Vibram Five Fingers - Sprints
www.vibramfivefingers.com
I ordered the Sprint model in the Taupe color.
Price:$80 - ordered off a site listed on Amazon, fast and free shipping.
Sizing
The sizing is probably the most important part when ordering these. It is easy to simply look up your Euro size and order that, but keep in mind that the Vibram sizing is different. The sizing information and how to measure correctly is on the website (
www.vibramfivefingers.com). What I did is first find a flat surface to put your heel against. Then measure from your heel to your longest toe (big toe or one next to it). Measure to the nearest 1/4 inch and match it up on the size chart. Be aware that the sizing is different with the Sprint/Classic and the KOS/Flow. If you did this right you will get your size or just be a size off - unfortunately that means you will need to return them and switch for the appropriate size up or down.
How do you know if they fit correctly? First thing I noticed that was significantly different from your typical shoe is that your toes touch the end. As long as their isn't any sort of painful rubbing or cramping this is GOOD and normal. Think of the shoes as a second skin for your feet. At first my two smallest toes felt almost as if the bones were "crossed". It is the best way I can explain it. After a bit of wear around the house almost miraculously it disappeared and I barely noticed they were on.
Use:
As you may have read, they are pretty much good for anything you'd do with our without foot wear on. It truly is a new sensory experience being able to feel the different textures your feet will encounter. I have used them for running. This is something you need to ease yourself into. Your stride will shorten and you land on the balls of your feet mainly. This will allow you to utilize the bones and muscles of your feet that work as a shock absorbing system. In the beginning this will be painful due to the atrophied muscles from shoes. The pain will extend up to your calf as well. You may want to ease yourself into this by doing short runs and even running in a similar fashion in shoes (shorten stride, landing on balls of feet). But I noticed significant definition in my calves since using these and running differently.
Also I have used them for weight lifting. They simply are awesome for this. I can't describe how nice it is to have that stability and connection with the ground when squatting. It has drastically improved my form as you can see from videos on my log in the weight training section of the boards. I can get more depth and have more confidence in my lift. This mainly stems from the fact that no longer am I unsure of my footing in the slightest bit when dealing with squishy running shoes. In addition they are great for deadlifting where barefooted lifting is a popular and recommended exercise.
Overall these things are great. They are well constructed and worth the price. I heard they can get smelly, but keep in mind you can order socks (Iniji ??) and they are machine washable. The material on the bottom is a rubber that has texture for traction and resembles the bottom of your foot. The top section is a mesh-like material similar of that of a "water sock".
For ordering it is often difficult to get a size/color combination because the company has difficulty keeping everything in stock. This is probably due to the fact they are the only place that has something like this! So I bought mine, like I said above, at an online store. Look around, pricing is similar everywhere but you may be able to find a size/style/color that is out of stock on the Vibram's site.
Have fun with them! You will enjoy them and people will be asking you about them. I honestly haven't gotten any shit for them. Everyone who asks seems intrigued and I wouldn't be surprised if they are googling them when they get home. Enjoy.
