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Spreading the Toes While Wearing Socks
Yoga in socks? I have to admit I'm a bit of a traditionalist and prefer the feel of bare feet on a mat or wood floor. But, there are times when a yoga mat takes up excessive space while traveling, and feet slip while in Downward Facing Dog on a carpet. Three are early morning classes when the room is just a bit too chilly to begin with bare feet, or times when the borrowed mat just hasn't been washed recently enough to feel comfortable spreading exposed toes. Or in the long holds of a restorative or yin class, ice cubes start to form on once-warm toes. In any of these situations, a pair of socks would be a welcome addition to the yoga outfit of the day, but most socks just create a practice full of slipping and sliding.
Enter Crescent Moon's ExerSocks. Covered on the bottom with a collection of rubber dots that provide traction for the soles of the feet, Crescent Moon advertises these as the socks with the gripping sole. As a teacher who regularly watches students attempt to keep their feet covered in socks for the beginning of an early morning practice, I recently had the opportunity to try out two pairs of Crescent Moon's socks for myself.
Although they are reminiscent of the socks given to hospital patients to prevent slipping in bare feet, Crescent Moon's version is much more cushy and high-tech than any I have seen on a hospital floor. To begin, Crescent Moon's are some of the most comfortable socks around. They are soft and thick without being bulky, and their shape and stretchiness molds them to the foot. They passed my test for comfort and ease of movement. My feet didn't feel confined in the socks, and I was still able to spread my toes. They performed well in several settings; I wore them throughout an intermediate level class and through sessions of my own practice. And, after completing yoga, they were so comfortable that I left them on for the rest of the day.
One welcome surprise was that the socks were outstanding on a long airplane flight and well-utilized for a mid-flight back-of-the-plane yoga session. Although I recieved a few strange looks, I was able to complete a series of standing poses to ease stiff legs and increase circulation with much more efficacy than in shoes or a standard pair of socks.
One drawback to the socks was the lack of rubber grips directly beneath the toes, which led to some slipping in Downward Facing Dog. Aside from that, even though this yoga accessory may not necessarily be for everyone, many toes will love them. These will be welcome garb for those who miss their socks when they step on the mat, or for yogis searching for a foot covering that assists their yoga practice away from the studio or the mat or in places like airplanes. -- Felicia M. Tomasko
Product:
ExerSocks
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