Barefoot Belgium

Barefoot Belgium His teaching emphasizes the often-overlooked functions of the foot and how they shape our ability to move efficiently and safely in any environment.
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The HuMan Foot seminar begins this journey by rethinking one of the body’s most fundamental structures — the foot — and its role in human movement, stability, and overall health.

“HuMan: More Than a Seminar — a Learning Experience.” Anton Ghys is a movement specialist, educator, and physiotherapist with a deep passion for the foot as the foundation of human performance, posture, and injury preven

tion. With over a decade of experience in human biomechanics, Anton has dedicated his career to understanding how the foot influences the entire body — from subtle postural shifts to explosive athletic movements. Blending knowledge from fields such as physiotherapy, functional movement, neurodevelopment, and manual therapy, Anton offers a multidisciplinary approach to assessing and treating movement dysfunctions. Anton guides professionals on a journey to rediscover the foot not just as a structure, but as a dynamic sensory organ — key to stability, coordination, and longevity in movement. His seminars are known for their high-level content, hands-on learning, and immediately applicable tools for therapists, trainers, and coaches alike. Whether working with elite athletes or rehabilitation clients, Anton’s approach is grounded, evidence-informed, and deeply connected to natural movement principles. His goal: to help professionals reconnect with the body's foundation and transform how they view human movement, starting from the foot.

16/04/2026

Barefoot shoes are designed to let the foot function the way nature intended.

Unlike traditional footwear, they offer:

• A wide toe box so the toes can spread naturally
• A thin sole for better ground feel and sensory input
• No heel elevation to support natural posture
• Maximum flexibility so the foot can move freely

Why does that matter?

Because a child’s foot is still developing.
And development happens through movement, sensory feedback, and adaptation.

Feet learn by feeling the ground.
Muscles strengthen by being used.
Balance improves when the nervous system receives real input from the environment.

That’s why my children only wear barefoot shoes.

Not because it’s a trend.
Not because it’s “extreme.”

But because I believe healthy feet create the foundation for healthy movement.

Strong feet. Better balance. Natural development.
Starting from the ground up.



13/04/2026

POV: You give your children apple juice at a peaceful beach concert in Portugal.


06/04/2026

Sometimes the best moments are the simplest ones.

Barefoot on the beach.
Sticks, sand and imagination.
Building a boat that will probably never sail.

They move.
They balance.
They dig.
They carry.
They build.
They laugh.

Barefoot, they don’t just play.
They learn about the world through their feet, their hands, their whole body.

These are the moments I’m grateful for.

28/03/2026

We don’t just mobilise the foot with exercises.
We mobilise the foot by returning to positions that are deeply human — kneeling, sitting, being close to the ground.
Different kneeling positions gently load the foot, open the ankle, mobilise the toes and restore movement that modern life slowly takes away.
Sometimes mobility is not about doing more, but about going back to what we used to do every day.

Kneeling positions help with:
1. Big toe mobility
Sitting on the toes improves extension of the first MTP joint, essential for walking and running push-off.
2. Ankle plantarflexion mobility
Kneeling improves plantarflexion range and ankle joint mobility.
3. Plantar fascia loading
Gentle loading and stretching of the plantar fascia improves elasticity and load tolerance.
4. Midfoot mobilisation
Pressure and position changes mobilise the midfoot and help maintain arch mobility and adaptability.
5. Toe strength and control
Toes are loaded in different angles → activation of intrinsic foot muscles.
6. Foot sensory stimulation
More pressure variation → more sensory input → better balance and coordination.
7. Natural ankle and foot capacity
These positions restore ranges of motion that disappear when we only sit on chairs.

25/03/2026

We don’t just train muscles.
We train humans.

When you step onto a tree, everything changes.
The surface is no longer flat, predictable, and controlled.
Your body has to organize itself. Automatically.

Your feet start to feel.
Your posture adjusts.
Your small stabilizing muscles wake up.
Your balance becomes movement instead of tension.
Your strength becomes coordination.

This is what natural movement does.
It doesn’t isolate the body — it connects it.

Sometimes the best training is not adding more weight,
but changing the ground beneath your feet.

Go outside. Find a tree. Move.

We listened.Many of you loved the idea of the Natural Movement - Mind & Body Retreat,but June didn’t fit.So we changed i...
20/03/2026

We listened.

Many of you loved the idea of the Natural Movement - Mind & Body Retreat,
but June didn’t fit.

So we changed it.

→ Only 2 days off work
→ A full long weekend (Thursday-Sunday)
→ Moved to 8-9-10-11 October

Same retreat.
Better timing.
More depth.

