FAQs

Most people can wear Peluvas in the same (or close to the same) size as popular running shoes. While we offer standard shoe sizing, Peluvas have one basic common foot pattern, to accommodate your individual toes. This common outline is intended to fit 90% of all people. Of course, this pattern increases or decreases based on shoe size. Some people have a longer second toe than the first (or big) toe. Others have a longer than average pinkie toe. In these cases, you might try buying a half size larger than your normal shoe size. It is not necessary that every toe extends all the way into each toe box. We recommend that you assess your foot shape and determine which of your toes will come closest to the end of the pattern. Then buy the size that corresponds.

Many people have never had the experience of wearing “gloves for the feet.” As such, it might feel a bit unusual at first to have your toes in separate compartments. Most people find that after a few minutes of wearing them, they begin to enjoy the feeling and appreciate the newfound freedom of having their toes able to move up and down over surfaces unevenly. After a few times wearing Peluvas, regular shoes might start to feel cramped, an indication of how uncomfortable regular shoes generally are. Over time, you'll find Peluvas to be far more comfortable than any other shoes.

If you have never worn five-toed shoes before, you may experience a little difficulty finding the right toe holes the first few times you try them on. This is largely because your feet have likely compressed (scrunched together) over time, and your ability to spread your toes out wide has diminished. No worries… that’s one of the many reasons you probably need five-toed shoes. It's easiest to start with your big toe and work your way through the others . After a few times wearing Peluvas, you will find that they slide on just as easily as a running or tennis shoe. One other hack is to put on some five-toed socks first. Then the feet tend to slide right into their appropriate toe boxes.

One major difference between Peluvas and most other minimalist shoe designs is the concept of the individual toe box, which allows for appreciable articulation (movement) of the toes. Even some of the more comfortable minimalist shoes that offer a wider toe box still can’t provide the up and down individual toe movement that mimics going barefoot on uneven surfaces. Peluvas were designed to get you close to mimicking a barefoot movement pattern on all surfaces, without the annoyances of sharp rocks, dog poop, glass, stubbed toes or just walking miles on hard surfaces. All while looking stylish.

Running in minimalist shoes is an entirely different challenge from running in regular running shoes. It takes very strong and well-adapted feet to be able to effectively and efficiently run in any minimalist shoes - including Peluvas. If the small muscles of your feet have not become acclimated (adapted) to covering longer distances barefoot, it’s best to not run much - or at all - in any minimalist shoes. Our advice is to spend your day going barefoot when appropriate and/or wearing various styles of Peluvas (in the house, at work, walking distances, at the gym, running errands, going out, etc) putting the muscles of your feet through various easy movements and ranges of motion which, over time, will allow those muscles to get stronger. Then, when it’s time to run (or play soccer or tennis or basketball), put on the shoes that were designed for that sport. Your feet will thank you.

Peluvas are designed to be worn with or without socks. Many people are not comfortable with going sockless in their shoes. Some people may want the sweat (and smell) protection of socks. If you do choose to wear socks, you will, of course, need five-toed socks. Peluvas come with a free pair in every order to get you started. We also sell additional pairs of Peluva branded socks if you feel you need more. Of course, any other brand of five-toed socks will work as well.

We recommend hand-washing your Peluvas with mild detergent. In the event that they get super dirty, you can machine wash the non-leather models in warm water and allow them to air dry. If you are spending time sockless and notice any odors, you might try some medicated foot powder inside once in a while.

The short answer is no. Sandals and thongs force the front of the foot to unnaturally try to grab at the center post between the first and second toe. It might feel like your foot muscles are working, but it is an unbalanced distribution of work, so it can get uncomfortable over time, especially when walking several miles. Peluvas help distribute the weight and the work evenly over the foot, so you have a more natural footfall and can arrive at the best natural gait for your own biomechanics.

Most Peluva's are designed to be unisex, differentiated only by color and size. Women interested in ordering a men's shoe should size down one and a half sizes. For example, a woman who wears a size 10 would wear a men's 8.5.

Check out our explanations of the series' here.

Our warehouse is located in Las Vegas, NV.

We try to get orders out the same day, but it may take up to two days to process depending on when the order was placed. Orders placed on Friday after 12pm PST will be processed on Monday.