Hey guys, eagerly waiting for my KSOs

[floriakir]

Hi guys. I ordered size 44 (measured my feet according to the vibram guide in order to find out, usually I wear size 46-47 EU) KSOs in black last night after having thought about buying them for a fair while. I hope they'll get here soon 

A bit about myself:
I'm 21 years old, come from Germany and after high school I spent two years in the army where the boots gave me hell (four surgeries due to ingrown toenails), but where I also started some occasional running. Last year I finished my army time and started commercial pilot training and recently started recreational running again. However since joining the army I started to get LOTS of blisters when running, even after doing some fancy video analysis at runners point (German sports store chain) and spending a bunch of money on supposedly "decent" running shoes which apparently (didn't) support my running style. So far I avoided blisters (or rather the painful effects of them) by wrapping the blister-hotspots in medical tape but read about the VFFs some time ago. Since I believe that my blister plague has something to do with a wrong posture, I hope that the KSOs will give me some relief on that issue and let me focus on enjoying my runs again...

[Stefanie]

Welcome! Just remember to ease in to wearing VFF's.. take it slow, slow, slow!  I hope you enjoy them and the wealth of knowledge on the forum!

[PB Junkie]

Welcome to the site!

I agree with Stef, take it very slowly.  Here is some good info if you're interested;

http://www.runnersworld.com/community/forums/runner-communities/barefoot-running/new-barefoot-minimalist-runners-start-here

http://birthdayshoes.com/how-to-transition-to-running-in-vibram-five-fingers

[floriakir]

Thanks for being so supportive right away, unfortunately the shoes haven't arrived so far. Looking at the signatures of most board members and how many VFF they own, I'm wondering if you can wear the shoes in everyday life or if you strictly wear them for working out!? The model 'speed' for example makes me believe they could actually be worn in almost every situation. How du you feel about that?

[nowster]

In the last few days, I've had some very positive responses to wearing my black Speeds. Many people don't initially notice the toes.

I've caught the bug... Amazon UK were doing a 20% off "a single order of shoes" promotion this month, and they had the black camo M47 KSOs available for just over £60 before discount. So I've got a pair of those scheduled to arrive this Wednesday. If they don't fit or I don't like the style, I can send them back for a full refund with free return postage.

[rookhoe]

Welcome! I cant wear my VFF's all the time as I am in the military right now. So I pretty much just wear them for working out. I usually dont get blisters though. Maybe once in a blue moon.

[floriakir]

finally got them, thanks for all the guides, i'll do a short run today...

[floriakir]

Calves forgive me, for I have sinned!!! 

Good news: Just one tiny blister!

http://www.endomondo.com/workouts/47796868

[JustinB]

HOLY CRAP!!!! 8.5 MILES FOR YOUR FIRST RUN IS ASKING FOR TROUBLE!!!!

Seriously... that is WAY too much.  your first run should be well under a mile. you are asking for TOFP, TMTS, and every other anagram injury out there.  Back it down and take the transition slowly.  My first run was 1/4 mile and my calves were exploding for 3 days after.

[Mr. Leigh]

Thanks for being so supportive right away, unfortunately the shoes haven't arrived so far. Looking at the signatures of most board members and how many VFF they own, I'm wondering if you can wear the shoes in everyday life or if you strictly wear them for working out!? The model 'speed' for example makes me believe they could actually be worn in almost every situation. How du you feel about that?

Yes, these can be worn for everyday.  Many people prefer Speeds for casual wear due to their aesthetics, but other models are fine as well.  I wear my Classics 100% of the time in the summer. 

[Horse Rider]

floriakir, I have 13 pairs and only 1 pair is for running, 1 for hiking and 1 for water sports, the others are all for casual everyday wear (colorful Sprints and Classics). And as Justin pointed out, your first run in Vff's was way too long, pls start under a mile then increase about 10% every time on non concecutive days. It's bugging to have to scale back so much, but if you don't all your foot and leg structures will get hurt (calves, Achille's tendon, ankle ligaments, metatarsals, posterior tibialis, etc.). They need lots of time to adapt to their new jobs. Make sure to warm up the calves and ankles really well before the run as well, and long stretches of the calves after.

[nowster]

Similarly, just a quick jog from petrol pump to the cashier at the filling station today in my Speeds caused a warning twinge in the ankle. I'd been in a driving position for over an hour, so my muscles weren't ready. The longest run I've done so far has been about 50 yards on asphalt at the weekend, just to see whether my feet would land correctly (it felt like they did).

[Stefanie]

Checking your workout schedule now, it seems you have done three 8.5 mile runs in the past two weeks.  You are seriously asking for trouble.  I upped my mileage too fast (still way slower than THAT) and within a couple of weeks I had a severely inflamed tendon (Top of Foot Pain/TOFP) (this was back in November), and just recently I feel like I could be "flirting" with a stress fracture.  I am on week two of not running at all.
I have been doing other things like p90X, insanity, and elliptical/bike training for cardio.


 You need to step it WAY, WAY back or you're going sorely regret it. I know it sucks and it's tough... but you need to let your body adjust and strengthen. That takes time and patience.

[floriakir]

Only that very last run was in the VFFs though. I did do regular running before that, just used a different tracking service than endomondo, hence the lacking data before that. However, my calves are punishing me for that last run pretty badly, will definitely not do sports for the next at least 5 days I'd say...

[floriakir]

Alright, been doing some easier running in the KSOs now. A 5.5km run on friday and this one today: http://www.endomondo.com/workouts/50351308

I already enjoy to run in them a LOT, however I'm really stuck with old habits (long stride, low cadence), so today I used a metronome app set to 180BPM (currently reading born to run and almost through with it) and managed to run even uphill extremely easily compared to how exhausted I usually am on that hill.