My Five Fingers
So, I’ve been meaning to write a post on my new choice in footwear for a while now, but I wanted to wait till I was farther into my running schedule before I did. That was until I read this.
First, I want to just say that, I have a pair of Brooks Beasts. They were what I ran this past years Ragnar in. I used them in tandem with a pair of custom orthotics. That should tell you had badly my feet used to pronate. When running season was done, I would lift in them. They were, my athletic shoe of choice.
Note the key usage of the past tense. In case you hadn’t picked up on it, I haven’t put on my beats in about two months.
Just before Thanksgiving of this year, I decided to get a pair of the Vibram Five Finger KSOs. My friends Lowell and Cailyn had been living in them for a couple of months and wouldn’t stop going on about them. After doing some research I decided I’d give them a try. Given how my feet are, I figured at worst, I’d just be sore for a bit, give up and call it a day.
Well, after easing my way into them (seriously, give yourself time to adjust), I discovered that I really really loved wearing them. It started off as me wearing them to work and around the house. Then I started wearing them pretty much full time, accept for the gym. Then, after a weak of wondering why my knees were bothering me after working out, I realized I wasn’t handling being in the Beasts for working out and walking anymore. So I ditched them and it was my KSO’s all the time.
When I got back from vacation, I decided that I actually wanted a couple more pairs of 5 Fingers. I decided I wanted a pair of Sprints to work out/run in, and I wanted a pair of brown KSO Treks that I could wear with dressier ensembles, as well as to work when I was drying my regular KSOs. Thankfully, Lowell was able to hook me up, so I didn’t ave to wait to get them. I can honestly say that I love my Treks and Sprints as much as my original pair of KSOs.
I’ll probably write up more of the experience next month when I’ve started up my initial change in training from Skiing/Climbing to Running/Convention. (Yes, I actually have to train a bit for the Con. I’m on my feet for most of 4 days.) For now, however, I cannot stress how awesome the shoes are. They are super comfortable and I’ve reduced the amount of pain I’ve felt in my legs and back since picking them up. I whole heartedly recommend them.
Glad to hear you’ve had such success freeing your feet. And a Brooks Beast convert, no less.
Keep us posted on how your progress goes! Always eager to publish user success stories on http://birthdayshoes.com (let me know if you’re interested!)
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Will Reply:
January 27th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
@justin, I will definitely submit to the site as I get farther a long. I’m all about promoting the power of VFFs.
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You disliked the Brooks article as well ehh? That was the biggest piece of garbage. “You should run barefoot cause you’ll hurt yourself” They miss the ENTIRE point of converting to barefoot by stating all you will do it further hurt yourself and then saying “buy our shoes!”
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Will Reply:
January 27th, 2010 at 8:35 pm
@Steve, you could say I disliked it. At first when I read about the letter, I was hopeful. Maybe a big running company would have something smart to bring to the table and maybe rework their footwear. Then I read the letter itself.
I did like him calling out people who need their Beasts, though. It’s what prompted me to write this, as I am supposedly one of the poor souls who should always run with maximum propping of my feet. Oh well. ^_^
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