Although yoga sandals are called such they should not be worn during any yoga exercises, or poses. The name has been derived from pedicure sandals, but have be come increasingly popular by people who practice yoga for the health benefits to feet they bring.
They are similar in design to flip flops, but instead of just having one toe post there are four. This stops the sandal from sliding around or from being kicked off accidentally. The arch helps to support the foot and the sloping sides gives in-step relief. Like flip flops the can be brought in different colors but black or white are the most popular, yoga sandals are usually made of leather not plastic. Yoga sandals are equally as popular with men as they are with women.
In yoga there is emphasis on spreading the toes in the standing postures to improve the sense of grounding and balance, yoga sandals re-train the toes to do that while exercising the foot muscles. The yoga sandals spread the toes and help strengthen the bones in the feet which for most of us have become restricted and mis-aligned through wearing conventional shoes.
As yoga sandals spread the toes balance is restored naturally in posture which can help alleviate back pain. The massage effect can also help to re-align bones in the leg, ankle, knees, hips joints.
Toe massage from the yoga sandals can also help restore circulation and reduces tiredness by increasing energy flow and have also helped people with arthritic feet through their toe spreading.
Although they initially look uncomfortable to wear by beginning to wear them for fifteen minutes and gradually increase the amount of time until your feet, legs and back get used to wearing them. The most important thing to remember is not to try and grip the sandals tightly with your toes. Some osteopaths also recommend wearing due to the positive bones alignment they can provide.
We all have muscle in our feet designed to spread our toes, but over the years most people have jammed their feet into ill fitting shoes, usually for the sake of fashion. Yoga sandals will help improve the health of your feet and allow energy to flow through your body.