“Those are, um, quite the shoes,” my friend B said diplomatically, staring at my feet.
“Wow, you sure are, uh, taller today!” commented P, staring at my feet.
“I bet those are real…comfortable,” the night manager at the grocery store chirped, staring at my feet.
“Your mom has ROCKER shoes,” exclaimed my son’s friend C, staring at my feet.
For the past week my feet have been getting a lot of attention. Let’s put it this way, if this were the Emmys my feet would be Phoebe Price:
And all because of these hot little numbers:
The Lamis, in redThat’s right, after my post about walking, the MBT folks offered me a pair to try out, thereby fulfilling a long-term dream of mine! (Doesn’t everyone dream of shoes?) To prep for my full Masai experience, I practiced whining a bit less and pogo-sticking a bit more. And then one day the Present Truck brought me my Dorothy shoes.
The Good
1. They made me sore in weird places. Okay, that just sounds creepy but I think it was a good thing. I was especially sore in that muscle that runs up the outside of your leg, halfway between your shin and your calf. What, you didn’t know you had a muscle there? Me neither. Until it hurt. Also sore: all the little bones/muscles in my feet, my ankles and calves. I even felt it all the way up my hamstrings.
2. Roly Poly Olie! Anytime I ended up standing still for a moment, I amused myself by rocking back and forth. “Hmmm… why don’t they sell the store brand of frozen waffles in whole wheat?” rockrockrock “Does Eggo have a monopoly on whole wheat waffles or something?” rockrockrock “Maybe people here don’t eat whole wheat waffles” rockrockrock “But they eat lutevisk which is basically fish soaked in lye. You’d think a waffle would be manna from heaven to these people.” rockrockrock “Hmmm… why is that stock boy staring at me? Am I just that foxy?” rockrockrock “Oh, right, the shoes….”
3. They’re very cushiony. In pictures they look like they’d be really plastick-y and hard but in reality they’re quite soft and squishy. I went on a long walk with my kids while they rode their bikes and pretended that they ride with training wheels because they just love them not because they need them or anything – and the shoes did quite well. The next day I was sore in weird places (see #1).
4. Who doesn’t love something called “the anti-shoe”?!? It’s like I’m a rebel AND a soccer mom. Rad.
The Bad
1. I felt like they really rolled my ankles inward. I don’t know if this is supposed to happen or if I just have weak ankles. My husband even commented that it looked like I was standing on the insides of my feet and it looked painful. And it was.
2. They are very unstable. I know, I know, that’s their “thing” – making you work to stay balanced but seeing as I got the “athletic” style, I thought I’d be able to do something besides just walk in them. Turns out walking is hard enough. I jogged up and down my street but it felt perilous. I wore them to the gym but then took them off for kettlebells because every time I swung the bell it set me off rocking like a Weeble Wobble.
3. Reader M had a good point when he commented, “I have to admit that I’m confused about the purpose of learning to walk barefoot by buying big shoes and walking in them.”
The Ugly
1. They’re so dorky, they’re cute. Call them orthopedic-chic, if you will.
Want to try some MBTs of your own? The company is giving away a pair a day on their 30 Reasons To Walk in September!
You made me chuckle on your little “rockrockrock” debate. The shoes? They kind of remind me of Marvin the Martian…
i love the new look! (I usually read your posts thru my google reader, so I apologize if the new look is really now an old look)
anyway, the shoes are definitely funky. I would definitely fall over.
and you have no idea the memories you brought back with the Weeble picture!!! (sigh)
sounds like the shoes were a fun experiment on their own!
and maybe it’s a minnesota thing. i’ve definitely gotten store-brand frozen waffles out here in colorado. however, eggos are still superior. trust me on this.
These shoes are VERY popular in London. I’m kind of curious about them as I have a recurring ankle injury and I wonder if they’d help me strengthen those muscles. Your review is actually promising. But there’s no getting around the dork-factor with these. And they’re expensive. Walking around barefoot is so much cheaper!
