I've been wearing Vibrams on and off for more than a month now, and while I've received some stares, finger pointing and whisperings about my choice of footwear, today marks the first time a stranger approaches me about it and even throws in compliments for good measure! Just when I thought Singaporeans were too shy for that kind of thing too!
I was at Unity Healthcare to top up on my Omega 3 fish oil supplements, and while I was paying at the cashier, suddenly I heard someone say, "Wah, your shoes very nice hor."
Looking around, it turned out to be one of the aunties working there, who was putting some of the products on the shelves. Her cashier friend quickly came around the counter to have a look too.
"It must be really comfortable to wear! Very good for walking," one of the aunties commented. The other auntie pointed at my toes and hesitantly asked, "Can you...?" I wiggled my toes to her delight.
They continued bombarding me with questions on how much it costs, where to get it, and a quick tour around the shoe. So there you have it, Singaporeans are not shy after all. Just leave it to the aunties to prove me wrong!
Oh, and in case you were wondering, I was wearing my Bikila LS.
Showing posts with label Bikila LS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bikila LS. Show all posts
Monday, April 4, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Learning to Walk before I Run
It seems today's as much a lesson in humility as it is in running.
Despite my initial reservations of running purely barefoot due to the dirt and dust, I decided to give it a shot today to test my form and see my limits. The plan was to run the same Changi route last week in my new Bikila LS, and then take it off halfway to go barefoot. Unfortunately, it decided to rain heavily on that side of the island, so I ended up doing a run around my own neighbourhood.
Since I was close to home, I changed my mind and went for a 10 minute warm-up barefoot first, planning to come back later to get my Bikilas for a full run. Bad idea.
Regardless of what delusions I had in my mind of how tough my feet were, the soles of my foot shared no such illusions. Since they were so much more grounded in reality (pun totally intended), I soon found myself hurting less than 5 minutes into the run.
At first, I ignored them thinking they were just from getting used to the rough asphalt, but I soon realised they were precursors to blisters. By then, I was halfway into my warm-up run and there was no shortcut back. With no shoes to put on, I decided stick with it and finish the run back. In a short span of 10 minutes, I had two spots of blisters on each foot. Under the ball of the feet which was no surprise, and interestingly, near the outer edge of my sole, just below the little toe.
While I've gotten blisters from running before, they usually appear under the ball of the foot, so the ones below the little the toe was something new. I was paying close attention to my gait once I noticed the blisters, and I did not have any excessive scrapping against the ground as far as I could tell. So it probably is just a function of how the barefoot running gait is slightly different even from minimalist shoes. I'll probably need to clock more barefoot runs to find out.
However, me being me, I didn't want to be shortchanged out of my weekly run, so I came back to put on the Bikila LS for my actual run despite the blisters. During the week I had already walked around in the Bikilas, and they felt nice and cushy enough that I knew they would take much of the sting out of the blisters. They were also very comfortable to wear, so I went without socks.
Still, I didn't want to overexert and bleed all over in my shoes, so I cut my run short to just 25 minutes at my 85% MHR pace. Based on the pain I was getting from the blisters, I also noticed something interesting - I tended to land further up on the forefoot when running barefoot, almost on my toes and the area below it, while I landed more squarely on the ball and nearer to the midfoot area when in shoes. Seems like the further up I land, the more impact is cushioned, hence the need only to do so when there's less padding underfoot.
Of course, the shoes won't protect me completely from my blisters, so now I'm nursing a tender foot with two medium-sized blisters under each foot. Moral of the long story, take it slow and easy.
Guess I gotta start implementing a barefoot regime to get my feet up to speed. I'm thinking maybe a short 5-10 minute morning run to the pool on weekdays, followed by a swim and walking back in shoes.
Despite my initial reservations of running purely barefoot due to the dirt and dust, I decided to give it a shot today to test my form and see my limits. The plan was to run the same Changi route last week in my new Bikila LS, and then take it off halfway to go barefoot. Unfortunately, it decided to rain heavily on that side of the island, so I ended up doing a run around my own neighbourhood.
Since I was close to home, I changed my mind and went for a 10 minute warm-up barefoot first, planning to come back later to get my Bikilas for a full run. Bad idea.
Regardless of what delusions I had in my mind of how tough my feet were, the soles of my foot shared no such illusions. Since they were so much more grounded in reality (pun totally intended), I soon found myself hurting less than 5 minutes into the run.
At first, I ignored them thinking they were just from getting used to the rough asphalt, but I soon realised they were precursors to blisters. By then, I was halfway into my warm-up run and there was no shortcut back. With no shoes to put on, I decided stick with it and finish the run back. In a short span of 10 minutes, I had two spots of blisters on each foot. Under the ball of the feet which was no surprise, and interestingly, near the outer edge of my sole, just below the little toe.
While I've gotten blisters from running before, they usually appear under the ball of the foot, so the ones below the little the toe was something new. I was paying close attention to my gait once I noticed the blisters, and I did not have any excessive scrapping against the ground as far as I could tell. So it probably is just a function of how the barefoot running gait is slightly different even from minimalist shoes. I'll probably need to clock more barefoot runs to find out.
However, me being me, I didn't want to be shortchanged out of my weekly run, so I came back to put on the Bikila LS for my actual run despite the blisters. During the week I had already walked around in the Bikilas, and they felt nice and cushy enough that I knew they would take much of the sting out of the blisters. They were also very comfortable to wear, so I went without socks.
Still, I didn't want to overexert and bleed all over in my shoes, so I cut my run short to just 25 minutes at my 85% MHR pace. Based on the pain I was getting from the blisters, I also noticed something interesting - I tended to land further up on the forefoot when running barefoot, almost on my toes and the area below it, while I landed more squarely on the ball and nearer to the midfoot area when in shoes. Seems like the further up I land, the more impact is cushioned, hence the need only to do so when there's less padding underfoot.
Of course, the shoes won't protect me completely from my blisters, so now I'm nursing a tender foot with two medium-sized blisters under each foot. Moral of the long story, take it slow and easy.
Guess I gotta start implementing a barefoot regime to get my feet up to speed. I'm thinking maybe a short 5-10 minute morning run to the pool on weekdays, followed by a swim and walking back in shoes.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
New Shoes!
Guess what just arrived in the mail? My Komodo Sports and Bikila LS are here after more than a month's wait! They were out if stock when I first ordered them online.
Out of the box, both feel even more forgiving in fit than the KSOs, and slightly more padded as well. It's like wearing nice comfy socks. Photos and reviews to come after extended field testing!
Out of the box, both feel even more forgiving in fit than the KSOs, and slightly more padded as well. It's like wearing nice comfy socks. Photos and reviews to come after extended field testing!
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