Let me start this post by saying that this is not a sponsored post. I bought these myself and wanted to share some hard, objective data with you to potentially help you with your own weight loss/fitness journey!
A few months ago when I reignited my fitness journey, one of the first conscious decisions I made was to take a risk and try something different. I have very flat feet and have been wearing orthotics for the past decade… ever since I stopped my intense training in the martial arts. With my arches so flat, I always felt at the end of the day like I had been walking around Disneyland for the past 13 hours; even if I hadn’t walked that much. So, I sought out a podiatrist and began looking into picking up some prescription orthotics. Eventually, I picked up a pair and it was heavenly! Though it was pretty harsh walking on plastic footbeds (with padding on them), my feet weren’t sore like they were before. That is how I was fixing the problem of dealing with my flat footedness. Conventional wisdom. Conventional medicine. Like I said though, this time around I was going to try something new.
Minimalist Shoes and the Hype
Back to present day: When I decided that it was time to do better, it wasn’t a whim that lead me to the notion of going with barefoot running and minimalist running shoes. I’d heard about VFF’s, as they’re called by the minimalist faithful, roughly two years earlier and had been following the research and headlines off and on since then. They looked pretty cool (I have a thing for camo) and at the time I first found them I was looking for water shoes not knowing that Vibrams were so much more than that. So, the day I decided I was getting back into shape I immediately ran out to REI and picked up a pair of Vibram Five Fingers’ TrekSports. It was love at first run! My calves were sore but I could feel them getting stronger and as an added bonus, I could actually see them getting stronger. There was just one nagging concern in the back of my head… hype. One of the claims of the barefoot and minimalist running evangelists is that running shoes actually weaken arches and the supporting muscles in your feet and by running the way that nature intended, you will actually strengthen those atrophied muscles. A large part of my decision to go the minimalist route was various posts I’d read by large guys like myself who were now running without shin splits or knee or hip pain, thanks to Vibrams. I was 250lbs and figured that if other 250 or 300lb guys were seeing results then it was probably not too far fetched that I could as well.
Vibram Five Fingers and the Foot Scanner
Being the nerd I am, anecdotal evidence wasn’t enough for me. I decided that around the 3 or 4 month mark I would have my feet rescanned to see if my new running posture (I’ve been using the Pose method), which I attribute to the wearing of the VFFs, had yet effected the muscles in my feet for the better. That meant that I should also see an improvement in my arches. During this time I also wore my VFFs at work, for short walks around the neighborhood and to work out in. In other words, I practically lived in them. They’re so comfortable that I wanted to wear them all the time! The only time I didn’t wear them was when summer got into full swing and I started wearing flip flops. This week, I went and had my feet rescanned, the results of that scan are below, along with my baseline scan which shows how my feet looked prior to wearing VFFs.
The scan above is my baseline scan. This is what my feet looked like after having worn prescription orthotics. I wish I had scans from before I began wearing the orthotics, but I don’t. The right side of the page shows what healthy feet should look like and the left are mine.The dark areas of my foot are where the most pressure is being placed on the contact surface. Notice how different the arch on my right foot looks than the left? My right arch is pretty collapsed, which means the left side of my body is doing more work. This can lead to lower back pain (and it has), very tight thigh muscles (IT band issues) and sore, tired feet. I’ve experienced all of the above.
This scan shows my feet today. Notice how balanced my arches are now? That’s because my right foot actually has an arch now! I thought it was a pretty dramatic difference myself. I could’ve had the doc send my scans to the lab to have them pour over them with precision and give me hard data for the improvements in my arch, but I figured I’d save the doc and myself the expense since the pictures are fairly striking. I can tell you that I’ve been running now for four months, averaging 3-5 miles a week, and have had no shin splits, no lower back pain and no running associated knee pain (they’ve been a little tender but that’s because I’ve also been doing a lot of squats).
So, there you have it! Let me make one thing clear though. I’m always asked by people, “how do you like your Five Fingers?” I tell them that I love them and how much better I “feel” having worn them but I’m also careful to let them know that the shoes themselves aren’t a “magic bullet.” Vibram Five Fingers didn’t do this to my feet, running with no cushion, on the balls of my feet like a sprinter did this to my feet. Walking around in them all the time, did this to my feet. Not pushing myself too hard and injuring my feet (people are seeing instances of plantar fascitis and top of foot injuries from overuse) did this. The shoes, as awesome as they are, were the catalyst for all of this though. If I hadn’t stumbled upon the site while looking for water shoes years ago, I may not have stumbled upon the barefoot and minimalist running movement and added one of the most important tools in my fitness journey to my toolbox.
14 Misconceptions Common To Online Shop Braided Rug Made In Usa
Fela Railroad Settlements: What Nobody Has Discussed Fela Lawyer
Five Qualities That People Search For In Every Slot Online Slot Symbols (M.Jingdexian.Com)
How To Save Money On Workers Compensation Law workers’ Compensation attorney
What’s The Job Market For Fela Professionals Like? Fela
Upvc Window Repairs Near Me Tools To Help You Manage Your Daily Lifethe
One Upvc Window Repairs Near Me Trick Every Individual Should
Be Able To window Repairs near Me
How To Determine If You’re Set To Go After CS GO Case
New prisma 2 case, Emilia,
5 Killer Quora Answers On Best Online Shopping Websites Uk best online shopping websites uk
5 Killer Qora’s Answers To New Upvc Door upvc doors repair [https://Www.cheaperseeker.com/]
10 Ways To Build Your Slot Gaming Empire Slot symbols
I’m impressed, I must say. Rarely do I come across a blog that’s equally
educative and interesting, and let me tell you, you’ve hit the nail on the head.
