My 3 Year Experience Running Barefoot | Vivobarefoot Review For Ironman Triathlon 

I had a similar experience with pain disappearing, but in a retail job where I was standing and walking around on concrete floors all day for 8+ hours. I was getting such intense knee and ankle pain by the end of my shifts, so I kept buying more and more cushioned shoes. Then I got promoted to the footwear manager in our store so I had to do some serious shoe research, and found barefoot shoes. Thought hey why not give them a shot? Bought a pair of vivo's and the first day wearing them on an 8 hour shift all my pain was gone and my feet didn't feel dead by the end of the day. Then I had so much trouble selling ultra-cushioned shoes to people in my job because of my experience. I've never looked back.

So great to see another triathlete review Vivo thanks for the video

I started wearing Vibram five-finger shoes back in 2008 and loved how they felt (and always got comments from strangers about them.) Great barefoot shoes. The Vivo Barefoot shoes are also very stylish and comfortable.

I bought a pair of vivo's last September and have wore them exclusively since to run in. No issues at all I have better ankle mobility and balance. Did a 50k trail run in April and just finished a iron man last month running in them best shoes ever!

Interesting experience. Got a pair of Merrell Vibram sole, will test it running soon. I usually run with NB minimum drop, great for cushioning, knees/ankles are thankful. Walking they are incredibly light and comfortable. Wasn't sure about your pair, many commented about boosters in the area of the heel... I'm glad to see your review and total satisfaction.

I have original FiveFingers and have used for some running too. These look a lot more forgiving. Now I use Astra for long runs mainly. I use the 1st gen Zoom Fly for track sessions and races. I've tried the 3rd gen ones too, but they are slower when I run. Shoes are defiantly individual things. You are lucky to have found the ones suit you so well. I might give it a go too.

I appreciate the information. I will not be running but walking and using these at work. I know for me it will be better for me.

You summed it up perfectly Lewis! I have a few pairs of Vivo shoes myself. They made my feet aware of what was going on under them, they corrected many issues I was having. Back pain, I was prescribed orthotics, hated them, so I started researching, read Born to Run by Christopher McDougal, less was more seemed to be the mantra. Every shoe I have now is a zero rise with as thin a sole as possible. My only complaint with Vivo is the soles on 2 pairs perished - literally cracking from drying out - from who knows what. Yours, while they look quite worn, still look serviceable. Maybe I got the two pairs with a bad mix of materials for the soles. Vivo customer service could not give a hoot, even after I offered them the shoes with no expectations of getting a new pair or two on the house, I simply wanted an analysis of why the soles perished while soles on my other pair of Vivo's - and other much less expensive shoes I have never had this happen. Live and learn, I had the hightop pair resoled with a thin Vibram sole. Not quite as flexible now but I still get great feel underfoot. Thanks for posting this very explanatory review. I have subscribes!

AAAAAA YOU CONVINCED ME TO GET MY FIRST BAREFOOT SHOES! THANKS SO MUCH

I had knee pain and was suggested by my Chiropractor to try barefoot. I approached it similar to you and just went all in, except I started without shoes. This worked for a bit as I mainly ran about my local park which was clean of litter and such but I eventually found myself getting random bits of glass or metal rubbish puncturing my foot when I ran elsewhere. Stick and stones are fine it's just the man-made litter that causes an issue even with hardened skin (you create a natural barrier of hard skin when running barefoot it's quite amazing). Since I wanted to run without getting splinters or cuts I went and spent $200 AUD on Vivo barefoot shoes, which have lasted AGES. Really worth the money for me and my barefoot-style running journey. Recently I have tried the cheaper Merrell VAPOR GLOVE 5 barefoot-style shoes which have proven really great as well over the past couple of months.

biology has developed us for thousands of years as the most efficient runners in the world and along the way we managed to fuck it up, who would have thunk that running barefoot was best?

nice video. I have got Altra Lone Peaks to run my first 57k race as a gate way to transition to vivo for the added protection on the trails. I do walk around every day and lift in the vivo stealths. love them

Once you transition to minimalist shoes there is no turning back, right? I had a similar journey almost a year ago when I transitioned from "conventional" running shoes to barefoot style shoes. I have chosen the Vibram Five Fingers KSO. Since day 1 I am only running in them. My feet got stronger, I have much better mobility and overall my running form has also improved. Recently I have also bought a paid of Merrell Vapor Glove as a daily shoe, super pair also.

Now you just need bont cycling shoes in double wide and you're set😉👍👌best thing I've ever bought for my cycling coupled with the new wahoo speedplay pedals!

