VIVOBAREFOOT
Flat, Flexible and Foot-Shaped.
Every shoe you put on your feet should be these three things!
Why!?
Let's unpack it...
Flat
The alignment of your entire body starts with feet. Your body is naturally aligned, naturally designed to stand, walk, and run on your feet: on your flat, bare feet.
Typical shoes have some sort of elevated heel; obviously high heels are the extreme but pretty much every shoe has some heel to toe drop. This elevated heel throws your alignment off, making your body have to correct for this by unnaturally loading other parts of the body. Back hurt? It may be your shoes.
Elevated heels can also cause the posterior muscles in the leg to shorten, which can lead to flattening of the arch, and thus, a more pronated foot. Excessive pronation is thought to be the cause of certain foot ailments.
Flexible
Your feet are specifically designed to flex, articulate, and move! They can bend and flex in an infinite number of positions Let your feet be feet by letting them do what they're designed for!
Wearing thick-soled, unflexible footwear does not make sense, as limiting flexibility decreases the use of your foot muscles and only makes them weaker.
Foot Shaped
The natural shape of your foot is triangular, meaning, the toes are the widest part of the foot/the widest part of the triangle. The heel is the narrowest.
However, most shoes are not designed to be widest at toes, but rather, widest at the balls of the feet. Soooo, they're shaped like a diamond, and as a result our feet turn out like the shape of a diamond.
Wearing foot-shaped shoes that are widest the toes gives your toes the ability to splay as they were intended, reducing the chances for foot deformities, including bunions.