Anyone own Vibrams Five Fingers Shoes?

**Pandinha** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 12:07am

I just bought a pair of the KSO for myself and my son. Learning to walk and run barefoot are our goal. Anyone else own a pair and willing to give some advice/tips?

**Robstafarian** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 4:17am

Please post a review when you get a chance (it's always good to have another perspective). I have been interested in that very model for several months, and recently got myself a pair of PF Flyers as a stop-gap solution. The difference between my “Sandlot reissues” and my wannabe skate shoe Sketchers is like night and day...in a very good way.

**Snake Plissken** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 9:29am

There is a thread on Sociocide about this where Phrost advocates forefoot runningm using Nike Frees and a couple of posters discuss their use of Vibrams.

**Eddie Hardon** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 9:51am

My sensei wears them and loves them. He wears them at our Association Kobudo seminars.

Dunno much more than that. I wear Blitz so I've no opinion. If I get a pair, I'll let you know.

**AMF** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 10:02am

I have been using my Sprints for about a year now. Best advice I could give you is to ease into it slowly.

You have to almost re-learn how to run again while wearing these and so your feet will be very susceptible to injury if you try to do too much too fast. That's where most people go wrong.

Start with walking for a couple of weeks, ease into walk/jog for about a month, and then try running after that.

(Walking around barefoot in your yard and house as much as possible is a good idea too)

**Ming Loyalist** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 10:40am

my wife loves hers. she didn't ease into them over 2 months, more like 2 weeks, but we both walk barefoot at home all the time. she had to get some stuff that looks like a deodorant stick that is designed to help prevent blisters, but after getting that stuff she's been fine.

**Ketsueki** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 10:51am

I absolutely love mine, and I also had about a two week break-in period. I, however, also did quite a bit of barefoot training and walking before that. For the running, it was just muscle pain and fatigue, as though I wasn't used to running. Apparently I use different muscles when I run in the Vibrams. I believe that I was running heel to toe before, and now I run on my forefoot. I can't say for sure, as I've never seriously reviewed my running form, nor seen video of myself running. Another benefit of using correct form: I used to get pain in my right knee when I ran, and since switching to the Vibrams, that's a thing of the past.

I don't use that blister stuff Ming referred to, but I do wear injinji socks with them. You definitely want to throw them in when you do your laundry. They do fine in the washer, but let them air dry. If you stay ahead of the game, they are fine, but once they pick up a funk it's extremely hard to break it out of them.

**searcher66071** · Posted On: 4/03/2011 4:28pm

I have been using mine for quite a while now and I have some clients who use them also. As has already been stated, take it slow and don't push it. Your calves and shins will thank you. The vibrams will correct running form if you give them enough time.

One of my clients used them for a half marathon and they worked great(6 months prep time with the Vibrams). The plan is to have her try a full marathon in them to see how she does.

I use them for all of my CrossFit workouts, since they keep my feet level.

**WorldWarCheese** · Posted On: 4/04/2011 10:50am

Oh, man do I love my Vibrams. It's almost a sexual thing now (I almost wish I had a smaller dick so I could... with the big toe...). I started with the KSO's in the Winter and they were great. Got slush, snow, freezing rain, it didn't matter my feet were warm-ish from running and all pain I had previously associated with running was gone.

I had really bad pain in my arches everytime I ran for tennis in high school. So bad, in fact, that I ran barefoot whenever possible without ever hearing a word about any "minimalist" or barefoot kind of "movement"; I was just in so much pain from all sneakers no matter how much money and doctor's visits I made.

I ended up buying the Vibrams after I decided to be fit for the first time in my life and started running. With running came running magazines and youtube clips and I stumbled upon some video of a Harvard Prof talking about barefoot running (if I find the vid later I'll link to it) and he had a pair of Five Fingers on the table. I looked it up, they were MUCH cheaper than the expensive Adidas my parents wanted to buy so I got them. Since I was pretty much a "barefoot when outdoors" kind of person already my break in time was a week or two as I got used to really going longer distances at higher speeds on hard road surfaces (if you live near a park or nature trails they really do shine at their best on those, IMO).

If you're heavy (like me) and mainly doing roadwork then I recommend running barefoot for short distances in between your Vibram work. It's not to toughen the soles but to get an even better running form to prevent any injuries. Also, watch out, your tendons and bones don't really start to strengthen up to the new running style quickly so even if the muscle soreness is gone after a couple of weeks keep taking it easy for a bit you could be doing some damage without realizing it and be forced into a "rehab week" or something to heal them up.

I'm hardly an expert but love the shoes (and just plain hate socks) so I would recommend keeping a close eye and just talk to a good doc who has experience with barefoot running if anything starts acting funny. Also, have fun, you're now wearing Modern Ninja Booties.

**Cowardly Lurker** · Posted On: 4/04/2011 2:45pm

I've had a couple pair over the last few years and love them. They're goofy as hell, but any back pain I have associated with jogging is gone when I run barefoot or in the vibrams.