Vivobarefoot or Altra Running Shoes? This Will Make Your Decision Easy… My Review Of Both!

hello and welcome back to my channel um not another day of triathlon training actually this video is going to be slightly different we're going to be talking about these two sets of shoes i've got the vivo premise light 3s i think they are and the ultra escalante pro racers why am i going to be doing a comparison on these two shoes well about five or six months ago i made a video explaining why i run in these shoes which is the vivo barefoot shoes which are very very minimal issues um in that video i got about a million comments saying that a lot of people choose to run in these shoes obviously these are a little bit more padded um but they're sort of similar in that they're made for your more natural style or natural foot type of running so after having make it made that video decided to look up what these ultras were and why i got so many comments on them so they look quite good pick myself up a pair and i've been running in these for a few months now and so i have a good idea of what they're like and so forth why not do a comparison to see why you might want these shoes and why you might want these shoes something that i'm not going to do in this video is tell you which ones i think you should buy i'm basically going to talk about the pros and cons of a few different things of each shoe and let you make your own decision this is just going to sort of be my experience of how i found each shoe and then you can make an educated decision as to which one you might want and which one might suit you a little bit better i've made a list of a few points that i want to cover on my phone i'll leave these timestamps in the description below so if you want to skip to any one of them you can basically what i'm going to be covering is the weight and quality of each shoe the comfort and the feel and sort of the overall size of the shoe the speed and performance of the shoe the cost and durability of the shoe and then basically what i kind of use each shoe for because i do still run in both shoes now and i do still love both shoes so yeah so that's what i'll be covering again talking about the pros and cons of each of them sort of subjects you can skip to them in the description below by looking at the time stamps so first thing first i'm going to talk about the weight and sort of the quality of the shoe i am no shoe expert nor a running expert so take this with a pinch of salt but i'm just going to talk about sort of my impressions of each firstly let's talk about the weight um interestingly if you did watch my first video on my vivo barefoot shoes you'll know that the reason i or one reason why i really like these shoes is because they feel really light it almost doesn't feel like you're wearing a shoe i was worried that buying these obviously they look a lot chunkier if you compare them that these are going to be really heavy in comparison these the viva barefoots came out at so this is for the right shoe both size nine same size this one came out at 236 grams the ultra came out at 237 grams so they are literally one gram difference and that can be made up of several different things they're basically the exact same weight in terms of quality um you again if you haven't seen my previous video on my vivo barefoot shoes you'll know that these shoes lasted me i had a set before these and they lasted me maybe two or three years durability wise that's pretty good a lot of running shoes don't tend to last as long as that i have done a lot of miles in both of these i've done marathons in both and yeah and they both at the moment seem to be held holding up well probably done 600 miles in these shoes these shoes the ultras i've probably done more like 150 miles in these the only wear that i have found on these which is probably the way that i run is obviously in the center mid foot as you can see here the sort of tread is i suppose is is slightly wearing and again likewise on the outside heel both seem to be wearing a bit obviously the vivos are wearing a little bit more but again that's because i put more miles on and that's probably just where i drag my feet slightly so that's probably quite hard to avoid but in terms of like the tops and the soles and everything everything else seems to be you know holding up really well the next thing i want to talk about is the comfort um sort of the feeler shoe and the size of the shoe um again i started off running in the vivos these i actually so i'm a size nine i wear size nine in every other shoe in vans in whatever i'm wearing i tend to go for size nine these come out in terms of a size nine come out slightly larger now i say larger i think the reason being is that these are quite wide on the toe box so that makes them feel slightly larger although they're not they're probably actually more true to a size nine foot shape um again because they're sort of molded to be sort of a more sort of accurate foot shape i suppose than like vans that say they feel a bit larger but i don't think they're actually larger they're just sort of more of your foot shape so it feels more roomy i hope that makes sense um but in terms of like length for the foot and stuff they were spot on fit my foot perfectly i run running these quite loose so i slip them on and off they're laces but i slip them on and off every time i use them and they're more roomy and that kind of just gives me again a more natural feel something that i had found running in other shoes was a size nine is actually really narrow on the foot and again i was worried that these are going to be too narrow on my feet on like sort of around the toe box they're not they actually both feel sort of exactly the same on my foot they're both near enough the exact same size do a bit of a comparison they feel absolutely no different on my foot or poverty apart from the sort of padding yeah i've no blisters no issues at all slip these straight on and they were just as comfy as these so i think size wise they're again sort of more for that natural foot runner so they're both you can probably tell if i show you like this they're both sort of the similar sort of shape obviously one thing to note uh for sort of comfort and feel these obviously have quite a large padded bottom bit um these don't these have minimal absolutely nothing on the bottom so although they feel the same like around your foot underneath the foot so on the sole of the foot they do feel a lot different this obviously having a lot more padding feels i suppose more comfortable especially if you're on sort of stony pavements or slightly rocky roads or not so smooth tarmac again if you're not used to running in in something that's got such a thin sole these are going to feel a lot more