GladSoles May Bundle Giveaway!

Posted on 2014/05/132014/11/04 by alis

13 May

Enter to win any pair of GladSoles minimalist sandals, 500g of africrops! Moringa Oleifera powder and a VegRunChat headband by using the widget below. Contest ends next Sunday May 26th, 2014 at midnight.

*International participants must pay shipping cost if chosen as winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Whether you’re hiking the trails or just going for a walk, GladSoles will get you where you need to go in style and comfort. GladSoles come in 4mm, 6mm, and 8mm Vibram® soles. The lace is recessed into the bottom of the sole, and very easy to swap out.

Sizing:
Every pair of GladSoles is completely custom-made by hand, based on tracings of your feet. Take it slowly when you trace your feet, as an accurate tracing ensures a perfect fit.

The GladSoles Trail Specs:
Weight: 3.2 oz (per sandal, laces included, size 9)
Thickness: 8 mm
Tread: aggressive tread – durable, oil resisting, non-slip
Ground Feel: very good – slightly muted feel compared to GladSoles Original
Does it float? yes
Other: Vibram Newflex 8mm is a rubber/foam composite blend with an advanced traction pattern on the out-sole. Lightweight and overall the most comfortable sole material we offer.

Comparing the different GladSoles models:

• GladSoles Lite – As you can tell from the name, this is our lightest weight and thinnest (4mm) model. Great for the pool & beach. This model has less structure than the Original or the Trail. Best suited for those of you who really want to feel every little nook and cranny that you might encounter on and off-road. Kids really love this model.

• GladSoles Original – This is where it all started. The GladSoles Original is our most versatile sandal. It’s 6mm thin, really light weight and works well on many surfaces. Recommended for all first time, barefoot sandal wearers! This sandal has some structure to it, and will mold to your feet after you wear them around for a few days. Perfect for running, walking, hiking, casual wear – it’s a great all-around sandal.

• GladSoles Trail – This is our most secure and rugged sandal. It is 8mm thick, but will mold to your feet within a few days. Great for all of your off-road adventures. It has an aggressive tread that really grips the trails well, but will wear down a little quicker on asphalt and other man-made surfaces. The Trail model is made for all you trail runners out there, plus it’s an all-around, really comfortable everyday sandal.

Warranty:
It’s really simple. If you have an issue with your sandals, just let us know and we will fix it. We take great pride in our sandals and want to make sure that you love them as much as we do!

Shipping to all countries

Win a Pair of GladSoles

Posted on 2014/03/20 by alis

Enter to win any pair of GladSoles minimalist sandals by using the widget below. Contest ends next Monday March 31st, 2014 at midnight. The winner will receive one pair of GladSoles (any model: Lite, Original or Trail)
*International participants must pay shipping cost if chosen as winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sizing:
Every pair of GladSoles is completely custom-made by hand, based on tracings of your feet. Take it slowly when you trace your feet, as an accurate tracing ensures a perfect fit.

Comparing the different GladSoles models:

Shipping to all countries

The Barefoot Bonez Tying Method

Posted on 2013/11/21 by alis

GladSoles is dedicated to bringing you the best barefoot running experience possible. In doing this we present new fun and exciting ways to enjoy our barefoot sandals. Among the many ways to enjoy our sandals is the tying method.

There are multiple ways to tie your GladSoles and Barefoot Bonez shares his technique with us. We do recommend trying our method first but we are not opposed to trying other ways. If you have a specific way you like to tie your GladSoles, feel free to share with us so we can share it here on our blog.

The Barefoot Bonez Tying method:

“Around the back, to The right & under on the left. Then around the back on the left & under on the right (REPEAT x3). Now tie off how ever you like.” – Barefoot Bonez

What Is The Conductivity Diet?

Posted on 2013/06/07 by GladSoles Blogger

I’m not one to recommend something unless I’ve done it, used it, or otherwise personally experienced it.

