Thank you for your reply I'm
Thank you for your reply
I'm afraid I've not got to barefoot, or run barefoot yet - I know it's the best way to find best form and it is the eventual goal. Maybe not to run miles, just to be able to run safely and strongly for a bit sans footwear, you know?
3 reasons for not trying it yet -
1. In my neighbourhood I'm actually more concerned about the neighbours raising an eyebrow than about stones/glass. (I live in a semi-rough area)
2. I had such pathetic feet, flat arches and weak ankles from a lifetime in solid shoes (And no running for a decade) I should think I would have fractured something had I tried running straight off. Wearing Vivo Barefoots as my main shoe these past 12 months have done wonders on strengthening and flexing muscles, and cutting down on major-over-sensitivity on the soles of my feet. I wore them all over winter too (with the exception of 1 week when there was a foot of snow on the ground and had to resort to awful heavy wellies...) I have barely ran in this time - one slow charity 5k and the odd night here and there going for 10 minute jogs in the VFFs.
3. I live in the UK, and I feel the cold. I know...I'm a wuss. But I am getting better! Slow and sure...
I love the VFFs, their uniqueness, but I do agree that they are annoyingly restrictive of toes. (I'm a fidgeter!) When I wear my KSOs - which are supposed to be the thinnest soles(?) there's still quite a lot of resistance when I try to curl my toes down. I find after 3 or 4 hours walking around wearing KSOs the toes start to lock up from not moving much and get sore, and cold! And of course - on a couple of occasions I've had soreness under the 2nd Met. One time was after a 15 minute run - I felt something jar, and it was like a bruise the next morning - if I touched it lightly it would twinge painfully, if I applied a bit more pressure the pain dulled. It hurt when I walked. This went away after about a week of not running.
I always have ran pain free in my Vivos, (attempted the 5k in them) but then they have a 3mm footbed + 3mm insole and tons of room in the toebox. When I examine the footbed inside now the 2nd and 3rd mets have made the deepest indents. One difference between my left and right foot - my left first met has actually eroded away the insole - whereas the insole under the 1st met on the other side is undamaged. Any ideas? When I walk, the outer mid edge of my foot touches down first, weight then rolling onto the 4th and 5th, then I'm pushing off with my 3rd and 2nd. I hardly feel my big toe do anything. If I try to carry my foot further and put pressure on my first met my knee twinges.
When I run I try and run on mid foot, 'barefoot style' as recommended - my shoes makes a tap on the ground - no scuffing or thudding. If I sprint however, onlookers have told me my feet splay outwards.
If I walk barefoot indoors on a flat surface (wood flooring) my 2nd and 3rd mets feel like they are raised bumps on my feet - it's uncomfortable. I guess the question is, if walking causes twinges, would I be able to barefoot run pain free?
uzzled:
Not sure if this description is enough to help, but thank you