Unless you have been living under a rock for the past couple of years you have probably heard of Vibram Five Fingers shoes. These shoes are very minimalistic in nature and create a barefoot like experience for your feet. The human foot has 26 bones, 33 joints, 20 muscles, and tons of sensory receptors also called proprioceptors. Like the rest of the body,these muscles, joints, tendons and receptors need to be stimulated and exercised on a regular basis. The Vibram Five Fingers were designed to do exactly that. The provide protection for your feet but still allow the feet to function as if you were walking around barefoot.
The problem with tradional sneakers and shoes is that they put your feet into a more rigid protective form. Overtime this creates weaker muscles in your feet and legs leaving them more prone to injury. As the biomechanical stresses on your feet increase it then can create problems along the rest of your kinetic chain up your body. For example, if you overpronate or have flat feet from collapsed arches this puts additional stress on your knees, then your hips and eventually your spine. Now what causes overpronation or flat feet, well usually the muscles and tendons in your feet become weak eventually causing your feet to loose their natural arch support. When the tissue stretches and you lose your arches in your feet this is called plastic deformation. Think of plastic deformation in terms of silly putty. Once you stretch the silly putty it does not return to its original form. The same concept occurs in your feet, once the muscles and tendons become weak your natural arches collapse. So what can you do to prevent this process from occuring in your feet? Wear Vibram Five Fingers or walk barefoot. Now personally I would rather have some protection on my feet from rocks, concrete and glass so the Vibram Five Fingers make complete sense. Your feet still get the exercise and training they need but without the risk of injury.
Now the problem with the Vibram Five Fingers is that most people have been wearing rigid, protective shoes for the past 20-30 years. Their muscles, tendons, and ligaments have adapted to this support. Certain muscles has tighten up to compensate while other muscles have weakened. As your introduce your feet to the Vibram’s you need to let this process occur slowly over time. As you feet become stronger you can wear them for longer and longer periods of time eventually working up to wearing them for daily activities such as walking, running and lifting. Once your feet adapt and become stronger you should be able to wear them for most if not all activities. But just like anything, these changes need to occur slowly over time to avoid injury.
I have the seen use of Vibram Five Fingers grow in popularity at my chiropractic office in Springfield, VA. More and more people are utilizing these shoes for training and everyday activities. I have also seen an increase in the number of injuries caused by the Vibram Five Fingers because patients think that they can put them on and go for their normal 5 mile run. If you fall into this category you need to give my office a call at (703) 912-7822 to address the injury. If you are new to the Vibram Five Fingers, let your feet and body adjust to them slowly to prevent injuries.
Do you currently wear Vibram Five Fingers? If so leave a comment below and tell me about your experience with them.
I’m not in the Northern VA area, but I’m in Virginia Beach. Do you have a colleague down here that I can visit? I believe I have some kind of tendon injury. I just got xrays done this afternnon. Please help!!
Hi Liz,
I would see Dr. Bresnahan in Virginia Beach. His website is http://www.cornerstonechiropracticcenter.com/
He does the same techniques that treat tendon injuries.
I bought my first pair about a month ago and I absolutely love them as a matter of fact, I am going to get another pair this evening. A little history, I have had two ACL reconstructions and a Bunion surgery.. I also used to suffer from Compartment syndrome in my right calf. I had the Bunion removed by cutting out part of the first metatarsal bone, that was in Dec of 2008. I Started running again seriously again in July of 2009 and was still suffering from pain in my knees and of course the bottom of my foot. A new pain had developed in my left knee and was diagnosed as Patellar tendinitis caused by the first ACL reconstruction. They used part of the patella tendon to replace my ACL. A friend of mine told me about the “Toe Shoes” as he had been using them for about a year. I decided that I would try a pair. I have never been one to follow instructions, so my first run was 3 miles. I could not believe how fast I was able to run that day and w/o pain. I absolutely felt as if I was flying around the track. The next day arrived and my calves were pretty sore, but I decided to wear the shoes anyways, that was a Friday. Saturday morning I jumped out of bed and dern near landed on my face. My calf muscles were so sore, I could barely walk. They remained sore for about a week. Since then, my muscles have healed and I am able to run almost every day. I don’t run long distances, not more than 3.5 miles at a time. My goal is time, I always try to maintain a 6 minute mile pace. Some days I succeed and some days I dont. Long story short, I have put probably 75 miles or more on these shoes and I am not suffering from any form of pain in my patella, foot or knees any longer. Of course my calf muscles still get sore, but nothing a little stretching or walking doesn’t cure. Later today, I plan to make a 65 mile drive so I can obtain a second pair of KSO’s. I absolutely love these shoes and dont plan to ever wear another pair of standard shoes again!!!
My patients RACE about these shoes. They are on my Christmas wish list this year!
I have these shoes and I absolutely love them for running! I now feel like my legs and feet are stronger! But I do have a downfall. I have high arches and now after wearing them for about 6 months, I have two blister/rash things on the arch of my foot. What are they?
I am a professional springboard diver and I have been throughout high school and now into college so I am constantly in flip-flops or barefoot. Currently I suffer tendonitis in both of my knees, flat feet, and a torn ligiment in my foot that never healed properly. My feet and my knees constantly hurt and I was wondering if wearing five fingers would reduce the pain and help with my flat feet/