These are sort of an off brand. I bought to try because they were cheap. Verdict is they are very good for wide toe barefoot style. Using them in France. Grab them while they last. I just bought a second pair.
Andy Malone
Jintong
That's a cheap shoe! Mind blown.
Yes it is, and quite decent. I just ordered a second pair.
That’s why I found it. Ofek and someone else both had the Whitins and they are like $30 or more just for the cultivation of some meaningless brand identifier. Based on experience I know that any Chinese item like that on Amazon has multiple sellers all offering the same product from the same factory under different silly brands, some more successful and therefore expensive than others. In fact it’s all the same. So I searched for shoes that just looked similar.
this one was close enough and so cheap that it was worth the chance. They are fine. I don’t like to pay a lot because I know I will kill them pretty fast.
Edmond Chow
Wuji
Somehow that same shoe costs double in Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/ZVC-Barefoot-Sneakers-Minimalist-Footwear/dp/B0CR1DK1TK/ref=sr_1_5?sr=8-5
But I saved it for the future. Hope it sticks around, or we can find more similar ones. Does the sole feel very thin? Like you can feel the ground through them?
But I saved it for the future. Hope it sticks around, or we can find more similar ones. Does the sole feel very thin? Like you can feel the ground through them?
Kozmo
Wuji
If you remove the insole
You are welcome to have me or someone else in the US buy them at the US price and keep them here for the next visit.
Yes. They do have a foam insole but its not too thick. I you remove that as Kozmo said it will be thin and hard. In my case I was wearing this with the insole in the park in France and I felt every rock during jumping so I am keeping those insoles in. Once you start with Zhenjiao the tiny bit of cushion is helpful.
For the benefit of anybody who may consider the Xero Prio (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NXX1XK8): I just got back from an engagement where I tried that model of shoes. I found them over-engineered -- what the marketers call supportive or structured -- and unusable for gongfu and do not recommend them.
For my part I will stick with the Merrell Vapor Glove 5.
For my part I will stick with the Merrell Vapor Glove 5.
Kozmo
Wuji
Excellent shoe
al.delaiglesia555
Wuji
The foot collective has a bunch of minimalist shoe recommendations. Anyone use this site? They have some great training and training tools as well. https://thefootcollective.us/pages/trusted-footwear-brands
Andy Malone
Jintong
I used vivobarefoot for a long time. I haven't used this site though. I always ordered them from vivo website or amazon. They are bullet proof, in my experience. extremely barefoot feeling. painfully very thin soled. The sole is made of some kind of high tech material that just doesn't break down even grinding it into hard concrete. They eventually do die but I have had pairs that lasted many years. They have a lot of models that I wouldn't use for tajiquan. I would use the leather options for durability. They aren't cheap so I don't know if I reccomend them or not. If you have extra cash they are really good shoes to try out. The barefoot quality is extreme though.
angryclown
Jingang
I've recently picked up some shoes from Splay Shoes. They are flat and wide, but not as thin as some others. I use my shoes for dog walking and yard work and everything else, in addition to gongfu. These are made for skateboarding, so hopefully will turn out to be fairly robust. They are more expensive than some, but you can find them on sale or find discount codes on the interwebs.
