Tag Archives: fitness

Soft Star Shoes RunAmoc Moc3: An Active Dad’s Review

03/19/2015 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

I’ve been wearing minimalist shoes for over 5 years now and will never go back to cushioned unstability shoes again. Vibram Five Fingers or New Balance Minimus have been my shoes of choice, but since the kind ~~folks~~ “Elves” at Soft Star Shoes sent me a pair of their RunAmoc Moc3 barefoot running shoes to review, I have a new favorite.

Here a few key details on the running “moccasins”:

– Superior flexibility and ground-feel.
– They weigh less than 5oz!
– Breathe-O-Prene® liners wicks moisture and keeps dust and dirt away!
– Genuine leather uppers, perforated for breathability.
– Zero drop 2mm Vibram® soling.
– Can be worn with or without socks.
– Extremely odor resistant.
– Reflective strips for nighttime safety.
– Handcrafted in Oregon, USA.
– See more by clicking this link.

Although they’re marketed as barefoot running shoes/moccasins, the RunAmoc Moc3’s are perfect for so much more. Lifting weights, walking, high intensity interval training (HIIT) exercise, chasing crazy toddlers, tasks around the house, shopping, and, when your kid lets you, relaxing.

I hear that last one is nice, but Avery has yet to allow this thing called “relaxing”. However, the shoes helped me block her path of destruction when they stopped her in her tracks to take a closer look.

The Moc3’s instantly appealed to me since they are slip-on and as minimal as you can get without just actually being barefoot. Give me a slip on shoe, I’m happy, but give me a high quality slip shoe made for performance, I’m ecstatic! And that’s exactly what the Soft Star RunAmoc Moc3 offers.

Looks

At first, they looked a little funky to me, but as I studied them longer…they still looked funky. It’s true, they’re basically an upgraded sock, but that’s what I love about them. Even compared to the Vibram Five Fingers, the Moc3’s just tend to grab more attention.

Maybe because they look as if they are some sort of business casual shoe when you first see them, but then you notice you can see the person’s toes poking through the thin leather uppers. Not to mention how thin the whole shoe looks/is.

The looks have actually grown on me, and I’m completely happy with their design. Besides, barefoot/minimal shoes aren’t meant to fit in and they shouldn’t, they deserve to stand out from the rest!

Fit and Feel

No half sizes here, but for the Moc3’s I recommend you round down from your regular shoe size. I usually wear a 10 1/2 and got the size 10 Moc3 which still had some room inside. Note that these shoes can be worn with or without socks, and wearing socks can make your foot slip around more than if you were barefoot. I tried both ways and prefer going without socks as the shoes hug my feet better and don’t slip.

Whether you have socks or not, the shoes slip on easily and are extremely comfortable. I love being able to feel the ground beneath me, and the RunAmoc Moc3’s allow me to do just that. It’s almost therapeutic to walk or run in the grass when wearing these shoes since you can feel the blades under your feet with every step.

At less than 5oz, it truly is as if you’re just wearing some thick socks. But since they’re handmade by Elves who are actually passionate about what they do, you don’t have to worry about getting any holes like you would socks! My feet feel free in the shoes, and they basically are with their soft yet sturdy construction.

Performance

These shoes are rock stars! I may not be running high mileage like back in my marathon days, but know that I could in the Moc3’s if I wanted. Instead, I’ve gone on daily long walks and runs with Avery and even incorporated “stroller hill sprints” in the shoes.

The Moc3’s offer the best barefoot running experience I’ve ever had, hands down. Even the Vibram Five Fingers seem less minimal after wearing the Soft Stars. Don’t get me wrong, I still like and enjoy the “VFF’s”, but Soft Star is my new go-to shoe.

I tried running with and without socks, and prefer no socks the best. When I did wear socks, my feet would slide around and the heel would slip every so often like they were going to come off. Without socks, the shoes hug my feet better and feel more like they are just a part of me, not something loosely attached to the end of my limbs.

Running is a liberating movement, and the Moc3’s allow me to take things a step (ha ha) further by making everyday activities liberating too. Like, for instance weightlifting.

When lifting weights, ideally we would be barefoot to connect better with the ground and be more stable. Think of all of the cushioning on standard shoes like standing on pillows when trying to squat heavy weight. The end result would NOT be pretty!

Thankfully, the zero drop, super flexible, and high quality construction of the Moc3’s make them perfect for any weightlifting session. I normally wear a minimal shoe with a 4mm drop, and after lifting in the Moc3’s, I could feel my leg muscles activating more which surprised me at first. I didn’t think it would be a big difference, but these are now the only shoes I’ll use on leg day.

