Can you wear barefoot shoes in winter?

See winter barefoot shoes.

A frosty morning in Kittilä, Finnish Lapland

Snow crunches underfoot. The thermometer reads −25 °C. My car is in for service, and I'm passing the time on the trails along the Ounasjoki river behind the main street of Kittilä, in Finnish Lapland, barefoot shoes on my feet. I'm amazed that this is possible too.

As long as I kept walking, my feet stayed comfortable. When I stopped to take photos, the cold started rising from the ground through the soles of my shoes. The same thing happened later at the Levi ski resort, while I waited for the kids at the bottom of the slope. Each time, the fix was the same: I walked, hopped and moved around, and the warmth came back.

Back then, though, I didn't have Vaistoa shoes or their winter features yet.

In the Lapland snow I learned two things: movement keeps you warm, and when you stand still, the cold finds your feet.

Will your feet stay warm on a thin sole?

Yes, because the warmth doesn't come from the thickness of the sole. Shoes don't warm you. Your body does. A shoe keeps the warmth in and lets your foot move, or at least it should.

A thick-soled, sturdy boot is often tight, and its build keeps the foot from moving. When the foot doesn't move, the muscles don't work, and blood doesn't circulate properly.

In a flexible shoe, the foot gets to move. Work creates demand, and demand brings blood. The muscle pumps circulate blood, and warmth with it.

Space keeps you warm too. When there's room in the shoe, there's air, and air works as insulation.

Vaistoa winter boots have a warm lining and an insulating winter insole, and some models also have 3M Thinsulate insulation. The adult models also come with the Winter Layer+ extra insole, which you can slip under the shoe's own insole when you know you'll be standing still.

The colder the conditions, the more is demanded of the shoe. The need defines the shoe.

Why do your feet get cold when you stand still?

Because the movement stops.

When your body meets the cold, its most important job is to keep your internal organs warm. It narrows the blood vessels in your skin and limbs so that warm blood stays in the core. Your toes are the farthest from your heart, so they are the first to give way.

When you stand still, the muscles in your feet aren't working, and the blood has no reason to flow there. When you start moving, the warmth comes back, often with a little delay. Your body first makes sure the core is warm, and then lets warm blood flow all the way to your toes.

Can you get used to the cold? Yes, but in a different way than many people think. Repeated cold exposure barely changes the circulation in your toes. What it changes is how the cold feels (Daanen and Van Marken Lichtenbelt 2016).

Cold is a sensation, not an alarm.

So cold toes don't automatically mean there's something wrong with your circulation.

How do barefoot shoes work on slippery ground?

The thickness of the sole doesn't decide whether you slip. You can slip on a thick sole too.

All of Vaistoa's adult winter models have the Vaistoa Pitoa™ winter sole, with grip pads that make moving more secure. Grip pads aren't studs, though. Don't expect the same grip from them as from studs.

Walking on ice starts with your eyes and your attitude. When you know it's slippery, you can prepare, spot the ice and anticipate. Shorten your stride and shift your weight clearly onto your standing leg. Once your base is steady, push off into the next step.

A thin, flexible sole gives you better contact with the ground. Information about the surface reaches your brain better, and your body can coordinate movement better. No shoe protects you completely from accidents.

Doesn't a thin sole protect you less from ice and asphalt?

Let's turn the question around first: why would you need protecting from them?

Absorbing impact isn't the shoe's job. When you walk on a hard surface, your body can take the impact itself with a soft, springy step. The surface demands it, and the foot learns it when it gets to feel what's underneath. A thin sole is a tool that teaches your foot to sense the ground.

What about the gravel spread on icy paths? Yes, you'll feel it, and at first it can be unpleasant. Your brain isn't used to recognising crushed stone through a thick sole, so at first it reads the sensation as a threat. As the experience repeats, it takes on a new meaning. It's just gravel. At the same time, the muscles and tissues of your feet get stronger, which makes walking on gravel easier.

Can you wear socks with barefoot shoes?

Yes. Barefoot shoes don't mean wearing shoes without socks.

Any sock works as long as it doesn't squeeze. The toe of the sock should be wide and stretchy so your toes can spread. A narrow sock restricts the foot the same way a narrow shoe does.

Even a thick wool sock fits when the shoe is the right size and leaves at least a centimetre of room at the toe. Models differ: for example, Uoma 4 Winter feels snugger than Hurmos 3 Winter in the same size, because its upper is thicker and it has a waterproof membrane.

Should you switch to barefoot shoes in winter?

The time of year doesn't matter. What matters is taking the transition at your own pace.

Many people link barefoot shoes with summer and go back to regular shoes for the winter. Then some of what they learned over the summer is lost. Barefoot shoes come along in winter too.

You can speed up the transition with training. When your toes, feet, ankles, hips and pelvis move and work better, walking in barefoot shoes gets easier.

Think of the transition like training at the gym. Start with short walks and short wearing times. If problems come up, shorten the distance and add more mobility work. As your movement improves and your feet get used to it, gradually lengthen the walks and wearing times.

Walking in barefoot shoes is itself the best test of where you're at.

Kids and winter

A child's foot doesn't need separate support to develop. When the shoe suits the weather and is otherwise light, wide at the toe and has a flat, flexible sole, the foot gets to develop in its own way.

And for daycare: a waterproof winter boot sadly won't stop a child from swimming in a puddle. Sometimes practicality calls for compromises.

In our kids' winter boots, the Winter Layer+ extra insole is already in place. See barefoot shoes for kids.

In short

You can wear barefoot shoes in winter. Movement keeps you warm, and when you stand still, the cold finds your feet. How well the body tolerates cold is individual, and it can be trained. We can become more thick-skinned.

In the meantime, we offer the tools that let you enjoy going barefoot in winter too.

See winter barefoot shoes

Let's keep moving!

Frequently asked questions

Will my feet stay warm in barefoot shoes when it's freezing?
Warmth comes from movement, when the muscles work and blood circulates. A winter boot's lining and insulating insole keep the warmth in. Cold tolerance is individual.

Do barefoot shoes work on slippery ground?
The grip pads on Vaistoa's adult winter models make moving more secure, but they aren't studs. On slippery ground, it's worth shortening your stride.

Does a wool sock fit in barefoot shoes?
Yes, when there's at least a centimetre of room at the toe. The toe of the sock should be wide and stretchy.

Can you switch to barefoot shoes in winter?
Yes. The key is to take it at your own pace: short walks first, then gradually longer ones.

Does a child's foot need a supportive winter boot?
No. It's enough that the boot suits the weather and is light, wide at the toe and has a flat, flexible sole.

Sources

• Daanen HAM, Van Marken Lichtenbelt WD (2016). Human whole body cold adaptation. Temperature 3(1):104–118. https://doi.org/10.1080/23328940.2015.1135688