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Raymond’s Quick Transition to Running 30K Races in Vibram Five Fingers

A Vibram Five Fingers KSO running transition story from Raymond, who quickly adjusted to running in his barefoot alternative shoes (VFFs) and was soon running a 30K race in them!

A few weeks back Raymond — Vibram Five Fingers fan and Dutch blogger over at wegloper.nl (@rsneekes) — let me know he’d finished a 30K race running in his black KSO Vibram Five Fingers and that a few photos would be forthcoming.

Above you can see Raymond running amidst some snow in that 30K in his VFF KSOs! I asked Raymond to share a bit about his transition to running in Vibram Five Fingers, and it turns out that he was fortunate enough to experience a very, very quick adjustment to the natural running you get with the “barefoot alternative” (VFFs!). Here’s Raymond:

When I started running during the summer of 2008, I already had my doubts about all the support and cushioning in running shoes. But because everybody says you need “good” running shoes, I just went with the flow.

During my first “real” running injury (runner’s knee) my doubts returned and I started doing some research. I soon found out about alternative running methods and also about running barefoot and Vibram Five Fingers (VFFs). At the the time it sounded a little extreme to me, but I kind of liked the VFFs.

Around the same time the Ecco BIOMs came around, and although not really minimalistic they let me run pain free for the whole of the summer. During experiments with more “normal” shoes, pain returned especially my shins.

Although still fascinated by the VFF, I still didn’t dare take the plunge, so I bought another pair of BIOMs. But after recovering from another bout of runner’s knee, which I now blame on a medicine I got at the time, I seriously started thinking of finally buying a pair of VFFs.

So in the beginning of January I finally ordered a pair KSO’s over from the USA (at the time I couldn’t find any local stores with KSO’s in my size). Two weeks later they finally arrived, and they fit like a glove.

After a couple of days of getting used to them and a successful trial walk/run, my first real run was February 1st. Because of all the calf pain stories I read, I hoped I could manage a 5k. That 5k became a great run of little over 5 miles without any real pain or soreness. The day after that I ran 11km (almost 7 miles) which also went reasonably well, a little more soreness but not that much.

After that I did one run in my Ecco’s and, because of all the calf pain stories, I waited a bit before for my next run with my VFFs, again an 11k run. That was one my best runs ever!

I had planned a 30km long run for the next day. Not knowing how long I could run in the VFFs, I took the car to a nearby forest with my regular running shoes in the trunk so I could switch shoes if needed.

To my surprise it was on of the easiest long runs I ever did. 30k became almost 32k (20 miles) all in my VFFs. Usually my quads are a little tired/sore after that distance, but not today. They felt as good as before the run. Calves were a little sore, but again not that much. I only got some blisters.

From that point on, I only ran in my VFFs. That action shot was taken on February 14th, so almost two weeks after my first real VFF run. It was a 30k race and I finished in 2:18:11, beating my personal best by almost 18 minutes.

My calves were a little more sore, but again my quads were feeling great. Also the first run after that my feet were a little more sensitive, but the day after that also was back to normal. That calve soreness also disappeared in a couple of days, and during the runs after that no pain or soreness has returned.

I don’t know why but for some reason it seems I already can run any distance in them. I think the lower heel to toe ratio of the Ecco’s already helped making this an easy transition. Also at work I already walk in my socks the whole day, and at home that’s something I did all my life.

Obviously at the last two races I did get a lot of strange looks and a lot of questions from interested people, but also some less positive remarks. But for me these are great shoes for running, and I also regulary wear them to work.

Raymond

In addition to the photos above, Raymond ran a 27.5k the following weekend in his KSO Vibram Five Fingers (photo). And my favorite shot from that race, where’s Raymond (click the photo to enlarge):

Can you find Raymond running this 27.5K race in his black KSO Vibram Five Fingers amidst the crowd of shod runners?

Can you find Raymond running this 27.5K race in his black KSO Vibram Five Fingers amidst the crowd of shod runners?

As many Vibram Five Fingers runners can attest, it can take an inordinate amount of time to transition to running in Five Fingers. Between the biomechanical / running form adjustment, the rehabilitation of atrophied foot, ankle, and calf muscles, to who knows what other dynamics are in play, it can take months of training to reach your pre-Vibram Five Fingers running mileage (kilometer-age?). Note to readers: Raymond’s fast transition results are not typical, so don’t think you can get VFFs today and run a 30K in two weeks!