Two things! I want those shoes if for no other reason than to “rockrockrock” in the frozen section.
Two, I hope I didn’t confuse you by changing up my blog title and template and skin and my profile pic and adding a blog. I am still Jenn n Butter. Lol!
Your comment on my page today got me thinking that I might have thrown you off a bit. I like to change things, but should really warn people first. Sorry!
Jenn
Could rockrockrocking soon become the fitness diva equivalent to moustache-twiddling?
TA x
Has anyone heard of RYN Shoes? Very similar to MBT but with air and shox cushioning rocking — they claim more support and energy. And I can see for myself they have a lot more style! This is really getting a lot of attention and excitement in Europe right now: http://www.ryn.ie Does anyone know where to get RYN sneakers or dress shoes here in the US?
Ooops, sorry, the giveaway at Cranky Fitness just expired!!!
But they’re still giving a pair away daily at the MBT 30 reasons site you mentioned.
Thanks for the review, I’d been curious about what they’d be like to wear!
whoa
you lost me at the run attempt.
you a brave woman.
video? 🙂
Jenn – thanks for clearing things up! I really was confused!! I was like “where’s the n-butter part of the duo??” It’s all clear now.
Cranky – sorry about that! I fixed it on my post!
MizFit – Oooh video! I should’ve done that.
heehee, i love how you can get a free pair of shoes and totally diss them, umm… I mean be honest.
I read your blog because you have balls 🙂
Lori… who is hurting this morning after her kettlebell workout with the trainer yesterday!
my friend, who is a super label-whore and wears Christian Dior and Gucci (not kidding) actually bought a pair of these in an attempt to walk away her cellulite, but she refused to wear them “in public” – only on long walks in the city. At night. That said, I’ve recently read that some doctors are saying MBTs can lead to pain and other problems in the feet, because they make your feet work in unnatural ways, so watch out!
Yes I dream about shoes.
I thought those MBT shoes looked pretty neat, but way expensive…But now I’m not sure I’d want them anyway; I’d probably just hurt myself.
I want those shoes just cause they’re crazy looking! I would definitely break something though. Thanks for reviewing! 🙂
Ever since my brother gave me an old pair of earth shoes, I’m careful of those bearing gifts 🙂
Thanks for doing the experiment! I’m staying on the sideline with these rock-a-billies!
Char – I want to see you in TurboKick tonite with those shoes on!!!
🙂
Those are great! Thanks for the awesome review. I actually do think the shoes are kind of cute as opposed to being ugly. Walking around in a pair of those would be FUN! I’d love to try them out.
It does seem rather odd that we need to relearn how to walk barefoot… what has happened to our culture that we don’t know how to do that?!
Finding muscles you never knew even existed is one of the best feelings I can think of.
I know what muscle you’re talking about! My right one gets sore from running on crowned streets – I think its due to my foot rolling inward more than it should, like with your shoes! Yea, I’m not a freak with strange soreness!
The shoes look very space-agey and funky, which is a plus. I’m afraid my klutzy self would fall over with all the rocking.
The rockrockrock commentary was hilarious, and I got a giggle out of the weeble too!
Strengthening the ankles is great…but given people have mentioned foot issues with these, I might stay away. Having had plantar fasciitis, I don’t want to spend all that money on shoes that might make it worse…
Weebles!!!! I love Weebles. (My sisters-in-law refer to their parents as the weeble-wobbles. Just a little fact you didn’t know you needed.)
Love the image of you rockin’ (literally!) the frozen breakfast aisle!
Believe it or not, I can just picture those shoes on your feet! Awesome!
I really want some MBTs, and I wonder if wearing my orthotics in them negates the whole barefoot walking thing. I might chance bringing them in and asking my podiatrist next week. If nothing else, I’d like to see the look on his face.
Please talk about the bodybugg next so that you can get one of those to try out too (that thing they use on biggest loser). I am anxious to hear a real review if the cal expenditure it calculates is accurate.
