VFF

I finally took my Vibram Five Fingers for a spin (see product picture below). Until now I had worn them around the neighborhood walking the dogs, out to dinner with Nicole, and other casual occasions. I thought I might go for a mile or so after work today on the treadmill, a nice controlled environment, to see how they felt. 4 miles later I had to stop, but only because I had to get home to dinner. They felt amazing and my legs feel fresh and strong. I'll wait to see if any lingering soreness creeps in tomorrow, but I don't anticipate any problems.


I expect it to take some time before I am going 15-20 miles on trails with these (if ever) but I think the transition will be eased having thousands of miles of backpacking and trail running in "minimalist" inov8 shoes.

from the inov8 website:

"Running bare foot is associated with a substantially lower prevalence of acute and chronic injuries to the ankle and lower limbs, so, the inov-8 team designs all our footwear range to allow the foot the freedom to move and function as nature intended, without interference from the structure of the shoe. inov-8 shoes protect the foot from the harsh external environment experienced by the off road runner but maintain the feeling and function of bare foot running. inov-8 believes that foot function has evolved over millennia to provide a stable platform on which the runner can perform. It is, and always will be our philosophy to look to the natural function of the foot for inspiration and guidance whenever we design footwear for the high performance athlete or the recreational runner"

I will leave you with this link from NPR about a running segment that aired yesterday. Go on, click the link...