I ordered a pair of Nike Free 5.0 shoes the other day and from the moment I put them on I realized
how much better technology not only makes our minds, but our feet as well!
The whole idea behind the “Free 5.0” Nike’s is that, even though you are wearing shoes, it feels like you are going barefoot. Nike pulls off that idea in a grand and incredible way.
Here’s how:
The 5.0 shoes come with two inserts: 5.0 and 4.5. You are supposed to use the 5.0 insert first because it has more padding for the balls and heels of your feet.
Then, when your feet are stronger, you put in the 4.5 soles that have no extra padding and then it really feels like you are walking barefoot.
I went right for the 4.5 innersoles because the 5.0 inserts felt like I was wearing regular shoes. I’m already big on barefoot so I felt my feet were strong enough for the 4.5s.
The 4.5s do make you feel as if you are walking barefoot.
Amazing!
The Nike Free shoes are super lightweight.
There is no rigid heel cup to stabilize your ankle. In fact, the entire heel cup is feathery mesh that offers 100% no support and you wouldn’t want it any other way.
The key to the “barefoot” feel of the shoes is the special tread.
The tread has deep cuts in it and the sole is divided into lots of squares
like a raw slab of tiny bathroom tiles without the grout, so any direction your foot wants to flex, the sole will bend to the will of your foot instead of your foot bending inside the rigid hull of the shoe.
The feeling you have wearing these shoes is magical!
I was walking around Manhattan all day yesterday and I could feel the sidewalk beneath me as if I were walking barefoot. I could feel pebbles
and stones and tar.
When I went up the stairs my toes could grab the edge of each step if I wished. I was stable. I was secure. I was, indeed, giddy!
The real magic seeps out when you’re just walking around the house.
Bye-bye flip-flops. Bye-bye filthy barefoot feel in a dirty apartment house garbage room. Hello Nike Free 5.0! Your feet don’t sweat because the entire shoe is covered in ventilation. It doesn’t feel like you are even wearing shoes.
Nike Free 5.0 are made to be worn sockless.
I find that idea entirely gross because it is easier to wash your socks than to wash your shoes on a regular basis, so I always use socks. I think the fit and feel of the Nike Frees is better with socks.
Beware there are a lot of different “Free” styles out there from Nike. There are cross-training “Frees” that have an extra strap across the top of your foot. The women’s version is frillier than the men’s version I present here.
Remember, when you buy Nike shoes you go up a size from your regular shoe size. So if you normally take a size 10 shoe, the size 11 will fit you in the Nike realm.
I like my Nike Free 5.0s so much I bought a second pair with mainly grey and a little bit of blue and I’ll never go barefoot without shoes again!