The issue is something not enough folks are speaking intelligently about.
I’m very happy I stumbled across this in my search for something regarding this.
May I simply just say what a comfort to uncover an individual who really knows what they’re talking about over the internet.
You certainly know how to bring a problem to
light and make it important. More people really need to read this and understand this side of your story.
I can’t believe you’re not more popular because you most certainly possess the gift.
Five Things You Don’t Know About Demo Starlight
Princess princess slot demo
Wonderful web site. Plenty of helpful info here.
I am sending it to several pals ans additionally sharing in delicious.
And naturally, thank you in your sweat!
The Reasons You’re Not Successing At Small Double Stroller pushchairsandprams
10 Facts About Slot Rtp That Will Instantly Put You In The Best Mood Best Payouts Slots
10 Facts About Boat Accident Claim That Will Instantly Put You In A Good
Mood boat accident Lawsuits
Why You Should Focus On Improving Slot Experiences 3d slots (http://www.imruyi.com)
The 10 Scariest Things About Dangerous Drugs Law Firms Dangerous
Drugs Law Firm (http://125.141.133.9/)
Double Glazing London Tools To Ease Your Daily Lifethe
One Double Glazing London Trick Every Individual Should Learn Double glazing london
Why You Should Focus On Making Improvements
To Window Repair Window Repairs
Wow, fantastic blog layout! How long have you been blogging for?
you made blogging look easy. The overall look of
your website is magnificent, let alone the content!
Heya this is somewhat of off topic but I was wanting
to know if blogs use WYSIWYG editors or if you have to manually code with HTML.
I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding know-how so I wanted to get
guidance from someone with experience. Any help would be
greatly appreciated!
Greetings from Colorado! I’m bored at work so I
decided to browse your site on my iphone during lunch break.
I love the information you provide here and can’t wait to take a look
when I get home. I’m shocked at how quick your blog
loaded on my phone .. I’m not even using WIFI,
just 3G .. Anyways, amazing site!
Ahaa, its nice conversation concerning this post here
at this blog, I have read all that, so now me also commenting here.
Hi, Neat post. There’s an issue along with your site in internet
explorer, might test this? IE nonetheless is the market chief and a huge
element of other people will omit your great writing due to this
problem.
The 12 Best Window Repair Near Me Accounts To Follow On Twitter Window Repairs Near Me
Everything is very open with a very clear clarification of the
challenges. It was really informative. Your site is useful.
Many thanks for sharing!
I was curious if you ever considered changing the layout of your website?
Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe
you could a little more in the way of content
so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for
only having 1 or 2 images. Maybe you could space it
out better?
This is a topic which is near to my heart…
Cheers! Where are your contact details though?
whoah this weblog is excellent i love reading your articles.
Keep up the good work! You know, lots of individuals are hunting around for this info, you
can aid them greatly.
10 Life Lessons We Can Learn From Low Limit Slots
high rtp slots (images.google.is)
The 10 Scariest Things About SEO Software And Tools seo software and
tools (Ryan)
24 Hours For Improving Upvc Window Repairs upvc Window repairs near me
The Ultimate Guide To Veterans Disability Legal veterans disability law firms
Can Best Online Shopping Sites London Always Rule The World?
Plug-And-Play Logitech Mouse M325
9 Lessons Your Parents Taught You About Best Online Clothing Sites Uk Best online clothing Sites Uk
The Three Greatest Moments In Birth Defect Attorney History birth defect lawyer – m.042-527-9574.1004114.co.kr,
Hello exceptional blog! Does running a blog similar to this take a massive amount work?
I have very little knowledge of coding but I was hoping to start my own blog soon. Anyhow,
if you have any ideas or techniques for new blog owners please share.
I know this is off topic however I simply had to ask.
Thanks a lot!
Where Do You Think Railroad Injuries Litigation Be 1 Year From Today?
Railroad Injuries Lawyers
10 Things That Your Family Teach You About Double Glazing
Deals Near Me Double Glazing Deals Near Me
“Ask Me Anything:10 Responses To Your Questions About Honda Key Cutting honda civic Spare key cost
The 10 Scariest Things About Upvc Repairs Near Me
upvc repairs near me
Ten Situations In Which You’ll Want To Be Aware Of Replacement Bmw Key Replacement bmw Key Cost
10 Window Repairs-Related Projects That Stretch Your Creativity Upvc window repairs,
Willysforsale.com,
The 10 Most Scariest Things About Window Repairs Near Me window
repairs near me – 80agpaebffqikmu.рф –
Why Online Slots Can Be Better Than Live Slots 프라그마틱 플레이 (shorl.Com)
What’s The Job Market For Car Keys Lost Replacement Professionals?
Car keys lost Replacement
20 Trailblazers Leading The Way In Double Glazed Window Repairs glass
What Are The Reasons You Should Be Focusing On Improving Uk Online Phone Shopping Sites Crosstrek Wind Deflectors (Bridget)