Testing the Merrell barefoot shoe

I've enjoyed my pairs of casual Merrell shoes (like this and this) for some years now and was quite curious when the brand came out with a barefoot glove option last year. Yesterday I snapped up a pair on the clearance rack at a shoe store in Boston and today I am test-driving them.

I went with the Pure Glove model in black - I tried on a 7.5 (my actual shoe size) both barefoot and with a SmartWool sock. The fabric uppers lends a bit flexibility and the bulky sock did not significantly decrease the wiggle room in the shoe, if it had I would have gone up a half shoe size to an 8 so I could wear them in the winter too. Considering I spend almost 90% of my time barefoot (yes, year round), I was prepared to spend a little time getting used to my new shoes. I don't wear shoes with a significant lift to the heel already so the learning curve for my feet should be mild.

During my first walk down the sidewalk to the office I noticed the foot strike was almost exclusively midfoot. Nice! This is how I walk when I walk barefoot - an equal distribution of weight over the heel and the ball of the foot, giving a gentle stretch to the arch. Learn more about foot strikes over on running barefoot research site by the Harvard University team.

I have no intentions of going into barefoot running, but if these shoes can help me maintain a comfortable foot temperature during cold weather I'll give them two thumbs up! Stay tuned for more updates as I continue to test out this pair of barefoot shoes.

Do you wear barefoot shoes? I'd love to hear about your experience in the comments section below!