Vibram Five Fingers

Kiwi-family · Jan 18, 2013

Anyone sold on these? If no, why not?
If yes, why? How well do they wear?
Do you use toe socks with them?
Which ones have you used?

Thanks

Kitsambler · Jan 18, 2013

Ok, I admit to scant knowledge about these things. But I do know a little bit. So here goes.

The FiveFinger-type "shoe" was designed for runners. There's a theory that the human foot evolved to run barefoot, and that shoes shouldn't get in the way of the proper form of feet contacting the ground.

I don't think these are designed for carrying the extra weight of camino walking (never mind real backpacking). There is no arch support. Theoretically, using these shoes will encourage the strengthening of the muscles, tendons, and ligaments that hold foot bones together and make them work.

I also don't think they are constructed for walking 20-25 km daily with 50% of that distance being on asphalt, which are the conditions that pilgrims must contend with on a camino.

As with any commentary on personal clothing, of course, your mileage may vary. If these things really intrigue you, get a pair and try them out. They are really, truly different. They really force you to change the way you walk and/or run -- which is not itself a bad thing.

jastrace · Jan 18, 2013

There is at least one other thread somewhere on these forums that also discusses this. I think it is a few years old.

In any case ... feedback.

I purchased a pair of five fingers in September last year to test, the following:
1. suitability as a 'wet shoe' to use on the beach, snorkeling (to replace neoprene booties) etc,
2. for a possible replacement to sandals / flip flops etc on the Camino, and
3. for a possible replacement to hiking shoes or boots on the Camino.

Short version: not suitable for any of the above, for me.

Reasons:
1. Despite mine fitting superbly, they are essentially cool looking little blister factories when worn barefoot. This might be alleviated with finger socks (like Injinji), strapping tape etc.
2. The other issue is that they are a bugger to get back on because you have to line you toes up each time one by one and kind of wrestle them in.
3. They are very low profile and are excellent at collecting water, sand, pebbles etc.

There are other reasons why not such as lack of cushioning, no ankle support etc.

I can imagine the Spanish headlines : "Kiwi's break record for most number of blisters ever on the Camino!" haha.

Cheers,

Jason.

jastrace · Jan 18, 2013

Kiwi-family said:
Do you use toe socks with them?
Which ones have you used?

Further, I have ordered some different Injinji toes socks to try with them but am more likely to use the toe socks as inner socks to help prevent rubbing between toes. The vibrams are most likely going to be left at home.

ffp13 · Jan 18, 2013

On my 2011 Camino I met a group of 4 yanks walking in them, 3 of the 4 had bad blisters, with 1 so bad that he was unable to walk at all.

jastrace · Jan 18, 2013

Little blister factories I say! :evil:

canadiandude · Jan 18, 2013

I wear VFFs for all my walks including on trails, on ice, asphalt and gravel. I have never gotten a blister..ever! My daily walks range from 7km to 30 km....each and every day. I will be bringing mine on my Camino and using them exclusively for the entire Camino Frances. I'm not going to try convincing anyone of anything one way or the other. They're your feet. Just realise that there are now a lot of different models out now including those made for trails, asphalt and water. Alternatively, you could look into minimalist shoes by New Balance or better yet, by Merrell.

jastrace · Jan 23, 2013

canadiandude said:
I wear VFFs for all my walks including on trails, on ice, asphalt and gravel. I have never gotten a blister..ever!

Hiya Canadiandude,

you make an excellent point. Everyone has different feet and no doubt the vibrams will fit many people perfectly. Equally blisters are common for many people on the Camino regardless of footwear choice. I think I was a little concerned by how quickly my feet blistered up using them and I rarely get blisters. Perhaps just the combination of that style of shoe, with my feet on that day.

Despite that, I still think they are very cool. I got my injinji socks in the mail today so I am looking forward to testing them with the vibrams.

I think it is good advice for anyone to test their shoes whatever type they are, with their full Caminio weight in their packs, for 20+kms (more the better), before they hit the Camino. This forum is also full of excellent advice about blister management and prevention (to the extent that is possible).

