Earth Shoes

[amber]

Does anyone else have these?
http://www.earth.us/

I just got some, even though I shouldn't have. The reviews make a lot of claims, but they made scientific sense to me. So my whole foods only had one size 8 left, and I got it. (Kalso midway vegan microfiber)

I'm just curious if anyone else has them, to compare notes. I decided to give them to my mom for her impending birthday, even though I bought them for myself and love them, because she has bad back problems. Also they are expensive, so giving them as a gift alleviates some of my guilt. I still want them, though.

As soon as I put them on, my legs kind of righted themselves, and with a bit of thought about how my body felt I aligned and lowered my permanently raised left shoulder.
It felt as if the shoes were a tool to help me properly align my posture for minimal pain. The ones I got are very light, too.
But I walk in them, and I didn't before realize that my right leg was squinched up and faced more outward then my left. I mean, I knew my whole back/leg thing was out of alignment, but had trouble nailing down the specific of it. I actually thought my left leg was more out.

For me, they have gently but effectively cued me to proper alignment when walking (and, I suspect, running). I've only had them for a few hours, and walked a few places, but the evidence just from that is compelling for me. Also they apparently help to reduce cellulite due to their toning of your midsection and bun while walking in them. I have to say, I haven't experienced any increased exercise while using them, which is great. You may improve your toning without even noticing it.
But also I always knew that cellulite was less prevalent in people who stretched a lot, and these shoes do stretch the back of your legs in the right way.
It just makes sense to me that having the heel a bit lower then the front of your foot would be beneficial. Especially as an owner of the tightest hamstrings and general back of legs and hip and back of back ever.


Aside from science, they are so light and flexible (the ones I bought are specifically this way. They have totally cute boots and maryjanes and tennies and stuff which cost more. Men's and women's. But I actually wanted the exercisey vegan breathable slip on ones, so I didn't cheap out for no reason. lol. I mean, I'd seen all the kinds in whole foods for months, but when I saw this style I was compelled, what with my active, sweaty, need slip ons that breathe lifestyle.)

I was thinking someone else here must surely have some. Mine were the cheapest at $89. And I'm so happy for once that the actual ones I really wanted were cheapest.

Nevertheless, that is still to expensive to really justify (vegan though they be) and I'm going to see if my mom finds them helpful for her back problems. But rest assured I will buy the same ones some time in the future. Oh yes. They are so. fricking. light. They make me want to bound and frolick (yes, I'm prone to bound and frolick and jump and skip anyways, but pain holds me back).

The whole weirdest part of them is that they do for me while I'm walking that mostly yoga does for me. Makes me conscious of my muscles, their tightness, their misalignment, and the correction that is needed for them. Perhaps this wouldn't work for someone who hasn't learned to tune into their muscles and their breathing. But it might. Especially if they try. Like, i was able to very quickly straighten out my back/leg alignment by paying attention to how the shoe made my legs and foot go.
It also has great arch support. I have low/medium arches. They are a tiny smidge higher arch then what I usually want, but it has only been one day, and also apparently the material they use inside conforms really well to your foot. And the arch isn't high enough to cause me problems. I only wish the upper was a little tighter because I under pronate really bad, my feet roll outwards, even though I try to correct that. But in these shoes, even though the upper is flexible enough to allow my pronation, the sole/arch/whatever combo combats that by keeping my foot/gait in line.
Nice, very nice.
These things are like slippers, but slippers you can walk or run in. You just have to pay the slightest attention and you can glean the benefits. This coming from a girl with the most f*cked up, tight hamstrings and groin and calf and back tightness ever. Plus my knee problems. Seriously, my whole thing is tragically out of alignment. My legs and hips always hurt. My back often hurts. Yoga that I do helps so much. Yet I never do enough.
These shoes are like yoga in a shoe. Even my super expensive running/walking shoes aren't as comfy. I actually tried on the earth shoe while wearing my 100 dollar running shoe. I felt immediate relief and comfort. And I really considered my running/walking shoes super comfy (Asics Gel Trail Sensor Kayano Super Awesome). And my running shoes are great. But this earth shoe...aligned my hips and legs and back. Usually my muscle tightness makes me align my feet and hips and legs. Which doesn't work, because when muscles are tight, they bunch, and that doesn't align things. It works against it. Though you try hard.

And oh, I try and try. I'm always trying to face my feet forward, loosen my hip/groin/thigh/back to allow proper gait, attempting to loosen my painful muscles joints and tendons to allow for flexibility and pain relief to get to them. What stops me is pain, my body naturally moves my muscles in a way to avoid the pain. Which is where the misalignment comes in. Which is why I have to do yoga, to breathe into the tight places that really need the stretch and healing, to teach those places to not react with constrictive pain, but to let go so as to facilitate blood flow and healing and proper use. And even simply to breathe deeply, to get the oxygen my body requires to heal and to exist. Because tight muscles lead to tight, non deep breath. And deep breath is one of the most healing things in the world. My muscles are usually so bunched up that it is a struggle for me to breathe deeply, and it sure doesn't happen by accident. I have to DO it. And to do it, I have to expand and loosen my muscles. All of them.
Your lungs won't expand if you are constricting your chest and tummy, your arms also won't stretch and be free. Every time I am nervous or even just...anything that requires some stuff...I find myself constricting my chest/ribs/tummy area. It's a natural fight or flight response. But detrimental if you are neither fighting or flighting. At least if you don't need your body to do so.
These shoes naturally put me in a posture to gain maximum lung power, back and leg and bun and neck stretching, and foot alignment to facilitate back/leg/bun/breath stretchage.
Magical bullet? Not quite. Semi magical bullet? Yes, if you are willing to just notice the slightest thing about what your body is doing. You still have to do the other stuff, but I find a lot of my misalignment comes just from every day walking, that my muscles tighten in bad ways to compensate for pain, but which I usually can't control. That is what these shoes help alleviate. Your regular walking and standing life. They gently nudge you about how to place your foot, and so how to align your leg to do so. It's like "oh, there my heel is, and my arch, and therefore my leg position shall follow". MAGIC, MEGIC I TELLS YA!!!