comfortable it's not to say that neither one are better but definitely comfort in terms of what you can feel in the floor um you can feel less in this as opposed to this which is quite obvious but again a lot of people might prefer having sort of that um neuromuscular feedback or whatever the term is of on the sole of your foot and in which case you might really like this but again it's up to you if you prefer something that's a bit more you can feel less on the ground this is the one to go for if you like the feel of the ground and this is something to go for but it comes with warning that these shoes do take a lot of time to get used to so don't just go out and start trying to do massive runs in these if you've never worn something like this before but that's less to the point that's quite obvious i more wanted to talk about how it felt around the toe box and just the general feel inside the shoe if there's any like tight spots in the shoe or loose spots or anything like that and they both feel surprisingly similar something that really shocked me actually i was expecting these to be a bit more tighter and feel a little bit more uncomfy than these because i've been running in these for so long but they were near enough identical like i said apart from that padding on the bottom of the foot you couldn't really tell a difference which really really surprised me um and i'm very happy about the other bit of padding they do have is inside the heel here so the viva bare foot shoes have like no padding around or ankle support or anything like that and the ultras do have a little bit padding around the heel again because i run both shoes quite loose i don't really notice it it hasn't given me any blisters or sores or anything any problems i suppose it's not so much that his ankle support us but really in the ultras but um yeah like i say because i run them quite loose to give me an even more natural style of running um i haven't really felt any differences so to summarize that they're both super comfy one obviously has more padding on the bottom so if you're someone that maybe does a lot more longer running and want a bit more cushion on the bottom ultras if you're someone that likes that sort of response to the bottom of your foot and likes the more sort of barefoot type running as opposed to natural running then definitely the vivo's the ones to go for but they're both good in in separate cases like i said still use both for different reasons which will be coming on which i will be coming on to the next point i want to cover is speed and performance of each shoe this is where things slightly start to differ as opposed to the previous couple of points where they're pretty much the exact same i think they both have advantages and disadvantages in certain sort of aspects of running we'll start with the viva barefoot for sort of speed and performance yes this can be a very fast shoe if you're the right sort of suited style runner for it obviously be it being such a thin sole it encourages you to run more towards the sort of the front of the foot as opposed to the heel of the foot and it actually helps your cadence a bit more so the turnover of your feet because obviously you can't just slap the ground on these because it will hurt it encourages you to run with i suppose better form so in that sense these are really good for that and due to the fact that it makes you run towards the front of your foot and it increases your cadence you tend to find that that will actually increase your speed so running in something like this does help your performance and your speed um initially however if you're not used to shoes like this you the likelihood of you over doing it and getting injured is very very high like i say you need to train in these a lot to be able to do longer runs in these but i think for shorter runs potentially shorter easier runs or shorter sort of interval runs on softer services you if you're starting off then these will definitely definitely help increase your performance and speed and just your overall way of running i think and it's definitely something that i think all runners should incorporate into their sort of training program whether you use something like this or you use absolutely no shoe at all and do it on grass or maybe on the beach definitely think it helps with your running it certainly help with my running but yeah i do think that that's probably the advantages of this shoe the disadvantages being obviously that you could get injured and secondly unless you are really used to these and you really like these to have fast runs over longer periods of time um doing like um at some sort of like maybe a 10k half marathon marathon all out effort on these that can fatigue your legs quite a lot and you don't get as opposed to like your nike vapor flies or whatever they are the carbon base plates you don't get that that extra boost so for longer stuff not only will it fatigue your legs quicker and more it will probably potentially also pull back on your performance slightly however if you do train in these a lot and and you find that they work really well for you either on marathons and knees then then potentially performance you know will be okay but yeah for your more sort of beginner runners and definitely don't go out and do long runs in these these are probably more towards your shorter easier runs and like i say maybe if you want to chuck in a few sprints here and there um definitely worth it improves your your running sort of stride improves your foot health your general leg health and your overall running really but um be cautious now the ultra escalante pro racers again like i say these i've only been running in for a few months however i have seen significant improvements in my longer distance running with these because of that extra sort of padding and my previous experience running in fiverr barefoots my running stride is already quite good i would say um my form's pretty good with running so having that background and then moving into a more padded running shoe for the longer distances my legs don't become as fatigued so i can hold the faster paces for longer because you just got that extra support in the bottom of the foot and it doesn't matter if you start heel striking a little bit more over like marathon half man from distances it's really hard to stay right on your toes for the whole lot so definitely the longer distances i'll always run in these now um definitely longer distances if i'm trying to go fast as well it's just that extra cushion allows you to be a bit more lenient and and yeah it kind of helps keep that pace for a lot longer but as opposed to the vivo barefoots these because they've got such a soft sole can encourage bad running form um whereas the