Can someone point me in the right direction?

[Saneishmom]

Sorry if this has been discussed already, I looked but couldn't find anything. I'm looking for a minimalist shoe. The shoes I'm in now are Brooks Ravenna 2, they are fine but not the greatest. Every time I go to a running shop looking for a minimalist shoe, I feel like they are just trying to put me in the "top selling" shoes or they try and talk me out of them so I leave with nothing. I don't want to just go barefoot, I would like to work my way down, and I've been looking on the web, to only be more confused. So any help will be better then what I have now! Thanks for any input. Valerie

 

[NickW]

Hi Mom, there is a lot of

Hi Mom, there is a lot of discussion on minimalist shoes in the gear and footwear forum on here. My personal recomendation for minimalist shoes are to find a zero drop shoe that has a wide toebox AND a wide midfoot. From there you can decide how thick of a shoe you need/want. For me, I personally recomend that Altra Adam/Eve line of shoes, but they are not for everyone. They do have a couple different insoles of varying thickness so as you get better with your form you can work your way down. Without the insoles in, this shoe has a 3.4mm sole. There are other shoes out there as well. Vivobarefoot shoes are zero drop as well I believe, but they have a hefty price tag. There are also the SoftStar shoes/mocs as well and I know a ton of people love them. I've never tried them so I can't tell you anything about them really. Merrell and New Balance also have minimalist shoes which from what I've read it seems you either love them or hate them.

I think really you just need to find what works for you. There are a couple shops here locally that I have problems with too who try to tell me I need normal thick soled running shoes and they refuse to really help me find minimalist shoes. I refuse to shop at these stores now and have found one small local shop that wants to get me in the right pair of shoes, for me.

The Maple Grove Barefoot Guy also has a bunch of reviews of shoes on his website as well. Here's a link:

http://www.maplegrovebarefootguy.com/

Your welcome for the plug! I actually think he does a really good job and is very detailed in his reviews, and if he didn't I wouldn't recommend him. Good luck and I hope this helps point you in the right direction.

 

[PB Junkie]

Some of the shoes I liked

Some of the shoes I liked before I switched over to VFFs and Merrells were the Inov-8 F-lite 195 and Saucony Grid Type A4. The F-lite 195s have a 3mm drop and the A4s have a 4 mm drop.



But, if you have the time, you can go to zero drop and just go VERY slow and easy.



Regardless what you choose, integrate the lower drop shoes slowly.

 

[Saneishmom]

Thanks for the input, I'm

Thanks for the input, I'm going to check those shoes out.