What the hell are you wearing?

After knowing a few people who would wear these ridiculous things on their feet, I became curious about them. It’s in my nature to learn everything about something that can hold my attention, and these shoes were no exception. It seems like the latest fitness fad, and all of the armed services are buying into it as well with authorizing the shoes as part of their official PT uniform. The Navy’s gone a step further and is selling them in the Exchange, and at a discount as well. I finally caved and bought a pair. I won’t go into the science of the shoes, you can read that for yourself at http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/education/index.htm

Sizing. This can be confusing as they size the shoes according to the length of your foot, not shoe size. Of course at the Exchange, some helpful sales person labeled all of the boxes  with what they thought was an appropriate shoe size. Typically I wear anything from a size 9 to a 10.5 depending on the shoe and the width adjustment. I measured my feet and they come to right between 10 1/4 inches and 10 1/2 inches. I decided to go with the bigger of the measurement and go with a size 41 (10 1/2 inches). The Exchange seems to think that’s a size 8, but who am I to argue.

Model. There are plenty of models to choose from, ranging from the original which looks like a ballet slipper to me (Classic), to ones with laces and ones that look like dismembered feet (Bormio). There wasn’t much selection, so I chose the KSO (which stands for Keep Stuff Out). Typically retailing for $85 a pair for the KSO (other pairs are higher) I got a pair for $70 at the Exchange.

Fit. The first time I tried to get my feet into the shoes, it was a struggle. It might be because most of my shoes are designed to smash all of my toes together and the FiveFingers are meant to spread my toes out. Subsequent stuffing my feet into them so far have proven to be a bit easier. I’m not 100% I shouldn’t have gone a size up, because my feet feel a little cramped in the shoe. I’m going to adjust to wearing them a lot more before I determine if their sizing system is flawed, at least for me. The only way to describe how they fit is “like a glove” no pun intended.

Wear. I’ve only had them on for a few hours at this point, but so far, no real complaints. The first day I only wore them around the house to get my toes used to their new alignment. Today I wore them in the car to and from Iron Mountain, switching to my trail sneakers while hiking. I wore them to the store today and walked around a bit and they’re on my feet right now as well. The first few steps I took in them my feet popped and crackled like an old man’s knuckles as my bones realigned themselves to settle into the shoes.

Appearance. While wearing these on my feet, it appears that I have monkey feet at the end of my legs. Sort of comical, but when you get used to them, you’ll take the comfort over the look. My wife doesn’t like the look, but my kids think they’re hilarious, and I’m still waiting for the looks I’ll get from strangers unfamiliar with them.

Even though I’ve only had them for a few days, the experience I have had with them is favorable. If they get a little easier to put on like I’m hoping, they might replace my flip-flops. If you have the money, I would recommend them.