INTERESTING NEW FOOTWEAR
Do you have Moebius Syndrome?  Do you, therefore, have club feet?  Do you maybe have a hard time finding comfortable shoes for those times when you want to be active, or just flat out have a hard time finding shoes that fit?  Is it hard to run or walk without pain?  Well, there's a new kind of shoe out now that might just be interesting to try:
"
Jane Brodsky desperately wanted to run again. But whenever the Capitol Hill resident attempted to jog, the osteoarthritis in her left leg complained. She was hoping she’d finally found her solution one year ago when she bought a pair of Vibram FiveFingers, the sock-like shoe with articulated toes that’s developed a reputation for helping users mimic running barefoot. The brand’s fans convinced her that with a more natural stride, the pain would subside.
That didn’t happen. But her shoes are still getting a workout. “I don’t use sneakers at all now,” says the 33-year-old who wears her FiveFingers everywhere — around town, at her apartment’s gym and hiking on a recent trip to Cinque Terra, Italy. She sometimes sports them while manning the front desk at Red Bow, her boutique exercise studio that offers Pilates and ballet barre classes, both of which are taught sans shoes and emphasize the benefits of foot strength.
It was Morton’s neuroma, an excruciating nerve condition, that had stopped Susan-Marie Stedman of Burtonsville in her tracks. The 52-year-old marine biologist couldn’t manage to hike without hurting, no matter what shoes she’d tried. Until she bought Vibram FiveFingers a year ago.
Now Stedman can’t imagine wearing anything other than her “freaky feet,” her pet name for the odd-looking (some might even say ugly) shoes. She owns three pairs, which she wears when she’s stretching, on the elliptical and even hang-gliding. “Once you’ve made the commitment to this type of footwear, you can’t go back,” she says. “Disco dancing and bike riding are the two things I won’t do in them now.”
It is customers like Brodsky and Stedman who’ve made the footwear industry realize there’s a market beyond runners for nontraditional shoes. The speedsters are the ones who flipped for FiveFingers ($85 to $110) after reading Christopher McDougall’s anti-shoe bible “Born to Run” in 2009, so companies quickly tried to cater to their needs, says Doug Smiley, the footwear buyer for City Sports. “Now it’s evolving from running into other kinds of fitness,” he says.
For the past few years, minimalism has been the fastest-growing category in running. This year, Smiley says, it’s become the fastest-growing category in training, too. There is a particular interest in wooing serious gymgoers who are drawn to the idea of working out every muscle in their body, including the ones in their feet. Vibram FiveFingers, which launched in 2006 (not specifically as a running shoe), has always advocated for its products being used for a variety of activities, but it was only this year that the company released the KomodoSport, engineered to appeal to athletes who want to perform multi-directional movements.
Those same folks may also be intrigued by New Balance’s Minimus MX20, a cross-trainer that hit shelves July 1 with a number of features that make minimal shoe lovers drool — an anatomical shape, a wide toe box that lets you really splay and a teensy 4mm drop from heel to toe to keeps you feeling stable on the ground. The upper part of the shoe differs from a lot of the running shoes on the market, however, because it still offers support, which is more comfortable when you’re stopping, starting and changing direction, explains product manager Kevin Fitzpatrick. There’s another reason it has a leg up on the running shoes in the Minimus line, he adds. “When it comes to running, people can be hesitant about going minimal right away,” he says. “People have less hesitation in the gym.”
Adidas is certainly hoping so. The company just unveiled the Adipure Trainer, another articulated toe option that’s scheduled to arrive in stores in November. It’s billed as “the first barefoot training shoe designed specifically for the gym.”
If shoppers are less concerned about how their barefoot-style shoes will handle lateral leaps and deadlifts, there’s also Fila’s new Skele-Toes line, which looks nearly identical to Vibram FiveFingers. (The major aesthetic difference: There are four digits instead of five because the two smallest toes share a single pouch.) As Mark Eggert, Fila’s director of design for footwear, emphasizes, “These aren’t for performance per se.” Instead, they’re marketed as shoes for just kicking around in — running errands rather than running.
The trend sounds smart to Mark Cucuzzella, a 44-year-old physician in Sheperdstown, W.Va., who’s become one of the leading proponents of barefoot-style living. “Who can run in Vibram FiveFingers off the bat? Not many people,” says Cucuzzella, who spent years preparing his feet for the switch from traditional shoes to minimalist ones for running. “But you can start walking in a lower drop shoe immediately. Walking is the perfect transition.”
In 2010, he opened Two River Treads, the first minimalist running and walking shoe store in the country, and still the closest one to Washington. This year, he helped launch the Natural Running Center, a Web site bringing together shoe reviews, discussion forums, training tips and a library of scientific articles.
Altogether, it makes a pretty convincing argument that we’ve been going about building shoes the wrong way — elevating our heels, immobilizing our arches, adding so much cushioning that we can’t feel the ground. Barefoot advocates claim that this has weakened our feet, impaired our proprioception, or body awareness, and generally messed with our posture and alignment, creating a host of injuries."

