Vibram Fivefingers Sprint

So I've taken clinical level biomechanics classes. And I've loved having toe shoes, but I've also been injured by biomechanic defects within them. In this review I am both promoting and telling you when to not use these shoes. Lets talk about the advantages:

proper, normal, human biomechanics involves small muscles of the feet between your toes (metatarsals and tarsals). The problem is our shoes usually restrict the movement of our feet. Flexible athletic shoes like the nike free are a good step in the right direction. However, there is also the need of zero-heel-drop. A typical athletic shoe has an enormous heel support which forces the the heel to hit with every step. So while the goal is to cushion the blow of the heel, the heel actually strikes more often than it would normally. Furthermore, the heel strike forces the angle of impact toward the shins rather than up the leg. Flat shoes help to remedy this and can be therapeutic to strengthen the neglected muscles of the lower leg and feet. The separation of the toes serves to further strengthen the feet by employing muscles that separate the toes. This too is the disadvantage.

It is normal for the toes to spread when landing and come together when the foot leaves the ground. Most shoes press the toes together not allowing them to spread on landing. Vibram's keep the toe apart not allowing them to constrict on rising.

So who should use toe fingers?

People trying to rehab their feet should gradually increase wear and distance walking, jogging, and even running.

People clocking serious miles may discover that their feet muscles feel strained from never constricting. I would be wise to use another zero drop shoe with a toe box like the merrel vapor glove for serious training. There are also toe separators that can be bought to put into regular shoes. I recommend this as a therapy as well as toe shoes. I simply wouldn't recommend it exclusively.

On first glance at Fivefingers technical shoes you ' d be forgiven for thinking you were about to take part in a remake of a 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 'movie. With the separate toe 'pouches 'they look a lot like toe socks, which were all the rage in the late nineties.

My first thought is, ' Oh God! What the hell are these! '

However, on insertion of feet I discover the most comfortable shoe known to man. Maybe it ' s because it ' s kind of how your feet were supposed to feel, back in the days before shoes were invented, when we went hunting, foraging and the like.

So with a somewhat changed opinion and a desire to see what these monkey shoes are made of, I decide to brave the gawks of the public and go get my exercise head on.

On arrival at yoga class I am initially greeted with a few rounds of:

' What are those things on your feet? '

But, after a fifteen minute walk that felt like daisies tickling my soles on a summer ' s walk through a meadow I have grown quite attached to my Fivefingers and prepare to show those naysayers just what they are made of.

The sole of the shoe is made by Vibram, the walking shoe specialists, and you can really tell that they are specially tailored to fit the contours of your feet. It actually feels like you have nothing on, but when you walk around it ' s like gliding on air, your feet are totally supported and comfortable but you still have the same protection as you would wearing shoes.

My yoga postures benefitted too, no sweaty slippery feet across the yoga mat for me, just a perfect, sturdy grip. Also, it was quite clear that my fellow yogatarians were green with envy that my tootsies were toasty warm while theirs were turning an attractive shade of purple in the winter chill.

It did feel a bit wrong doing barefoot activity wearing shoes, but when the benefits are so obvious, who am I to complain?

So hurrah for Fivefingers, you have converted me. Let me be able to see all of my toes every day of the week. Who knows, with the extra freedom of the toes we might become just as nimble with the digits on our feet as the ones on our hands. In fact, who is to say I didn ' t compose this review using merely the agility of my big toes!