Vibram Five Fingers - barefoot shoes

[Brian Ayers, CSCS]

I just recently bought a pair of these shoes, after making fun of one of my coworkers for wearing them, and I have to admit I was wrong for rippin on him. Yea they might look a bit ridiculous, but I love these things!!

In the first week I had them my back and hip pain was greatly reduced. I believe it was mostly due to the fact that I was much more aware of my foot strike and gait. Now I wear them all the time, training clients, in boxing class, while I'm lifting. I even jogged 1/2 mile on the treadmill yesterday wearing them. It was harder because you have to engage more muscles in your legs and feet, but it kept me from running sloppy and my alignment felt much better.

Here's the link for more info on them:
www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/index.cfm

There are a few diferent styles depending on what you plan to do in them. The classics are ok for just walking around, but if you want to exercise in them you'll want to get the KSO's (that's what I got) or the Sprints. You can order online, but if you actually want to try them on first like I did, the closest store to Hartford that carries them is in Old Saybrook.

[Brian Ayers, CSCS]

Still lovin the 5fingers, getin a bit cold for the KSO's so I just looked on the site for the Flows and found they just dropped 3 new styles!!! The Treks look sweet!

[Brian Ayers, CSCS]

I've recently purchased my second pair. They now sell them at REI in West Hartford. Here's a review I wrote for the examiner.com:

www.examiner.com/x-3162-Hartford-Weight-Loss-Examiner~y2010m3d17-Vibram-FiveFingers--Barefoot-Shoes

[Brian Ayers, CSCS]

Just got my KSO Treks from REI.com. Gotta take advantage of the nice weather this weekend and break them in with a hike. They actually ended up being a good deal. Normally $125 but got a 20% off cupon from REI membership and free shipping, plus I get back 10% of what I spend at the end of the year!

[lost180]

I call those things hobbit shoes because they remind me of The Lord of The Rings. The actors wore silicon feet so they could walk all over the place "barefoot".

I've gotten more into the barefoot thing since I had a session with a Z Health trainer. But for now I'm going to stick with my Nike Frees. You'd think running with a shoe that has almost zero padding would suck but they are so comfortable. I also found in my searchs another shoe by Nike called the Eclipse Natural Motion and I bought a pair of those too for walking around in.