Questions & Answers

Just thought I'd say hi. I'm 26 living in Burlingto, Iowa. Just started running last March and have gradually made the switch to minimalist running. Just got my first pair of vff bikilas last week and I am loving them. I'm very interested in some of the new products coming out this year. Especially from merrell and altra.

I'm really interested to try a pair of Osma's but I read that the factory in Thailand making Feelmax had a fire, then didn't produce any shoes for Feelmax last year? Their website doesn't seem to be have updated in a long time.

Anybody have any inside information on whether we will ever be able to get a pair of these?

Just thought I'd introduce myself. I follow minimalist footwear very closely, though currently my primary running shoe of choice is Nike Free 3.0s. (Please don't lynch me!)

I started running in March, and have run in Nike Equalons (bad!), then Kigo Shels, KSOs, Puma Street Kosmos, and Saucony Kilkenny XC flats (with a few screws in them these make excellent winter hiking shoes!). I bought Frees on a whim, but I have to say they are excellent for proper form for me.

Even in casual shoes I prefer the most minimal shoes possible; I either wear Puma Street Kosmos or Converse.

Hi there.

I'm 35 in March. I did not do any running since high school. Ran for 17 weeks in 2009 and stopped for 7 months. Then started running again in June 2010 and have been running since and also completed the Chicago marathon.

I cycle as well and have lost 58 pounds over the past 2 years an am not classified as obese or overweight anymore.

In 2009 I ran in Adidas Supernova Glides and started running in Asics Gel Nimbus 11 and 12 last year and had really hurting achilles, knees and hips.

I listened to Born To Run and switched to Saucony Kinvaras. Been running in them for three months adapting to a front/midfoot strike. The achilles and calfs are now only used to it and the knee and hip issues had disappeared. I won't be running in "normal" shoes ever again.

Happy runs!

But my heart is still in northern Michigan..I love that the barefoot community is growing so rapidly. I was first introduced to it by crossfit with the five fingers,which has done quite well in that community.I am looking to expand my knowledge in fitness and i am very much into the paleo movement and look forward to attending a Mov Nat course this summer.

Salutations. I've slowly been transitioning since Oct'09 into barefoot/minimalist footwear. At first it wasn't to focus on running, but to get more fit for ball hockey. However, the pure joy of feeling free outside has changed my focus. So now I play hockey to do a little bit of cross training.

I'm FREDERIC, freelance writer for French running magazine JOGGING INTERNATIONAL and French website http://www.wanarun.net

Throughout 2010 I ran and tried to promote minimalist running in France. I wrote several reviews (sorry in French) of minimalist shoes (VFF KSO, VFF BIKILA, TERRA PLANA EVO, KIGO EDGE, Invisible Shoe huaraches and more recently Soft Star Run Amoc).

Unfortunately as I was training for a sub 3 marathon in VFF, I encountered a stress fracture of the second metatarsal. After 3 months without running I may resume soon. I still don't know how to start back since I would like to run the Marathon de Paris in April. Should I take a cautious approach and wear shod shoes (Saucony, Avia, Asics) or minimalist shoes ?

Hey all!

I'm enjoying Winter up here in my Terra Plana Evo IIs. I've been enjoying fun runs all Winter long, and had lots of encounters with snow banks. Should be exciting to see what new minimalist footwear comes out this year!

Ralon

Small town SC guy here. Currently running in VFF KSOs. I'd like to find a good minimalist dress shoe I could wear to work but I'm still looking. I like this website so far.

I'm Ian and 43, I've been minimalist now for a little over a year. I have recently got over a case of TMTS that caused tendinitis in my right foot and ankle and am looking forward to getting back into running soon.

I work in A/V and IT for a university and put in a lot of miles in my TP Vivobarefoot Dharma. Great shoes but not "perfect" - so looking for other business/casual minimalist options.

I like to run fully barefoot but when that isn't an option my collection of Vibram Fivefingers has now grown to 3 pairs! (classic, sprint, trek) I have also recently purchased/made a pair of InvisibleShoe huaraches that I will incorporate into my running. When I'm not running or at work I pretty much spend all my time either barefoot or wearing a pair of VFF's.

Hi everyone - long time runner, short time minimalist. I've run in Vibram KSO's and recently bought a pair of TP Evo II's and I'm in love. Having a great time and looking forward to building up to my first (minimalist) marathon later this year!

