Minimalist after injury advice/help

bump. Also, do you guys think this would just hurt me in the future? Should I just stick with what I was doing before?

1) If your current shoes are still in OK shape, don't buy new shoes yet. Find a grassy field (football pitch or otherwise) and do some barefoot laps after your runs (not long, just to get the feel). After doing this after each run for a few weeks (or even longer), and if you are feeling ok, then consider a more minimal shoe. Since you have had an Achilles injury, make sure it is 100% healed before you start this. Lowering the heel will put more stress on the achilles, and if it isn't ready you could be in for disaster.

2) The Kinvara is OK... it looks cool and feels nice at first, but beware: it is really mushy, not a very performance oriented shoe. I would consider the Mizuno Precision, Asics Speedstar (especially if you have had good luck w/ Cumulus), or the New Balance 890 (or even Minimus if you wait into March) before the Kinvara.

3) In the Kinvara, use black superfeet. The green don't sit flat on the shoe, it gets too narrow in the midfoot. Blue could work as well, but I've had better luck with black. You will probably find similar issues in many "minimalist" shoes as well.

Agreed- was contemplating the Kinvara, tried it on today (for the millionth time) and decided that the forefoot was just WAY too soft. The Speedstar is awesome though. The Speedstar 4 was great, but the 5 is not to be believed

Almost any color other than the green would be better for a minimalist shoe as far as Superfeet inserts go. The Orange has more cushioning at the forefoot, so that might be better for the nonheel striker.

A shoe isn't of itself "good", it depends on the person. Some shoes suit some people... generally speaking if a shoe feels comfortable to run in then it's a good shoe for you.

I've heard some people say that the Kinvara breaks down quite quickly, but I don't have any myself so I couldn't say for sure.

More generally it's unlikely that choice of shoe is the main issue around avoiding injury. Much more significant is the kind of work-outs you do and the total mileage.

Also, to the op, be careful: running with more of a midfoot strike will help your heel, but minimalist shoes alone won't do it for you. If you keep heelstriking in road flats, you'll be no better off than before. I agree with the poster who said to do some barefoot laps on grass.

OP, do you have a good running store near you where a professional can fit you? If not, make the effort to go to one, it could avoid mishaps in the future. There are things that a good fitter will see that you probably won't feel.