Barefoot running, a whole-food plant-based diet, Vibram Fivefingers – all of these things have made my life more enjoyable, healthier.. overall just better.

About 2 months ago I came across a “new to me” approach to health. Tavis Bradley had done a video on youtube with Dan “The LifeRegenerator” McDonald. It’s a lengthy video, but I watched the entire thing and was immediately intrigued.

A little background on myself – I’ve been on a vegan diet for about 3 1/2 years now, and I’ve experienced many benefits, as well as an overall feeling of more energy and better health. And I’m always on the lookout for the latest health trends, as fitness and diet are my main areas of interest. Basically, if it helps me win more matches on the tennis court, I’m interested.

Anyhow, I’m not going to attempt to explain Tavis Bradley’s Conductivity Diet in detail here. If you want to learn more about it, I highly recommend that you visit his website and youtube channel. In a nutshell, the diet consists of raw fruits and vegetables, healthy oils, nuts, seeds, and a series of 4 tonics that you drink every day to set your body up for optimal health. I’ve been following the “diet” for about 6 weeks now, and I feel really good. It’s tough to articulate exactly, but everything feels more – more energy, more alert, more running/less recovery time. My family thinks I’ve gone a little wacky, but they are used to that by now.

I eat as much food as I want. I’m not hungry, and I’ve lost most of my attraction to junk foods, although those Red Hot Blues Tortilla Chips from Whole Foods are hard to stay away from. It seems that the healthier I eat, the more my body wants healthy foods. Junk foods are not as appealing as they used to be. Very strange how this all happened over the course of a couple of months, but I’m really loving it.

I’ll be adding to this blog in the upcoming weeks. Please feel free to ask me any questions about this or any of my other blogs, as I am more than happy to discuss my favorite topics with anyone who wants to listen.

–RG

BAREFOOT SHARK TANK. Will The Sharks Bite Into The Running Sandal Market?

Posted on 2013/01/31 by GladSoles Blogger

This Friday, one of GladSoles’ fellow travelers, Steve Sachen of Xero Shoes, will be diving into the Shark Tank to pitch his barefoot running sandals to the panel. I can’t wait to watch the show and see what the investors say. This is a great development, in my opinion, as it’s a clear sign that barefoot huarache-style sandals, similar to GladSoles are hitting the mainstream in a big way.

I’ve often wondered what it would be like to stand in front of the Sharks and present GladSoles, so I’m curious to see how the Xero pitch will work. Will it be focused on the advantages of barefoot running? Will he try to sell the sharks on the customizable nature of the sandal?

Will the pitch center on the market? According to Flip-Flop Shop franchisee Scott Santy, flip-flop sales have grown 8.2% in the last 3 years, accounting for $1.5 billion of U.S. surf-wear retail sales. If all those flip-flop wearers decided to become barefoot huarache style sandal wearers that could be huge!

Which shark will take the bait? Mark Cuban? I’m not sure if footwear will appeal to him, although he does endorse Sketchers sneakers. What about Daymond John? He’s in the clothing biz, so what will he make of the sandals? Are they going to be a hot item for Lori Greiner to bring to QVC? Will “Mr. Wonderful” Kevin O’Leary crush the idea like a bug? I hope not! Hopefully there’ll be a bidding war, but whatever the outcome, you can’t buy better exposure.

We hope that this signals a time when people will come to us and already know about custom-made barefoot sandals, and we won’t have quite as much explaining to do.

We can’t wait to see the results and we wish them good luck!

Links:

Shark Tank Website

Xero Shoes Website

A COUCH POTATO NO MORE…?

Posted on 2012/11/27 by GladSoles Blogger

Let’s face it, there can be a flip side to all this workout stuff. It’s a bad part of my character that I tend to be contrarian. Watching Rich get fitter and fitter has the reverse motivating effect on me, in that it motivates me to want to flab out on the couch with chips, and leave the fitness to my better half.

