One of the most useful things I have learned and discovered is working out and lifting insanely heavy weights barefoot. I was first inspired by Hafþór, deadlifting 501 kg barefoot. My curiosity:
Why did he do the world deadlift record attempt barefoot?
This is what I think and I understood: when it comes down to it, let us say attempting a new world record, and giving it your all, an individual will strategize and do things in order to gain every possible maximum advantage. Therefore, the simple thought of attempting New world records, personal records, or just lifting an insanely heavy weight is that when you do it barefoot, you have maximum connection with the ground, maximum grip, maximum leverage.
This is applicable when you are doing almost any type of weight lifting. This includes rock pool, squat hold, atlas lift, the lift, farmers walk, squat, etc.
Even for other lists, I think it would be beneficial for bench press, shoulder press, military press, even Olympic weightlifting.
Why don’t more people lift weights barefoot? My theory is that because there is this low-key marketing desire to sell more weightlifting style shoes, it is a huge industry. Also part of it is a safety thing, a lot of commercial gyms don’t want to be sued by people accidentally having weights dropped on their foot. Also I think part of it is a hygiene thing, just walking around barefoot and the gym seems unhygienic.
This is the hilarious irony is that when it comes to traversing the gym barefoot, ironically enough it may be safer, because you are on maximum alert, trying to avoid some other idiots from dropping weights on your foot.