Women's Nike Free 5.0 v4 ($149)
Yesterday evening’s inaugural Nike Run Club SG run was Free Fun in a couple of aspects.
First, most of the 30 runners — including celebrities Julian Hee, Jessica Tan, and Jack and Rai; top athletes like Mok Ying Ren and Vivian Tang; recreational runners like my ST colleagues — got to try out the new Nike Free 5.0 v4 shoes on the 5km route from Nike’s Wisma Atria flagship store to Botanic Gardens and back.
The shoe is Nike’s latest in its Free range of barefoot running shoes, and comes in blue (above) for the women and neon yellow for the men. There have been mountains of discussion and some research about the benefits of using such shoes as training aids — less injury, greater strength in feet and leg muscles. And, I can attest that it does indeed work just by the muscle aches that I get after running just 5km in the Nike Free that felt more like running 20km in regular running shoes. I don’t recommend you do your long runs in the Free unless you are super duper efficient and have knee cartilege to spare, but for shorter runs and running drills the Free is an excellent shoe. Remember to ease into the shoe over time to allow your body to get used to it.
Second, the run, which will take place every first and third Wednesday of the month at 6pm, is free. For absolutely nothing except registering and showing up, you get the fun company of runners, guidance by Racer’s Toolbox coaching and Team FatBird pacers, product trials, post-run goodies (like chilled mineral water and Milo and Subway sandwiches and cookies) and the occasional free swag. .. and the health benefits of getting of your ass and working your heart. Yeah, so you have no excuse not to turn up at Nike for some sweaty fun.
I had fun. It was a good end to a day of running, which began at about 6.15am with an easy 10km with Damo. I carried on after he stopped, picked up the pace till I got to Mt Sinai, where I did three loops (with effort) of the 1.2km hilly lap round the housing estate, with 2min rest in between each rep. By the time I’d jogged back by the Ghim Moh canal and caught Damo just boarding the bus to work, I had run for 1h 51min. Prolly an 18-19km run in total.
The evening run began with me taken a slightly longer-than-straight route to Wisma Atria, down Holland then through Tanglin, Jervois, River Valley. With traffic light stops it took me 41min to get to Wisma, prolly slightly less than 8km. So, that made it 13km for the evening. About 31-32km total for the day. I didn’t jog back home — I took the bus instead, with two bags of Nike stash (thanks Andrew!) in hand.
I decided to split my long run into two sessions yesterday, following some advice Ben had given me last year. He said it’s good to split super long runs into two sessions spaced within hours of each other so that you get pretty much the same training effect but with less tiredness. I agree. My legs feel fine today, though I will be giving it a break by doing some swimming instead today.
Anyway, try out the Nike Run Club SG runs and let me know what you think. Find out more here.
6 Comments
Interested in trying out barefoot running shoes. How did the Nike Free compare to the Vibrams?
hey shaun,
the Nike Free was definitely more cushy than the Vibrams, so would be more suited for people just starting out with barefoot running. the Vibrams basically is just a piece of thin rubber between the sole of your foot and the ground, even walking in them needs some getting used to! i wouldn’t recommend the Vibrams for running till you’re really used to running barefoot. of course i’d recommend the Vibrams for other things, like hanging out, water sports, climbing, core workouts and getting reactions :-)
you might want to try the Nike Free 7.0, which has still a bit more cushioning than the Nike Free 5.0. The Nike Free 3.0 is even less cushioned than the 5.0. how Nike terms the shoes is 10.0 would be a regular running shoe like the Nike Vomero and 0.0 would be going absolutely barefoot.
hope this helps. good luck with your barefoot running! i love it. it makes you feel like a kid again.
jeanette
Hi Jeanette! The Nike Free 7.0 intrigued me, but I wonder if the cushioning is sufficient for heavier runners like myself. (I weigh 62kg for a height of 1.62m.)
Furthermore, is Nike Free 7.0 suitable for over- or under-pronators?
I’ve tried running barefoot (no shoes) on the track and my calves burnt like hell. :)
Cheers!
Hi Diane!
Thanks for dropping by.
First let me state that I’m no expert in shoes and can only speak based on experience.
So to your question if cushioning is sufficient for heavier runners like yourself, well I’m a sub-50kg, 1.64m-tall pretty efficient runner so from my experience even the 5.0 is enough cushioning for me for a 10k run. The 7.0 has more cushioning than the 5.0.
Second, the Nike Free is meant to be a training aid, rather than a regular running shoe. So you should use the shoe for short jogs, drill work or just plain walking around to help strengthen your foot. As you know, running barefoot is tough on the calves so make sure you ease into the Free if you do get it.
Third, I believe the Free is a shoe designed for neutral biomechanics. The shoe is pretty devoid of those systems that control pronation, like plastic midsole inserts and such. But I guess that is the whole point of the shoe — to help you return to that biomechanially-sound, barefoot style of running, which researchers believe was what all of us were born with anyway. Just check out toddlers, they walk almost only on their forefoot. But over time, because of modern society and its pavements and roads, it is only practical to wear shoes to protect our soles. And these modern shoes are what researchers believe is one of the causes of our feet problems.
So, anyway, what I’m trying to say is that I think the Free (whether the 7.0. 5.0 or 3.0) is suitable for anyone, even yourself — but as a training aid. And if there is pain (and I mean not muscle soreness but joint pain), please ease off the shoes for a bit! As to how long one will get used to such shoes, it all depends on the individual. Some could take a couple of weeks, others a couple of months, yet others even longer.
Good luck with the shoes! I love the 5.0.
Jeanette
I see you’ve been using the Free 5.0V4. I just got myself a pair and I feel that they fit me pretty well too. My first run in them was 8km and I didn’t feel weird like what other first time users reported. My other pair of shoe I use is the Nike Speed Cage (Katana III) and it’s also light and flexible, but with more support at for the heel transition area.
I am not a neutral runner. I under pronate slightly, but have no problems with these shoes. I am a size 13 and my feet run pretty wide so I need wide shoes. These shoes are great. I hate shoes that forces my feet to conform to the narrow bridge/arch support area so if that’s an issue someone else shares with me, I’d recommend these shoes to them.
Hey Kar Wee,
Good to hear your review. I guess it really depends on the individual! I have no problems with the Free 5.0 v4 too. I actually prefer it to my old Free 7.0!
The Katana was my favourite running shoe of all time prior to the LunaRacer, I’d use it for everything from long runs to speed work. My feet are pretty wide too (have been told they make good flippers) so I totally understand what you mean.
I’m a midfoot striker so I don’t quite care for heel technology! :-) (Same applies to dress shoes, haha)
Keep running!
Jeanette