Today's P90x workout was legs and back. I normally do my workouts in my apartment barefoot anyway but I decided to try my new Vibram 5 Finger shoes out for the workout. It wasn't much different from doing the workout barefoot but doing the lunge movements in the workout was better due to the added arch support from the shoe soles. It was a different experience having the shoes on and I'm excited to see how they work outside on the actual ground.
The fitness and health benefit will be interesting to observe. The concept behind these shoes are because your feet are walking as close to bare foot as they possibly can, they are thus in the most anatomically correct position. It is said that with modern shoes, there generally at least a 1 inch raise in the heal. We're not even counting women's shoes with the high heals. So by bringing the heal back to a normal height, it helps bring the ankles, knees, hips and back into proper alignment. By giving your feet, mainly your toes, it allows the ligaments, joints and tendons in the foot to strengthen. It is also said that the nerves in the foot become much more sensitive because of they have more freedom to move compared to the confined space of a normal sock and shoe. There's a cult following of these shoes and the benefits that they offer. You can read more on these shoes at www.birthdayshoes.com
So I ordered my new Vibram 5 Finger shoes on Monday night and it got delivered on Thursday afternoon. Apparently this shoes are really hard to find in San Diego. If you can find them in stock in stores, you'll be lucky if they have it in your size, let alone in the style and color that you want. Since I've never owned a pair of these before I wanted at least go try on a pair before I tried to order them. They use a unique size system because these shoes have to fit basically like gloves. When I found a local store that had them, I tried on a pair of the full coverage versions called the KSO as well as a pair of the more open coverage ones called the sprints. The sprints were a size bigger than the KSO pair and also didn't feel like the would secure well even if I found the correct size in the sprints. I didn't like the color that fit me in the store so I went home to order them online directly from the company website. Shockingly enough, the company website was sold out in lost colors and sizes as well. There are a lot of counterfeits out there so I recommend only ordering from other listed stores on the vibram website. I finally found a website that carried the KSO style in black in my size. All is good.
Until next time, get your sweat on and happy dieting.
- Joel via iPhone
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