I'm heading this direction because of my flattish feet and plantar faciitis. Liked your vibe and appreciate you base your opinion on your own experience.

i ordered some lems shoes about a week ago (not true barefoot but hopefully close enough) should arrive next week, i can't wait. i love being barefoot, and i've struggled with shoes my whole life. even the 'thin' shoes out there felt clunky and i felt unbalanced in them. nearly every pair i've ever had causes some sort of weird foot pain and blisters if I wear them for a long enough stretch (and this goes on for at least for the first couple months). it never felt right, and so i would avoid doing things that required shoes. often if i had to go out, i would just wear flipflops, which were more comfortable than other shoes in spite of getting in the way or still causing foot pain (flip flops require you to 'hold' the shoe on with your toes in a weird way). i love running, but i haven't ran in years because of how weird my shoes felt. i never tried to 'push through' that discomfort, especially not to the point of injury, because i could just TELL it was causing damage even if it didn't hurt at the time. i'm hoping i can start running again. or, if the lems aren't barefoot enough for that, at least let me go to the store feeling more comfortable and sure-footed while i try to find and save up for 'true' barefoot shoes. i've never understood how so many people wear all these weird shoes. big clunky sneakers, pointy toe boxes, tight material against the ankles, i just don't get it. and it boggles me every time someone mentions how 'ugly' barefoot shoes look. apparently after years of struggling with shoes, i just never found their fashionability worth attention, because whenever i see barefoot shoes, all i think is 'huh that looks comfortable'. i mean, some of the designs might be meh, but that's true for tons of 'normal' shoes, and the wide toe box sure as shit doesn't bother me....i don't get it lol

I bought my first pair of Vivobarefoot on sale to only use as a light, travel running shoes at first about 9 years ago. I have been wearing them on and off for a couple of years for running. I feel really great running in the barefoot shoes and recently decided that I only want to run exclusively in them. I have developed a gnarly callus / blister where I strike between my big and 2nd toe. People who are new to it should know it takes a long time to acclimate to barefoot running. I am glad you shared your experience and pictures of your shoes because when insoles started to get holey, I got really sad and went and bought a new pair on sale. Great to hear you and other people writing about long distances since I wasn’t sure if it was a bad idea to run / train a marathon distance in them. I really like the feedback that I get from the ground when I wear barefoot shoes. I noticed I run extremely sloppy and my feet feels heavy when I switch back to “normal” sneakers. Have you experienced bad blisters when increasing your distances?

As a teacher I spend all day on my feet in vivo barefoots and I spend all my time at home without shoes....I found the vivos too firm to run long BUT I think you get the benefit from them ie they work the muscles of your feet, correct your posture etc with the every day use. My fallen arches are 100% better, my back problems all but gone...I now wear altra to long walk/run in as zero drop and foot shaped. This seems to be a great combination that works in my little experiment of one (me). What I would say is be prepared for your feet to be soooooo tired when you first start working them, it made me realise the muscles in my feet had not done a bit of work for years. That goes after a few weeks and your feet feel stronger.

Lewis, Great video! As a triathlete, I wonder how this translates to cycling. Does it change anything for road cycling: shoe models, power output or cleat position or whatever? I can't find much useful information on that subject.

i have merrel vaporglove (trail barefoot running shoes) and I love it .. but only on the trails ... its definitely not for running on the concrete or asphalt.

Barefoot shoes are really expensive. I’ve just been wearing moccasins. I don’t run but at work or running errands. Moccasins. They’re not super wide but they stretch. I love them. It’s basically like wearing slippers out in public

My take is do your steady effort run workouts in a barefoot shoe to strengthen your foot and work on form. Use a cushioned race shoe for speed work and racing.

Great video, Ive been wearing barefoot shoes for nealry 4 years now and I love them but only for walking Ive never tried running but may give it a go now! Ive never tried the brand vivo, which is your favourite model of shoe from this company? :)

Thanks for sharing! I’m using Altras. I see the difference now of running in zero drop. Thinking of getting these for payment running.

Posture advantage is interesting.

I am transition....since useing minimal my feet have got wider so any normal race shoe I have do not feel comfy now atall and I've gave to my mum lol.....so I have started doing everything in vibrams or merrells even bough walkinb boots vivio ones ...as I will be running long distances tho I have bought altra race which I've just seen u also run in them...great to see others useing all these type of shoes instead of the space ship shoes that are becoming the fashion

very interesting!!!

I wore vivobarefoot trainers for a marathon last year. No issues. The previous year I ran the same marathon in reebok Nano's and had hip pain after the marathon. The vivobarefoot forces you to run on the front balls of your feet.

@LewisFordham do you plan to run the Ironman in the Primus Lite III? How’s the soles holding up? I was close to ordering some before reading of sole durability issues... separation from the uppers due to creasing and poor glueing. Wondering if I should proceed or jump to the SG lightweight trails, for road/treadmill running. Thanks!