Cheers,

Jason.

Kiwi-family · Jan 23, 2013

jastrace said:
I got my injinji socks in the mail today so I am looking forward to testing them with the vibrams.

Would love to hear if they make any difference for you.

jastrace · Jan 23, 2013

Kiwi-family said:
Would love to hear if they make any difference for you.

Will let you know. Give me a few days and I'll get back to you

jastrace · Jan 24, 2013

So my initial thoughts are that they make the vibrams a lot more comfortable for me. I think the injinji socks will reduce some vibram-on-skin rubbing that caused blisters for me before.

I am an advocate of the two sock (of different material) approach to preventing blisters and I have not tested two pairs of injinis with the vibrams. I believe it would get a bit crowded around the toes but I also reckon would help reduce blisters even more. You would need to trial different sock size and material combinations to get it just right for you.

I remain concerned about rubbing between the toes and think this will continue to be an issue for me because of the shape of the vibrams and my foot. I am specifically concerned about rubbing around the big toe and that the little toe (slightly pushed in from years of wearing work shoes) is being pulled away from the others which is uncomfortable and could cause problems over long distances.

Cheers,

Jason

Canucks · Mar 5, 2013

I used the vibram five finger shoes for hiking in the cinque terre and they worked really well. Mind you, these were not 25 km but they were good half day steep trails up and down. No blisters, no stuff getting in them, good support even on sharp rocks.
However, I am taking good, broken in, hiking boots with a bit of ankle support on our September camino.

Kiwi-family · Mar 5, 2013

canadiandude said:
Alternatively, you could look into minimalist shoes by New Balance or better yet, by Merrell.

Any reason for preferring Merrell over NB?

Laliibeans · Mar 8, 2013

I wear these for pretty much all general and long distance walking at home. i have arthritis in my foot and these keep my toes from jamming together, they also alleviate the pain of my plantat faciitis when wearing them (no pain at all!). But I don't think I'll be wearing them on the Camino, simply because of the varying terrain, mud, and cushioning (or lack thereof).

I think I'm going to opt for ankle support over super pain-free walking, also because they do need to be washed fairly frequently. I found the only time i got a blister in them was after I'd worn them for just over a week without washing them and the previous days of sweat and grime build up caused rubbing.

I think it'd just be impractical to have to alternate shoes every couple of days while one pair dried on my pack (possibly getting rained on anyway).

Other than that, I love them for general wear. It's rare that I can walk without pain, so these have been wonderful.

howlsthunder · Mar 20, 2017

I've been wearing FiveFingers (FFs) regularly since 2007. I have owned over 20 pairs (various Sprints, Surge, KSOs, KSO Treks, Speeds, Spyridons, and Lontras) and unless its winter or really rainy and I'm not hiking, FFs are my daily footwear.

For me, FFs changed my life. I was pretty rough on my knees growing up and had struggled with knee pain since my teens. So when I tried FFs in my 20s, they were a game-changer. I could scramble up mountains again and not be crippled during the descent and for the following week. Being young, I was able to transition to wearing them full-time, slowly building up my foot muscles; arch/ankle support isn't an issue if your arches/ankles are strong. Not everyone can do this, though.

Since then I've done multi-day backpacking trips over very rugged terrain carrying a very heavy pack (35lbs+ - cold, volcanic wasteland areas where you have to pack in ALL your water). Tried it ONCE with boots, thinking my FFs wouldn't be enough - bad idea. I was in so much pain that night I didn't sleep. Now I backpack exclusively in FFs. The only terrain I can't handle well in them is asphalt, which has me worried a bit about my future Camino in 2018. :\

As far as socks go, unless I'm using them as rock shoes while swimming, I wear Injinji socks with FFs. I mostly wear socks because it prevents the shoes from getting stinky. The ONLY pair of mine I've ever gotten blisters in are the 2007 Surges - it was an early model with poorly planned seams, otherwise I never get blisters and this includes a multi-day trip where where I went 26 miles in one day, up and down mountains, over rocky terrain, with a 40lb load with holes worn in the sides of the toes and volcanic ash (abrasive) kept getting in, plus I had to ford a few rivers, so I had wet feet from time to time.

