Five Finger Shoes

blueyegrl

No opinion, but I had to laugh because my sister in law is scared, YES scared of those shoes. When she sees someone wearing them she screeches, points, and runs. LOL She's 41 years old. :laugh:

wellbert

I really like my New Balance minimus shoes for exercise. They are flat soled and flexible/light too, without making you look goofy.

bprague

I recently picked up a pair (which I walk around in) but I run completely barefoot. The transition from shoe to the vibrams is actually a very delicate process and you can really hurt yourself if you just plow into it.

If you run barefoot, then the bottoms of your feet will make you stop before you hurt the internal structure of your foot. You are working a whole lot of stuff that didn't have to be worked before. So, I would say begin transitioning now without the shoes. If you want to run barefoot GO SLOW. The recommendations I got said begin with only an eighth of a mile and move up from there.

Thulpa

While running is what most people equate Vibrims with, I own 4 pairs, and use them all for different things. I keep a pair for heavy lifting days if my feet need to be planted. LIke shoulder press, dead lift, squats, etc. They help align the spine and have been banned in many professional lifting events. I keep a pair for cycling, one for yoga (mostly to keep to sole clean), and one for when I am out and about. I have hated shoes forever, these allow me to feel the ground and still be allowed in places.

As a side note, I love to hike, and for the last 3 years I have not hiked with shoes at all. When you hike, your feet swell, that is one of the reasons why they have all these cool items you can buy to help you hike better. To me the best thing you can do is take them off. Do not do this if you have not built up a base callous or recently had a pedicure. I start barefoot walking from the time the ground thaws enough not to freeze your bare feet until June when I go hiking.

melisssaarielle

Just a side note.... I think they are kind of strange looking and kind of creep me out a little, I'm not sure why. Kind of llike I'm not sure why I'm scared of crickets.

Haha i'm terrfied of crickets too. I do think these shoes are very weird looking and kind of odd but if they do the trick I'm willing to wear them even if I do look strange in them.

sabified

hmm lots of good info in this post I've been thinking abt getting these shoes too, but I'm definitely a heel striker... maybe I'll look into it again in the spring when I can actually run outside again

AggieCass09

i love mine.

as far as how they will work with you, it depends. Treadmill running isnt the best for any kind of pain, soft surfaces (grass, etc) are best. Secondly, what is your back pain from? Thirdly, the five finger shoes demand that you run on the balls of your feet rather than your heals as with traditional shoes...it takes some adjustment but has worked very favorably for me. I had chronic joint pain in my left knee and since switching shoes, it has completely gone away!

aprilbollers

Have you been to the website? There is a whole section which talks about how you'll have to change your foot strike and about easing into the use of the shoes and getting to know your feet.
One thing that is suggested is that before your feet actually get used to the shoes, you shouldn't be going full out in them or else you'll cause serious injury to your body. You should feel sore after using them, but you should NOT have deep tissue pain. If you do, it means that you've injured yourself and that you should stop using them immediately.

theril

I've been using them for about 5 years running on treadmills and outside. Generally they have improved A LOT since there initial release of them. I got them for shear fact that I was in the military and we were traveling a lot and they take up no space in your pack compared to normal running shoes. Otherwise I am been running in them for quite awhile, I would recommend them but they take some adaptation if you are running in them, due to the fact that it utilizes more muscle groups in your calves. Some people might find that there run times will be affected, due to the fact there is no "spring board" support compared to normal running shoes, its just purely using your muscles to spring each stride

BrendarB

If you are a heal striker in running - look up POSE running, it helped me convert from a heel strike to a mid strike. Keep in mind, if you are using the barefoot stuff, you will want to start out slowly, you don't want to hurt yourself. Also, if you are moving from a heel to a mid/toe strike, your legs are going to feel that also, so really make sure you aren't overdoing it to start with, short bursts and/or walking to start is recommended.

shamr0ck

I've been wearing Vibrams since August 2010. I own 15 pairs, and love them! My feet and joints hurt if i wear other shoes for a prolonged amount of time, because i have become so accustomed to having my feet in a natural position in the fivefingers.

