If you've been circling the idea of switching to barefoot shoes, you've probably typed some version of the same questions into a search bar. So have thousands of other people. Here's what the science says about the six questions that come up again and again.
1. How do I transition without hurting myself?
This is the question, above all others. And it's the right one to ask, because the research is unambiguous on one point: going too fast is where people get into trouble.
A team at Brigham Young University put this to the test directly. Thirty-six experienced runners were split into two groups — one stayed in conventional running shoes, the other followed a standard, gradual transition protocol into five-toe minimalist shoes over ten weeks, starting with just one to two miles in week one. Even with that cautious approach, MRIs taken before and after the study showed that the minimalist group had significantly greater increases in bone marrow edema — a sign of bone stress — particularly in the metatarsals, compared with the control group. The researchers' conclusion was straightforward: transitioning to minimalist shoes is genuinely stressful to bone, and most people underestimate how much.
That doesn't mean the shoes are inherently risky — it means your tissues need time to adapt to a new job. A systematic review pulling together twenty separate transition studies found that programmes which gradually increased exposure to minimal footwear — typically ramping up to somewhere between 30% and 100% of total footwear time — produced injury rates broadly comparable to those in conventional running shoes. The injuries that did occur skewed towards the foot and lower leg, exactly the tissues taking on new work.
The practical takeaway: treat it like starting a new strength programme, because that's essentially what it is. Weeks, not days. Short walks or runs at first, building volume gradually, and backing off at the first sign of persistent soreness rather than pain you can push through.
2. Will barefoot shoes cause — or fix — plantar fasciitis?
This question comes from both directions, and the honest answer is: it depends on how you get there.
The biomechanical logic for barefoot shoes helping is fairly compelling. Research has repeatedly shown that walking or running in minimal footwear increases the strength of the small intrinsic muscles in the foot. One study found foot strength increased by an average of 57% after six months of daily minimal footwear use, with people who'd been wearing minimal shoes for 2.5 years showing similarly strong feet — suggesting most of the adaptation happens in that first six-month window. Other work has found that people habituated to minimal or barefoot footwear have stiffer, stronger feet than those in conventional shoes.
Why does that matter for plantar fasciitis specifically? The working theory, now being tested directly in clinical trials, is that stronger intrinsic foot muscles take on more of the load with each step, reducing the strain placed on the plantar fascia itself. A current clinical trial is comparing minimal footwear plus foot-strengthening exercises against orthotics plus the same exercises in older adults with plantar fasciitis, precisely to test whether this holds up.
But — and this is the same "but" as question one — a foot that hasn't built that strength yet, thrown suddenly into minimal shoes, is being asked to do more work with less support than it's used to. That's a recipe for plantar and arch pain, not relief from it. The shoes aren't a fix on their own; the gradual strengthening is what does the work.
3. What size should I buy?
There isn't a large body of peer-reviewed research on sizing specifically — this one's more shoemaking practicality than science — but it's worth flagging because it trips up almost everyone on their first pair. Barefoot shoes are built with a wide, foot-shaped toe box rather than a tapered one, so a size that matches your normal shoe length can still feel cramped across the width. Most brands recommend measuring your foot rather than relying on your usual size, and leaving roughly a thumb's width of room at the longest toe. If in doubt, sizing up half a size is usually safer than down.
4. Are they safe for running, the gym, or a race?
Short answer: yes, but not immediately, and not without the transition period covered in question one.
The systematic review mentioned earlier compared injury rates during minimal footwear transitions (17.9 injuries per 100 participants) against matched runners staying in conventional shoes (13.4 per 100) — a modest but real difference, concentrated in the transition window itself rather than persisting long-term. Separate research has flagged a specific trap worth knowing about: "partial minimalist" shoes — cushioned but flexible, without being truly minimal — were associated with more injuries than either true minimalist shoes or traditional trainers, possibly because they change your landing mechanics without giving you the sensory feedback that helps you adjust. If you're going minimal, committing properly (with proper conditioning time) may be safer than a shoe that splits the difference.
For anyone with a history of stress fractures, or heavier runners — who one study identified as being at somewhat higher risk during transition — extra caution and a slower ramp is well justified.
5. Do I need arch support, or is that the whole point of avoiding it?
This is really a question about what "support" is for. Conventional wisdom treats the arch like a structure that needs external propping up. But research led by evolutionary biologist Daniel Lieberman and colleagues has consistently found that populations who spend more time minimally shod or barefoot have stronger, stiffer arches and feet than habitually shod populations — the arch behaves more like a muscle that gets weaker with disuse (i.e., being braced by a shoe) and stronger with use.
The idea behind barefoot shoes isn't that arch support is bad in principle — it's that permanently outsourcing the job to a shoe insert may mean the muscles that would otherwise do it never get the workout. That's supported by the muscle-strengthening findings in question two. Whether that's the right trade-off for you personally can depend on existing foot conditions, which is worth discussing with a podiatrist if you have a diagnosed issue like a collapsed arch, rather than assuming barefoot shoes are automatically corrective.
6. How do I know if a barefoot shoe actually fits right?
The fit cues are different from a regular shoe, which is part of why this question comes up so often. Broadly, you're looking for:
- Room to spread and wiggle your toes freely, with no taper squeezing the little toe inward
- No pressure across the widest part of the forefoot
- A flat, minimal heel-to-toe drop (the science on strengthening and natural gait above generally applies to "zero drop" or close to it — a shoe with a chunky heel isn't really barefoot in the relevant sense)
- A flexible sole you can bend and twist by hand — if you can't flex it easily, it isn't minimal
- Secure through the midfoot without being tight at the front
The bottom line
The research paints a fairly consistent picture: barefoot and minimalist shoes can genuinely strengthen the feet and may help with issues like plantar fasciitis over time, but the transition is a real physiological adaptation, not just a change of footwear. The injuries that show up in the studies almost always trace back to people moving faster than their bones, tendons, and foot muscles could keep up with. Go slow, watch how your body responds, and give it months rather than weeks.
This article is for general information and isn't a substitute for advice from a podiatrist or physiotherapist, particularly if you have an existing foot condition or injury.
0 comments