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Web exclusive: Barefoot shoes road tested
With TCL Sports starting on a series of seminars to educate the trade and consumers on the benefits of natural running, SGB Sports asked keen runner, and the magazine's sales executive, Andy Morfey, to road test some ‘barefoot’ running shoes and share with us his views on this growing product category.
"My first concern with barefoot running was what if I tread on a stone or something sharper like broken glass. I mainly run around Maidstone, Kent, so the latter is a real possibility.
"Nevertheless I was filled with confidence after finding out the Vibram Five Fingers I was wearing had a puncture resistant sole.
"They are very outlandish which I like and the separate toe pockets really do feel like you’re barefoot.
"My first run in the Five Fingers Bikila shoe felt great. While I was running I could feel muscles moving, my balance was improved and I felt really in tune with the road. a feeling you just don’t get with cushioned running shoes. When I got home I kicked them off and my feet were killing me but I did have a huge smile on my face. My feet felt stronger and, although muscles I never thought I had were aching, I couldn’t wait to get out in them again.
"The next day I tried out some Vivobarefoot Neo shoes. It felt strange slipping on this ‘standard’ looking shoe after the Five Fingers, but as soon as I put them on I could feel the quality as your foot slides into them like silk.
"I went for a run and once again the muscles were working and my foot was spreading with every stride, although I did not feel as barefoot in these as the five fingers
"After this trial I must say I have been converted and will now be a barefoot runner for good. I felt more stable and more planted into the ground.
"Don’t get me wrong it takes getting used to but once your feet know you’re using the natural technology within them you will feel like you can run forever."
