “amazingly” flat since it surprised me. There’s a slight hint of a curve; maybe I could claim that just shows them “undeveloped”, but in reviewing it, I think Stephanie’s comment about flat feet on babies really is spot on.]
Under “Understanding Your Condition” is Chapter 18.
Foot & Ankle Problems
Flat feet, high arches, bunions, neuromas, over pronation, excessive supination, heel spurs, calluses, hammertoes, and (usually) even ingrown toenails are neither genetic nor permanent. They are also based on how the feet, like marionettes, are controlled and supported by the core, hip, and leg muscles above. Plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendinitis also result from specific overuse and imbalances.
And under “Treatment Approaches” there is Chapter 22.
Getting to Know Your Feet
Feet are the most underappreciated part of the body when it comes to alignment, balance, and core strength. We try to impose outside restraints or supports on them, when the only road to long-term correction is through internal changes. If you can’t see what your feet show or listen to the input they provide, you miss a critical part of the puzzle in restoring your body’s function.
Interestingly, there is also an appendix, “Bare Feet in the Modern World”, which I would find quite interesting. There’s no description of what it’ll have, but of course one of the problems we are all aware of is that modern society (particularly in the U. S.) makes it particularly difficult to go barefoot. (No, not because of hard sidewalks or supposed glass-strewn surfaces, but because of cultural norms.)
Anyways, you might go take a look at Stephanie’s video appeal:
She also has another video out discussing the shoe company’s plans for more and more cushioning this year.
(In addition to her points, I’d add that, as the minimalist trend tends to wind down, the shoe company’s are chasing after where they think the money is.)
Of course, I have to finish up with a picture of Stephanie herself (taken from her web page).
Practicing what you preach is always good.
So anyways, seriously consider giving (or more accurately, advance-paying) to her campaign. Again, to give, go
HERE.
There are the usual indiegogo levels with various perks.
Check it out.
Hi Bob,
Thank you so much for sharing this! 😀 Regarding the appendix, “Bare Feet in the Modern World,” that’s where I’ll be addressing things like:
— “It’s a feature, not a flaw” — the sensitivity of the feet, while often mistaken for vulnerability, is actually geared to provide a warning of danger long before injury occurs; however, we’ve become unaccustomed to interpreting this type of sensory input.
— Over-exaggeration of fears — why glass, needles, and bacteria are not as dangerous as many people think, especially in comparison with the underappreciated risks of habitually wearing shoes.
— Laws and policies — dispelling the myths about health codes, and explaining the difference among rules or policies that businesses do have jurisdiction over regarding their employees or patrons.
— Practical advice — such as why blisters are a common early transition symptom, how to manage in the cold, and the difference between frostbite and chilblains.
— Resources — The fact that communities exist in support of this practice, and how to find them, such as through the SBL website, or how to search in other ways (Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Meetup…)
I’d love to get input from the community as it comes along, and I’m also more than happy to answer questions! 🙂
What happened with that Whole Foods thing from last year? Any more word from them? Here in florida their sign says:
“Florida attire required – must include shirts and shoes” Real funny huh?
Hi Beach Bum,
Unfortunately I did finally get a callback from my Whole Foods here in Boston, and they essentially said that they’d reviewed my request but wouldn’t be able to grant it; citing their jurisdiction to prefer maintaining that policy rather than opening themselves up to the “slippery slope” of whatever else people might ask for next. They had the store manager call me, rather than anyone with the authority to actually make decisions. I decided to let it go for now and focus on taking this educational approach; I think that public opinion will have to change more before they would begin to listen.
By the way, Bob, regarding flat feet — my contention is that arches are not a permanent feature of the body at all, but rather, like the lap, are the effective result of a position of alignment that the body enters into. We classify people based on which tends to be their default habit; with work, I’ve switched my default from flat to well-arched, after 28 years of the former.
Take a look at this video from Kelly Starrett, author of Becoming a Supple Leopard, on flat feet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qcaGGi6TDLg
For some reason the sound doesn’t seem to be working on that particular link, but it seems to work just fine where I linked it in the gallery on the Indiegogo site, so try here if it doesn’t work: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-human-body-user-manual-vol-1/x/6002677?c=gallery
I’ve updated the body of the post regarding flat feet in babies.
I’m just glad I can go barefoot without worring about saving the world. I don’t care about them, they’ll never get it, so let them wear their steel toe stillettos.
Good luck Stephanie and remeber in the end it’s better to sell out to Vivo than starve. I will consider funding, you should at least have a niche market.
Yes Stephanie, that is what I was afraid they were going to say. All who have tried this with them got the same answer. Whole Foods is as stubborn about that as you can get. And the CEO brags about his libertarian politics…..
