# Toes - for Willard814



## Zero (May 25, 2011)

Yo Wil,

You got a bit of a drubbing but don't sweat it, the comments, at least initially (!) were not meant to be disrepectful I hope.  Here's another option:

http://shop.toesox.com/half-toe-sox-with-grip-p12.aspx

Much less chunky, or apparent, than the 5-finger shoes amd should protect against skin cuts/blisters on the feet and toe joints.  Also, not sure if many karate clubs will actually allow you to train or spar in those kind of shoes.

Am aware others who train in barefoot MAs use these.

Personally, and not wanting to re-hash the locked thread, I gotta agree with other posters that over time your feet and other body parts will toughen up and abbrassion/friction damage won't be an issue.  I always trained, and train and spar now, bare foot and never went for any of what you are looking at, but hey, everyone's different so do what you need to do.  

Maybe once your feet heal you can practice more at home, or for half the club sessions in bare foot to buiild up resilience.  Unless you are into TKD or some kickboxing styles, if you want to compete, a lot of the karate styles are bare-foot only tournaments.  Many clubs too would not permit any covering, unless maybe recovering from a sepcific injury but not as the norm.  Some chick I know who does yoga uses those sox things and apparently they don't slip on wood...


----------



## Sensei Payne (May 25, 2011)

Zero is right.

It will probably hurt starting out...but so does just about anything you do physically.

So try not to ALWAYS rely on a "toe shoe" but treat them as a step toward toughing up your feet.  You'll appreciate it later.


----------



## Steve (May 25, 2011)

Thing about feet is this.  If they're uninjured, you can work to develop the soles and acclimate to working out in bare feet.  

But if you've already injured your feet, take care of them and allow them to heal.  Do what you need to do.  At my school, guys injure toes or someone's got bad circulation.  I wouldn't say many guys wear wrestling shoes to train, but it happens.  And at least one guy wears grappling socks .  I won't lie.  He gets ribbed for it, but he's a big boy and it's good natured teasing.

The vibrams you linked to in your original thread are intended to be worn outside.  They have a harder sole.  I wouldn't wear them on the mats. 

Another thing to think about, if you're on a mat, it's usually considered very bad manners (and also pretty gross) to wear outdoor shoes.  It's gross. 

The main point, though, is if your feet are injured, allow them to heal however you need to.  There was a kid who fought an amateur MMA bout here in Washington.  We don't get much sun, so they thought it would be great to have an outdoor event.  Long story short, the mat got so hot that the kid left the sole of one of his feet on the mat.  That was months ago, and last I heard he's still having trouble.


----------



## Blade96 (May 25, 2011)

I just wrote on his profile and as a little Shotokanny myself, it does get better. Evetually he won't even feel any pain.


----------



## David43515 (May 25, 2011)

I know I`ve seen guys doing Kendo in a little leather  1/2 tabi. ( tabi- japanese style socks that seperate the big toe from the others like a mitten) I wouldn`t know where to get them, but I assume they`d be available in the US too.But I`d wear either of the things you guys showed earlier.


----------



## Willard814 (May 27, 2011)

Thanks for the great post! I talk to my Sensei and she reassured me that it will get better and went on to explain exactly what you guys have said. So I would rather work through the blisters so I can develop callouses. Never thought I would actually want callouses on my feet. lol I like the idea behind the five finger shoes because of the health benefits. I now walk around barefooted as much as possible and that is helping tremendously. I wanna thanks you guys for all your help, because as you all know when you start something new like karate you need a lot the help and advice you can get.


----------



## Blade96 (May 27, 2011)

i got calluses and i havent been in shotokan 2 years yet. I have no pain at all now - nothing but calluses. 

btw like I said don't mind elder, he a nice guy and all, but a bug crawled into his cereal bowl on that day.


----------



## Steve (May 27, 2011)

Funny how your martial arts style will reshape your body.  From all of the grip fighting and such, I have callouses on the backs of my knuckles.  Looks a little funny, but i tell people I'm a true knuckle dragger.


----------