So in the past couple of months I’ve kind of let myself go, and the results are not pretty: a growing Buddha belly; low energy; a nagging backache and a weird urge to grunt when bending down to pick something up off the floor. At 46 am I finally reaching middle age?

I haven’t always been this pathetic. In the past I’ve seen pretty good results from the amazing Cathe Friedrich – and I will always remain a fan. I’ve had a love-hate relationship with running, done a good amount of yoga, and worked on my swimming in the summers. But something has always stopped me from reaching that next level of fitness, and the instant I stopped working out I completely lost all the fitness gains. Perhaps I never had true fitness. Perhaps true fitness is completely unattainable, and is this just a fact of life that the fitness industry banks on to keep people on those treadmills trying to get to a place that doesn’t exist.

For this round I’m going back to basics, and building my fitness layer by layer from the ground up. When I’ve achieved goals in the past it’s always felt like “oh, I can do this # of pushups, or I can run this # of miles” but somehow it felt like a trick and not real. I could run faster and further, but I was huffing and puffing and in pain. I could do more pushups, but was I doing it right or taking a shortcut with bad form?

I look at Rich, and his fitness routine is simple: pushups and running. Sometimes he mixes it up with tennis or yoga, but his go-to is pushups and running, pretty much every day. He’s looking great these days, and this fitness requires very minimal equipment and no gym membership.

But here’s the trick: when he runs he nose breathes, and when he does pushups they’re “Perfect Pushups.” Both of these take the simple acts of running and push-ups to new heights of challenging. If you don’t believe me, try it for yourself! Run a lap breathing through your mouth, and follow it with a lap breathing through your nose. Not easy!

I’m going to break my fitness plateau by following his lead… screw my contrarian nature! As the months go by I’ll update you weekly on my progress, and I’ll be honest each day with how the workouts go.

This Week, Go For A Run And Salute The Sun

Posted on 2012/09/17 by GladSoles Blogger

September always brings thoughts of new beginnings. Our kids are starting a new school year – 6th, 8th & 10th grades respectively. It’s the Jewish new year, and for me personally, as a September baby, it’s another number added to my age.

Over in the GladSoles universe, September is the time we take stock and see what we’re going to do as the summer turns to fall. We have two exciting events coming up next week: the Newstead 5K race, and Yoga Festival by the Sea in Asbury Park.

The Newstead 5k is a yearly race that winds through the leafy neighborhood of Newstead in South Orange. This is the 10th year of the race, and it’s grown from just a few people to over 400 runners. Last year Rich won in his age category and came in 4th overall. This year we’ve gotten involved as a sponsor of the race. Every race entrant will find a discount coupon card in their gift bag, and the overall race winner will be awarded a pair of GladSoles.

Yoga Festival by the Sea is a day of peace and goodwill that takes place on the boardwalk in Asbury Park. Yogis will show up bright and early for a series of amazing events. They’ll be working together to create a beautiful Sand Mandala, and after that they’ll be doing a series of 108 sun salutations, meditating, chanting, enjoying wonderful, nourishing juices and food together. We’re co-sponsoring with Short Cuts, the makers of groovy one-of-a-kind skirts. Each one is made from reclaimed fabrics and combines impeccable taste and style with a quirky sense of humor.

We look forward to seeing you at one or both of these events!

Links:

Newstead 5K: http://achievefoundation.org/support-us-category/fundraising/newstead-5k-for-achieve-foundation

Yoga Festival by the Sea: http://www.yogafestivalbythesea.com

Short Cuts Skirts: http://www.facebook.com/shortcutsboutique

Barefoot On The L Train & Haikus

Posted on 2012/05/31 by GladSoles Blogger

Maybe it was the 5^th Grade Poetry Café that we attended in the morning, or maybe it was just having a little time on the L Train, but inspiration struck and I started penning GladSoles-inspired Haikus this week.

