Good Morning out there! Today is an interesting post – but then aren’t all product reviews interesting? I love to try new things! Today you get to hear about my first run in my Injinji Performance Mini-crew Toe Socks!
One of the things I have been asked over and over in wearing my Vibram Five Fingers, is “Doesn’t having things between your toes drive you nuts?” Well, with the VFFs alone? No. The Injinji socks are a bit thicker than the VFFs and I DEFINITELY feel them compared to just the VFFs. This was to be expected, though it annoyed me as I walked around in them. I was not going to let this get me down, as running in something is very different from just wearing them. The VFFs were very noticeable when I first started wearing them, but now I don’t notice them.
Putting them on is interesting. You don’t just pull them on like normal socks, and the difference is even larger than VFFs vs normal shoes. Each toe has to be put in the appropriate pocket, with the toe-pocket pulled all the way down to ensure there is no wrinkling and that everything is fitted properly. The socks are quite stretchy, so it’s not a problem, just a difference – much like putting on the knit stretch-gloves, vs putting on mittens.
It was a beautiful day out, so I decided on a 5-7 mile run. I thought that the little bit extra cushioning for the socks might be just the thing for a long run (I’m not in top shape.. 5 miles is my current “long” run). I headed out the door to do my warm up run. The first thing I noticed was that the tip of my toe was rubbing. (I saw the irony here considering I have read of many people wearing these to STOP toe rubbing issues). I pulled my shoe off, and after a quick adjustment continued on – without the rubbing. The socks are going to be very nice for the winter. The Bikilas are normally quite warm, but with the socks – it was even more toasty, although not bad enough to pay any attention to it once I got going.
Slight tangent (that does have some bearing) – At the YMCA Corporate Challenge I met another gentleman in VFFs. He mentioned he wore the Injinji Socks when he ran to avoid hot spots on his feet. (Now you get to see where the relevance comes in.) The main issue I saw in these, was that on my right foot I had a hot-spot under my big toe, and under the ball of my foot. I assume that after running in them a bit more, the hot-spot would fade as I got used to them, and will try it to see (and will let you know!)
Overall, they were pleasant to wear and added a slightly different feel to wearing the Bikilas without socks. I will try them out again in the future as I can see the socks making winter-runnig possible (maybe) in the VFFs. I would recommend anyone with VFFs consider picking up a pair to try for themselves!
I run, because I am a runner. Having realized that I have always "been a runner" - even when I went years with out running, I am learning how it has integrated itself in all aspects of my life. When I started running in highschool, my perspective on life changed. Funny that I didn't realize how much it had affected it until just recently.
Once and Future Runner 
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