Vibram Fiver Fingers KSO

I recently came across the Vibram Five Fingers products while reading an article about minimalist footwear. Basically, the idea is that God created man without shoes and so not wearing shoes is “more natural”. There are also many supposed health benefits to running barefoot such as strengthened calves and other muscles you wouldn’t normally use as much as if you were wearing gym shoes. Anyways, I was intrigued and ordered a pair of their black on black KSO model. My sizing chart failed me because I have super wide feet (EEE I think?) and normally wear larger normal width shoes to accommodate but the website FAQ states that the material is stretchy and should fit any width foot so sizing for length is your only concern. Still, I ordered a size too large and so the footwear is somewhat loose. Being the person that I am, I cut the tags and went running anyways. A couple thoughts:

1. Running with the KSOs are comfortable for me. Tonight was the first night I went running but I’m not reporting as much calf soreness as stated in many reviews but that’s probably because

2. I think I’ve been running incorrectly with shoes. According to many articles that I’ve read, one is supposed to run heel-toe with shoes versus stepping with the ball of your foot while barefoot. I feel like my stride has not changed much.

3. All the different models have a thick sole. Still, it hurts a bit to step on rocks and gravel so it only really protects you from getting cut and whatnot.

4. I probably should have returned these for a smaller size. I feel some blisters forming and I can only hope they’re from the novelty of the minimal footwear. I guess I’ll find out after a few more days.

5. I felt like I had more push in my stride. Running without the giant sole of a shoe does in fact force you to step with the balls of your feet and you get a peppier bounce with each step. During my final sprint before cooldown, I felt like I could run faster and push harder than I would have with shoes.

I expect to be forced to pay more attention to my form if I want to avoid weird blisters on my right foot. I twisted my knee back in highschool football and it didn’t heal correctly but that’s a story for another day. Sizing appears very precise. I’ll probably order another pair that are much more fit if blisters persist and maybe try one of the camo colors. Most online reviews all state the same thing. Calves hurt the first week, results are noticed shortly after and attempts at returning to shoe running are futile. I suspect these will replace my casual trail and beach sandals if I stop being lazy and actually go out. They’re comfortable enough to wear and forget about. As for replacing running shoes altogether, we’ll see.