My minimalist running shoe guide has consistently been my top performing post for over a year now. However, due to the work that went into assembling it and the explosion of minimalist shoes that have come out since I originally wrote he guide in 2010, I have not spent the time needed to update it as initially planned. Today I finally got around to doing a full update, and instead of attempting to list every shoe that could be considered even remotely minimalist, I opted to trim it down and simply provide my top recommended shoes in each of five categories (all are shoes I have run in myself):
- Zero Drop, Minimal Cushion (aka Barefoot-Style Shoes)
- Zero Drop, Cushioned
- 0-6mm Drop Road Shoes
- 0-6mm Drop Trail Shoes
- Racing Flats
If you think of running shoes as tools, these are the five categories that I would include in my personal running toolbox. If I had to cull my running shoe collection to just five shoes, I would most likely choose one from each of these categories – they would cover all of my personal running needs.
Click here to view my updated minimalist running shoe guide.
You might also like:
United States Navy Authorizes the Use of Minimalist Footwear, including Vibram Fivefingers, with PT Uniforms
Runblogger’s Top Running Shoes of 2010
Brooks Mach 11 Spikeless Cross-Country Racing Flat: On Sale at Running Warehouse
Wired’s Crappy Review of the Nike Free Run+: Ignoring Running Science and Themselves
Nike Free 3.0 Review – Nike’s Answer to Simulating Barefoot Running
About Peter Larson
Hi, I tried to build a complete barefoot and minimalist guide based on midsole and drop measure
http://www.corsanaturale.it/Re…
I’m on my second pair of Kinvara 2s and I love them. However, I’m noticing that if I run longer than about 8 miles in them, I start to get pain and tightness in my ITB and hip/glute on my right side. This doesn’t seem to happen in any other shoes. I’ve been told I pronate slightly on the right side but not on the left so I’m wondering if maybe the Kinvara is not quite enough support for longer runs. The problem is that I’m a midfoot striker and require a very flexible shoe (otherwise, I get achilles and plantar problems). I also don’t like a ton of cushion. Can anyone recommend any shoes that are light and flexible like the Kinvara but provide some mild stability that I could use for my longer runs? I tried the Mirage and found it too stiff (to me it feels much stiffer than the Kinvara). I used to run in the Mizuno Elixir 6 and that worked well for longer runs but finding the recent version too stiff and firm.
I get achilles and plantar problems
Awesome, thanks for posting this. Are you spending lots of money on shoes or do the shoe companies gladly ship them to you? :)
Half and half, actually buying my own more often lately :)
Thanks for sharing this. At first look, choosing one can seem frustrating. But, once you try a few pair of shoe and which type of your foot is the most important thing.