Minimalism was born from the simple “less shoe, more you” premise. The idea is that less cushioning and support from your kicks means you’ll engage your feet more, and strengthen the muscle fibers that get neglected when you’re all laced up. With stronger accessory muscles
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in
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the foot, injury rates were expected
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to drop and running efficiency would improve. (After all, the practice seemed to work for the impressive Tarahumara tribes that covered hundreds of injury-free miles in
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wafer-thin sandals.) Minimalism sought to reconnect runners to that organic barefoot experience—one that would ultimately improve our form with the hope that the PRs would soon follow.
The minimalist running movement had some mixed results. While strengthening muscles in the feet
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can be very beneficial to
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runners, logging high barefoot mileage proved a risky way to do it. Overzealous new minimalists jumped into the craze quickly—ditching their supportive shoes—and many actually saw their injuries (and aches and pains) increase. That said, many runners have also
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benefitted immensely from the barefoot approach and have found
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its methods revitalizing, both physically and mentally. Like many experiences we have on the run, it is highly individual.“Footwear providing minimal interference with the natural movement of the foot due
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to its high flexibility, low heel to toe drop, weight and stack height, and the absence of motion control and stability devices.”
Minimalism has died out mostly from its boom nearly a decade ago, but there are still runners out there who do find that it works well for them. If you’re curious and think it’s something
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you’d want to try, a very gradual transition to a
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minimalist shoe is your safest
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bet. Alternating runs between your usual trainers—and easing in at rock-bottom mileage—will help keep you injury-free. But before
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you take the minimalist leap, you might want to test out something less extreme with a lightweight shoe
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instead.Answering this question has sparked both debate and confusion, since some shoes are “more minimal” than others. The Journal of Foot and Ankle Research helped bring some clarity to the field with
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this official definition of a minimalist shoe:
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