Along with my work as a big-time sandal mogul I’ve also been doing a little production work. So, this week I found myself location scouting in Manhattan and Brooklyn, in search of the perfect place for a mid-June evening shoot. By the way, if you’re ever wondering how to find the L train, just follow the stream of hipsters in ironic tees, skinny jeans, thick rimmed glasses and tiny hats.

A Haiku is a 17 syllable poem. It usually breaks down to 3 lines, 5, 7 & 5 syllables each.

Here’s what I came up with:

Hot sticky summer

City walking in GladSoles

My feet are happy

Location scouting

Bushwick-bound, with GladSoled feet

I could walk all day

We’d love to hear your GladSoles-inspired haikus too!

How Do You Vegan It Up On Memorial Day?

Posted on 2012/05/26 by GladSoles Blogger

GladSoles - Happy for Summer! — Happy for Summer!

It’s Memorial Day weekend here in the US, and everywhere are signs of summer. The weather is cooperating and we’re very happy that it’s finally sandal weather for everyone, not just the hardcore folks at GladSoles.

TV shows are filled with inane segments on the season’s “must haves” and ways to make YOUR backyard barbecue a winner. Barbecues are the one occasion when I find it slightly challenging to be a vegetarian. The smell of meat cooking on a grill is tempting on a primal level, and it’s often difficult to find something that’s cruelty-free and satisfying: the humble hockey-puck veggie burger is designed to look the part, but it falls far short, and the vegan sausages that I’ve encountered so far are floppy, rubbery tubes of sadness.

Luckily, our good friends at PETA, the PPK, The Kind Life and other wonderful vegan sites are coming to the rescue with mouthwatering recipes to satisfy all palettes – omni to vegan and everything in between.

We’re hosting a small dinner tomorrow, being joined by some very dear friends that we go way back with. I’m looking forward to sitting on our back deck, sipping a nice summery drink, and serving up a tasty vegan feast.

Here are a couple of the recipes I’m thinking of making:

Barbecued Tempeh
http://www.thekindlife.com/post/kind-eats-bbq-tempeh-sandwiches-topped-with-multicolor-slaw-peta-recipe

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms
http://www.theppk.com/2009/04/perfect-grilled-portobellos/

I’ll round it out with a lentil or quinoa salad and throw some asparagus on the grill along with the portobellos. Serve up some appetizers and maybe my favorite cocktail – the Dark & Stormy…

Let us know what your favorite no-meat dishes are for bbq season, and if anyone can recommend a good vegan sausage, send it along – I’m already bracing myself for the innuendos…

The Perfect Look For The Overnight Millionare

Posted on 2012/05/18 by GladSoles Blogger

With Facebook’s IPO all over the news, the New York Times posted an article on the understated wealth of Silicon Valley’s overnight millionaires. According to the story, the preference in Palo Alto is not to shove one’s good fortune in peoples’ faces. A photo of your flashy new car posted online is more likely to get ridiculed than admired, and instead of a handmade tailored suit, jeans and hoodies are the preferred uniform.

The creature comforts are there, but in an understated fashion: Home theaters are buried underground, away from view. People ride the streets on 20,000 hand-painted Italian bicycles. And some executives are sporting custom-made jeans from 3×1, that cost $1,200.

It occurs to me that a great pair of our hand-made GladSoles could be the perfect shoe to complete the look, and the perfect complement to a pair of custom-made jeans. Like 3×1, we don’t see any benefit to a mass-produced product. We take pride in making each and every pair of our sandals, by hand, for the individual. And like those $20,000 bikes, each pair of our sandals has its own individual look.

The big difference is that you don’t have to be an overnight Facebook millionaire to outfit yourself with GladSoles. Imagine only paying $60 for a pair of completely custom-made sandals that fit only your feet, and that will last and last and last.

Links:

NYT Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/18/technology/a-start-up-is-gold-for-facebooks-new-millionaires.html?hpw

VeloTech cycles: http://velotechcycles.com/

3×1: http://3×1.us/