I'm Rachel from North Dakota. My minimalist journey began 2 years ago with half of my trail/ultra running outside of structured shoes. Tendinitis put an abrupt damper on my race season last summer and was the final straw to push me completely over the edge, now all of my mileage is minimalist & I'm loving it! :) The snow drifts are now a playground for my feet.

This should be fun! I'm looking forward to hearing about all of your experiences & tips on how best to enjoy the minimalist life.

Hey everyone! It's nice to see a community of minimalist shoe fans coming together. When I must wear shoes -- I regularly wear nothing on my feet, but shoes are required sometimes -- I only wear minimalist footwear.

I'm a husband and father of 3 great kids and live in the Kansas City metro area. I work in audio-visual support for an area hospital, so end up walking around our facility a lot. Having logged countless -- we're talking hundreds -- miles working in minimalist footwear, I can tell you first hand that you CAN live exclusively in minimalist footwear or barefoot.

I welcome you to check out my Web site, Barefoot and Grounded, at http://www.BarefootandGrounded.com. I talk about all kinds of things there related to going barefoot. I try to stay focused on the practicality of it and dispelling a lot of the negative info that's out there.

I also founded The Primalfoot Alliance in 2010. We advocate for people to go barefoot and find prudent ways to let feet be feet first. Many of us who go barefoot would like to do so in public, but are often shunned by claims of "No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service." This is often wrongly backed up with incorrect claims of health codes or laws that prohibit such behavior. If you would prefer to go barefoot when and where you please, join us at http://www.PrimalfootAlliance.org.

Smiles, Michael

Just seen this site on the Minimalist Runner group and it looks like a great resource.

My names Karen and I live in the UK. Currently I'm more of a walker than a runner, but I'm building up not only my fitness, but also my collection of minimalist shoes :) I fear this website is not going to help the bank balance...

Good to be here!

K.

Hello,

I'm totally non-atheletic and in fact have had such health issues the last 15 years that I've hardly run at all (and regretted it when I did.) I'm finding minimalist shoes are great at realigning my body in a more healthy way, and I'm slowly becoming more active. (If I can avoid doing Too Much Too Soon and having to take a few days off every other week.) I've been wearing minimalist shoes nearly full time for a couple months now, and off an on for a couple months before that. I'm very crafty, so I'm making my own shoes and having fun doing that.

I have been hanging out on the google huaraches group, but am glad to find a place that's less running-centric.

Hello Everyone,

I'm currently in the process of transitioning to minimalist footwear. My goal is a return to a more natural running form and injury avoidance not necessarily achieving barefoot status.

I've been wearing Softstar Runamocs as my running and daily wear shoe for the past three months or so.

Eric

Hi all! Matthew here, from central Kentucky, USA. Let's see... I enjoy hiking and backpacking (though I don't get out nearly as much as I would like), love motorcycle riding, and drawing.

I've been intrigued by the "Barefoot movement" but haven't yet really given it a try. However, I did grow up spending most of my summers barefoot, and still prefer to lose the shoes as soon as I get inside a house or car on a long trip.

Over the summer my running shoes died and they haven't been replaced yet. I would like to start running barefoot, but feel that I need some sort of minimalist footwear because of the places that I run. Plus, I'm not quite liking the idea of going barefoot in the snow/ice slush we currently have out there. So... I'm here to explore my options.

Hi everyone. I'm Chris from the SouthEast (currently outside Atlanta but relocating to Asheville). I have been in to minimalist footwear for a few years now and wear it almost exclusively. I'm a hiker, backpacker, and runner amongst other things, and know Damien through Backpacking Light. My current favorite minimalist shoes are a pair of Soft Star Roos with the T-Rex sole. I'm currently running in the Inov-8 F-Lite 240 and plan to use those for hiking/backpacking as well, but I'm really looking forward to trying out the Altra line.

-chris

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-robert-a-kornfeld/barefoot-running-shoes_b_801781.html

HI Everyone,

I'm Al Gauthier from LivingBarefoot.info.

I'm excited about this website - it's turning out to be a great resource.<br> About myself - well I live in Melbourne Australia where barefooting is common place. So common in fact that no one takes any notice if I'm barefoot. I shop for groceries, ride transit, and walk around on the streets all the time barefoot and I've never had a comment.

It's wonderful and freeing to be in this type of atmosphere. It's also very normal and logical - they are after all just feet.

What is it like in your neck of the woods?

Al