Today we’d like to introduce you to Delaney Smith.
Hi Delaney, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
In 2020 I started my own practice, specializing in Muscle Activation Techniques. As i learned more about the foot through continued education courses, I needed to know more. This led me to taking courses in gait analysis. Anytime you learn more about something, you start assessing it more. As I was assessing more people’s feet and gait, it became overwhelmingly apparent that Americans have an issue with foot strength (or lack of) and dysfunctional movement. Whether the client was 16 or 85, this underlying weakness of the foundation of our body was very present. With it being such a widespread issue, I dug into more of where it’s stemming from: our shoes. Especially those ‘good and supportive’ ones we’re always led to believe are what our feet need. However, it’s never talked about HOW weak always wearing those shoes makes our foot and ankle structure. All of this led me to starting Minnemals, a barefoot shoe brand. In my research of this issue, i found barefoot shoes, which is essentially a shoe that isn’t over cushioned or supportive to give your foot natural movement. I (maybe a bit naively) jumped into creating my own to have a bigger platform to talk about foot strength and the effect our shoes have on it, and to offer an non intimidating option for people to get into this type of footwear. A lot of misconceptions about the phrase ‘barefoot shoe’ is that they are for a tree-hugger niche type of person, or that they need to look like clown shoes. All that to say, a shoe brand was never the plan, but you know that feeling of ‘if I don’t try I’m always going to regret it down the road’ was louder than the doubts in my head. I still see clients today while building Minnemals.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My practice has been smooth and steady growth being that it’s an unheard of modality. The shoe brand on the other hand, has been one learning curve after another. Sampling/development and production delays have been the hardest phase so far. Actually getting to launching the company and having product in hand (November 2023) felt like an entire lifetime.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In my practice, I specialize in the neuromuscular system (brain to muscle). Over time through stress, overuse, etc. your brain will have weaker communication with certain muscles, forcing you to compensate for it. My job is to find which muscles are underutilized and get the brain to recruit them more often. Think of it like a workout for your neuromuscular system. This is very specialized and takes a different approach than most physical therapy type modalities.
I am very proud of the versatility of Minnemals. Our shoes have captured such a wide range of people in a wide range of settings. It’s cool to see a pro baseball player and your neighborhood 65 year old that is a part of silver sneakers both getting the same benefits from a shoe. I am also very proud of how much people have liked the style and feel good about how they look in them. As I mentioned earlier, that is a big point of contention in the barefoot shoe world…people don’t want to wear something they feel looks obscure. People will get compliments on them purely from how they look.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I’ve been a long term listener to How I Built This podcast. Stories that Stick is a great read… but in general most of my wisdom and guidance comes from the Bible. I would have never had the courage, or continued strength, to continue this route if it weren’t for my faith.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.mnmuscleactivation.com and www.minnemals.com
- Instagram: @minnemals
