Okay, let's get this out of the way: This is not a minimalist shoe. The purpose of a minimalist shoe is to be as close to barefoot as possible, so your foot muscles strengthen, allowing you to avoid the injuries common to feet accustomed to cushioned
running shoes. These shoes will not give your muscles that opportunity to strengthen. However, one thing they have in common with minimalist shoes is that the heel height is much lower than a traditional
running shoe. Thus, if you are a person who regularly strikes their heel first when
running (which causes all sorts of joint and muscle problems) this shoe encourages you to strike mid-foot instead. That's a big difference, and a big improvement, for the heel striking runner. If you are not a heel striker, this shoe might not do anything special for you. If you are, it will change and improve your entire
running experience. I haven't had them long, so I can't attest to durability, but they are very comfortable. They are technically for "neutral" runners, which means you don't supinate or pronate much. Keep in mind that none of that supinate or pronate stuff matters at all with a minimalist shoe, because you are supposed to just walk how you walk without any misguided "correction" - and also keep in mind that the supinate/pronate stuff is way overblown. I pronate a bit, but had no problem with these shoes. As for style - the colors are bizarre. There is a white accented with hospital green that looks like it would be perfect wearing to run around an ER. The magenta (which is more like purple) is likely the winner here, though the orange/black is also serviceable. Why they can't make normal colors for women is beyond me. If you want a true minimalist shoe, check out the
Vibram Five Fingers or the
New Balance WT20's (soon to come out the WT30's). But if you are a heel striker looking for a traditional
running shoe that will virtually eliminate annoying
running problems like shin splints, buy this.