Best Barefoot Running Shoes?

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  • Go to the gear shop with the biggest shoe selection you can find and try on everything you can. It's all about fit. Make sure you try different sock combos as well.
    As for the terrain in North Carolina on the AT, it's probably going to be typical hard pack trail, with tons of rocks and roots. Expect a lot of mud. Really any trail runner or boot should be able to handle it. Most road running shoes as well if you have strong feet and a lighter load.

  • Nice one Paul, do I still have to go half a size bigger?
  • Just wondered if anyone knew of anywhere in London where its possible to try on different brands of barefoot trainers?

     I've tried asking online but no one seems to know, the best Merrell could do was to suggest looking on their store-checker, when I emailed back to say I had already done so and checked 3 of the stores mentioned only to find they did not stock the footglove (merrells version of the barefoot trainer).

    Anyone know of any stores that stock any at all? I've not found a single store with most not even knowing what they were!

  • I've been running in Puma H-Streets for a couple of years. They were cheap and are very minimal but have been out of production until very recently. Look online for barefoot forums, they are often mentioned. However I'ver just replaced my last pair with Merrell Trail Gloves, which are something like halfway between a trainer and the fivefingers. I've only just got them but so far I like them very much.

    I got them from Cotswold Outdoors, they didn't have other options to try but I'd pretty much settled on them anyway and I got a 20% discount by joining some offer so they were £67. 

  • RatzerRatzer ✭✭✭

    Funny that.  Terra Plana is the shop all over the website that you link to in all your other threads, that sells the Vivobarefoot range.

    I'd buy shoes from a running shop.  I'd wouldn't buy processed meat from a spammer.

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  • Currently i do 25-30 miles a week just normal running and I'm interested in trying "barefoot" running shoes. (Bit injury and niggle prone)

    I know I wouldn't be able to just switch my trainers for minimilist ones straight away and expect to do the same miles, however i dont' want to reduce my miles as have various races coming up.

    Is it ok to do both, long runs still in normal trainers and then short ones barefoot style and building up over time until longer runs are also barefoot?? Or would this just totally mess up eveything?

    Also, i'm quite a slow runner, would barefoot just make be stupidly slow? I'm about 10min miles at the moment, faster on a good day. 

    Thanks

  • I've got the Vivo Barefoot Terra Plana Neos and like them. Wider forefoot than the Evo (which I need), also cheaper. Same 4 mm sole.

    Mixing long runs in more normal trainers and short runs in minimalist should be fine (start by e.g. running a normal short run then doing 1/2 mile or so in the minimalist to finish and working up from there). More difficult might be mixing running styles, if you're heel striking in your normal trainers and midfoot or forefoot landing in the minimalist shoes.

    Reading the barefoot/minimalist website, very slow runners often end up faster by switching to barefoot style (midfoot landing, shorter stride, higher cadence).

    I made the switch by dropping my mileage right down to almost nothing then building up again in the minimalist shoes, because I wanted to switch over to midfoot landing from heel-striking. I was building up nicely (reached 7 mile long run) and feeling great until I did several somethings stupid (catalogue of mistakes on mistakes which I won't bore you with) and ended up with a metatarsal stress fracture/reaction plus extensor tendonitis). Frustrating. But the physiotherapy should, eventually, lead to better flexibility and right/left leg matching in strength & flexibility (says she, looking for the silver lining).

  • Nire I'd agree with what Debra has said above, I sampled a pair of Nike Free TR+ (sort of halfway to a barefoot for me as I am used to maximum support Asics) At my gym they were offering to 'trade in your trainers for a workout' which I did. Straight out I ran for an hour then went on to try the other cardio machings (you cannot spin in these!!) I had my calves tell me all about the 'start slow/low mileage' soon as I finished!

     I did notice I found it easier to run faster. I then went on to read that barefoot running recruits fewer muscles (so less calorie burn!) as it is more efficient, its natrual to find its easier to run that little bit faster. Wasn't massivly faster, say the odd 1km/h faster then normal, same duration just a bit more speedy.

     I'd not worry about speed unless your a racer, everyone has their own speed, those that judge you/anyone don't have respect for the sport and should at best be ignored and should actually try running themselves before judging others!