The Vibram soles provide plenty of traction which comes in handy when performing any of the Olympic lifts or HIIT exercises. CrossFit type of workouts is another area where the shoes shine as their grip and light weight instill confidence from kettlebell swings to burpees, to box jumps.

Durability

I’ve worn the Moc3’s for several weeks now, and never wore any other shoes in that time besides when it was raining. Side note: the ultra minimal nature of these shoes means they are not water resistant, so they WILL NOT absorb water when stepping in puddles. I found out the hard way, but they do dry out and clean up easily!

In wearing these shoes all day every day where I spend most time on my feet, going for walks/runs with Avery, cooking in the kitchen, playing on the playground, lifting weights, and performing high intensity interval training, the shoes still look great! I managed to scrape my toes going over an obstacle when running, and all I have is a scuff, but besides that, these things hold up well!

Seriously, it’s hardly noticeable. After dealing with stitching coming undone on my Vibram Five Fingers, I am completely happy with how well the Soft Stars are constructed and absolutely love that they are handmade right here in the U.S.A!

Summary

Their light weight, high durability, and zero drop are key factors making the Soft Star RunAmoc Moc3’s my new favorite shoe. The fact that they’re slip-on is what I love, but can see this being a drawback to some wanting a more snug fit. That said, ditch your socks and you should be just fine.

I love how you can feel so much under your feet in these and it makes me feel more connected to the earth. Call me a hippie if you want, but nothing compares besides actually going barefoot…..just beware of sharp objects! Being able to quickly slip these shoes on to go workout or just go to the local coffee shop makes them perfect for anyone looking to get a minimal shoe that is multi-functional. Oh, and, absolutely necessary for any parent with little ones running around!

As a Soft Star Shoes Ambassador, I’ll be talking more about these shoes for a while. I have confirmed I love them for myself, but they also make children’s shoes by hand and I’m thinking Avery needs to have herself a pair soon! Check out all they have to offer on their site and have fun with the create your own feature.

Hopefully this review will have you ordering your first pair soon and you’ll be opening a package to find this glorious sticker with your new foot huggers carefully wrapped inside.

Going Healthy, Life, Parenting

Indoor Rowing With a Toddler & Cold Brew Coffee

02/26/2015 R.C. Liley 2 Comments

Is there something you’ve wanted for years but haven’t been able to get it for some reason? Okay, fine, there’s probably more than just something and more like a lot of things. But for me, one of them was an ergometer so I could enjoy indoor rowing at home.

After many many years of blah-blahing to Going Mom about how I want one, I finally earned enough points on my Amazon card to pull the trigger; or should it be rigger? 🙂 Just a little rowing joke for you, you’re welcome. And of course I had to share my purchase on Facebook, but only because Amazon asked me to after I hit “submit payment”.

It finally came this past Tuesday and I quickly worked on putting it together. With my favorite little helper, of course.

Think something’s too easy for you? Throw in a toddler or two and that should solve your issue; instant increase in difficulty! But we love them! Avery was super interested in everything I had out and thought everything was up for grabs.

Thankfully Kelley was able to keep Avery at bay long enough for me to have it assembled and ready to test before it was too late. I skipped the usual walk (it was freakin’ cold outside anyway), and opted to do a 5k row which took just under 20 minutes. Ahhh, I love it!

But there is one thing that’s an issue…..Avery. She’ll walk right into my arms as they’re pulling back which results in me knocking her over. Poor girl, she just laughs and thinks I’m playing with her. It’s sad, really.

Again, thanks to my wife holding Avery back as best as she could, the first row went mostly okay. But the next day, when Kelley was at work, I wanted to try for another 5k. After Avery finished….umm, whatever she was doing with it…..

I’m gonna have to work with her on how to properly use equipment.

Anyway, I finally got to it with Avery circling me like a shark and I was a surfer with an open wound. Then she went in for the kill and put her hand on the railing as I was pushing back, and oops! Avery’s shark fin hand got hit by the rolling seat.

The good thing is that I slowed down just before since she moved behind me, but the bad this is that I hurt her precious little hand and she was screaming to let me know. I held her, for a while, but the screaming ensued. I was finally able to set her down and finish my workout (the hand incident happened only 2 minutes into it) and she kept her distance the remainder of the time.

I’d like to think she now knows better, but something tells me she’s still too intrigued by the machine to keep away. You could call it a hunch, but she makes it apparent as well. Especially when I said “raise your hand if you still want to get close to the rower” and she responded with….

