Barefoot or Minimal Shoe Trend

The arch supports that are put into tennis shoes are generally trash so I always toss them and buy new ones. I always invest in good insoles from stores like Happy Feet or The Walking Company. They can measure your foot and give you an appropriate fitting to an insole which will really kick butt. The Scholl's stuff never worked for me. My favorite insoles are from The Walking Company. By the way, get fitted for the insole THEN buy the shoes. Some shoes are really narrow and you'll discover the insole won't work with them. I guess I believe in good shoes paired with great insoles.

As for running barefoot, I've heard various things and I think it really depends on whether you are experiencing foot pain. I can't even imagine running barefoot as my feet would scream in agony. I've got flat feet but I also have heel pain. I developed shin splints one year from aerobics on a gym floor which makes me paranoid about not protecting my feet so I'd say it depends on the condition of your feet.

I don't like the way they make my knees and legs feel. I typically don't walk on my heels anyway, so I thought these would slide right into my stride.

Not for me, but I had to try.

I have the Vibram 5-finger shoes. I haven't used them in a while but when I was using them consistently on my runs I liked them. They were light weight and felt more natural on my feet.

With that said the only issue that I had was pain in the ball of my foot because I'm a mid-foot/toe striker.

I don't run, but I do do Zumba and I went to Capezio and bought a pair of their dance exercise shoes that have flexible soles. It is a lot more comfortable wearing these shoes than sneakers to do Zumba.

Do you think there's a reason New Balance includes this warning with their Minimus shoes?

"Caution: This product increases the strain on the foot, calf, and Achilles tendon. Overuse of this product or use of activities outside running and walking may increase the risk of sustaining injury. This product should be introduced *slowly* into a running exercise routine. New Balance recommends limiting initial use to 10% of overall running workouts and very gradually increasing time and distance."


I do own a pair of Minimus shoes and think they are very comfortable and great for working out (weight lifting, indoor cardio.) I'm not a runner, so I can't comment on that.

No because it's actually true. Running in those kinds of shoes is very different then running in regular sneakers. The movement is different as is the feeling and you will be more sore after wards because you're engaging muscles that aren't engaged in regular shoes. When I started running in mine I was told to only do 10 minutes until I got used to them.

I have the Sketchers GoRun that are for the mid foot strike and I love them!

When I was shopping for running shoes I read a bunch of conflicting stuff. Some said I need this type of shoe and yet another would tell be the exact opposite. I ended up going with a happy medium shoe- the Asics Gel Blur33. I went from non active to running a few miles a day and these shoes are great! My last pair I had severe issues with burning feet and shin splints but have had none of those issues since the very first day I wore these. Oh and you can get some on clearance runningshoes.com. They are the same shoes that just got released just different colors and such. I got a cute black, magenta, and silver pair for 55$! I know I rambled and was a bit off topic but I seriously love these shoes and would suggest them to everyone!

I finally bought the New Balance minimalist and LOVE them. I have been having terrible foot pain on the lateral side of my foot. I have gone through 5+ pairs of shoes and every pair "corrected" my foot in a different direction. So I decided to go with the minimalist shoe and do not get the foot pain from running anymore!

I do not run, but I do walk, hike, lift, and all that I wear are Vibram Five Fingers. Except at work where steel toes are required. This "fad" will never fade with me....better posture, better overall alignment, and more stability.....yes, please.

Support shoes are a passing fad, that is fading fast.

I have a friend who started with Nike Frees, which are slightly thicker in the sole, and worked his way to the NB Minimus. That being said, definitely ease into it. You're working parts of your feet and legs that never get worked because of your shoes, so it's going to suck at first, and doing too much too quickly is going to make it suck even worse.

Also, since I've been doing it, I've had much less back, leg, and foot pain than I did before. I work retail and I'm on my feet all day, so I used to be in ridiculous amounts of pain by the end of each. Now, not so much.

Good running form is more important than what is or is not on your feet. I started running last year and spent a year running pain free with the Pose / chi running style with a forefoot strike in traditional support shoes, it's been great for me and I have had no pain or injuries but I still wanted to try barefoot running.

I have over the past 6 weeks been building up my barefoot running, I started out daily running 400 m and increasing the distance when it "felt" good, the main point is to listen to your feet when you start barefoot running and as someone said go slow and keep the distances short for however long it takes.

Check out this website

http://naturalrunningcenter.com/

and www.thebarefootrunners.org

Support shoes are a passing fad, that is fading fast.

Agree!

Double agree! My supportive running shoes did nothing but make my knees and hips hurt, not to mention my shin splints. I started out with vibrams and learned to run again. I have no complaints what so ever. Just start off slowly because your calves will be sore. I have now transitioned to NB minimus and love them. Vibrams were only annoying because I kept picking flowers whilst running through the grass.