This is 1st part of a 2 part series where I review my Vibram Five Fingers Shoes I bought last month. You can read the second part of the review here.
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photo credit: Richard Monteverde
A few weeks back I took a plunge and got a pair of Vibrams Five Finger running shoes. After using them for a few weeks, I finally feel like I’ve run enough in them to give a review of my experiences with them so I decided I might as well make it a video review.
[BIT] VFF Review Part 1 from Joel Runyon on Vimeo.
If you’re the type that likes to skip around here are some of the highlights.
- [-1:08] – The VFF Community
- [-1:57] – Conversation Piece
- [-2:30] – Connecting With The Ground & Being Present
- [-4:30] – Healing Powers [Only Half Joking]
- [-5:22] – Portability
If you can’t watch the video for any number of reasons [or you just don't like watching videos], have no fear, it’s optional. Here’s all the things I really liked about my Vibrams in good ole-fashioned text.
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Things I Liked
The VFF Community
While VFF’s are still fairly rare to see in everyday use, the community surround VFF is HUGE. In the 48 hours after getting them, I connected with the following via twitter
- Half Of Jess [aka Half Of Jess]
- Colin Wright [aka Exile Lifestyle]
- Steve Kamb [aka Nerd Fitness]
- Stefan Schneider
- Matt Griffin [aka Baker's Edge - maker of awesome pans for making awesome brownies...awesome for eating, not so awesome for running]
I also found Birthday Shoes via Stefan which is a real wealth of knowledge on all things barefoot running & Vibrams enthusiasts. I spent over a few hours just digging through some of the content over there. Good stuff.
Conversation Piece
For better or worse, you’ll always get noticed if you wear Vibrams. You have to get used to it when you run in things that resemble grey camouflaged toe socks. It’s just the way it is. Now if you hate people, this might not be a good thing, but I enjoy meeting people and I’ve met a lot and had some very interesting conversations that started with them asking what in the heck I was wearing.
Connecting With The Ground & Being Present
You feel everything when you run in Vibrams. Yes, there’s protection from the ground, but it’s very little. This forced me to really pay attention while I was running. This is definitely something you learn very quickly after NOT paying attention and running over a patch of gravel and rocks. After that, I was more attentive to my surroundings and more aware of my environment. I actually really enjoyed this because it is much easier for me to BE in the present moment when I’m constantly engaging my mind and not just going on autopilot. I found I started to enjoy running more and I was complaining about running in my mind less.
Healing Powers [Only Half Joking]
I used to have a knee issue while running. It wasn’t that bad, but it would start acting up around the 1.5 mile marker and I would have to just push on through & ignore the pain. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t comfortable either. Since I’ve been running in my VFF, I’m cured! I don’t feel any pain in my knee anymore. While I can’t definitively point to the VFF as fixing my issues, I wouldn’t be terribly surprised if that was the case.
Portability
VFFs are super portable. They take up less space than one normal running shoe and they’re easy to throw in your bag and just go without worrying about lugging them around with you. Having shoes you can take anywhere with you is a powerful tool with the “Screw It & Do It” mindset. You can always have your shoes on you and be ready for a run anywhere. No more excuses.
Overall, there are a lot of things to like about them. I’ll be doing a post next week following up on the things I don’t like about them as much. In the mean time…
What I want to hear from you
If you use Vibrams or Run Barefoot:
- What’s your favorite thing about your Vibrams 5 Fingers Shoes?
- What’s your favorite thing about Barefoot Running?
If you don’t do either:
- What’s your number one question about Vibrams 5 Fingers or Barefoot Running?
Everyone:
Take 3 seconds to take this poll. I’d really appreciate it.
[poll id="2"]
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If you still have questions on Vibrams & Barefoot Running and want to do more research, Leo Babatua has put together a few articles on barefoot running and the philosophy behind it that would be well worth your time.
