It stands to figure that even someone who wears shorts, right up through 20 degree weather, might eventually get cold feet. No, I'm not talking about the kind right before a wedding (which I didn't get, mind you, I'm happily married), but the literal kind- like where your feet feel like ice cubes because you're still wearing sandals in 30 degree weather. Even the most barefoot-dedicated among us likes to have toasty feet once it gets cold and my friends, winter is upon us!
I picked up the Vibram Five Fingers from Alpine Shop in St. Louis about four months ago now. At the time, we had ninety degree days, so running in the Five Fingers was no big deal- A little body glide in between my big toes and off I go on another run! But now that it's 40 degrees, the trails in my neighborhood have become a bit colder. Vibram advertised the Injinji socks as a performance toe sock, which was meant to be paired well with the Five Fingers, so I thought I'd give them a shot.
I picked up a pair of their Tetrasok performance series in the mini-crew (I tend to clip my ankles when I run, so it helps to have higher coverage than an ankle sock). At first, it took a little while to get them on, as with any new thing, you have to figure out a method to fitting each toe individually. While this might seem like an unnecessary waste of time, I assure you, it was worth the extra time with toe socks. Each toe was gingerly wrapped in Coolmax synthetic fabric, preventing the usual sweat between every toe. This was completely new to me (I'm used to sweating a lot on my feet) and a welcome change. Not only did my feet stay dry on my run, but I had toasty toes too! Since my first run with the Injinji socks, I have taken them out for another "test drive" in my pair of "regular" running shoes (a.k.a. non-five fingers) and they worked just as well.
Five Fingers wearers might well ask though, "will I have to go up a size just to fit the sock? I like the way my five fingers fit now, but I don't think they'll be enough room with socks." Fortunately, fellow free-toers, nope- sure don't. My five fingers fit just fine with the sock and if anything, were a bit more comfortable than before. On another positive note, I can now wear my five fingers more often because all I have to do is wash the socks!
I'll see about bit longer run hopefully this weekend (six miles?), but so far, here's to toasty toes!
