Take Steps To Trim Your Lower Body

Whilst walking barefoot through a rice field in Korea, Swiss engineer Karl Muller noticed that his back pain, which he suffered with, was quite a bit better. He did some further research and found that the Masai tribesmen of Africa did not experience bad backs. They are also famous for their good posture.

Weighing the evidence, Muller concluded that walking barefoot on soft terrain was much better for your back and joints. He resolved to develop a shoe which would replicate the effects of this type of walking on a soft surface such as grass or sand.

What he came up with was the Masai Barefoot Technology (MBT) shoe. According to the company website, this is so different to normal shoes that it can accurately be called the “anti-shoe”.

MBT shoes have no heel – they incorporate a specially designed curved sole. When your foot makes contact with the ground, a gentle rolling actions is the result. It’s like walking on sand in fact. The sole is constructed using materials of differing densities which further aids in reducing jarring and shocks.

Independent scientific studies have verified that this is genuinely better for your back and joints. There are further proven benefits in addition to better posture. For example, whilst walking in MBT shoes, the wearer’s muscles will be activated for longer (when compared to similar walking in traditional footwear). The muscles are used for about 16% longer. Wearers also tend to “walk properly” and take slightly shorter strides. Both of these effects mean that extra work is done.

The significance of this is that every step you take wearing your MBT shoes is giving you a little more exercise. It’s a lower body workout, without visiting the gym. MBT shoes can help you to tone and trim your legs and buttocks as well as reducing back pain and encouraging better posture.

You would think that those benefits would be all the motivation required. However, some people do find MBTS a bit chunky and, dare I say it, a little ugly (beauty is in the eye of the beholder). However, there are now other, more cosmetically appealing, alternatives to choose from if you wish. Skechers Shape Ups and Fitflops both incorporate similar curved soles which will tone and trim your lower body whilst engaged in normal walking activities.

Whatever design you find most attractive, the potential to get a lower body workout and reduce back pain just by normal walking looks like an extremely attractive option.

Learn more about MBT Shoes and Skechers Shape Ups