9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Probably my favorite shoe, December 10, 2009
This review is from: Terra Plana Men's Dharma Slip On (Apparel)
This is one of Terra Plana's "Vivo Barefoot" line, thin, snug-fitting moccassin-style shoes with an extremely flexible hard plastic sole. I have two pair of these shoes, in black leather, and I wear them semi-religiously. They're comfortable enough that I can sleep in them, yet (at least in black leather) professional looking enough that I can get away with wearing them to the office.
They're also my standard go-to shoe for my tai chi practice. There's a lot of foot-rolling precise balancing in tai chi, and the thin, flexible soles of these shoes give every part of my foot direct contact with the floor, which I feel really helps my training.
As to details:
1) Comfort. They feel more like slippers than shoes, or a hard-soled foot sock -- snug around the body of the foot, but wide enough for my toes to spread out a bit. I've fallen asleep with them on and woken up with my feet feeling fine. The only shoes I have that really compare for comfort are my chuck taylors (and those don't have as protective a sole, nor can I wear them to work when I need to look somewhat professional). They're pretty warm, too, at least for where I live (South Carolina) -- no snow boots or anything, but definitely comfortable at temperatures above freezing.
2) Fit. Snug. They run small, but that's a good thing -- you really want that "Second sock" feel with these. You may need to order a half-size or so up from your normal size, and you might have to try exchanging a size or two before you get the fit exactly right.
3) Durability. Pretty durable. Hand-stitched and solid. I wear mine nearly every day, and after a year and a half or so, my first pair have had a few stitches come loose in the toe (from when I didn't cut my toenails frequently enough -- like I said, snug fit), and there's a slight crack in the sole of the right shoe that I only noticed because I was inspecting them for this review.
4) Look. I get compliments all the time, and in a lot of different venues -- at work, at practice. I've even had other Vivo Barefoot wearers stop me in the street to talk about the experience of wearing them. They aren't a substitute for a real dress shoe, but they definitely work with business casual attire.
There's a lot out there on the 'net about how "barefoot" style shoes help your stance and foot health and so forth. I do find myself walking more on the balls of my feet in these, but beyond that, I'm not a doctor, and so I'm not going to evaluate those claims. However, I can speak for comfort, practicality, and looks, and this shoe (in black leather) excels in all three -- it strikes a great balance between a professional look, performance, and comfort.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
My favorite shoes, February 12, 2010
This review is from: Terra Plana Men's Dharma Slip On (Apparel)
I've never written a product review before, but I absolutely love these shoes. If you're looking at buying them, you're probably already sold on the idea of barefoot walking, and these are nice enough looking that I can wear them to work. I bought these because I am trying to run either barefoot or with minimalist running shoes, and wanted to improve my walking technique to match my new running form - nearly impossible with conventional shoes.
Main problem is that although the lack of a heel makes walking correctly easier (after retraining myself), my pants are all now about an inch too long and I end up walking on the back cuff.
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