Welcome to Day 2 of my 31 days of Fitness series. Today is Tuesday, which means it is a Technology Tuesday post. What does that mean? On Tuesday I will be share with you some of my fitness essentials- Clothes, Shoes, Apps, etc. Today's fitness essential?
My Vibrams!
(Spyridon LS Vibrams- meant for trail walking- and bonus points for being orange!)
I received these for my birthday this past June. They were a gift from my husband. I have been wanting them for awhile and was so happy to get them. It took us 3 tries to get the sizing right (European sizing and I have high arches so the size I should of been just didn't work).
Why did I want these so bad? Easy, my podiatrist had told me that shoes like these, that use what is called Barefoot Technology, would really help my plantar fasciitis, to the point where I could exercise again... and maybe even run again! I have not gotten to the running part yet (will start come the new year) but am walking!
During the summer of 2010 my feet started really bothering me. I worked retail then and was on my feet a good 10 hours a day. When I wasn't at work, I would be sitting on the couch, in a lot of pain, unable to do anything, let alone exercise. It just kept getting worse... to the point where I wasn't sure I would be able to walk down the aisle at my wedding (December 2010) or dance. Luckily I started seeing a podiatrist before then... and continued to see him till summer of 2011. With medicines and exercises (and many foot rubs by my then fiancee, now husband), not only was I able to walk down the aisle at my wedding, but I danced the night away as well... In these super cute and comfortable Toms no less (and with some awesome inserts from none other than Walmart!)
However, after the new year I got to wear a new pair of "shoes" and they weren't nearly as cute or as comfortable as my TOMS!
Yes, the dreaded boots! I had to wear these as much as I could. I also had fun feet wraps for when I couldn't wear these that fit inside my shoes (a glorified ace bandage) well all that seemed to help a little... but really the best thing was the fact that I lost my retail job in May of 2011... no more on my feet for 10 hours a day.
Late summer of 2011 my podiatrist said it was really up to me when I wanted to start exercising again, but to only do what I could without causing too much pain and to start small. Well I had decent shoes, but my feet would still hurt after my workouts and walks... Then I got my vibrams. Now I can do my walks and workouts without having to sit the rest of the week. My feet still hurt sometimes (like when I was at the zoo for 7 hours a few weeks ago) but the pain leaves much, much faster than it did before.
So what is Barefoot Technology? Well honestly, I am not sure... I don't get the science of it... The easiest way it was explained to me- is that our feet were created to walk a certain way. Walk barefoot for a minute... see how your toes spread out as you walk and the your foot "fattens" up or looks wider? That is how our feet were designed to walk. the toes spread out to help spread the impact and force (and weight) of your body out more so as not to crush all the little bones in your feet. Normal shoes, prevent this. Look at a normal shoe... the toe area is a little half circle, and the mid part of the shoe is pretty narrow. Normal shoes don't have the space for your toes to spread out and for the mid part to spread out and fatten up. Plus, look at the bottom of your feet. Your arch is not touching the ground when at rest... But in normal shoes, the bottoms are usually flat, so there is nothing supporting this arch. Also, as mentioned normal shoes are flat on the bottom, but feet are designed for your toes to be a little lower that your heel (this is hard to see on a normal foot because walking changes this). Barefoot shoes are designed so the toe part is a little lower than the heel (usually by adding more padding in the heel).
Barefoot shoes are designed to fit your feet in a way that allows you to walk as if you were barefoot. Most versions have separate compartments for each toe, so that they are not scrunched together. And the material is a much more stretchier material than normal tennis shoes (though there are more options in normal tennis shoes that have this now). And the way the vibrams are formed they aren't completely flat at the bottom, but have a slight arch, like your foot.
Now they aren't perfect... as I found out last week on a rainy day.. the way the toes are designed with the mesh material between the toes- step in a puddle and in the water goes. Plus, they are meant to be worn without socks (more barefoot that way) but if your like me, I need socks because my feet sweat... therefore, you have to spend money on toe socks (I love injinji's best so far-the most expensive though, but they are made of material that pulls the sweat from your feet). And they aren't cheap... My Vibrams cost over $100 dollars. But the condition of my feet and how little they do hurt when I wear them, makes them worth it to me.
Oh if you don't like the look of the toe shoes, but what to take advantage of this barefoot technology stuff... your in luck... New Balance has come out with a barefoot line (or close to it) called Minimus that look like normal tennis shoes (I have put two pairs of these on my Christmas list- need more options or I will wear them out too quickly) and they are a little cheaper than the Vibrams (but not much)
Here is me rocking my Vibrams on Monday! And some other of my favorite gadgets and gear- C9 by Champion workout gear (shorts, shirt, and sports bra) and my bodybugg (post about these coming in upcoming Technology Tuesday posts!). That shirt is really that bright too, lol! And yes, that is a cat (my mom's part Siamese- Frankie!) in the lower corner... the first picture we took featured him reaching up the banister and he totally blocked me!
Now, it's your turn... Any experience with Plantar Fasciitis or Barefoot Technology Shoes?
No comments:
Post a Comment