Anyone doing significant mileage in the Five Fingers? I'm a very light runner and don't land on my heels, so I'm wondering if they'd work for me. I've been using them on the roads and track, and they feel great so far. I like how natural they feel, although I'm not yet totally used to having no cushioning.
I'd like to know how they compare to the Teva Proton. The last few weeks I've been doing 15 minute runs every day either barefoot or in the Proton and I'm loving it so far.
I saw those once. They are pretty cool. You should be fine if you ease into the mileage. Just keeping feeling what you feel. You will know if you should back off or not. Your form and efficiency will probably get a lot better, as it will hurt a lot more to run incorrectly. Same idea as running barefoot. You won't have shoes to take all the slack for you if your stride sucks.
Would they be good for racing, or do they cause the foot to work more so a traditional racing flat would be better?
The Teva Protons are much, much, much closer to normal shoes than the Vibram Five Fingers. The Vibrams are basically socks with a bit of sole painted on the bottom.
i've run up to 10 milers in the five fingers. keep to soft surfaces. your calves and achilles will ache/be sore for a couple of months so don't scared to break them in easily.
i took them to the trails with me and would swing by the car and put them on and add an additional 10 minutes of running on the grass.
started easy. was up to running 10 milers and roughly 40 miles per week in them in about 6 months time. i am not a high mileage guy. it's easier to run steady in them than run easy. don't lollygag.
good luck
Why?
i tried them to address some of the tightness in my lateral hips, gastroc and consistent lower back pain. i had a running analysis done and was found to overstride and horribly heel strike without much cadence.
i tried a bunch of different things. it was hard for me to undo a lot of years of doing incorrectly. i learned that running barefoot causes you to take shorter strides and land with better stability and balance.
i don't race, i just run. i am healthy. i enjoy my running.
it was worth it for me to try it. i was not healthy, happy or enjoying my running when i integrated the five fingers into my running.
They are a useful training aid, but (obviously) aren't a racing flat, nor should they be used as one. Roads are too hard to be able to race quickly in them. You CAN run on roads in them (see barefootted.com), but running FAST is another matter. And any grass or dirt surface that you could wear them on for a race would be better suited with spikes or racing flats.
barefoot running can improve not only your form but increase your cadence (stride frequency) too. It's pretty painful to clomp around at 160 spm barefoot! Black rainbow, it's good to hear that barefoot running has helped you with your injury issues. For those of us who ARE big mileage guys, incorporating barefoot sessions on grass a couple of times a week is a great idea.
777 wrote:
They are a useful training aid, but (obviously) aren't a racing flat, nor should they be used as one. Roads are too hard to be able to race quickly in them. You CAN run on roads in them (see barefootted.com), but running FAST is another matter. And any grass or dirt surface that you could wear them on for a race would be better suited with spikes or racing flats.
barefoot running can improve not only your form but increase your cadence (stride frequency) too. It's pretty painful to clomp around at 160 spm barefoot! Black rainbow, it's good to hear that barefoot running has helped you with your injury issues. For those of us who ARE big mileage guys, incorporating barefoot sessions on grass a couple of times a week is a great idea.
Why do you say that? I'd like to understand your reasoning better.