Earth Shoes and the Negative Heel

The bright orange shoes from the seventies have returned, kind of. Earth shoes are back. Originally made in the 1970's Earth was a popular shoe company known for a negative heel that was suppose to naturally align the body. A yoga instructor, Anne Kalso, thought of the negative heel technology in the 70's. The company disappeared for a while but is now back and selling their shoes to the public once more.

A negative heel is a decline in the area of the shoe where the heel rest and causes the entire foot to rise on an incline. This is suppose to help posture and relieve pain that is caused by the body being in an unnatural state from wearing higher heels. The incline of the shoes is also helpful in burning extra calories, similar to walking on inclined treadmill or up a hill.

The shoes also come with a Gelron2000 insole. It's a cushioning material that absorbs the shock that would impact the feet, as well as knees, legs and muscles. The material also allows the foot-bed to mold to your foot.

Wearing the Earth brand may take some getting used to. There is a very different feel to walking with a negative heel when most shoes today are made to raise the heel. It can cause some discomfort in leg muscles because they are not used to walking this way. It's quite similar to the way muscles feel after being worked-out. It might be a good idea to wear Earth shoes a few hours at a time to adjust to the new feel of the shoe.

Earth brand shoes make styles for men and women. They have sandals, shoes and boots all the negative heel and shock absorbing foot bed. Some of the styles do come in wide widths but they are no styles made in narrow widths. Although shoes with adjustable laces and buckles may help accommodate those with narrow feet.

The shoe company is also known for making a wide variety of their styles in leather and vegan materials as well. The brand provides a wide selection of cruelty free items for those that only wear vegan shoes. The vegan selections are made out of high quality materials such as micro fiber.