Vibrams Five Fingers Review

I posted a couple of weeks ago about how I wanted to get some Vibrams FiveFingers, but could not decide which ones I wanted to get. I was so excited about getting new shoes. I have already tried on the Vibrams in a store close by called Luke's Locker, so I knew what size to get. My debate was between the Komodosport and the KomodoSport LS. 

These are the shoes that I decided on....

Komodosport LS

Now, I know these shoes look extremely weird and are not your typical running shoes, however they are extremely comfortable! They pull tighter than the Komodosport. I wanted to get the pink and gray ones, but they were out of my size in that one, so I went with the yellow and gray. It is a more neutral color and I liked them as well.
These shoes are great for walking, running, trail running, mud/obstacle running and just wearing them around the house. I was waiting for these to come to the door, because whenever I got them, I immediately put them on.

One thing about these shoes, is that if you have never worn them before, they are going to take you a little while to get them on. It took me around 30 minutes to get both of the shoes on my feet comfortably.
My feet naturally curve to the left and right depending on the foot, so whenever I put these shoes on I had to turn my feet the other way and work each individual toe into the correct slot. Brian decided he wanted to watch and continued to laugh at me while I was putting them on.

Once on though, I did not want to take them off. I wore them most of the evening and then decided I probably should not wear them to bed. I decided to take them to school and wear them at school the following day, regardless of what everybody would say about them.
The next day at school I wore them most of the day and by that evening my calves were not hurting, but the top arch of my feet were, so I took them off and massaged my feet.

With Vibrams, you are not supposed to train day after day in these. You could risk serious injury in your heels, calves or arches of your feet and legs. These shoes are ones that you have to build your body into.
On Saturday, I decided I would take it slow and run 3 miles, but not run the entire thing, just run some and walk some, so try and start breaking them in.

I got a few weird stares, but that is okay, because I know they were just wondering what in the world were on my feet. After my 3 mile run/walk I felt great and decided to keep them on the rest of the day. This was probably not the smartest thing in the world for me to do. That evening as I took them off, my calves were beyond tight and the bottom arches in my feet were so tight! I grabbed the foam roller out of hiding and started using that and man did it feel good/bad. I have a love hate relationship with my foam roller.

However, my vibrams are amazing, and while I may not be running in them everyday, because I do not want to overdo it, I will be trying to walk in them a little bit everyday. I beyond love them and am hoping I will be ready to take on the WW3.5 Obstacle/Mud Run in November in them.

In Review:
1. Take your time when you get a new pair of Vibrams. Do not take off when you first get them and run 10 miles. You are only supposed to do 20% of your workout at the beginning and build yourself up. 


2. Make sure you get the correct fit or they will hurt your feet. 


3. Buy a foam roller (if you do not already have one) because I guarantee you will need it. Unless you have a sweet husband who has massive hands and can massage your calves. 


4. Wear them around your house/job/town as much as you can before you start running in them. 


5. These shoes are designed to make you feel like you are walking barefoot and they shape to your feet. If you do not like walking barefoot or feel like you need a lot of cushion on your feet, then these shoes are probably not for you. 


6. TAKE YOUR TIME BREAKING THESE SHOES IN! You will not break them in, in a week or 2 like normal running shoes. These shoes take a lot of time. 


Overall, have fun and enjoy the freedom of not having tight shoes that make your toes feel cramped. You will love the feeling of having your toes spaced out and the circulation going through your feet. I love mine and if you have some, I hope you love yours too!