Review on 👣 Unleash Your Feet's Potential with Vibram Five Fingers Men's V-Alpha Hiking Shoe by Keith Alvord

Let me start by saying that I have not been compensated in any way for this review. By the time you get to the end you might think it is, but this is my own 100% honest opinion. I've been wearing Vibram V-Alpha hiking boots for a week now. I feel competent enough to speak about good form and function. First, let me give you a little background story: I'm finding it increasingly difficult to find shoes that don't at least torture my feet. I was angry at the sadists who have been designing shoes for decades. No matter how soft the hiking boots are, they all squeeze the thumb and 2 smallest toes into a rounded tip. The 2 longest toes were always on top of the 2 smallest ones which turned sideways trying to fit in the shoe. The sideways rotation also meant they were trying to help my balance by pushing off the ground sideways instead of down like they were supposed to. This made my legs hurt and burn even when I was barefoot. About 3 months ago I broke the smallest toe on my left foot. In trying to find a comfortable way to deal with this, I've found that placing cotton between the broken toe and the adjacent taped toe gives me some comfort. I looked around for toe socks because the cotton balls kept coming off and the broken toe was rubbing against the neighbor. I've been wearing toe socks ever since. When I was looking for a new pair of toe socks, I came across the Vibram V-Alphas. I was intrigued and thought that if the socks were comfortable then the shoes shouldn't be any less comfortable. I have ordered a pair. I wear a size 10 in regular shoes so I ordered a size 10.5 to 11 because the site says they run a little small. The pair was too small and pinched my 5 toes against the inside end of the toe in the shoe. I could see the build quality so I ordered another pair (from AreaTrends) in the next size up (11-11.5). The fit of this pair was perfect. I sent the smaller pair back. The seller was very satisfied. Now I realize that I haven't measured my legs for a long time. Following the size chart in the details section (a section written by Vibram) I found that if I measured my left foot length (heel to longest toe) I would find the right fit the first time. These shoes are amazing! For the first time in so many years that I can't remember, my feet don't hurt in shoes! My poor jaded little fingers have their own place to protect them from their mean older brothers. In fact, they feel more comfortable in these shoes than barefoot! The information section of the site suggests that some people may find it difficult to adapt. I was lucky as I already spend as much time barefoot as possible so no adjustment period was needed. Now that I've been wearing them for a week now I'm noticing my pinky toes are getting stronger and getting upright again. They start pushing down to balance me instead of sideways. I never thought my feet wouldn't hurt again, but now they do. I really wish I had found her a long time ago. Too bad they aren't available in shoe stores. This will certainly make finding the right size easier. ;) I will never wear fancy shoes again. I will be buying more of these shoes in different styles as these are the only shoes I will ever wear my feet in again. When winter comes, Vibram also produces insulated shoes. Thanks to AreaTrends and Vibram for making my feet very very happy!