Vibrams.. running in the city?

[Fran101]

OOoOo Just saw the minimus online and they look good! There is a new balance store on newbury! I'll go see and try em on

I love my nikes. No doubt about it. I am just looking for a change, there is no pain or anything, but they are an expensive pretty shoe and I am looking for something a bit more minimal

[Shai]

Originally Posted by Fran101

OOoOo Just saw the minimus online and they look good! There is a new balance store on newbury! I'll go see and try em on

They have a couple different sole thicknesses to try to see what you like. Like I said I have the WT10s which are on the thin side. And they come in black and I can get by wearing them for work many days

[Saeleofu]

If you've never really been barefoot, one of the VFFs with a thicker sole is probably a good starting point, and you'll have to work your way into them VERY SLOWLY. C25k is too fast for someone who doesn't go barefoot ever. Wear them just to walk in for a few weeks, or depending on how you adjust, a few months. Then do a drawn-out C25k...maybe do each week twice or something. If you're doing it all on pavement, it needs to be drawn out even longer, lest you end up with stress fractures.

I wear KSOs and LOVE them. I do not run on pavement yet, but I wear them all the time. When I was in middle school I ran track, and I got shin splints ALL THE FREAKING TIME. I don't get them anymore, and I just overall feel better when I run.

I'm seriously considering getting a pair of Minimas for work, though, since my boss is stupid and won't let me wear VFFs

[sillysally]

How are the minimalist shoes with bad ankles? My doctor wants me to start C25K and I don't have any specific running shoes and have stupid ankles....

[FG167]

Originally Posted by sillysally

How are the minimalist shoes with bad ankles? My doctor wants me to start C25K and I don't have any specific running shoes and have stupid ankles....

Done wonders for mine! I have "weak joints", always had to have my ankles and stuff taped for sports. I don't have the problems at all anymore. The key was that I used to roll them badly in regular running shoes...just on flat surfaces. They're just weak. It's almost impossible to roll in really minimalist shoes.

[Saeleofu]

Originally Posted by sillysally

How are the minimalist shoes with bad ankles? My doctor wants me to start C25K and I don't have any specific running shoes and have stupid ankles....

They're the only shoes I DON'T re-sprain my ankle in.

[ruffiangirl]

Originally Posted by FG167

Done wonders for mine! I have "weak joints", always had to have my ankles and stuff taped for sports. I don't have the problems at all anymore. The key was that I used to roll them badly in regular running shoes...just on flat surfaces. They're just weak. It's almost impossible to roll in really minimalist shoes.

I do the same thing, but now that im reading your post it has never happened in my vibrams! I think it's because you can feel the ground.

[Shai]

Yeah I've wrecked my left ankle twice -- once playing softball and the baseman stepped on my ankle -- second time I stepped in a hole and twisted as I fell on a long cross country run...I was numbed enough by that point in the run that i ran another mile before realizing how trashed my ankle was. That one was especially bad.

As a result it's pretty easy for me left ankle to just fail on me, but I've been fine for years since switching to the minimas and my ankle seems stronger (probably partially because I'm not twisting it all the time!) so I don't seem to twist it in other shoes any more either.

Just me though, I imagine experiences vary.

That said I switched when I was already injured due to shin splints and a sore knee so I couldn't run far in them at first. Was already used to walking around in socks all the time so switching for walking didn't cause me problems. A guy at work who runs a lot made the switch while healthy and he tried to ease into them but was in the habit of running long and overdid it...ended up having to take a month or so off to recover because he really screwed himself up. Just a warning...

[SizzleDog]

I used to roll my ankles in regular shoes all the time... VFFs eliminated ALL ankle rolling for me!

Feet in shoes are basically weak, uncoodinated blobs of flesh and bone. When you wear minimalist footwear, you actually buff up your foot muscles... and bam, instantly you have useful, functional feet again!

[Shai]

Originally Posted by SizzleDog

I used to roll my ankles in regular shoes all the time... VFFs eliminated ALL ankle rolling for me!

Feet in shoes are basically weak, uncoodinated blobs of flesh and bone. When you wear minimalist footwear, you actually buff up your foot muscles... and bam, instantly you have useful, functional feet again!

(emphasis added)

Well, over time anyway. How much time and the risks between depend on a lot of things including the basic structure of your feet, how readily a person adjusts their striding if s/he is a big heel-striker, and whether the feet are damaged or merely weak.

The people I've personally seen who had the most/fastest success with these kind of shoes are, ironically, people who were very out of shape beforehand. Seems almost like since they were easing out of a sedentary lifestyle and weren't capable of going far/fast right away so they were forced to ease into it, and often they didn't have years of running heel-first because they never really ran, period.

The people I've personally seen with the worst trouble transitioning or with resultant injuries were people in very good shape with hundreds/thousands of miles of running heel-first. It takes longer to retrain the stride style and when your mind and whole body are geared to run and run and work through fatigue it can be easy to overtax and end up hurting yourself.

Just my experience though.