And I've met lots of Ledge people, and they all seem naturally more bodily flexible than I am, so I believe that it will take very little effort for the Ledgies to glean benefits from this shoe. I also hope it will make said ledgies really think into their muscles and breathing. And I mean from okay in shape ledgies to seriously non athletic, chubby, or slim, or whatever, ledgies. It's like, any ledgie could do yoga, and could benefit from these shoes, with just minimal effort. probably with much less effort than it takes for me. I dunno, many of y'all just seem more spongy and fluid than me, I can't help but believe that if you just made the bit of effort, that you would really enjoy and benefit from yoga and so earth shoes. And, you know, be "good" at it. Like, say you can't kick a mop to save your life. Or throw a ball. Or run. Or anything. You CAN still do yoga and wear these shoes. You can still stretch, and walk. You can still pay attention to what your muscles tell you. Musclespeak isn't exlusive to the sporty type. It is a gift for all who want to tune in. Your body speaks to you constantly. Listen. Although I just thought of maybe the spongy ledgies could have more challenge at balancing poses, and arm poses, and some other stuff. Which is fine, that is the whole point. To improve what is neglected, and improve even more what is strong. Really the only yoga poses I'm very good at are balancing ones (due to a strong core and very, very serious leg muscles, and super balance work just from the sports I played, like core and legs and balance and quickness and legs and more legs and more balance work and more quickness and more sprints and more walls and more squats and more balance, and more sit ups and more sprints and more...etc. Like, I always had to do stuff on just one leg - not just stuff, but super save the day stuff. Alot. Always. Mostly. Everything. Forever. Balancing whole body for infinity for infinity amount of movements. Also those same things were my fun activity hobbies in my free time. Like when I was done with that, I would practice that. I would jump and run and hop and skip and throw and chase and balance and climb for fun. Not on purpose, just cause it was great and fun.). Doesn't make me eschew the others. Makes me do them more.
Please tell me someone else has these shoes.

After mere hours of these shoes, this is Amber signing out. Updates to come. My mom's b-day is Nov. 27

(Famous birthdays are:
# 1976 Jaleel White (actor)
# 1970 Brooke Langton (actress)
# 1964 Robin Givens (actress) [interestingly, I have Mike Tyson's Birthday]
# 1957 Caroline Kennedy (former First Daughter)
# 1956 Rick Rockwell (was the man who wanted someone to marry him for his so called millions)
# 1942 Jimi Hendrix (musician, singer)
# 1941 Eddie Rabbit (country singer, songwriter)
# 1940 Bruce Lee (Liu Yuen Kam) (actor)
# 1937 Gail Henion Sheehy (author, journalist)

And God bless the Saggitarii, but my point is that I will only have them for a few more days before sending them off to get there in time for the b-day.

They don't say they are running or walking shoes, but I can imagine doing both in them. Here they are, not best picture, looked cute in store, which is why I stopped, also look way cuter on my feet. I'm a serious round toe girl, but lately things have been pointy, and these satisfy my round toe thingy without actually being clunky or round toed looking. They just supahcute. Yes, I know, why don't they make black. Those would be bettah. But still...

[David]

Amber, I don't own any Earth Shoes, but somebody needed to reply to this thread!

[HejiraNYC]

Wow, thanks for the mega-schmega review. I didn't know that one could rhapsodize about a pair of shoes with such effusive verbosity! Being a wearer of vegan shoes, I was looking into Earth shoes, but I resisted for a couple of reasons: the price and, well, they're kinda fug . Okay... they're really hideous. (I just cannot understand why non-leather shoes have to be so frumpy looking- giving up meat does not mean I have given up my fashion sense too!) Even the leather styles of Earth shoes look 100 times better than the vegan styles.

But that negative heel thing is really interesting- it does make sense in theory, but it sounds kinda painful at the same time. Anyway... I'll give them a whirl (since you can get them on eBay for practically half off retail). So are they true-to-size or do they skew a bit large/small? I am a bit reluctant to buy shoes over the internet- my last batch all came in either too big or too small.

[xxxmx]

this post reminded me of an ode i once composed in honor of the mighty birkenstock.

i don't own earth shoes, but did traipse around in a friend's for a little while. i think they were already moulded to her feet so they weren't the most comfortable thing evah. having the heel lowered reminded me of walking in wet sand.

standing all day at work in earth shoes sounds like a painful proposition, and i think i would gladly choose my dr. martens / carcass shoes (as opposed to vegan shoes).

and amen to hej, why do veg fashions always seem soooo fugly?

[mylittledemon]

Originally Posted by xxxmx

this post reminded me of an ode i once composed in honor of the mighty birkenstock.

i don't own earth shoes, but did traipse around in a friend's for a little while. i think they were already moulded to her feet so they weren't the most comfortable thing evah. having the heel lowered reminded me of walking in wet sand.

standing all day at work in earth shoes sounds like a painful proposition, and i think i would gladly choose my dr. martens / carcass shoes (as opposed to vegan shoes).

and amen to hej, why do veg fashions always seem soooo fugly?

haha. Agreed. Ecco makes really solid shoes. I love Doc Marten boots (i wear those for working) and I generally wear Vans or Chuck Taylors any other time.

[Phoenix]

OMG Seriously, someday, I gotta meet u. Great report. u should have a newspaper job somewhere.