Our Favorite Feet, Footwear, and Walking Resources

To make it easier for you to develop a fuller picture from various sources, I've created a note full of links to articles and posts and podcasts and videos about all things feet, footwear, and walking. Click through the links to explore feet, footwear, and walking in depth. You can also find a kid-feet section below. I have an entire video course on gait and walking, find more about that here. I regularly send out newsletters with new exercises and movements to try; sign up for my newsletter to receive these lessons!

Simple alignment adjustments to your foot position that quickly change the way you’re loading them

Stance
Mind Your Pelvis
Advanced Foot Position
Do Second Toes Always Line Up?

Foundational foot moves for more mobile and stronger feet

Why and How to Pelvic List (which also includes the Calf Stretch!)
Expert Ankles
The Highs and Lows of Foot Arches
Plantar Fasciitis And Tight Hamstrings
How Flip Flops Change Your Feet

More in-depth programming

For more in-depth movement instruction and exercises for the feet, knees, and hips (and how they work together), check out our video course Whole Body Biomechanics: Feet, Knees, and Hips.

 

Books

I've written two books about your feet and what you put on them each day (that’s how important it is!).

Simple Steps to Foot Pain Relief: The New Science of Healthy Feet
Whole Body Barefoot: Transitioning Well to Minimal Footwear (read an excerpt here)
In Move Your DNA, check out Chapter 9: Walking, the Specifics

All about footwear + shoemakers we love

I love and advocate for going barefoot, but I still need (and appreciate) shoes most of the time. Check out the articles below to learn what minimal shoes are all about, my favorite brands and styles of minimal footwear, how to DIY them, and how to shop for them.

A Kid Explains Minimal Shoes
Minimal Shoes: The List
DIY Heel Hack
Back-to-School Minimal Shoes: A Sizing and Shopping Guide for Kids
How Long Do Minimal Shoes Last?

Because I care about the movements involved in making things, as well as the people doing those movements, I’ve gotten to know a lot of makers. And because I'm so involved in the foot and shoe world, I have a lot of behind-the-scenes access with shoemakers I'd like to share with you. Below you'll find written and audio-interviews of the companies we've worked with the most.

Softstar Shoes: The Interview
Unshoes: The Interview
Hear Unshoes maker interviewed in Podcast Episode #114
Hear Earthrunners maker interviewed in Podcast Episode #113
Hear Softstar Shoes interviewed in Podcast Episode #110

Kid feet

I get so many questions about kids’ feet and footwear. If you have questions too, you might find the answers in one of these posts.  For answers to BIG questions about kid (and family) movement check out my latest book Grow Wild: The Whole-Child, Whole-Family, Nature-Rich Guide to Moving More.

Back-to-School Minimal Shoes: A Sizing and Shopping Guide for Kids
A Podiatrist on Kid Feet, Shoes, and Orthotics
Your Child Might Be Wearing Heels Right Now
Dress Up Feet
Foot School
When Can Girls Wear Heels & Other “Adult” Shoes?

Walking

The posts below are on some of the nuts and bolts of gait, walking include essays about the variables of walking as well as some exercises to try and videos to watch.

Gait 101 (idea: walking and running are different movements)
Walking or Bouncing? (idea: knee stabilization is part of smooth walking)
Saddlebags (idea: the importance of the lateral hips during walking)
Save Your Knees: A Hiking Tutorial (idea: make sure immobile hips aren't making your knees do all the work)
Fix Your Downhill Knees (idea: you might not be using all your downhill parts)
Swing Forward? (idea: your arms have natural walking movements too)
Vitamin "Flat and Level" Overdose (idea: introducing "Vitamin Texture")
Be a Biomechanic! (idea: play with different gait patterns)

These are articles that look less at the "part-by-part" mechanics of walking and more about the whole body walking, and how that can be varied.

Walk THAT Way
13 Ways to Make Your Walk More Nutritious

Every year I do an exercise advent, and in 2014 it was all about gait. You can find 24 gait-related exercises and lessons in that article.

Exercise Advent Calendar 2014: GAIT

IN-DEPTH VIDEO PROGRAM

I have an entire 6-hour video course on walking mechanics and corrective exercises and alignment called Walking Well: A Stepwise Approach to an Everyday Movement. This course is half me, taking you through six sessions where I break down walking into the smaller movements that create each step, and half Jill Miller (myofascia expert and co-founder of Tune Up Fitness), who walks the viewer through six sessions of self-massage techniques that make walking movements easier for the body.

PODCASTS - LISTEN AND LEARN

Podcast episodes about feet

Now that you’re going to be on your feet more, how about something to listen to (about being on your feet more)?

Whole Body Barefoot—Podcast Episode #18
All About the Base (Part 1)—Podcast Episode #19
All About the Base (Part 2)—Podcast Episode #20
It Starts With Feet—Podcast Episode #85
The Calf Stretch—Podcast Episode #88
Your Feet Through the Years—Podcast Episode #106

 

Podcast episodes about walking

Apparently I talk a lot about walking! In these episodes we discuss some of the nuts and bolts of walking, as well as some on long-distances walks that might inspire you.

Delicious Butt Function—Podcast Episode #5
Treadmills—Podcast Episode #9
Enter the Gait Lab—Podcast Episode #32
The City Moves You—Podcast Episode #103
Long Distance Actions with Dami Roelse—Podcast Episode #113
How and Why I Walked 440 Miles for My 44th Birthday—Podcast Episode #120
Your Questions About Walking—Podcast Episode #124
99 Walks Podcast: Walk and Talk with Katy Bowman

 

Find a Teacher in Your Town

We have teachers all over the world who can help with these moves. To find someone in your area, check out our Find-A-Teacher map!

Remember to sign up for my newsletter if you want to stay updated on new developments, articles, and podcasts! If you are ready to get right to our walking products then step over to our Work on Your Walk page. If you want in-depth exercise instruction on your feet, knees and hips, check out our video course Whole Body Biomechanics: Feet, Knees and Hips, and also check out the video course Walking Well: A Stepwise Approach to an Everyday Movement.