Can't recommend them enough.

sylvuz323

I bought the Fila Skeletoes and made the mistake of wearing them my first time on a 5K Mud Run. That was not the smartest thing to do as it is recommended to ease into them. I wore them in Oct and haven't tried them again. I'll try them out when I exercise at home, that's probably a good place to start.

melisssaarielle

i love mine.

as far as how they will work with you, it depends. Treadmill running isnt the best for any kind of pain, soft surfaces (grass, etc) are best. Secondly, what is your back pain from? Thirdly, the five finger shoes demand that you run on the balls of your feet rather than your heals as with traditional shoes...it takes some adjustment but has worked very favorably for me. I had chronic joint pain in my left knee and since switching shoes, it has completely gone away!

I have lower back pain. I do have a bigger chest so I am sure that has a lot to do with it. I have also had a doctor tell me that I have Lordosis (where your spine curves in more than it should) I never took what he said too seriosuly and never looked into it much but maybe I should.

Either way, I find it hard to stand for long periods of time and running can be very painful. I have been trying to do more strength training but I find I have been getting better results on the treadmill.

I want to be able to increase the time I can run without being in mass amount of pain afterwards.

I also want something I can wear around the house. I recently moved and the majority of my house is ceramic tile. I find it very hard on my back.

brandyk77

if you have issues barefoot with pain, vibrams won't help. They are mimicking barefoot running. vibrams = no support

I don't use them basically because I can't even stand toe socks but I do run barefoot sometimes for strengthening reasons (short distances on turf).

rybo

You are gonna get mixed reviews.

Personally I love mine. I think they are a great tool for teaching your body to run with a proper stride that will be less prone to injury. I also think it is nice to build up the small muscles/tendons & everything that doesn't get much use because of suportive shoes.

You really should take things slow and approach on the conservative side. Too much too soon in those is a recipe for disaster.

Also in regards to walking vs running in them, I actually find it much easier to run in them than walk. I run with a good forefoot/midfoot landing, but drag my heels when i walk.

Many people have said running barefoot or in VFF type shoes have helped eliminate pain, whether it was back, knee or PF issues. I didn't have any pain/issues so I can't comment on personal experience there.

paisley2288

Those shoes are so creepy looking lol but I would like to know if they work! My ex roommate had some and he wore his all the time.

AggieCass09

i love mine.

as far as how they will work with you, it depends. Treadmill running isnt the best for any kind of pain, soft surfaces (grass, etc) are best. Secondly, what is your back pain from? Thirdly, the five finger shoes demand that you run on the balls of your feet rather than your heals as with traditional shoes...it takes some adjustment but has worked very favorably for me. I had chronic joint pain in my left knee and since switching shoes, it has completely gone away!

I have lower back pain. I do have a bigger chest so I am sure that has a lot to do with it. I have also had a doctor tell me that I have Lordosis (where your spine curves in more than it should) I never took what he said too seriosuly and never looked into it much but maybe I should.

Either way, I find it hard to stand for long periods of time and running can be very painful. I have been trying to do more strength training but I find I have been getting better results on the treadmill.

I want to be able to increase the time I can run without being in mass amount of pain afterwards.

I also want something I can wear around the house. I recently moved and the majority of my house is ceramic tile. I find it very hard on my back.

i have a large chest too and scoliosis (curved spine in the lower region)....so we are pretty damn similar! Losing my first 20 lbs helped a lot with back pain at the cost of shrinking girls (E --> D *sad face*) If you take it slow I anticipate the vibrams will be okay with you. Yoga has also helped with my back pain and increasing body strength. I wear my vibrams everywhere and feel it helps me with balance too!

ismatts

My kids are embarrassed when I wear them in public. I wind up explaining what they are to people when I am at the gym with them. I hurt the muscle under my calf running with them on a treadmill. Make sure you follow the break in period so your legs can get used to it!!!!

But I do love them for grass running and bumming around.

midwifekelley2350

i just got a pair of new balance minimus...minimalist shoes with vibram soles that give the same change in gait with running (i.e. like running barefoot) and i love them. my kids have the 5-fingers and love them but i couldn't get past the "ugly" and i think these are cuter (i know that sounds really shallow )

brandyk77

I know someone who owns a running store:

Local Pro baseball player came in last year and wanted to try a pair on

He told him to come back AFTER the season because most people do not build up as they should and quite a good percentage end up injured (he said that about 50% of the people at his store come back in complaining of issues).