How to Start Shirtless: In Forests and Parks

    By now, your boys are fully accustomed and comfortable with leaving the house and going around the neigborhood without a shirt or shoes. They've probably also developed some callouses too, which is good. Now, the important next step is for you to go to a forest area with hiking paths. This experience will be great for both you and your sons as it has many benefits. For one, your sons will be prepared for getting their feet dirty, which may happen frequently later on. This will also make them more comfortable being barefoot and shirtless further away from home. These are two vital building blocks that later milestones will be built off of. Most importantly, this will go towards solidifying in your boys’ minds that their feet are the origonal and best shoes. They’ll realize that they do fine without sneakers and that they are just uncomfortable and pointless.

     Luckily for me, the first time I did this with my boys they were quite excited to go, rushing me into the car. They had been asking me constantly when we were going to go, this being because I had told them about it a few weeks prior. You shouldn’t necessarily expect this reaction from you own boys, however. If you are not so lucky and your boys are resistant to going, I first suggest saying that it is bonding time that will be good for them or that they’re doing it a a confidence booster. If this doesn’t work, you may just have to tell them that they are going, end of discussion. Granted, you shouldn’t do this outside of a last resort, as you might cause a negative association to form. To try to avoid this, make sure to reassure them that this really will help them. It might even be good to throw in a little reward if they cooperate, if you see it fit.

     To get back to the main point, we all just wore shorts and a backpack, which I definetly suggest for all of you to do as well.  If you do this, your boys have no option of backing out mid-way. I also must stress the importance of not letting them bring any electronics, as this is also about enjoying nature. We had brought lunch with us, which we all ate after roaming the trails for an hour or so. If you plan on also doing this, I suggest finding a picnic area that is not crowded, as it can potentially become a problem. I’ve learned the hard way that some people can get offended and harass us, so learn from my mistakes. You should also pick a somewhat local forest to go to, as you can hopefully get a mix of familiar people and strangers. I’ve met family friends many times in the woods, sometimes even joining in on cookouts they were having. Having interactions like these will make your boys more comfortable barefoot and shirtless around their friends and the adults they know, which is important.

     Overall, this step in your sons’ barefoot and shirtless life is a critical one, opening them up to being natural and comfortable in the environment. If all goes well, they should be wanting you to bring them back as much as possible so they can race the path, climb trees and do whatever they want. Eventually, I plan on making a blog post about how you can set up a camping trip, which is the next level of this. So expect that to happen eventually, and expect a new post next week.