But anyway, with regards to the arch thing, this was where we went backwards and really forgot our recent past. Back in the 1960s there were shoe stores that specialized in orthopedic shoes, orthotics, and custom made support shoes designed to the individual with foot problems. I used to get shoes in such a store then, my parents and their friends did so as well, at least those that had “fallen arches” and “flat feet”. Do you know what they said? When wearing shoes you need the custom arch support when walking and standing all day for comfort. But their advice was to go barefoot as much as possible, and do barefoot toe raise exercises to develop the arch. They knew you needed the shoes for dress code reasons at work and school but were well aware that going barefoot would prevent the so-called fallen arches and that the shoes were the cause of it. And they said that by having the kids go barefoot as much as possible they would grow out of the fallen arches and not need the orthotics anymore.
And by the way, do you know how many young women during the 60s and 70s used to say “I hate shoes”? I used to hear that all the time from a surprisingly large minority of women.
Thanks, tbeer! As you can hopefully see, it’s not completely focused on going barefoot; more on the understanding of how everything works together. Feet are just the most commonly underappreciated part of that interdependent system. So I am hoping to address it to the broader educated public. The body works the way it works, whether or not people choose not to go barefoot! At least if you *know* how it works, there are ways to mitigate the negative effects of wearing shoes.
Beach Bum, it’s too bad things like that changed! That around the time industrial seed oils and high fructose corn syrup started dominating our food supply, too.
What is the guarantee that the book will be scientifically accurate?
Hi Stephanie,
I’ve been reading what you wrote on Bob’s site as well as your own and I couldn’t agree with you more. The reason why people have so much blisters, flat feet, bunions, etc. is because society have taught people that shoes and other types of footwear in the modern world is a must.
It is true that lots of people today have constant back, neck and muscle pain due to poor posture. Yesterday, I decided to go to an outdoors arts festival in an area down in South Florida called Coconut Grove. It’s a popular festival with lots and lots of people going every year. Breaking with the social norms, I attended the festival barefoot and after walking around for three hours, my body never felt better.
Ever since becoming an avid barefooter, I rarely if ever have any foot or back problems. Also despite the usual fears of barefooting in public, I didn’t see any broken glass or any types of dangerous objects on the streets. Good luck with your book and I hope to see it a nearby bookstore soon.
Barefooter25, thanks for your support! 🙂
Vas, well, when you say guarantee, I’m not sure. Understandings are continually changing, however, I think we’ve accumulated all the necessary knowledge for a pretty clear picture of how the body develops the way it does and why, and I want to present it in a uniquely synthesized way. (Most resources, if they focus on the feet at all, do not relate them fully to the development of the core and the rest of the body.) Have you looked at the detailed overview to see how I’m framing the content?
Part of the work ahead of me is simplifying the explanations but also maintaining enough information to satisfy a technically-oriented audience. (I’m looking at splitting the technical info into boxes set aside for those who are interested.) So for example, when discussing how the body’s structural tissues develop, we’re dealing with concepts like piezoelectric charge. Anatomically, I’m presenting the body as a tensegrity structure. Neurologically, it’s important to recognize the brain’s desire to conserve energy and therefore hardwire movement habits into the basal ganglia, which leads to repetition of the same patterns and has consequences for our lifetime structural development. Also, the distribution of sensory receptors represented in the somatosensory cortex is a key clue to understanding the significance of the feet in motor coordination.
I’m just citing a few of these examples to assure you that it’s not based on romanticized naturalism or anything like that. However, one of the problems is in gathering epidemiological studies. I have been heard to say “science is overrated,” on account of the fact that it’s very difficult to parse out the *good* science, if in fact there even is any on certain topics. With barefooting, it seems to be exceedingly limited; often, barefoot is not truly treated as barefoot when it comes to doing studies! “Minimalist” footwear is allowed to substitute, as so-called “barefoot shoes” or “barefoot” running. Or, barefoot subjects who are not used to being barefoot are treated as adequate examples of barefooters, when you would get very different results testing habitual barefooters.
So, my interest is in looking at a combination of what the body does, as well as how it does the things it does, and putting together a big-picture view of what we can predict or accept as reliable based on that. It doesn’t necessarily require epidemiological studies in advance to assert that this is the best understanding we can come to yet. Though I hope they’ll be done with better informed parameters and interpretation in the future based on this perspective!
Dear Robert the Bob, thank you for allowing me to learn about Stephanie; I just read “My Campaign Story” and I can tell you that she is not only a attractive and intelligent woman, but a very coherent, honest and corageous one also!
Thank you very much
P.S.- Remember that I know something about honest and corageous people 😉