This is a question I get asked everyday day in my Podiatry clinic, and unfortunately the answer is a tricky one.

Yes, we humans are supposed to be barefoot. But barefoot on natural surfaces such as grass, sand and dirt. It's when we introduce the unforgiving man-made surfaces that we get into trouble. Our bodies are not designed to walk barefoot all day on hard surfaces such as timber, tiles, concrete, bitumen etc. - and let's face it in our modern world this is pretty much what we walk on all day long.

Most people without any foot pain should be able to cope with small amounts of walking barefoot at home on hard man-made surfaces (for example half hour in the morning before going to work and one hour in evening after work). Problems will often occur, and occur quite quickly, when someone is on holidays for a few weeks and spends more time barefoot at home, or when women go on maternity leave, or when people retire. Even a person with the most 'mechanically correct' foot posture is likely to develop symptoms from spending long periods of barefoot on hard surfaces. The symptoms may not necessarily show up in your feet either, quite often leg fatigue, sore knees and sore lower back are often signs or poor shock absorption.

Having said this, spending some barefoot time outside on natural surfaces, or 'earthing', poses many health benefits. Barefoot will help to strengthen your toes, foot and lower leg muscles and also improve your proprioception, awareness and balance. I put this theory to test whilst travelling through rural Africa for 6 weeks: I wore a pair of tired flip-flops (almost barefoot) for the whole 6 weeks and did a tremendous amount of walking on predominantly natural surfaces and suffered no foot or lower leg pain or fatigue. If I did the same thing at home in Australia, with our expanse of man-made surfaces, I'm certain I would have very tired achey feet and legs at the end of my trip.

There is also research out there that suggests 'earthing' improves things like energy levels, sleep patterns, blood pressure, stress levels and more.

So my suggestion as a Podiatrist who deals with foot pain all day long: limit your barefoot time on hard, man-made surfaces (instead wear cushioned footwear that does not restrict your toes) but make an effort to increase your barefoot time on natural, 'earthy' surfaces.

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The great thing about walking is it's easy to do and it can be done anywhere. It requires no special equipment. Just put on your sneakers and head outside.

You can walk in the park or you can walk around your neighborhood. It doesn't matter just as long as you are walking.

You probably think an exercise so simple couldn't have very many benefits. Well that couldn't be further from the truth. Walking actually has a ton of really great benefits. Too many to name in this one article. However, I will focus on a few I know you will love.

Benefits Of Walking

Walking helps with physical strength. It will make you stronger overall. It can also help ward of diseases and improve your overall health and well-being.

According to the American Heart Association walking can help reduce the risk of both breast and colon cancer. It can also help reduce your risk for type 2 diabetes and osteoporosis.

If you have high blood pressure it can help alleviate it. It can also improve your blood sugar levels. That's a lot of wonderful benefits for such a simple exercise.

A brisk 30 minute walk a day is all it takes to burn calories, tone your muscles and improve your health. If you haven't worked out in a while its okay to start off slow. Walking just 5 minutes a day is a great start. As you get stronger you can increase the time to 10 minutes, 20 minutes and then 30 minutes.

When you walk, or do any type of exercise for that manner, you release what is commonly referred to as feel good hormones. The technical term for these feel good hormones is endorphins. When your body releases endorphins it gives you an immediate boost in your mood. Walking is low impact which makes it a great exercise for everyone.

How Many Calories Can You Burn Walking?

Every individual is different and will therefore burn a different number of calories from walking. The amount of calories you burn will depend on three main factors: your current weight, the intensity of your walk and the duration of your walk.

Someone who weighs 150 pounds and walks a normal pace for 60 minutes can burn as much as 250 calories.

A 200 pound person on the other hand can burn as much as 330 calories. The average person will burn up to 140 calories per mile walked.

How To Achieve The Best Results

To get the most out of your walking you should focus on walking with good posture and letting your arms swing slightly as you walk.
Engage your abdominal muscles with every stride. This will build up your core strength and protect your spine.

To help you stay on track consider asking a friend or family member to go along with you on your walks.
Purchase a pedometer so you can track your steps throughout the day.
For best results aim to walk at least 30 minutes a day. However, remember to start off slow if you are just getting back into the swing of things.

As you get stronger you can increase the amount of time and intensity of your walks.

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