  • I think it's important to remember that the advantages of barefoot/minimalist running come from a change in the running form, not from buying an expensive pair of shoes. Please do't think that putting on a minimalist pair of shoes will lead to perfect running form from day 1.

    I started barefoot to try and get the technique right - it wasn't at all intuitive for me and took some time to get the 'feel' for it.

    Next I tried aqua shoes, as they're cheap and have some of the benefits of minimalist running shoes, although they tend to be quite narrow at the front. Moved on to VFF classic after I couldn't bear hobbling around the house anymore. Once I got upto about 8-9 Km I found these were beginning to hurt too (I have really feeble feet!), so I'm now using Merrel trail gloves (from a shoe shop in the Oracle in Reading) and really like them.

  • jennn wrote (see)

    Just wondered if anyone knew of anywhere in London where its possible to try on different brands of barefoot trainers?

     I've tried asking online but no one seems to know, the best Merrell could do was to suggest looking on their store-checker, when I emailed back to say I had already done so and checked 3 of the stores mentioned only to find they did not stock the footglove (merrells version of the barefoot trainer).

    Anyone know of any stores that stock any at all? I've not found a single store with most not even knowing what they were!


    Hey Jenn, I

    've just come across your post on here, I head up the Merrell customer services team and am also a keen runner....Its really tough for my team to dirrect you to actual stores who have puchased the barefoot to sell in store as a lot of the times when we sell a shoe it goes to a warehouse where the distribute the shoes themselves. Im sorry if you felt that they were not helpful enough.

    We are obviously really keen to get the shoes into the market place but a lot of retailers are still reluctant to take the Barefoot in as it is a totally new concept for them.

     The main stockists who have brought the style in are Ellis Brigham, Cotswolds and www.runandbecome.com who have a store in Victoria London. Failing that you can order them off our website, try them at home and then return the shoes to us should they be unsuitble.

     I hope this helps, good luck with the Barefoot running, I hope you enjoy it as much as many of our followers all ready are image

  • Hi Lindsey,

     Thanks for your reply- I'm actually coincidentally planning a visit to runandbecome next month, they have the guy who wrote the barefoot running book "Born To Run" doing a talk on the 26th and I've booked me a space! Purse depending I am also planning on getting me a pair of barefoots then and hope to try across the brands. I will also be getting a pair of Nike Free's to wean myself off my max support Asics until then as a birthday present so am guessing I will be more able to adapt to them come June when I can do my first test run!

     I had thought about trying shoes off the website but am wary of having to send stuff back, not just the post office queues but also sending stuff back recorded deliver (so paying out for something I have no longer got) and as well I think I'd benefit someone elses advice when trying out a pair which I'm sure would feel perfectly comfortable when first on but after a run or two would develop sore sports or feel wrong, I'd hope by visiting a store they could direct me to the best suited fit or what to check for if they don't fit. Close to £100 on a pair of trainers is a big deal for me but when they are supposed to imitate a protected version of going bare foot and still cause problems, this is when it would really irritate me! I prefer also to try several across the brands and even several across one brand having worked in a clothing store before I know well that even two items of the same size can fit differently!

    Thanks for your post, hope I do manage to get somewhere on the 26th though and will feed back here what happens image

  • Hi Jennn - did you make it BFT's talk on the 26th? I was there and found him so inspiring - man can he talk!

    The VFFs were selling like the proverbial hot cakes in the interval so i guess Ted's exuberance spurred some of the audience to take the plunge. I am going to Run and Become's Barefoot Clinic this month to see if BF is for me and how easy it will be for me to transition. At the moment I love running for the sheer joy of it and to hear some of the people at the talk last week expressing how barefoot running has brought them a new love for running really encouraged me.

     I don't think it's for everyone, but surely it's worth a try. I would love to leave my heel striking shoes behind image

  • You'll have a really hard job finding anywhere that stocks any barefoot shoes. None of my local running shops had any but I did find a pair of Merrell Trail Gloves in Ellis Brigham (outdoors shop) so I bought those.

    I'm very pleased with them as they seem an almost perfect design but it would have been nice to try some alternatives and see which I preferred.

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