After a loooooong debate, some friendly peer pressure, and a too-good-to-pass-up sale online, I bit the bullet recently and purchased my first pair of Vibram Five Finger shoes, the Bikila.
I bought these shoes for work only. I'm a fitness trainer, so I'm on my feet most of the day. Since I am in-between seasons (run and tri), I figured this would be a good time to see what I thought about the Vibram shoes and strengthen up my foot, ankle, and calf. I wanted to try switching into these just for work. I do not plan on attempting a run in them for quite some time.
Having tried them on a couple years ago when they first came out, I was pleasantly surprised that they felt better than I remember, though I also do not recall which model I tried on originally.
On my first day, I heeded all the advice and only wore them for 2 hours. I started to feel extra tension in my arch and switched back to my regular work shoes. That worked great! On my second day, I was able to wear them for 3 hours. Score! I was already seeing improvements. Then I went away for the weekend to Disney. That's another story coming up!
After letting my body rest for a couple days post Disney, I went back to the Vibrams and wore them for a full shift on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday! I can tell that my feet and body are still getting adjusted to the different (read: lack of) support and feel, but I've had zero ill effects thus far.
The biggest issue has been the material between my toes. That annoyed the dickens (do people still use that word?) out of me until Thursday. At some point on Thursday, it no longer bothered me and I began dreaming of running and hiking in these shoes. It's going to be tough not to attempt it!
Overall, I am quite a fan of these shoes!
I already want to get a pair of Bikila LS for potential running shoes down the road.
...but I won't!
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Questions
1. Have you ever tried on Vibram Five Finger shoes? What did you think?
I dislike the lack of ability to curl your toes, but overall they feel great.
2. What are your thoughts on the minimalist thing? Running wise or other.
Minimalism is not for everyone. Not everyone likes it and it simply won't physically work for some. But as a generality, I like the idea of strengthening up your feet as long as you take the time to do it correctly.
DREAM. BELIEVE. ACHIEVE.
