Running... wait, or go?

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skinnylion
skinnylion Posts: 213
in Fitness and Exercise
I decided to get myself a pair of Vibram 5-Fingers once I lose 90 pounds (I only have 7 more to go) and I'm estimating that's going to take about two more months. But the thing is, with summer starting I'm really excited to start running again... only... my shoes right now are all normal padded running sneakers.

I've read that you're supposed to walk in Vibrams for a month before trying to run. And I don''t want to train my ankles and calves for the wrong kind of shoe if I plan to get into barefoot running. So what should I do in the mean time? Go for walks barefoot, then when I get the 5-fingers start jogging? I feel like that's going to take forever.

I feel like this timing is terrible but I'm really eager to start! Does anyone have advice? I guess it's possible that I could get the shoes now, but I was hoping they could be a little more special.

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  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
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    Barefoot walking and running would work well. If you want some pure barefoot advice I recommend you visit the barefoot runners forum at Runners World. They have a lot of good info there.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    My thoughts = why wait? There's really nothing magic about losing another 7 lbs and you might have a blast with the walking/running in vibrams!

    The only real advantage I can think of to waiting is money- if you're short on it, saving up for them might be better than buying them now. But those 7 lbs aren't a significant enough amount of weight to make a difference with the impact on your feet... so it won't matter in terms of injury or what not.

    Good luck! I hope you love them.
  • tasmin21
    tasmin21 Posts: 42 Member
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    I'm totally sold on my Vibrams. I've been able to run in them when I haven't been able to run in decades.

    You DO need to do the breaking in period, however. The Vibram website has a "getting started" section that talks about the stretches and such that they recommend you do before wearing the shoes (the instruction manual comes with). If you know you're going to buy them in the future, no reason you can't start building up the muscles in your feet now.
  • skinnylion
    skinnylion Posts: 213
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    My thoughts = why wait? There's really nothing magic about losing another 7 lbs and you might have a blast with the walking/running in vibrams!

    The only real advantage I can think of to waiting is money- if you're short on it, saving up for them might be better than buying them now. But those 7 lbs aren't a significant enough amount of weight to make a difference with the impact on your feet... so it won't matter in terms of injury or what not.

    Good luck! I hope you love them.
    I think you've persuaded me to get them early hahaha! I was planning to wait so they could be more of a celebration, but I have reason to celebrate what I've already lost. Plus with the academic year winding down they can be a dual-purpose self gift. :D Thank you! And you're right - they'll probably be really fun and be super motivating to use and exercise with every day.

    Tasmin, thanks for your help too! I'll definitely look into those stretches you mentioned and start working with my feet to make sure when I pick them up it'll go as smoothly as possible. :)

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