There's more--read the whole thing.  And remember that these shoes might be good for you; or they might not.  Check with your doctor...

FRIDAY FOOTBALL PICKS
Last week I was 8-8-1.  Slow improvement?  I hope so...

COLLEGE PICKS

LSU at West Virginia.  MY PICK:  TIGERS.  That defense is fast and physical.  It will shut down the WVU passing game.

Arkansas at Alabama.  MY PICK:  CRIMSON TIDE.  Same deal here--that 'Bama defense will shut down the Razorbacks.

NFL PICKS

San Francisco at Cincinnati.  LINE:  Bengals by 2.5.  MY PICK:  BENGALS.  They've played decently 2 weeks in a row, and surprised people...look for them to make it 3 with the steady Andy Dalton.

New England at Buffalo.  LINE:  Patriots by 8.5.  MY PICK:  BILLS.  Upset special.  New England's defense can be driven on...Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Bills have shown they can move the ball; the Pats will pull this game out, but look for a close battle.

Houstion at New Orleans.  LINE:  Saints by 4.  MY PICK:  SAINTS.  Can't pick against Drew Brees and that offense at home.

NY Giants at Philadelphia.  LINE: Eagles by 8.  MY PICK:  EAGLES.  Word is Mike Vick will play, and so he and those playmakers of his will torch the Giants injured secondary.

Miami at Cleveland.  LINE:  Browns by 2.5.  MY PICK:  DOLPHINS.  They were an outstanding road team last year, and look for Chad Henne and that improving offense to keep that trend alive.

Denver at Tennessee.  LINE:  Titans by 6.5.  MY PICK:  TITANS.  If Matt Hasselbeck keeps playing well at QB, he makes this a dangerous team--certainly the case here vs the Broncos questionable defense.

Detroit at Minnesota.  LINE:  Lions by 3.5.  MY PICK:  LIONS.  Minnesota has traditionally been a house of horrors for Detroit, but I'm buying in--the Lions seem to be different now.

Jacksonville at Carolina.  LINE:  Panthers by 3.5.  MY PICK:  PANTHERS.  Cam Newton vs Blaine Gabbert?  Right now, take Cam.

Kansas City at San Diego.  LINE:  Chargers by 14.5.  MY PICK:  CHARGERS.  Because Kansas City appears to be that bad.

NY Jets at Oakland.  LINE:  Jets by 3.5.  MY PICK:  JETS.  Because although the Raiders are improved, the Jets under Rex Ryan seem to find a way to win these games.

Baltimore at St. Louis.  LINE:  Ravens by 4.  MY PICK: RAVENS.  St. Louis is injured, they make too many mistakes, and the veteran Ravens will be focused after last week's slip.

Atlanta at Tampa Bay.  LINE:  Buccaneers by 1.5.  MY PICK:  FALCONS.  Just a gut feeling--Falcons just seem to have a bit of a talent edge at skill positions.

Arizona at Seattle.  LINE:  Cardinals by 3.5.  MY PICK:  CARDINALS.  Kevin Kolb big time over Tarvaris Jackson.

Green Bay at Chicago.  LINE:  Packers by 3.5.  MY PICK:  PACKERS.  Aaron Rodgers and those Packer playmakers on offense over Brian Urlacher and Jay Cutler.

Pittsburgh at Indianapolis.  LINE:  Steelers by 10.5.  MY PICK:  STEELERS.  We now know--without Peyton, the Colts are just a shadow of their former selves; it will be a long year.

Washington at Dallas.  LINE:  Cowboys by 5.  MY PICK:  REDSKINS.  I think the Cowboys can win this game, assuming Tony Romo both plays and finishes it...but the Dallas injury situation is dire enough that I see this as a very tight game that the Cowboys may win by a field goal late...or the Redskins could win outright.