vivos because they're so hard they encourage good running form these you can become too lenient on that heel strike um and start slouching a bit more and it can in turn sort of start ruining i suppose your running form if you get too used to just hitting that hill and not picking up your cadence and stuff so i think a mix of both shoes will ultimately help improve your running form your speed and performance the next point that i'm going to touch on is the cost of each shoe um if you're interested in both shoes you probably already know the cost but these were about 120 pounds new i think um and these were the exact same so about 120 pounds they're both extremely similar in cots which makes them both very competitive with each other do i think 120 pounds is a fair price for both yes if you compare it to other shoes that potentially don't last as long especially ones with carbon base plates they don't last nearly as long as i think that these would last especially given the performance of both i suppose so these will perform a higher rate for a lot longer because you're not relying on that carbon base plate which could deteriorate i suppose so yes i do think they're worth that if you also i mean 120 pounds really for a shoe that's going to last you two three years maybe um i can't say that for this one as yet but i definitely know that these will that's not that bad i do probably over a thousand miles a year i don't think that's too bad and yeah i suppose that's all i can really say on cost is i don't think they're too bad 120 pounds for each you can probably find them cheaper if you buy them second hand but i don't think that's too bad for these shoes another zipper now the last point that i would like to cover is i've kind of already touched on it but it's what do i use each shoe for what would i recommend you use each shoe for although i don't want to say go out and buy one shoe over the other it's up to you and how you run the wi-fi barefoots we'll start with that like i say these are brilliant for helping improve or keep your running form at a good high standard which i absolutely love not only improving your running form but just your general foot tendon your achilles your calves your knees it just helps with your general leg health which i think is hugely important especially for longevity and running i don't want to make i don't want to get injured or anything like that so keeping my general running health and running form as good as i can is so important to me and these really really help do that so for my sort of shorter maybe easier runs maybe towards the longer sort of hour and a half hour and hour and a half runs i will still use these if i've got any shorter sort of intervals i may use these as well but it'll probably be more for the easier runs just so i can really concentrate on my form and get the most out of wearing these as i possibly can then for pretty much anything else so definitely any race days definitely any efforts or bigger efforts i will use these just to try and get as much out of my legs as possible i want my intervals and efforts to be sort of as good as they can be and these will definitely give me that result i do feel a little bit faster in these and so due to that fact i will definitely use these because i think that overall if i can push myself further in my intervals and my uh sort of efforts then my the adaptation in my legs is going to be a lot more obviously and yeah and probably if i went for anything really long it's like two hour plus runs just for the fact that the comfort and they're a bit softer and less fatigue in the legs than the next day i can still train i'll probably wear these as well so overall really it's the shorter stuff that i want to concentrate on form and technique it'll be in these for anything longer and i want to concentrate on speed and pace it's these but that's not to say you can't use these for your shorter runs you absolutely can and it's not to say that you can't use these for faster stuff i have done in the past um i've only recently changed to these for the short for the sort of intervals and stuff so they both really coming to their own for their own reason do i recommend that you buy either one of these i think if you're to be honest i think if you're starting running you might prefer something like this just because of the extra cushion and then you can gradually increase and start working towards a shoe like this with by doing some sort of efforts outside on the grass but like i say i don't want to say go and buy either pair you might find that you've already got a running shoe that you really like which is a bit more cushioned and you want to go for something a bit more barefoot like i say i started in these and it's helped my running massively so i can't say don't buy these first buy these so yeah it's up to you and where you're at if you're running that's just sort of a bit of a comparison between both i absolutely love both shoes like i say i will definitely keep wearing both shoes i think if you're looking at becoming a more barefoot runner obviously take it slowly don't jump straight into doing long runs you do hear horror stories there's a lot of people getting injured but like i say if you can incorporate a little bit of barefoot running into your sort of running schedule i definitely recommend it it's it's helped my running phenomenally but yeah i think that's all i wanted to cover and hopefully that gives you a bit of an insight into both of these shoes um and the pros and cons as to why you want might want either issues and helps you make your decision as to which one you buy for your natural sort of style of running i suppose so yeah if you have any more questions about either shoe or any other shoe or any sort of training then let me know in the comments below and i'll make sure i get back to you if you haven't already please hit the like button and subscribe to the channel if you wish we are very very close to a thousand subscribers and i'd really like to hit that the cool little milestone for me so yeah make sure you do that if you enjoyed and i shall see you next time for some more triathlon related content [Music] god [Music]

Channel: Lewis Fordham

Views: 77,311

Keywords: vivobarefoot, barefoot running, altra, altra running, altra review, vivobarefoot review, barefoot shoes, natural running, vivobarefoot primus lite, running shoe review, barefoot, running, tips, running shoes, vivo bare foot, vivo, altras, altra escalante, shoe review, my experience, marathon shoes, runner, bare foot, pro racers, shoes, Minimalist shoes, Ironman training, Triathlon training, Triathlon, Ironman, Training, Ironman triathlon, Triathlon tips

Id: InBQwOlPgOQ

Length: 18min 55sec (1135 seconds)

Published: Thu Aug 12 2021