What are barefoot shoes? Barefoot or minimalist shoes promote natural movement and your foot's natural strength. Crucially, they are designed to let your feet do the work: for better balance, improved feeling and – ultimately – stronger, healthier feet. When buying barefoot shoes you're looking for four essential components:
Sadly, there are currently no shoe shops selling barefoot shoes in Western Australia, and certainly not here in Albany. While in the process of searching for my own barefoot shoes, I've managed to land some discount codes for reflexology clients so you can benefit from savings. Read on for the codes and how to activate them. Buying shoes online is not without its problems. But luckily these two online stores offer great support in helping you find the best fit. They also offer straight-forward returns. Options are available for men, women and children. Get 15% off Sole Mechanics Sole Mechanics are an online store selling shoes that promote healthy foot movement. They have a store on Hampton Street in Melbourne, which also offers in-store running analysis. Primarily catering for the active footwear market, most of the shoes Sole Mechanics sell are for running, hiking and sports. They also stock casual shoes and sandals. Brands include the ever-popular Vivobarefoot, along with Altra, Xero, Hickies and Luna Sandals. Free foot assessment One of the best things about Sole Mechanics is the very informative free foot health and sizing assessment they offer. While the in-store assessment is naturally the best option, I still found their online foot assessment to be incredibly valuable. Over a 30-minute video call, their advisor gave me enough information to confidently buy the right brand and model of shoes that are a functional fit for my individual foot size and shape. For some people, the transition to getting used to barefoot shoes can take a little time. So a foot assessment with one of their experts also offers advice on how best to make this transition. Free shipping and returns With Sole Mechanics, you'll benefit from free shipping on orders over $100, plus a free shipping label for returns just in case the shoes are not quite right (see their website for the full T&Cs on returns and shipping). Discount code for Sole Mechanics For 15% off barefoot and minimalist shoes at solemechanics.com.au, use the coupon code: REFLEXOLOGY15 Note: clicking any of these links to Sole Mechanics automatically discounts 15% off the shoes you purchase. Get 10% off Bprimal Bprimal are another online seller of barefoot shoes that are passionate about feet freedom. Next month they are opening a Sydney store. But for us in the deep south of WA, buying barefoots online are currently the only option. Bprimal offers a large selection of brands and shoe types, some of which can even be used for work and formal occasions. Brands sold by Bprimal include Lems, Freet, Barebarics, BeLenka, Altra and Vivobarefoot, along with others. Shipping is from $10 per order. Add $1.99 to your order for a free shipping returns label (see their website for the full terms). Printable size guides While Bprimal don't offer the online foot health assessment that Sole Mechanics do, their support in helping you to find the right shoe size and fit is still second to none. Each pair of shoes listed on their site has a printable size guide. Simply print it out, fold over the corner as outlined in the instructions and place it against a wall to measure your feet (your longest foot). Be aware, these sizing guides differ for each brand of shoe. And there can even be different guides for different models of shoes within the same brand. Yes, the world of barefoot is a little bamboozling at first! In light of this, they also recommend measuring the length of an inner sole of a shoe that fits you well. It's a useful sanity check to make sure you have chosen the right size. Note: While checking sizing for my own barefoot shoes, I did also try the interactive app on their site called 'WHAT IS MY SIZE?'. Using this function, you can take a photo of your feet against a sheet of A4 paper. Then, your phone somewhat magically, reports back on your size. However, I did have issues with this as the sizing didn't at all match up with the printable size guide or with measurement of my insole. Personally, I don't recommend this method, unless you're also using the other two methods to check it's correct. Bprimal are on hand if you have any questions. Just give them a call. Discount link for Bprimal Use this link to save 10% off Bprimal purchases: bprimal.com.au/reflexology This discount is available for purchases shipped within Australia and New Zealand. Additional help for reflexology clients As a reflexologist, feet are obviously a big focus in the work I do. For some clients, years of wearing ill-fitting shoes have caused bunions, corns and callouses aplenty. In fact, narrow toe boxes and over-supportive shoes are having a huge impact, not only on the shape of our feet but also on our posture and overall health. For those clients who are interested in exploring their foot health further, I offer a small leaflet providing the above discount codes and foot assessment pointers. Having gone through my own barefoot journey, I'm also on hand if clients need any further advice. I'll be sharing more about my barefoot journey over the coming months, together with advice on choosing barefoot shoes that are best suited to the shape and size of your feet. To stay in the loop, and hear about additional one-off discounts, sign-up to email alerts via my contact page or follow barefootholistics.au on Facebook or Instagram.
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