How about today’s custom-fitted shoes? Do they permit natural gait? While providing custom fit, they also incorporate the usual biomechanical faults, i.e., elevated heels, lack of flexibility, toe spring, & loss of ground reaction force. Ironically, the closest we’ve come to an ‘ideal’ shoe was the lightweight, soft-sole, heel-less moccasin. Dating back 14,000 years, it consisted of crudely tanned but soft leather wrapped around the foot and held on with rawhide thongs. Presto! custom fit, perfect in biomechanical function, and no encumbrances to the foot or gait. But what about feet/knees/hips and spines that are less than ‘ideal’. Do custom-fitted shoes or orthotics help? 

See Dynamic Upper Body course