The Complete Beginner’s Guide to Barefoot Running

I've got a pair of the Vibram KSOs, and am loving them.

Dunno where the $125 cost is coming from, given they mention only the KSOs. The site sells KSOs for $85, and that's what I got mine for. Because I've had such ridiculously good experiences there, I got mine from Run Away Shoes [1] near my house (your experience may vary), where you can try them on to check size / fit / whatnot. Highly recommended you do that first.

($125 is for the kangaroo-leather super-deluxe model, which I'd imagine would be WAY too warm for any time but the winter. Your toes don't get cold/pain/numb like in shoes, there's more blood-flow due to their being used. Just cold. At least, in my 30-degree-morning-walks-to-school (1 mile), and if I jogged they positively warmed up.)

First time I went running in them, I hadn't run more than a mile, intermittently, in over a year; I got lost, and ran 3.5 miles. Felt great. Land on the balls of your feet to take the landing-shock, keep your weight forward, slow down slightly, and take smaller strides; it'll feel right when you do it right. And be nice to your feet, they take a long time to heal. Looking at some barefoot running videos and deconstructing the strides helps a lot.

Speaking of healing, my forever-weak-and-puffy arches have been better from about the second week. My calves had no problem, but I jump around a lot; the balls of my feet got sore after ~hour or so walking around on concrete / tile, however. That cleared up after a couple weeks, and now I'm good all day.

As to washing them, my feet apparently sweat a lot. Hopefully that'll change in time, but in the meantime I wear them daily / everywhere: they don't air-dry in a day. If you force air into them (we've got an air purifier, and just lay them on top), they'll dry in an hour or two, but non-moving air won't dry them quickly. * shrug * maybe if you hung them outside?

[1] : http://www.runawayshoes.net/

edit: oh yeah, another surprising bonus: your balance improves tremendously, especially as your toes strengthen. At least, mine has.

Great overview and guide! I always hated running and went through lots of the latest shoes. I picked up a pair of Vibram 5fingers after a barefoot-style running clinic. Now trail running is actually enjoyable and I wear them while working out and at work on occasion.

Wearing these things makes walking around on this planet a much more engaging experience. It's not just about ridding yourself of all that cruft that is your shoes, it's about reconnecting with your body in a more natural way.

> It’s actually a good idea to start with barefoot shoes, as they make a great transition into barefoot running.

I would suggest the opposite, that the vibrams become more useful after you have more accurately dialed in your running form. In doing otherwise, you risk injury through "too much to soon."

Would you (or did you) use them for hiking as well (on very light slopes and soft grounds, obviously)? My running shoes are old, so I am considering going barefoot. Using them for hiking too would be nice, but I can't imagine if there's any downside.

I'm not sure I buy all the hype about this latest craze, but I will say I've been doing it since last winter and I'm able to run again. It forces you to not extend, keeping the feet under the hips.

The Vibram 5 toes things are good down to about 15 degrees as long as they stay dry, but barefoot on a soccer field is awesome.

I ran for years, everything from 5K to marathoning and eventually stopped because of a knee that wouldn't heal. I'm doing an hour plus a day now, albeit at a slower pace, and the barefoot thing is actually healing the knee.

I also love the Tarahumara diet, essentially corn chips and beer, which is the real reason we run, that and to chase girls (or boys or whatever :)

Running barefoot is cool, but at least to me these five finger high tech socks kind of miss the point. Part of the reason for barefoot running is the "back to the basics" feeling, I wouldn't want to get into another arms race for better equipment.

In my experience it is best to run on on grass first (football or soccer fields) to get used, if it's dewy it feels extra nice, running form surely improves with barefoot running.

Another technique for keeping VFFs stink-free (other than washing them) is wearing Injinji toe socks. The socks are expensive, but if you rotate them they stay stink-free for weeks at a time, so you only need a few pairs. Plus, they are easy to wash (even in a sink) and quick to dry. Some people (e.g., Tim Ferriss) find them uncomfortable, but I've never had any problems.

Does anyone have any suggestions for some shoes like the various Vibram models but which do not have entirely separated toes? Perhaps which only have a separation between the large and small toes?

My second and third toes are fused together by some skin. I'd rather not have an operation to separate them as they are fun and unique, but they prevent me from wearing "five-finger" shoes.

For anyone in Michigan, check out the good form running clinics that Playmakers has. I went to free one when I first started running and it did wonders for me. If you're not sure about barefoot, you can try these techniques to improve your current form.

http://www.goodformrunning.com/index.php

What are your thoughts on this, HN barefooters:

1) With my VFF shoes, the skin of my feet gets rubbed raw in a few places when I walk more than about 5 miles (8km).

2) I noticed two areas (you could call them bumps, although I can't see them) on my right foot that are not flush with the ground. I only notice them when running/walking barefoot or with VFF shoes. It's annoying.

This week's Real Sports on HBO has more on the topic. The interesting part to me was that people who run with shoes tend to land on their heel (causing more of a shock), while people who run barefoot tend to land on the front of their feet.

I have a few friends that are into this and have been praising it's benefits for a couple years. I tore a tendon in my ankle last year and am concerned this could hurt my recovery. Anyone have experience running barefoot post injury?

Out of curiosity, is this shoe design patented or could nike/adidas/reebok/etc come in and change the market with their own version?

I've been running barefoot on the beach since I was a kid. Unaware that such practice would now be considered better than running with shoes. I did it for fun, splashing the water or just feeling the moist of the sand by the sea shore.

Take of your shoes?

It might just be me, but after having read that article I didn't get much new information.

Could we please consider a hiatus about barefoot running on Hacker News for a couple months? By that time, the jury should be in on what the medium term benefit is of these things and we should have some interesting new information to read.