Anton, Frank & Aline

https://aubyo.be/nl/barefoot/

17/03/2026

Landing is a skill.

Every step, jump, or run sends force through the body. The question isn’t if there is impact — it’s how you absorb it.

When landing barefoot, the body learns to distribute load through the foot, ankle, knee, and hips instead of relying on cushioning.

Strong feet, mobile ankles, and coordinated joints allow the body to dissipate force instead of resisting it.

In the video I explain it the simple, human way — because movement doesn’t have to be complicated to be effective.

Learn to land softly. Let the body do what it was designed to do.

Een groet aan de zon, een groet aan jouw lichaam, fantastisch groepje, genieten in de ochtend 🌿🙏WE ARE NATURE!Natural Mo...
12/03/2026

Een groet aan de zon, een groet aan jouw lichaam, fantastisch groepje, genieten in de ochtend 🌿🙏

WE ARE NATURE!

Natural Movement sessies - elke donderdag 9-10u - Boelaerpark

10/03/2026

Calf Self-Myofascial Release – 3 Steps

Foam rolling doesn’t have to be aggressive to be effective.

This gentle self-myofascial technique helps reduce tension in the calf complex and improve tissue mobility.

Step 1 — Flushing
Slow longitudinal rolling to increase circulation and prepare the tissue.

Step 2 — Pin & Stretch
Apply light pressure to a specific point while moving the ankle through dorsiflexion and plantarflexion to create a gentle sliding between tissue layers.

Step 3 — Transverse Roll
Small side-to-side movements across the muscle fibers to stimulate fascial mobility.

The goal is not to “break tissue”, but to restore glide, reduce tone, and improve movement quality.

Move slowly. Breathe. Let the tissue respond.

04/03/2026

Ankle dorsiflexion doesn’t happen in isolation.

In this split-squat dorsiflexion exercise, the reaching arm deliberately increases fascial tension, connecting the ankle to the rest of the kinetic chain.

Changing the reach direction — forward, 45°, and 90° — alters hip position and line of pull, creating progressively more hip opening with each variation.

The result is not just improved ankle dorsiflexion, but better hip mobility, fascial load sharing, and coordinated lower-limb function.

Train mobility in context. Let joints and fascia work together.

Inspired by principles 🌿👣💪
Thanks to for teaching this to me 🙏

01/03/2026

Short Foot – Stage 1

The short foot exercise is a foundational foot control drill, targeting the intrinsic foot muscles responsible for maintaining the medial longitudinal arch.

Evidence shows that short foot training can improve intrinsic muscle activation, enhance arch stiffness, and support better load distribution during gait and stance. It has also been associated with improvements in balance, postural control, and foot stability.

This is the first stage — focusing on awareness, low load, and precise motor control.

Progressions include higher load, dynamic positions, single-leg tasks, and integration into walking and running patterns.

Build control first. Strength and performance follow.

25/02/2026

Single-leg balance is a fundamental component of efficient gait.

During walking and running, the body repeatedly moves through single-limb support while managing load, rotation, and postural control.

The Reverse Tap is a single-leg balance exercise using a contralateral movement pattern, closely reflecting the neuromuscular demands of real-life gait mechanics.

Training this pattern improves sensorimotor integration, force transfer, and stability from the foot up through the kinetic chain.

In the HuMan Foot Workshop, we go deeper into gait-based assessment, progressions, and practical exercises like this to build strong, adaptable feet that support the entire system.

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Antwerp

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Our Story

The Evidence Based Fitness Academy is a Continuing Education Institute created to provide scientific and research-based curriculum for health and fitness professionals. All curriculum provided by the EBFA must meet strict requirements set forth by the Founder, Dr. Emily Splichal and the Education Review Committee. The decision to become a Barefoot Training Specialist® is the first step towards joining our community of in-demand health and fitness professionals from around the world who have a solid understanding of foot function and barefoot science. This is for all Physical Therapists, Athletic Trainers, Personal Trainers, Movement Specialists, Group Fitness Instructors, Podiatrists, Chiropractors. With the foot as the foundation to human movement, many movement dysfunctions treated by movement specialists integrate the foot. By understanding and implementing barefoot science and from the ground up corrective exercise techniques, movement specialists will be able to confidently address all movement dysfunctions. Evidence supports corrective exercise techniques using barefoot training as a powerful aid for patients with ACL injuries, low back pain, ankle instability, SI joint dysfunction, hip labral injuries, and several other lower extremity difficulties. Explore how barefoot science can enhance the timing of muscle activation patterns and how this directly relates to the prevention of hip, knee, & foot injuries.