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.
15 Top Twitter Accounts To Learn About Patio Door Repair Near Me sliding patio door repair near me
20 Up-And-Comers To Watch In The Erb’s Palsy Law Industry Attorney
Are You Responsible For The Asbestos Claim Budget?
10 Unfortunate Ways To Spend Your Money http://www.9363280.xyz
Five People You Need To Know In The Stove Wood Industry 913875
It’s A Crawley Door Panels Success Story You’ll
Never Believe hotel glass repair, Stephan,
Buying Online From Uk To Ireland Techniques To
Simplify Your Everyday Lifethe Only Buying Online From Uk To Ireland
Trick Every Individual Should Learn Buying Online From Uk To Ireland
What Are The Biggest “Myths” About Sofas Sectionals Might Be True sectional Sleeper sofa with chaise
The 10 Most Terrifying Things About Best 18-Wheeler Accident Lawyer 18 Wheeler accidents
Are You Confident About Cerebral Palsy Law?
Try This Quiz attorneys
9 Lessons Your Parents Taught You About Shopping Online Site Clothes shopping online site clothes
13 Things About Medical Malpractice Claim You May Not Have Known medical Malpractice lawyers (179.124.41.129)
15 Gifts For The Coffee Pods Machine Lover In Your Life http://www.4182051.xyz
Double Glazing Near Me: What’s The Only Thing Nobody Is Talking
About double Glazed windows cost
What Will Online Shopping Sites For Clothes Be Like In 100 Years?
us online shopping sites for clothes (Ella)
This Is The New Big Thing In Patio Door Repairs Near Me cheaper
Guide To Glass Window Replacement: The Intermediate Guide
Towards Glass Window Replacement glass window replacement
Thank you for content. Area rugs and online home decor store. Hello Administ . Seo Paketi Skype: [email protected] -_- live:by_umut
Good info. Lucky me I reach on your website by accident, I bookmarked it. Seo Paketi Skype: [email protected] -_- live:by_umut
The 10 Most Scariest Things About List Of Online Shopping
Sites In Uk List of Online shopping sites in uk
Best Online Shopping Sites For Clothes Tools To Ease Your Everyday Lifethe Only Best Online Shopping Sites For Clothes
Trick That Every Person Should Learn best online shopping sites For clothes
5 Killer Quora Answers To Birth Injury Attorneys birth injury Attorneys, hificafesg.com,
The 10 Most Terrifying Things About List Of Online Shopping Sites Uk
List Of Online Shopping Sites Uk
Five Killer Quora Answers To Uk Online Grocery Shopping Sites uk online grocery shopping sites
The 10 Most Scariest Things About Stroller Newborn Stroller newborn
10 Things We Love About Semi Truck Attorney semi Truck accident lawyer
5 Must-Know Car Accident Case Practices For 2023 Car Accident Attorneys
10 Best Facebook Pages Of All-Time About Online Grocery Stores That Ship shopping online uk Websites
5 Killer Quora Answers On Best 18 Wheeler Accident Attorneys 18 Wheeler accident attorneys
10 Quick Tips About Personal Injury Compensation personal injury attorney
Where Can You Find The Most Effective Asbestos Mesothelioma Information? http://www.cassylawn.top
The Top Reasons Why People Succeed In The Good Online Shopping Sites Uk Industry which Supermarket is cheapest for online shopping
Are You Responsible For A What Causes Mesothelioma Other Than Asbestos Budget?
12 Top Notch Ways To Spend Your Money Darrel
Malpractice Attorneys: What’s The Only Thing Nobody Is Talking About malpractice law Firms
You’ll Be Unable To Guess Dangerous Drugs Lawsuits’s Secrets dangerous drugs
lawsuits (hakwongil.Co.kr)
The 10 Scariest Things About Online Store Uk Cheapest online Store uk cheapest
Five Killer Quora Answers On Best 18 Wheeler Accident Attorneys 18 wheeler accident attorneys
A Trip Back In Time What People Said About Slot 20
Years Ago Kay Mell
How To Save Money On Mesothelioma mesothelioma Legal
9 . What Your Parents Teach You About Cheap Online Shopping Sites Uk online shopping sites
5 Killer Quora Answers On Cerebral Palsy Attorneys
Cerebral Palsy
The 10 Most Terrifying Things About Which Is Best For Online Grocery Shopping which is best for online grocery shopping [Sandra]
Five Killer Quora Answers To Window Repairman Window Repair
What’s The Current Job Market For Double Glazed
Window Repairs Professionals Like? double Glazed Window repairs
Guide To Stroller Single: The Intermediate Guide For Stroller Single Stroller Single
Guide To Car Seat Buggy 2 In 1: The Intermediate
Guide In Car Seat Buggy 2 In 1 buggy 2 in 1
What’s The Reason Nobody Is Interested In Repair Upvc Window window Repairs
Great post thank you. Hello Administ . Seo Paketi Skype: [email protected] -_- live:by_umut
After all, what a great site and informative posts, I will upload inbound link – bookmark this web site? Regards, Reader.Seo Paketi Skype: [email protected] -_- live:by_umut
The Biggest Issue With Door Fitters Birmingham And How To Fix It Hook locks Birmingham
Thank you great posting about essential oil. Hello Administ . Seo Paketi Skype: [email protected] -_- live:by_umut