For those who wanna give it a try: there are good minimal shoes for

Which brand are your glasses I like them !

I think it’s a good idea because if you did try to change to shoes with more padding you might get injured instead of feeling any benefits

At <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="290">4:50</a> in the video I feel the same thing as you. I overpronate when I run because of weak arches and an ankle injury I sustained from another sport gave me very bad ankles. At the time of the injury I didn’t understand how serious it would be and it wasn’t till i started to get knee pain everytime I went out running when I recovered, that I realised how bad my ankle mechanics had become. So I tried running in a water shoe I had laying around because I felt as though my shoes were causing me pain. The water shoes gave me a taste of minimal running and now I have Vivos. Long story short, I feel that when running in minimal shoes because the arch of your foot is being used it’s aligning your ankles when you land because when you tense your foot or make the space between the ball of your foot and your heel smaller, which is what would happen when your foot arch contracts (pretty sure 😂), your ankle aligns correctly if it’s not already. I’m far from an expert but that’s what I think happens! Great video, keep it up.

Ran my ultra in them, no blisters or issues.

You ran marathon in vivos? Wow, that's inspiring!

Lewis, thank you for this video, very informative. I’m only just diving into the rabbit hole that is barefoot shoes. You’re the first triathlete I’ve seen talk about them here. I only started running ~4 months ago, and am already on my second pair of (padded) shoes. I’ve been lucky and haven’t had any injuries, but safe to say the shoes I’ve had so far don’t blow me away. I’ve heard some people say they have trouble going back to regular shoes after barefoot ones. How do you find the feeling of cycling shoes now? Especially as they’re traditionally quite restrictive.

Hi there cool video :) Maybe a video about your diet? Or how you got into sports/marathons...?

Hi Lewis, how did you find the road version of vivo holding up in wet surfaces when running in the city, like the level of grip on wet footpath as well as grassed area like in a park? Im not sure if i need to get the trail version or road version for winter road running. The road ones don't seem to have lots of treads. Cheers

Thanks for a lot of inspiration! Will try to find a pair of my own now 🥳 What is your opinion on size? I have EU 42 in almost all casual shoes. What size have you found working for you - same as usual or smaller/bigger? Thanks in advance 🙏🏻

They are the answer for my painful flat foot

No issue. 4 time full distance ironman finisher here.

I own 5 pairs of vivos, 3 pairs of Merrell vapor gloves, and 2 pairs of xero sandals. They are all the only shoes I enjoy wearing anymore. I have altras but I now feel they have too much padding and are now uncomfortable to me haha

I am from Mexico and was always walking with tyre wheel sandals for a long time (and now I got deformed feet) nah just kidding. I can rely on barefoot shoes and they do a really good job. I would recommend a slow transition, short walks and increase. So far, they are amazing shoes and I really like them.

I don't run I walk. Picked up the exact pair you did for 50 quid on Ebay, as new. Two four milers then 14 miles last Sunday with no issues other than slight rubbing on little toe as they seem to crease in one precise spot as the foot bends. Many people buy then can't get on with so there's bargains to be had if you hunt around.

Most people don’t like it because they have become dependent on shoes for cushioning. I noticed the exact same issue with striking the ground causing knee and ankle pain. Did my first 5k in Tom’s! Vivian Barefoot 🦶🏾 is on the list of purchases in 2021

Had a pair of vivo’s for a couple of years now and still going strong, use them to walk in mainly, haven’t had the guts to run in them yet cuz getting injured is a concern

The lack of cushion forced me to be mindful of my impact on the ground and my form. So like, they forced me to run consciously and that stopped my shin splints, knee pin, and ankle soreness.

Anyone else having issues with sizing? I ordered a US 12 which I am in normal shoes.. they feel big, but I’m not sure if that’s just how they are? Anyone else experience this? I doubt that I am a size 11. In US shoes, the smallest I could ever go is 11.5 and vivo doesn’t do 1/2 sizes

Would you suggest the primus lite or their trail shoes as your first barefoot run shoes?

I just wanna see if anyone has ever done ultramarathon distances in barefoot style shoes or if after a certain distance is that cushion something most people would probably prefer

I just got the Primus Lite II Bio. First impression is they don't really match the shape of my foot very well at all. They're quite long and narrow. I'd like to go a size or two down in length and one or two up in width, especially around the ball of foot. It's pinching my foot there (even if I completely loosen the laces; the shoes' tongue is pretty short and doesn't reach very far down the forefoot). It's possible the fabric will stretch with use and wear and that'll make the the width ok. The length might be more of a challenge. I don't mind the extra space per se, but I'm concerned about "stubbing a toe" on asphalt, which happens when the shoe is too long and/or doesn't have enough curvature at the tip to make a clearance. Given the weather, I'll be running on snow, ice, and wet slush tonight and won't know about grabby asphalt anytime soon :)

I own a pair of Vivobarefoot shoes. After about 50 miles, the soles cracked and started to fall apart. Vivobarefoot did NOT stand behind their product. Check out the 1 star reviews on the Vivobarefoot website and you will see that many others say that they don't stand behind their shoes.

