Pike’s Peak barefoot?
That’s right.
Shoes have been an issue for me all my life. When I was a kid I walked funny. Don’t laugh. Okay, you can laugh. My feet hurt. My mom took me to the pediatrician who said, “Put her in cheap shoes, she’ll be fine.” Enter the ugliest, late seventies nu-buck designer knock-offs ever seen. But I loved them. They were the most comfortable shoes ever. When everyone else was wearing patent-leather Mary Janes or hip Hush Puppies, there was I with my “sensible” Buster Browns.
Today, I am no different. Why on earth has “sensible” never been fashionable?
All gear ought to be based on its ability to help us: a) move more without causing harm; b) to comfortably work or recreate; and c) remain financially stable.
In short, what in the world is with pumps?
Sorry Manolo or Blahnik (see, I don’t even know if they are one or two people).
Our bodies are made to dance and run like a gazelle, not artfully adorn to please those who would bound and control us.
This is the insidious potential trick of all gear. Does it really free you to be your best? Does it bind your purse strings, or your emotions, or your happiness? Do you want to purchase a piece of equipment or gadget or clothing because it is “In” or because it expresses some measure of prowess? I’m not sure any of us are that vapid. But when you do purchase “gear,” I’d ask, are you really passionate and excited about how it will bring you along your PATH to being fully alive? Does it honestly make you want to move more? Or does it restrict your “move options?”
Every time I’m traveling with a group of people, when we’re done with our work we always suggest a walk. Every time someone stops to change their shoes, inevitably they end up bagging out. It’s a little thing but… If those folks could go right then and there, minutia wouldn’t bog them down or twist their psyche away from fresh air. Good business can’t be accomplished without oxygen and the freedom to move. Are you listening Manolo?
I tackled the Rockies in my new favorite barefoot shoes. Actually I now have two kinds of barefoot shoes – ones with toes (Vibram Five Fingers) and ones without (Merells – watch their videos on how to begin barefoot training). So I confess I’m not completely barefoot, yet. My new barefoot shoes, so named because they closely mimic what the foot can do when riding’ free, are the cutest darn things I’ve ever owned. In fact, I can actually wear them for business – not on Wall Street maybe, but most places. My hat is off to those who help create a world where our work and play merge for the better; where fashion makes being physically active the PATH of least resistance.
Comfort and sensibility can be sexy. Just think of how sexy looking I might be getting as I traipse through the Rocky Mountains, bouncing along the trail, graceful and happy as that gazelle, losing track of time and stress; my heartbeat swift and strong, healing. A gazelle I tell you! Joy and the spirit igniting a fire of zeal that catapult me to a new sense of commitment toward being active, as often as possible.
“Cheap” shoes, open mind, free heart, (sexy too, maybe).