...or do MBT shoes just look flipping odd?

[duchesse]

Am thinking about investing in a pair to regain condition after breaking my ankle and being sofa-bound for 7 weeks (think flabby tummy). Been looking at MBT shoes and wondering if they might be any good, but they just look damned ODD to me. Anyone got them? Are they worth looking odd for?

An acquaintance of mine wears them whilst running marathons, something which he does with alarmingly stupid regularity, duchesse, and then he runs home afterwards.

Home several miles away...

Insane I tell ye, insane!

Hideous, yes, and make you walk funny (the point of course). But absolutely great. Mine are particularly great because I got them half price in the Sweaty Betty sale.

Well, what's a few miles more Valhalla?

So verdict, ladies, so I don't I? And will I fall off them and rebreak my ankle?

Hopefully you won't fall off them! I think if you do buy them, start out slow, by wearing them for short periods of time. Actually, I think they say that to everyone, dodgy ankles or not. Because they force you to walk differently, you can become tired in the beginning. Maybe you could ask your gp/physio/someone dealing with your ankle?

I saw a woman wearing those fivefingers one day. With a skirt. No matter how rude I must've looked, I just couldn't stop staring. And staring. Possibly with my mouth open

Well I now have in my possession a brand new pair of fitflops! So far so good, I haven't fallen off them yet and they're really comfy. I can tell they're making my legs work harder already.

duchesse just to warn you, my mate calls FitFlops a 'gateway drug' to full-on MBT wearing. They're sooo comfy, you can never go back :)

IME Birkenstocks are much better after a broken ankle.

Blackcurrants- I can see that. So very, very comfy...

I really want a pair of the Vibrams . I keep looking at the website.

Would love MBT's too, so expensive though.

Be careful on them, that's all I'd say - and that's from the experience of a fearfully badly broken ankle that, 5 years on, remains far from right. My osteopath is not at all keen on FitFlops or MBTs for people recovering from ankle fractures.

sorry to hear about your ankle Gloria.

In contrast though I will often flip over my ankle when walking (not sure if that is the right way to express it, but you know when you are walking along and then your foot twists sideways on your ankle - very ouch!), but it's NEVER happened when I've been wearing MBT's (touches wood) - I find them very stable.

I loved my MBTs and when I can afford some (and find a pair that aren;t too ugly!) I will be buying another pair - most comfy shoes I've ever worn, they did help my posture and was also a real workout for my legs.

I would make sure you go to a proper shop to buy them though so that you are fitted properly