My name is Joel Runyon and I write about pushing your limits and telling a great story by 
I am horrible with watching youtube vids. I get too distracted and I normally have video on so I just can’t listen. I don’t do podcasts either though.
My favorite thing about my VFFs? How it allows me to connect with the ground and my environment while getting some protection.
My favorite thing about barefoot running? How it allows me to connect with my environment. I always feel like a stealthy predator. It’s awesome.
Thanks for chiming in Jess! I’m bad at watching video too, but I usually try to bookmark things I run across during the day that I’m interested in watching and watch them all at once towards the end. It helps me handle info overload
.
I love your imagery. “Stealthy Predator” I can just imagine you running up on some poor runner and just taking them out, running over them and going on the next runner =)
My Vibrams fit like a glove and I like the way running in them gets me off my heals.
Definitely! When I wear normal shoes now, I’m starting to notice how much I focus on my heels. It’s definitely a whole different type of running.
I appreciate that you like the VFF shoes too.I have a pair red that i like very much.it’s said the it’s healthier to walk and run barefoot.if you wear VFF ,it more good.
Yup, i’m a fan
You can actually see part 2 of my review and see my final thoughts on the VFFs here: http://www.joelrunyon.com/two3/vibrams-five-fingers-review-part-2
Excellent review of the VFF’s, Joel.
I bought my 1st pair last week. The
only store in town that sells them did
not have my size so I settled for 1 size larger.
While they are still great at giving me a protected
barefoot experience with everyday running around,
I think I will wait to get some my true size
for workouts/running. You are right, the community
aspect is cool. I forget that i am wearing them
until people point and whisper or ask me questions.
Check out the forums at birthdayshoes.com (get it?) for posts of funny comments that people have made to VFF enthusiasts (yes, we have our own forum with
1500 members!).
Peace
Rob-
Birthday shoes is definitely on my radar. I pop in there once a week or so to catch up on everything. I love the community aspect of it & it’s great to have a group help out when making the transition!
Thanks for checking out BIT!
-Joel
1. My fave thing re: Vibrams: It feels like I’m not wearing anything at all, whilst still protecting my feet from little rocks and debris on the ground.
2. My fave thing re: Barefoot Running: Being and feeling so free and light! I feel faster (and probably run faster, as a result) and I love getting all the questions/stares! Because then I get to share with others how awesome barefoot running is and how all those professional running shoes really actually cause more damage than preventing them. Plus, I’ve always enjoyed being barefoot, even as a child, I would take off all shoes/socks 1st thing when I get into the house. I just love being barefoot, period!
“It feels like I’m not wearing anything at all”
Exhibitionist now, are we? haha.
I have been wearing Vibram off and on for 3 years or so. It was until I started training for my first ironman and streamlining my life that I have been wearing them more regularly. I like running in them because they help me focus on form, and stay off of my heals.
Walking: the instant feedback you get from how your foot strikes the ground makes you adjust and walk properly. Because I am flat footed I notice my feet getting tired faster, but I find that a plus because it indicates that my feet are weaker than I realize (having regular running shoes prevents this kind of awareness). As they say, you are only as fast as your feet are strong.
Hey Byron. You’re training for an Ironman? Have you tried wearing the shoes throughout the whole race? (specifically the biking portion?) If so, I’d love to hear how that went for you.
As you said, I notice a HUGE difference between the running I do when I’m in VFFs and when I’m in shoes…I think I’m going to have a hard time going back…
I stumbled across your blog today. Love it. I love my Vibrams. I’m glad your knee pain has subsided. People look at me like I’m crazy when I tell them this little tiny foot covering of a shoe has “cured” my knee issues as well. I have a friend who has challenged me to run an ultramarathon this year as well as an adventure race. You might want to think about adding those to your impossible list. I should kill off my goal of 100 consecutive pushups early January. Keep up the good work.
I just might
. I did a mudathlon earlier this year, but I need to get a marathon done before I start aiming for an ultramarathon. Baby steps 
. Thanks for stopping by Pete