My FiveFingers

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A New Beginning

by Dan Hinckley » on Sep 14, 2010 1

I’ve always been a runner, but not always for fun. Growing up I ran during practice for sports like Basketball and even more so for Soccer. I wasn’t the fasted kid, but I was quick enough. As an adult, I’ve found that I enjoy running a lot more than I ever imagined I would when I was younger. I’ve spent the last 6 months training for my first half marathon. I was all set to run in the Rock’n’Roll Marathon in Virginia Beach over labor day weekend when I was suddenly approached by an NFL quarterback who asked to rent my home, and that I move out the day of the race. It seemed like a great opportunity for my family and I since we were growing a bit big for the home and we packed up and moved out.

I have to admit that I’m a bit bummed that I didn’t get a chance to race, but I did do something else exciting that weekend. I purchased a pair of Vibram Fiver Finger KSOs. I had decided to make the next few months of training a bit more interesting, and do something I always wanted to do, run barefoot.

There is something special about training in bare feet , or through the next best thing, Five Fingers. I first realized this when I was living in the Philippines. I remember sitting next to the city basketball courts and watching the local men play pickup games. The thing is, they were all playing in either bare feet or flip flops. Having sprained my ankle countless times growing up I was sure each day someone would come down and twist their ankle because of their lack of shoe support. But day after day when I’d walk by and watch a game, no one ever sprained their ankles. It dawned on me later that it must be because of their foot and ankle muscle strength.

I hope running in Five Fingers will do the same for me.

I want to thank Daniel for handing over MyFiveFingers.com to me and the team of writers I’ve been putting together. We love Vibram footwear and hope to cover a number of interesting topics here on this site. We’ll be publishing a number of articles each week and hope to continue to grow and evolve the site and make it an amazing interactive location for Five Finger owners.

My First Five Fingers

I was extremely excited when I came home the other day and saw the package from REI sitting on my front door step. My Five Fingers had arrived. I quickly took them upstairs and put together the “un-boxing” video below. These are my first pair of Five Fingers and I couldn’t wait to get them open and find out all about them.

How Five Fingers Fit

I have fat feet. Its a family thing, and I’ll admit that this stands out most when wearing Five Fingers. I followed instructions for fitting from Vibram’s site and the Five Fingers to fit, but I can admit that my wide fat feet would do better with a custom fit. If only Vibram offered Custom Fit Five Fingers.

I was pleasantly surprised at how snug Five Fingers are. They offer a barefoot feel while protecting the pad and heal of your feet. And while my feet are fat, my KSOs fit snug and feel comfortable. I’m anxious to try out other model Five Fingers and see if they all fit similarly.

Running With Five Fingers

Shortly after putting on my Five Fingers I was ready to try them on a run. As I mentioned earlier I’ve been training for distance running for the past 6 months and thought that I was in shape enough to run a few miles. I understood that running in bare feet is different than in shoes and was cautious with my efforts. Everything felt great for the first mile and a half. About that point I started to feel the muscles in my feet and lower leg that weren’t quite in the shape I’ll need them to be for the next race. It’ll be a fun few weeks building up the strength I need for longer runs.

I ran on a trail that cuts through the trees in my neighborhood. Its only natural for a trail in such an environment to have twigs and rocks periodically on the path. I didn’t purposely step on any rocks or twigs but I did manage to land on a few. Each time it happened my first reaction was to step up quickly, fearing the pain that would come from hitting the obstacles with bare feet. But, to my surprise, there was no pain. The Five Fingers Sole was un-phased by the rocks or twigs. It was great!

What’s Next?

Now that I have my first pair of Five Fingers and I’ve gotten a chance to use them, I’m excited to share with you everything I found out and discover about them. As I mentioned above, I’ve also gathered a group of Five Finger owners to share their experience with their Vibrams and to discuss news, usage, and other related material. We’re going to be sharing what we discover with you here on myfivefingers.com . We’d also love hear how you’re using Five Fingers and what you’ve discovered. Please reach out to us with your adventures and we’ll share them here on this site.

To kick off the event, we’re going to be giving away a pair of Five Fingers her on the site. More details will follow in a future post over the next week or so, so keep checking back to myfivefingers.com to find out how you can win a free pair.

1 Comment

  1. DanielthePoet says:

    Looking forward to hearing more about your experiences. I gotta admit, I still LOVE my Fivefingers. I’m pretty bummed that all the damage my foot took on in my teenage years came back to bite me. If only I could go back and take care of my injuries responsibly. Shoulda coulda woulda.

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