Are Bikila VFF's a step in the wrong direction?

startingupagain

Barefooters
Jul 9, 2010
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I've been running in my Sprint VFF's all summer and running faster than I've ever run (just did a 10K practice run at a 7:35 pace), running more miles per week than I've ever run, running injury free (used to have deep hip pain from running causing me to give it up for two years) and having more fun running than I ever had running in my 48 years. I really like them.

I've also been running barefoot, but either because of running too many miles too soon, or bad form, I've had some toe blisters.

But then I read Jimmy Hart's really great review of VFF Bikilas, and worrying that I won't make it far into fall in my open top Sprints, (I live in Minnesota) decided to try them on at the place I bought my Sprints.

1) They look really really cool.

2) They feel cool.

So I ran around the store (its a big store) with one of my sprints on the right foot and a bikila on my left.

What a difference! The Sprint felt like I had a piece of flat rubber on my sole and the Bikila felt like a bouncy sponge. Compared to the sprint, it didn't feel minimalist at all. It felt like I was moving in the wrong direction, so I didn't buy them.

But now I'm not so sure and am thinking about what I want out of a shoe. In order,

1) I don't want hip pain (or other repetitive stress injuries)

2) I want to go fast.

3) I want to enjoy running.

I guess if I could achieve these wearing a bowling ball on each foot, I would be ok with that. I like barefoot or minimalist for the results I'm getting, not for themselves.

So has anyone gotten Bikilas and then started heel striking again or any other bad form that they weren't doing with other VFF's?
 
If you truly only like

If you truly only like minimalist running for the results and you've been running this way for a while you shouldn't have any real problems with switching to a different shoe. If you develop hip pain or any other issue you'll most likely be able to figure out why and correct your form accordingly. If you're really sure of your form you can even get away with wearing boat anchors, though I can't figure out any reason to want to wear those.
 
Yes, me.  I started

Yes, me. I started heel-striking in the Bikilas, and I didn't have that problem in my Sprints. Of course, I didn't give the Bikilas a fair try at them before I retired them (like right away), and running in the Sprints was ages ago.

I don't know if they are a step in the wrong direction though...for everyone. But probably so for me.
 
A major step in the wrong

A major step in the wrong direction. I finally got to see them in person, touch them, try them on, and to me it's no difference than a racing flat. It's basically a shoe.



I love my KSO's, and actually want to get a pair of sprints, but I think Vibram can actually go even more minimal than the sprints, etc. I think it would be a huge success.
 
Have you guys seen the Inov-8

Have you guys seen the Inov-8 Evoskins? That's about as minimal as VFFs could get. I can just see the compression taking place in those toe compartments and the hair being rubbed off this guy's feet. Yikes!

 
Now, I wasn't going to call

Now, I wasn't going to call them that... I said, "Self, you're a lady. Have some class." Hee.
 
TJ, some class would be

TJ, some class would be welcome, yes. :evil:
 
 Hey all, thanks for the

Hey all, thanks for the feedback. I guess for now I'll stick with the sprints and see what happens when it starts to get colder.

(It's supposed to be 38 degrees for the start of the Minnesota Marathon and 10 Miler on Sunday.)

If it gets to the point where, because of the cold, my choices are running in something that's more like running in a racing flat or not running, I may buy the bikilas and use them for that purpose only.
 
Where's the hiney smiley when

Where's the hiney smiley when you need it?
 
YES they are a step in the

YES they are a step in the wrong direction if you want to be a barefoot runner and perfect your technique. The Bikilas actually have a 1mm heel raise as well as removing any feedback from your soles to the brain.
 
I think you may want to look

I think you may want to look at your priorities because all of those would seem to fit for pure barefooting. Now if you want to add "staying warm" to the list, you can have your minimal shoes, even though it is possible to stay warm while barefoot. It is very possible to go fast while barefoot, and if you go faster in your vibrams than you could barefoot, it probably means your doing something incorrectly that your body is trying to tell you is wrong when your barefoot.

Also, what the heck is the point of those "foot condoms"? Those don't even look like they'd spread out gravel impact, or be any warmer. At that point why don't you just not wear any shoes and spare yourself the sweatiness? The most those could protect you from would be getting your feet dirty.
 
Danjo, I'm only guessing here

Danjo, I'm only guessing here but I think the point of the condoms are improved traction. Knowing Inov8's other performance stuff sticky rubber is their main selling point more or less and I'd have liked something like them on a few runs this past summer. I've had quite a few times where my feet have ended up a few feet from where I intended to step just because the mud I ran in was so slippery...
 
Didn't you read Stompers

Didn't you read Stompers blog? Toes are far better traction than any shoe could ever provide. Sticky rubber wouldn't help much in mud anyways. Just because some of the mud was slightly more stuck to the shoe doesn't mean the rest of the mud would no longer be slippery. I will agree that mud can be a problem though, because your foot try's to land on the top of the mud, but then sinks into it and ends up in a different place than it thinks it going.
 
I have had zero problems with

I have had zero problems with form changing going from bare to kso to bikila etc. I will have to argue that the Bikila is just like a racing flat. You're talking a max thickness of 7mm in the Bikila to an average of 12mm for some of the thinner racing flats. That's a big difference. I think the Bikilas get misrepresented by their feel because I felt the way you guys did when I first got mine. They were cushy and felt a lot like a shoe even though I could tell they were thinner. After a few runs the insole compressed and no longer feels cushy and the ground feel did improve. Now they feel similar to my kso but more molded to my foot.

If you are looking for winter footwear these will probably do you some good.
 
Danjo: The mud I've

Danjo: The mud I've encountered isn't the kind where you can dig in so toes are no help there. Only something stickier than human skin would find traction there or, if you'd go that route, spikes would also work. It's only slippery, not sticky.
 
Spikes would help, but you

Spikes would help, but you could super glue your feet to the mud and it wouldn't get you any more traction. The only time sticky would help would be ice, but not that much stuff actually sticks to ice. (And when I say sticky I mean the shoes are sticky, not the running surface.)
 
 I really, really, wanted to

I really, really, wanted to like the Bikilas, but they did not work for me. I probably run minimalist more than BF, so I'm not a hardcore all the time BF'er, but the Bikilas did weird things to my feet and the rest of me. They made my bunion hurt, and it had not hurt since I had been Bf'ing. My toes went numb. I had a really sore spot at the Morton's toe spot and it scared me, and when I stopped Bikila'ing, I stopped having pain again. Seriously not good. Perhaps they do work for some but for me, I need almost nothing to keep my form okay since it is sort of crappy to begin with. Lunas are great although I may get some 4mm invisible shoes next time, and so were the original VFF classics.
 
the Lunas are great IF you

the Lunas are great IF you need something on the feet for a tricky circumstance...best thing i have run in next to BF