But again, FFs happen to be for me and I have spent years in them. I think they really do take a lifestyle change to be beneficial because it doesn't take long for your foot muscles to atrophy if you aren't using them constantly. Also the fit is SO different across all the different models; it can be a bit of a Goldilocks hunt to find just the right pair for you, and sometimes that isn't evident until you've worn them a while.

Camino Chrissy · Mar 20, 2017

jastrace said:
There is at least one other thread somewhere on these forums that also discusses this. I think it is a few years old.

In any case ... feedback.

I purchased a pair of five fingers in September last year to test, the following:
1. suitability as a 'wet shoe' to use on the beach, snorkeling (to replace neoprene booties) etc,
2. for a possible replacement to sandals / flip flops etc on the Camino, and
3. for a possible replacement to hiking shoes or boots on the Camino.

Short version: not suitable for any of the above, for me.

Reasons:
1. Despite mine fitting superbly, they are essentially cool looking little blister factories when worn barefoot. This might be alleviated with finger socks (like Injinji), strapping tape etc.
2. The other issue is that they are a bugger to get back on because you have to line you toes up each time one by one and kind of wrestle them in.
3. They are very low profile and are excellent at collecting water, sand, pebbles etc.

There are other reasons why not such as lack of cushioning, no ankle support etc.

I can imagine the Spanish headlines : "Kiwi's break record for most number of blisters ever on the Camino!" haha.

Cheers,

Jason.

Thank you for the candid reply. Don't think I'm interested or intrigued by them now.

jpwu · Aug 21, 2023

howlsthunder said:
I've been wearing FiveFingers (FFs) regularly since 2007. I have owned over 20 pairs (various Sprints, Surge, KSOs, KSO Treks, Speeds, Spyridons, and Lontras) and unless its winter or really rainy and I'm not hiking, FFs are my daily footwear.

For me, FFs changed my life. I was pretty rough on my knees growing up and had struggled with knee pain since my teens. So when I tried FFs in my 20s, they were a game-changer. I could scramble up mountains again and not be crippled during the descent and for the following week. Being young, I was able to transition to wearing them full-time, slowly building up my foot muscles; arch/ankle support isn't an issue if your arches/ankles are strong. Not everyone can do this, though.

Since then I've done multi-day backpacking trips over very rugged terrain carrying a very heavy pack (35lbs+ - cold, volcanic wasteland areas where you have to pack in ALL your water). Tried it ONCE with boots, thinking my FFs wouldn't be enough - bad idea. I was in so much pain that night I didn't sleep. Now I backpack exclusively in FFs. The only terrain I can't handle well in them is asphalt, which has me worried a bit about my future Camino in 2018. :\

As far as socks go, unless I'm using them as rock shoes while swimming, I wear Injinji socks with FFs. I mostly wear socks because it prevents the shoes from getting stinky. The ONLY pair of mine I've ever gotten blisters in are the 2007 Surges - it was an early model with poorly planned seams, otherwise I never get blisters and this includes a multi-day trip where where I went 26 miles in one day, up and down mountains, over rocky terrain, with a 40lb load with holes worn in the sides of the toes and volcanic ash (abrasive) kept getting in, plus I had to ford a few rivers, so I had wet feet from time to time.

But again, FFs happen to be for me and I have spent years in them. I think they really do take a lifestyle change to be beneficial because it doesn't take long for your foot muscles to atrophy if you aren't using them constantly. Also the fit is SO different across all the different models; it can be a bit of a Goldilocks hunt to find just the right pair for you, and sometimes that isn't evident until you've worn them a while.

For me the ff trek are the way to go. Even in the alps above 3000m in very rocky terrain.

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