Do you find they fit smaller or larger then say nike?

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

What about barefoot shoes for races (10k, marathons)?

Do you personally think you are able to sprint in them ? Like a quick burst of a 40 yard dash ?

How fast can you run a 5k or 10k i vivos?

How long is your longest foot in cm and which size did you get?

Actually better to start barefoot on smooth hard surfaces rather than grass. It really forces you to have a good form

what would be a good way to work up to wearing vivos? (I'm usually barefoot/socks around my home but in public I wear converse/vans/nike)

I start running barefoot a few months ago and I just love it ! Do you wear only barefoot shoes for ur everyday life?

Has anyone ever gotten stress fractures from these? I did a few years ago using five finger shoes but want to give these a try

What shoes are you using on your bicycle? I have wide feet and all the cycling shoes are stiff and narrow and my feet don't feel too well after longer rides.

Hey, with a video like this it would help to put chapter timestamps.

I switched to barefoots about 5 years ago.. After a lot of research, I was the usual foot and knee pain case.. so first for walking and casual, but then some 3 years ago after a terrible ankle sprain in traditional basketball shoes I dumped them and started playing ball in barefoots too.. Lighter, faster no join pain, no sprains! I'll never wear anything else.

I use a rang of Nike running shoes but it’s about comfort personally. If they help you to consistently run then that’s what matters right 🏃‍♂️

So you run on concrete in minimalistic shoes with stack of 4mm? What is max distance?

im super curious to try but so worried ill spent my running shoe budget and end up with pain due to lack of cushioning, what if I just can't run on the balls of my feet continuously. One way to find out I suppose.. benefits seem to outweigh the risks overall

How's running with the sg version on hard rocks, mountains and so?

I have 2 pairs of of vivobarefoot shoes - primus lite ii & Gobi ii. Love them. Been using them for everyday walking and life for 1.5 years now. But I still am running in 4mm drop or less Nike and/or saucony trainers. Suffered a tibia stress fracture this winter. Still kinda in recovery. Not sure minimalist shoes will help with +40km/week running. But thinking of trying a little harder with the vivobarefoot shoes for running soon :)

Do cushioned running shoes really last only 120-150 miles?

What is the advantage of a barefoot shoe over a bare foot?

Bro, should we use socks while using barefoot shoes? 🙏

Sounds like you may have overdone it in those early days?

Any tips on sizing?

"a set of these" but what model vivo is it

You get about 500 miles out of cushioned running shoes so you got 3x the use from your barefoots, not 10x. Still great but you can buy running shoes for £40 if cost is a real issue, which is a third of the cost of vivos. Barefoots look good but I'm considering them for all the reasons you mention, not to save money.

"This is just my experience" = Drink!

Great video man. I wish I could wear these shoes. I have big very very wide feet sz15 6 EEEEEE wide with very fat wide toe that are equally straight across making my foot very very extremely wide. With my foot being 6 1/2 inches wide from my big toe to my little toes they do not make it a shoe , sock, or boot that is wide enough for my foot. The only thing that barely fits and I mean barely fits on my foot is flip-flops which barely fits because my toes are wider than the flip flop strap. So there is a lot of times which is 95% of the time I am barefooted 👣. I wish they would make a shoe that is wide enough for somebody who has a foot that is 6 1/2 inches wide. I wish my toes were at a 45 degree angle like everybody else's toes instead of being equally straight across maybe I can find some shoes that will fit my foot. It really really sucks having a very extremely wide foot with fat wide toes that are equally straight across. Great video thank you for sharing it.

Mine is taking lightyears to arrive lol.

Why bike or run when you can fly ‘Arry!

These must be wizardry shoes - Harry Potter is advertising them. (I'm sure you've never heard that before)

You run faster and more efficient barefoot, Like how a local Tarahumara woman won a 50km in barefoot sandals and a dress, and how the best runners in the olympics are africans who grew up running barefoot.

Humans were not made to wear 2inch thick shoes. Nowadays people wonder why they have ankle, knee, leg, hip, back pain and injuries. Once you understand this, you are cured.

Made in China

Well, that's one experience. My experience? I hurt myself seriously using merrell barefoot shoes. Never again.