Many shoes are sold with the term “minimalist” or “barefoot,” but most of those don’t actually meet the criteria for a truly minimalist product.
And research from Harvard’s Dr. Irene Davis shows that these “partial” minimalist shoes could be the worst thing you could wear.
A TRULY minimalist shoe — like Xero Shoes — will typically have these features:
- NO heel lift, also known as zero-drop
- VERY flexible sole (you can roll it up into a ball)
- A low-to-the-ground design (a 4-12mm “stack height”)
- A foot-shaped design rather than a pointy toe
- NO unnecessary arch support
- A sole that’s thin enough to let you FEEL the ground (while still providing protection)
This also results in a lightweight shoe (though there are lightweight shoes that are far from minimalist).
