Mainstream Brand Shoes Versus Lang.S: An Honest 7-Day Barefoot Challenge

I never wore barefoot shoes ever before in my life.

You might be wondering how come I’m the new marketing responsible at Lang.S then.

That is a great and valid question.

Much like these shoes, I’m basically going into this… barefoot!

First of all, hi, my name is Gabriel and I’m the new marketing strategist here at Lang.S from February onwards. So far, it’s been great! And no, I’m not just saying that because they pay me and give me shoes for free. 

I strongly believe honesty should be the sole purpose of any marketing campaign, post, blog article, you name it.

So imagine my bosses’ faces when I presented them with this idea for a challenge between my regular shoes and a pair of their own. Comparing them for good, wearing the heck out of them for a week, and then simply narating my impressions here on the blog.

Instead of being met with reluctance, Maria asked me what I liked and I said “I have no idea” because I’m a Libra (and apparently that’s why I can’t make up my mind!) and so she brought me a shoe box and told me to open it at home.

The Unboxing Experience

I arrived home at about 5 and was getting ready to go to the movies. Which was a perfect opportunity to try my new barefoot shoes! All Lang.S come in a box that’s basically half the size of your regular pair of sneakers’ box. Anyone knows why those huge boxes are the norm? I don’t think it adds to the unboxing experience as it’s just a box. I loved that it fitted right into my backpack on my way home.

First Wear

As 6 PM came I was out the door and on my way to the mall for the movie. I have to admit, these shoes feel weird, for lack of a better term, the first time you wear them. Why? I believe it has to do with both the sole and the toe box, as my colleagues explained.

First of all, my regular shoes are pointy at the top. No, I don’t know the scientific term, and you are not here for the science. Thanks to this shape, my little piggies are all cramped up at the top of the shoe. This makes it pretty much impossible for my toes to move. With the barefoot shoes, there is no “blockage” so the toes… move!

They really move, much like you are, well, barefoot.

Second, there is no inclination to the feet while wearing them. With regular shoes, even with the non-running ones, the soles are 95% of the time at least a little bit inclined. With these shoes, there is no angle and the fact that the sole is so thin makes it even more… earth-bound, I guess? 

Thanks to both these features, my first wear of my new Lang.S, the TERRA model, felt extremely different but also natural. I kept thinking I forgot to put my shoes on for a while, imagining being turned away from the movies or even being put into the little prison they got at the mall but nothing that dramatic ever occurred, luckily.

Looks

Barefoot shoes have a reputation for looking like duck beaks, or like clown foot attire. Haters gonna hate. These statements are both not true and somewhat valid at the same time. It is true, barefoot sneakers have a big toe box. This results in a larger than regular sole and surely, shoe in general. As for the duck part, I love ducks and can’t see the issue nor the resemblance there. Is it true they look weird?

Debatable.

Is it also true people would most likely never notice the differences?

Most likely.

I would rate them above average in terms of looks. I like the way they look on my feet, the colours are popping even though they’re made from vegan material and recycled mesh and… LEED-accredited natural hemp fibers and… it’s basically me wearing an avocado for shoes.

And the weirder part is… it feels like you’re wearing something made with nature in mind. In the best way possible. This is me being 100% upfront after decades of wearing regular shoes everywhere. Somehow, now that I look back, I always preferred the zero-drop soles. I remember these particular shoes from Italy that had very slim soles and were straight, and the materials pretty much matched the ones from my Lang.S, they were my favorite shoes up until they went very bad, as I wore them for 7 years, at least!

That explains my quick accommodation with the barefoot sneakers.

Short Walks

I promised honesty and here I am keeping my promise. On short walks, once you get used to the shoes, you can barely tell the difference between my Lang.S and my regular sneakers. They do feel more comfortable in the broad sense but the fact of the matter is, going to the store and back is not long enough of a trail to sense a noticeable difference in wearing anatomical vs. regular shoes. When it comes to long walks, that’s where the true magic happens.

The 10k Sandwich Shop Challenge

There’s a s(ub)andwich shop exactly 5.000 steps away from my apartment, if you take the scenic route through Timisoara’s beautiful central squares mixed with the riverside walkways and ending in the students’ complex part of town. I haven’t had a tuna sub in a while so I decided to test the TERRA shoes given this occasion. It’s all for science, of course, as it has nothing to do with the sub…

I’ve been doing the regular shoes 10k Sandwich Shop Challenge for years now, at least once a month. So for me, it has no scientific value to go for it once more. Besides getting an extra tuna sub but in all honesty, I’m trying to cut back on the carbs so I passed the chance. I put on my TERRA shoes and off I went. The first noticeable difference was from maybe step 3000 onward. Regular shoes would start to “hurt” from right about here on. With my TERRAs, I couldn’t tell I was reaching that “right, this is getting a bit laggy” milestone of my 10k walk. It was as if I were just out the house, even at 5.000 steps into it.

I ate my hard-earned tuna sandwich right at the location. It tastes better. I usually take it to go and have it on a bench but it was cold that day. I was not feeling it though as my new sneakers got me covered.

Somehow, even though they’re made from this and that material, the shoes were extremely well insulated. Apart from that, it felt like walking on water, if I’m allowed a hyperbolic description, more than on concrete. And no, the pain didn’t come back somewhere along my way home. It just never came. I did feel the fatigue of my feet at the end of the day but not as intensely as after previous 10k subs.

”Comfortability”

These shoes really feel like they’re not on your feet. They’re light, which is, to me, the very first rule that shoes have to respect in order to be comfortable. Also, having such a large toe box, there is no pressure on your piggies. The only thing that’s putting a bit of pressure on them is your socks. One thing you do feel is your legs working more efficiently towards the goal of taking your from point A to point B. That’s not to be confused with harder, or in more pain than regular. It feels naturally comfy.

My Final Conclusions

So am I going to ditch my regular shoes and just wear my Lang.S now until recycling day?

No.

Told you I’m going to be honest.

Will I still buy regular shoes? 

Yes, I will still buy my regular sneakers from time to time, 3-4 years apart.

Am I ever going to go on a 10k walk to have a tuna sub in regular brand shoes?

Heck no!