Anyone else used the Ecco BIOMs? I’ve seen them around on the ‘net, but hadn’t really seen much mention of them in the minimalist community.

Regardless, great to hear you’ve had such success, Raymond! And if you’d like to keep up with what Raymond’s doing, check him out on twitter or on his (Dutch) blog!

By Justin

Justin Owings is a deadlifting dad of three, working from Atlanta. When he's not chasing his three kids around, you'll find him trying to understand systems, risk, and human behavior.

11 replies on “Raymond’s Quick Transition to Running 30K Races in Vibram Five Fingers”

Here’s a tip for running in cold weather with KSO’s. If you have stretchy running pants, tuck the leg cuff under the velcro strap before tightening it. The forward part of the ankle is then protected from wind and cold and the feet stay warm with no need for socks.

Congratulations on your race Raymond and thanks for the photos from the Netherlands!

I experienced tremendous calf trouble making the switch….almost made me doubt my beloveed VFF. I tell everyone…make the switch slowly. I didn’t. 100% convinced that if you want to run into old age (my advice…don’t run to much) VFF or barefoot are you’re only options to most likely stay pain free.
Justin, his link is spelled wrong. It’s wegloPer.nl not wegloBer.

Congrats Raymond. I like your NYC story.
Marc

Crazy fast transition. I was doing a 30 runs in 30 days challenge and was trying to incorporate my VFFs every other day for 3-4 mile runs. I still couldn’t transtition over fully after all those short runs. Sad.

Just ran 13.1 Miles in FFV classics. No more calf pain.
How? I was reading Matt Fitzgerald latest book and he advocates techniques for gait improvement. One of the techniques are pulling your foot back or paw back, just before ground contact. Elite runners do that. What happens is it reduces your ground contact time and your foot goes almost silent. I noticed after my run and the next day my calves were slightly stiff but no more pain. I ran two consecutive days after the 13.1 and my legs felt great. Hope this helps. Don’t give up on FFV’s! Once you break through, your old running shoes are obsolete!

Raymond, Congratulations on a great run. I think you were running bio-mechanically correct before VFF. I mean your were probably midfoot/forefoot striking already so you didn’t need a transition.

Thanks for the responses!

@JxA For me it seemed regular shoes kicked back my heel somewhat, or of course my footstrike wasn’t optimal 🙂 So I don’t totally agree that running injury free is only about footstrike.

There’s a video from last year in this post. If you want I can put up the original file somewhere. I don’t know if I maybe have a video with a better close-up of my footstrike.

Hey Raymond,

great story and I love the picture “Can you find Raymond” – I think you’re running in the right spirit 🙂
I’m transitioning myself at the moment, started about 3 weeks ago, slowly, 500 m first, then 1,6 km and so on. 2 days ago: 11 km, yesterday 5 km, today another 10 km, all in VFFs – and almost all on unpaved tracks. It’s amazing how much fun it is.
Even during the heavy snow we’ve experienced recently I did some 4 to 5 km runs and then switched to my regular, running shoes (without cushioning either).

Keep running and having fun!

Good story!
I think the problem most people have is the gradual switch, and still using the old shoes. If you have pain running in the VFF’s on roads, run on trails instead. The dirt and mud cushion the foot so it is not as bad as running on pavement. 2 weeks after starting, I can run as far as I like in my VFFs, as long as it is on trails. Running on sidewalks/roads, I can’t do much more than 3 miles.

I also started my transition using bioms. They are really good shoes and they allowed my achilles tendon problems to clear up. However, I found I still had more heel strike than I wanted and developed a few other foot problems. This is probably because I have wide feet and they just didn’t fit quite right. I did improve my 10k time by 7 minutes in them. All that being said, I love my VFF’s so much more. My calves get a little sore, but not my joints.

I started the transition about 3 weeks ago. I usually run about 30miles a week. I had Addictions and I’m a bing pronator. Also I’ve had two knee surgery. The VFF’s are the greatest thing I have ever bought. I am running 10k with no knee, no IP strap, no joint pain. I can’t run in my old shoes anymore because they now feel totally uncomfortable.

i use kso evo for 3 months.i have never run as a sport(i do play tennis).1 month ago i started running in vff. i started with 1,8 km in one session and after less than a month i ran 10 km strait on dirt trails.my left shin hurts a little bit like 2 out of 10 the day after, but really i felt i could have run even more.do you think this is normal or should i stop.i must mention that when i grew up i walked a lot barefoot(even in forests) and i do walk barefoot in my home all the time

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