Yeah, so there’s that.

My foot is still not healed from when I fractured it this summer since I started running on it before it was fully recovered. Call me stubborn, call me dumb, call me whatever, but I’m hoping this rower will keep me from running while still giving me that tired, sweaty workout I seem to crave. Time will tell, and then I’ll tell you here.

In the meantime, I have this beautiful French Press full of black gold (not oil, coffee!!!) in our fridge right now in an attempt at my first homemade cold brew coffee.

I’m letting it steep for 24 hours and then I’ll press and strain the highly concentrated coffee into another glass. I’m sure I’ll try some before diluting. You know, just to “test” it at full strength. Then I’ll dilute in a 2:1 coffee to water ratio.

Maybe some Pyure Sweet Stevia or SweetLeaf English Toffee Liquid Stevia for something extra fancy and tasty, but otherwise, I’ll enjoy it cold and black. I’ll let you know how it goes soon. Maybe it’ll fuel another 5k row, or even 10k if Avery keeps her little hands off the rail!

Have you ever used an indoor rower (i.e. ergometer)?

Ever make your own cold brew or try some already made before?

Avery Talk, Going Strong, NuttZo

Kettlebell Training for Toddlers

02/06/2015 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

Hey there, fellow Toddler cohorts! Walking yet?

No worries if you’re not there yet, it took me longer than expected too. At least Mommy and Daddy seem to think so. Whatevs. Remember how I revealed my resolution for 2015 was to master the kettlebell? I’ve been practicing and even have my very own now.

I like it much better than Daddy’s since I can actually lift this one, plus it’s more colorful with a pretty blue handle and red base. See?

Now that I have my own, I figured I’d share a couple quick kettlebell moves you can use to start exercising with your Mommy and Daddy. Or, maybe you can help them kick any bad habits and teach them a thing or two about training. Like drinking, have them knock it out or threaten to do it for them. Like this….

There, problem solved. Let them know they can buy a new kettlebell with the money they save from not drinking, or at least skipping the next purchase. Toddler Tip: Parents seem to really like their drinks, so only use this approach as a last resort. Back to the training; use the grooves on the handle to align your fingers for a good, firm grip like so.

Then stand up making sure you keep good form throughout.

Now, from a standing posit…..ahhh, blasted teething, must chew something quick! Hummmmmm, nom, nom….

Holy diaper rash, the pain just comes out of nowhere! Anyway, holding your kettlebell by the handle, begin a swinging motion by……Gahhhh, not again!! Lets take a quick break.

Okay, had to leave the gym/our garage and go inside to let the pain subside. The benefit to kettlebell training is that you can do it inside or out, making it perfect when the weather is like my morning diaper….crappy. C’mon, you other tots know what I’m talking about. Eh?

Picking up where we left off, hold your kettlebell and ahh, aaHHHH….seriously?! How many teeth are in there? This is worse than…..well, I don’t have much to compare to yet, but it hurts! For those of you going through the same thing, forget swinging, just do this with your kettlebell.

No hands! Yeah, I’ve been practicing for a while now, so don’t feel bad if you aren’t advanced enough for the kettlebell mouth swing. Well, my training is not going as planned today, so just try closing your eyes, grabbing your kettlebell, and running/swinging blindly.

Hey, it gets the heart going and just feels good sometimes.

*Next Day*

Hi again……it was a long night full of what Mommy and Daddy call ducking teething. I have no clue what ducking has to do with it, but my mouth sure does hurt.

Before “it” happens again, let me just show you the basic kettlebell swing. Yesterday, after my ducking teething, Daddy showed me how to do it right.

I took plenty of notes, and can give you the key things to remember for a proper swing. Standing with you feet at least shoulder-width apart, hold your kettlebell with both hands and swing it between your legs back up to eye level. That’s one rep/swing.

Some versions have you bringing it over your head, that’s the American style, but we tend to do the Russian swing in our house. That might change after I just knocked that vodka bottle over though! Oops.

One last thing, when you’re training at high intensities with the kettlebell, you’re going to have an increased appetite. Make sure you feed your body quality nutrients to help it grow strong and fuel your workouts to allow you to perform. Along with plenty of fresh veggies, Daddy always has a delicous NuttZo creation to feed me and I can already tell I’m ready for a heavier kettlebell!

Oh, and one more last thing, for real this time; you can save 15% off your total NuttZo order by using code liley15 at checkout on their website. Since us toddlers don’t have a credit card, make sure to put on your best cheese-face and get your parents to order now!