I’ve been curious to hear from a real person about how these work. I was kind of curious to try them, but not about to spend that kind of money on something iffy. Since I already have ankle issues, and tend to turn my feet inward a lot already, I think I”ll have to pass.
At the airport a couple months ago, I saw a woman wearing shoes that had springs on them. I had to stop and ask her about them. I can’t remember now what they were called, and I lost her card (it figures).
I just go barefoot as much as I possibly can. My mailman has stopped me when he’s seen me out to get the mail with no shoes (on concrete in Texas heat). He asked how I do it. I just say I’m from the Ozarks, and we don’t have shoes there.
I have really been wanting to try the MBTs out, but with the steep price tag not sure they are an experiment that is in my budget. Hate to spend that kind of cash on something I don’t know if I will like. Hmmm…the rocking while standing does sound pretty awesome though; I’m a fidgeter.
Got my MBTs a couple weeks ago, and I love the rockrockrock. I do have to pay attention while walking, concentrating on keeping my weight over my feet instead of throwing my feet out and letting the body “catch up.”
I don’t like that I seem completely unable to sense the real surface I’m walking on. While I’ll wear them on paved and stable surfaces, I don’t think I’d ever wear them on hiking trails, etc.
And in my current hot weather? these are HOT shoes. I’m hoping I enjoy them more when it cools down.
Another comment…
I gotta say that I’m starting to resent having to wear my shoes at the gym! Between yoga and kickboxing, 4 out of 6 workouts are shoeless. After a year, working our without shoes is feeling better than with them. Now for running, of course, I would keep them, but I sure would like to do the kettlebell and other weights without them.
After doing figure 8s around my legs with the kettlebell (and shoes), I found that little muscle you mentioned between the calf and shin was sore! I’m fairly certain that barefoot that wouldn’t have happened. Course, the kettlebellers wear those little slipper type things mostly… or barefoot. Rambling at this point…
oh, thanks for the heads up on the mbt giveaways at their site *crosses fingers* i hope i win, cuz i’m greedy like that.
I like the new look… =) Soooo the BIG question is… is whether or not your actually like the shoes? They’re amusing, sure, but they roll your ankles? Ouch. I just walked by a store front in Ashland, Oregon that was selling them, and thought of you and Mizfit. Are they worth it? What about them compared to those nifty five-finger shoes…?
I would love to try out a pair of RYN shoes. I would love to so much that I ordered a pair online from Feet First Fitness.com – the first sponsored link when I googled “RYN”. I paid $240 to them online on 2/18/09, and never received any acknowledgement of the order, although the money was immediately charged to my Visa card. I wrote them on 2/24 and asked them for a tracking number. They replied the next day that although their website had indicated the shoes were available in my size, they were in fact not available, and they would be issuing a refund. Waited several days; no refund. I called and emailed – they responded on 3/03 that the refund had been issued but it would take a few days. Waited 7 more days; no refund. I emailed and called, and now they no longer respond at all. I have reported the fraudulent transaction to Visa, and strongly urge anyone considering buying RYN shoes to stay away from these scammers. You will never see the shoes or your money again.
Dear Dianne,
For the last five years we have successfully advised, consulted & fitted thousands of exceedingly satisfied customers worldwide for RYN and other natural foot strike technologies.
We very much value your passion for RYN and we share that; however you have no right to slander our business in the manner you have chosen.
Although we endeavor to constantly improve our online product presentation, online fitting and service operations, admittedly we will never quite be able to offer the equal services of a professional local brick & mortar store. Dealing with the imperfection of thousands of miles and the massive demand for RYN Footwear it so happened that in your case unfortunately your order was unfulfilled. As you know you have been refunded in full and have received a store credit for your inconvenience.
We also understand that you were able to fulfill your original objective and get fitted with a pair of RYN shoes elsewhere and we are glad to hear that.
Sincerely,
http://www.FeetFirstFitness.com