Queen of 3rd Place
Lately I've been doing a lot of experimenting with different shoes/minimalistic shoes/BF, and had a few comments (bear in mind that I'm still a newbie at this):
Racing flats: I have a pair of Saucony Kilkennys with about 30 mi on them. They are much more shoe-like than the VFF. Actually, they don't feel all that different to me than my trainers, so I suspect they don't offer much benefit in terms of strengthening the feet. I won't waste my money again on flats.
VFF: These are closer to BF, but ONLY in comparison to other shoes. To be honest, there's a huge difference between wearing these and running BF. I would like to find something that's even closer to BF than these are. In addition, they cramp my toes a bit, especially when I wear socks. Without socks, they chafe along my achilles.They're fun to wear around town, though, so they're not a total waste of money.
BF: feels the best, but so far I'm only good for up to about 1.5 mi. I'm still having form problems and and sensitive to rocks and other debris. I hate it when something small and hard sticks to my foot! Ouch! One strange benefit I've noticed is that my soles are softer - the pavement has sanded down some calluses I had.
Just my 2c. Your mileage may vary and all that.
Arla
Ex runner
VFF: These are closer to BF, but ONLY in comparison to other shoes. To be honest, there's a huge difference between wearing these and running BF. I would like to find something that's even closer to BF than these are.
Trust me we all do!
While nothing beats plain ol' barefootin it. It does help to have a bit of protection from the elements just so you can go faster.
I can run 20+ miles now barefoot but my time wont be near as fast as if I was wearing my trusty VFF.
So ya, I feel ya. I wish my Vibrams were a bit more minimilistic since I do use them a bunch.
What version of VFF are you wearing tho?
I never liked the classics or sprints, never fit my pinky toe right. Then came the KSO and it fits me great. You said that you have to wear socks in order to keep from chaffing (me too) but then your toes are too cramped? Maybe you just need to get one size bigger... When I went to get fitted for my new KSO I wore my toe socks during the try outs, just to make sure they fit with the socks on.
One good bit of news I can give you is that the VFF Glove is in the works. Its just like the rest but with way less rubber. Can't wait to try it!
Good luck
Get Lost :)
Uh-oh! Looks like another shoe on the horizon!
Anyone know when these are coming out?
MTA: I'm wearing the Sprints.
The Glove and the Trek are comming out in Fall 09 I think
But I dont know if this is going to be a euro release thing or what.
there is a site called http://birthdayshoes.com/ they have a ton of info and news about VFF
Here you go. I think these are probably the closest to BF without being BF.
http://barefootted.com/shop/
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Here you go. I think these are probably the closest to BF without being BF. http://barefootted.com/shop/
Every time I look at that I can feel the blister between my toes forming. Might be worth a shot, though.
Team Me, Myself & I
Here is a link from a City Sports email. It is a short and somewhat interesting video.
Again, it is really easy to get 15-20% VFFs there by registering online. They'll send you a coupon. I don't work there or have any connection to the store, I just like to save money. I did it with for a pair of KSOs, no problems.
http://www.citysports.com/citysports/dept.asp?s_id=0&dept_id=9908&WT.mc_id=newsletterV7&mail_id=newsletter_v7&key_id=VibramFiveFingers
staying healthy while running = many slow miles
Tedshead, thanks for the link. "News reports" like that sort of irritate me. But it's always interesting to see it getting attention.
While running this morning I was thinking about the many people who say, "I tried BF'ing (or VVFs) and it really didn't work for me." And I thought of the perfect response... "Oh yeah, man. I know what you mean. It's like, I tried growing tomato plants from seeds this spring - and for, like, A WEEK, nothing happened! It just doesn't work for me so I paved over the dirt..."
They're aiming that at the indoor market--yoga, that kind of thing. I wonder if that would work outside, that midsole might wear out in a hurry.