five toed shoes

the vibram five finger shoes get pretty good reviews but sort of look weird - at least in my opinion. you might check out some of the minimalist shoes out there. essentially, the same thing but they look like a normal tennis shoe, although without the arch (or drop as they call it). there are a lot of minimalist running shoes on the market right now, some are more minimal than others. the more minimal, the closer to barefoot.

i have the merell barefoot run dash glove and i like them. they even have the vibram sole. i haven't done much running in them but lots of people think they are great. normally, you would really need to ease into running and maybe even walking in these. like take it really slowly. but if you have been running in flats, then maybe not. still though, see how it goes.

I love my VFF KSOs. At 230 pounds, I am not a light runner and always had trouble running in normal running store fitted shoes, knee pain, ankle pain, tendonitis, etc. Now that I switched to the KSOs, I've had none of those problems. I have had blisters and strained one muscle from running too far, too soon with them but other than that no problems. Some people love walking in them, I much prefer running in them and my heel blister is directly from walking in them with no socks or heel protection. Some people say they look funny, I'm not wearing them to make a fashion statement, but as exercise equipment.

They may not be for everyone and may not fix each persons specific problems, but it can't hurt to try them.

Here are some suggestions about them:
- Buy Injinji toe socks to wear with them and most blister problems will be taken care of.
- Sizing, you should have 3-5 millimeters space at the end of your longest toe.
- They are a bit difficult to put on but after half a dozen runs, your feet start sliding into them much easier.
- Start out slow in them, my first run with them was about 1/3 of my normal distance and should have been even less.
- Most of my heatspot/blister problems just needed a layer of sports tape for a couple runs to take care of. IF it's a heel blister, run the tape from under your heel up well past the end of the shoe vertically or it's gonna peel off and cause problems.
- Short, quick steps are you friend.
- You will quickly develop a mid-foot strike with VFFs. They have little padding so few heel strikes and the pain corrects you.

I have the Merrell Trail Glove shoe with the vibram sole. Same effect as the five fingers but not as weird looking. I am in love with my shoes.

Here's a picture of what they look like.....http://www.backcountry.com/merrell-pace-glove-shoe-womens

I noticed the new styles on the Olympians. Shoes have really changed, running shoes/walking. I don't run but I wear a running shoe for walking because I like the light, weight.

denise

I love my Vibram FiveFingers. Scored a pink "Sprint' style on black Friday for $20 free shipping on Moosejaw.com I wear them daily for power walking and running. I like the look people give me and ask "What are those?" lol

One other thing...My picture was taken in Colorado...I was hiking on a mountain at about 12,000 feet or so. My hiking shoe of choice? The Vibram hiking shoe. I told you, I love them...A LOT!

in all seriousness, i like my minimalist shoes (wearing them in this picture) but here's an article against them. http://beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=2449

I looooove mine! I would get a lot of pain in my feet when I would wear regular running shoes. My feet would go numb and when I would take them off it was a flood of pain. I bought my fila skele-toes on the hopes that the problem would disappear. To my surprise it did!!! I would be shoe free 24/7 also. These allow me to feel that way with a thicker sole so that I'm not so worried about running over rocky areas. Definatently recommend them!

My concern with you moving to a minimalist shoe is that your feet ALREADY hurt when you get home in a shoe that has more sole than a Vibram. What type of pain is it? Joint? Arch? Heel? The balls of your feet from the pounding?

Also, what distances do you run? And what's your weekly mileage like? If you do buy them, they will have to be slowly worked into your running shoe rotation (which already isn't working for you), over the course of months to avoid injury & condition your muscles & bones to accommodate the radical changes.

A lot of people swear by them, however I own a pair of Vibram Sprints, I run 6 days per week...and I DON'T run in them. I used them for about 6 months after I bought them (for my shorter runs), & couldn't deal with the lack of support or padding with the constant pounding of pavement as a forefoot runner. Also, feeling the heat of the pavement & every rock underfoot is ok while walking, but a nuisance while running to be honest. I still wear them sometimes for walking about (they're a cool shoe), but they're still not my first choice, and the novelty has worn off.

Get fitted & try running in them around the store. It won't be a true to life feel, but it will give you an idea.

I've heard similar complaints about the sprints on other forums. I think the Sprints have a 2mm sole while the KSOs I run in have a 3.5mm sole. Maybe that's why you have issues with rocks and the heat and I've never had a problem with either.

I don't know about the months of breaking in though. Mine took about 3 weeks to break in and get me back to running 5k three times a week. And I did have a slight strain on my second run from going too far too soon, but 2 extra days of rest and everything was back to normal.

As far as the OP and others looking to buy VFFs, go to a store and try them on until you find the style/size you want then look online. I bought my KSOs from REI outlet for 40% off.

Oh, they could definitely handle 5k a few times a week! It's the 10k, 15k, 20k, 25k I found they just weren't suitable for, even after a couple of months of getting used to them, (& especially when running 6 days per week). You're right though, it's probably for the very reason you mentioned, the super thin Sprint sole. I may try a different Vibram one day, but I'm very happy with Mizunos now. OMG Mizuuuuunos.

