After wear testing over 150 minimalist shoes (or barefoot-style shoes or barefoot shoes or minimal shoes or whatever you want to call them), it is still very confusing for someone to choose a pair of minimal shoes successfully. Minimal shoes are highly individualized and subjective. But the following are key elements to look for in a barefoot-style shoe:
- wide toe box
- low stack height (15 mm or lower preferred)
- ow heel-to-toe drop (6 mm or lower preferred)
- lightweight (7.0 ounces or less preferred)
- flexible outsole preferred
- sock-less wear
For those with narrow feet, wide toe box shoes can cause problems. I have sized up a full size for some models and they were too big so I can simulate the impact. For those running on gnarly trails, you might want a built-in or removable rock plate. But based on my preferences and the range of situations I have encountered myself and my tight group of wear testers, from injury to transitioning to advanced minimalist running, I have enough confidence that after seconds of putting on a pair of minimalist shoe (any category), I can tell immediately on either extreme: great minimal shoe or no-go (too close to traditional shoes). Those that belong in between will require lengthy testing but those usually end up being so-so.
Remember, shoes are only one piece of the solution to sustainable and injury-free running. Personally, running form is primary and shoes are secondary. Hopefully my two plus years of wear testing of over 150 minimal shoes will help you filter out some shoes to try out with no hassles and injury-free.
Here's the list of the top 7 minimalist running shoes as tested by Minimalist Running Shoes wear testers:
- Adidas adipure Gazelle
- Merrell Road Glove
- Mizuno EVO Levitas
- New Balance XC 900
- Skechers GObionic
- SKORA FORM
- Vibram Five Fingers Spyridon LS
We have also recently released our free Fall-Winter '12 Minimalist Shoe Buying Guide (iBook format) for the Apple iPad and also in a less interactive (no interactive galleries and interactive images) universal PDF version.
For detailed reviews of minimalist shoes, please visit Minimalist Running Shoes for all running, casual, and fitness shoes that we have Wear Tested.
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