1981simm, do give it a shot. REI is a huge enough store that you could get a real good stride in. Don't worry about feeling silly, if you have to run a mile around the store, do it, because getting the right shoe is so essential.

I started in VFF KSOs as well. I got them a couple of weeks before I started C25K do I've never run in anything but VFFs.

In April I bought a pair of VFF SeeYas... they have an even more minimal sole than the Sprints/Speeds/KSOs.

The great thing about the SeeYas is that they upper is SO soft and supple... there is absolutely no rubbing or hot spots from the shoes now.. including the Achilles at the heel. The SeeYas feel more like socks with rubber soles.

I'm now up to a 10 mile long run and have my first half marathon in just over 3 weeks... all in VFFs.

Now, before I found VFF shoes, I was never a runner. I was 320 pounds, had heel spurs in both feet and have had several bouts of plantar fasciitis in my right foot over the past three years.

I firmly believe that the mid-foot to fore-foot strike that barefoot running (and minimal shoe running) requires is the reason I can now run. I'd never be able to take the pounding in my feet/heels/knees if I was heel striking the way that traditional cushioned running shoes tend to promote.

So it is possible that minimal shoes are the thing for you, but they are not for everyone. The only way to know for sure is to try them.

One word of warning, though... I agree with everyone else who has cautioned to work them in to your routine gradually. It is VERY different and it took several months of running and slowly extending the length of the runs before my feet really felt like they had caught up to the amount of stamina that my legs, heart and lungs achieved pretty quickly.

Wombat, you've never had any metatarsal-phalangeal issues with the combo of VFF's, your foot strike & distance running?

Now, you've got me curious about how builds & bio-mechanics play a role with the success &/or failure of VFF's. High arch, low arch, regular? Pronator, supinator, neutral? What surfaces are you running on & why the heck can't I do that?

I have a pair of the Fila minimalist shoes. They're cheaper than Vibram's ($45) and have a thin hard sole so no rock/heat on the soles. I LOVE them. I have a weak lower back and these have been amazing.

Wombat, you've never had any metatarsal-phalangeal issues with the combo of VFF's, your foot strike & distance running?

Now, you've got me curious about how builds & bio-mechanics play a role with the success &/or failure of VFF's. High arch, low arch, regular? Pronator, supinator, neutral? What surfaces are you running on & why the heck can't I do that?

Kasya,

I haven't had any problems to speak of in running with VFFs. I can't speak too technically about my foot/gait but I believe that I am pretty close to neutral in all respects. I've never noticed any unusual wear on any of my footwear in my adult life (other than excessive wear from being well over 300 pounds for most of that time).

I would say I have a pretty normal arch... maybe on the higher end of normal, but definitely not a typical "high arch" foot. Definitely not low arch. I have a pretty neutral gait.

Early on as my muscles/bones/ligaments were strengthening in response to running, I did have occasional mild Top of Foot Pain... though it was mild enough that I wouldn't call it pain really... discomfort is all. As I read about minimalist running I found that that was pretty normal... and the best thing to do was to back off and ease up a bit for a few days, which I did and it never developed into serious pain. As I kept at it, the distances that I could run and total weekly mileage that I could cover and not have that pain kept growing, so I believe that it was normal discomfort as the ligaments and bones of the foot were getting their workout and building strength.

The only other issue I had was that at first, when I was approaching the 3 mile/5k distance, I would occasionally get some numbness in my second and third toes on both feet. I experimented a bit with my form and found that if I increased my turnover and reduced my stride length a bit, it would not be nearly as bad... I think I was landing too far onto the balls of my feet instead of the forefoot. That change in form mostly eliminated the problem, but not entirely. It wasn't until I switched from the KSOs to the SeeYas that it appears to have gone away completely. I think ultimately a part of the problem was that my KSOs were a bit too small... they fit great for walking, but with the swelling that goes with longer distance running, they were one size too small. I went up a size in the SeeYas, and I've been fine since then. No problems at all.

Almost all of my running is on asphalt surfaces... either local roads or paved jogging/running/biking trails. I do try to minimize running on concrete and that is just jarring no matter what I do to try to improve my form. Even that is not as much of a problem as I have gained in strength though... last weekend I had an 8 mile run where nearly 3 miles of it was on concrete sidewalks and I made it through just fine, though my feet were more sore than they had been recently afterward. The next day they felt fine.

I wish I could offer you more on why/how I can do this. In part, I run this way because I don't know any better. I've never been in pain from running (:::knock on wood:::) so I just keep doing what I'm doing and cautiously extend my runs and slowly increase my pace.

If you are an established runner, I think a big part of it is that you don't try to transition to minimal running too quickly. I built from nothing, so it was two months before I was running 3 miles at a time, and it's been another 4 months of base building and training to get me to 10 miles.

Vibram has a transition guide, and it really emphasizes taking it slowly when you start out with minimal shoes. If you stick with it, eventually your feet will gain strength and you should be able to run longer distances in VFFs.

Good luck.

Ted